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Thursday after First Sunday in Advent

MORNING

12.04.2025

Our Father, whichwho art in heaven, Hallowed be thy Name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done inon earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive them thatthose who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, But deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever and ever. Amen.

O Lord, open thou our lips.

And our mouth shall show forth thy praise.

O God, make speed to save us.

O Lord, make haste to help us.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;

As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Praise ye the Lord.

The Lord's Name be praised.

—   ✤   —

Ps. 95.

O come, let us sing unto the Lord; let us heartily rejoice in the strength of our salvation.
Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving, and shew ourselves glad in him with psalms.
For the Lord is a great God, and a great King above all gods.
In his hand are all the corners of the earth, and the strength of the hills is his also.
The sea is his, and he made it; and his hands prepared the dry land.
O come, let us worship and fall down, and kneel before the Lord our Maker.
For he is the Lord our God; and we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand.
Today if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts: as in the provocation, and as in the day of temptation in the wilderness;
When your fathers tempted me, proved me, and saw my works.
Forty years long was I grieved with this generation, and said, It is a people that do err in their hearts, for they have not known my ways;
Unto whom I sware in my wrath, that they should not enter into my rest.
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Ps. 19.

The heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament sheweth his handiwork.
One day telleth another, and one night certifieth another.
There is neither speech nor language, but their voices are heard among them.
Their sound is gone out into all lands, and their words into the ends of the world.
In them hath he set a tabernacle for the sun; which cometh forth as a bridegroom out of his chamber, and rejoiceth as a giant to run his course.
It goeth forth from the uttermost part of the heaven, and runneth about unto the end of it again; and there is nothing hid from the heat thereof.
The law of the Lord is an undefiled law, converting the soul; the testimony of the Lord is sure, and giveth wisdom unto the simple.
The statutes of the Lord are right, and rejoice the heart; the commandment of the Lord is pure, and giveth light unto the eyes.
The fear of the Lord is clean, and endureth for ever; the judgements of the Lord are true, and righteous altogether.
More to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold; sweeter also than honey, and the honeycomb.
Moreover, by them is thy servant taught, and in keeping of them there is great reward.
Who can tell how oft he offendeth? O cleanse thou me from my secret faults.
Keep thy servant also from presumptuous sins, lest they get the dominion over me; so shall I be undefiled, and innocent from the great offence.
Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be alway acceptable in thy sight,
O Lord, my strength, and my redeemer.
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Ps. 20.

The Lord hear thee in the day of trouble; the Name of the God of Jacob defend thee;
Send thee help from the sanctuary, and strengthen thee out of Sion;
Remember all thy offerings, and accept thy burnt sacrifice;
Grant thee thy heart's desire, and fulfil all thy mind.
We will rejoice in thy salvation, and triumph in the Name of the Lord our God: the Lord perform all thy petitions.
Now know I that the Lord helpeth his Anointed, and will hear him from his holy heaven, even with the wholesome strength of his right hand.
Some put their trust in chariots, and some in horses; but we will remember the Name of the Lord our God.
They are brought down, and fallen; but we are risen, and stand upright.
Save, Lord, and hear us, O King of heaven, when we call upon thee.
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Ps. 21.

The King shall rejoice in thy strength, O Lord; exceeding glad shall he be of thy salvation.
Thou hast given him his heart's desire, and hast not denied him the request of his lips.
For thou shalt prevent him with the blessings of goodness, and shalt set a crown of pure gold upon his head.
He asked life of thee, and thou gavest him a long life, even for ever and ever.
His honour is great in thy salvation; glory and great worship shalt thou lay upon him.
For thou shalt give him everlasting felicity, and make him glad with the joy of thy countenance.
And why? because the King putteth his trust in the Lord; and in the mercy of the most Highest he shall not miscarry.
All thine enemies shall feel thine hand; thy right hand shall find out them that hate thee.
Thou shalt make them like a fiery oven in time of thy wrath: the Lord shall destroy them in his displeasure, and the fire shall consume them.
Their fruit shalt thou root out of the earth, and their seed from among the children of men.
For they intended mischief against thee, and imagined such a device as they are not able to perform.
Therefore shalt thou put them to flight, and the strings of thy bow shalt thou make ready against the face of them.
Be thou exalted, Lord, in thine own strength; so will we sing, and praise thy power.
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.
Here beginneth the 20th chapter of Isaiah.
In the year that Tartan came unto Ashdod, (when Sargon the king of Assyria sent him,) and fought against Ashdod, and took it;
At the same time spake the Lord by Isaiah the son of Amoz, saying, Go and loose the sackcloth from off thy loins, and put off thy shoe from thy foot. And he did so, walking naked and barefoot.
And the Lord said, Like as my servant Isaiah hath walked naked and barefoot three years for a sign and wonder upon Egypt and upon Ethiopia;
So shall the king of Assyria lead away the Egyptians prisoners, and the Ethiopians captives, young and old, naked and barefoot, even with their buttocks uncovered, to the shame of Egypt.
And they shall be afraid and ashamed of Ethiopia their expectation, and of Egypt their glory.
And the inhabitant of this isle shall say in that day, Behold, such is our expectation, whither we flee for help to be delivered from the king of Assyria: and how shall we escape?
The burden of the desert of the sea. As whirlwinds in the south pass through; so it cometh from the desert, from a terrible land.
A grievous vision is declared unto me; the treacherous dealer dealeth treacherously, and the spoiler spoileth. Go up, O Elam: besiege, O Media; all the sighing thereof have I made to cease.
Therefore are my loins filled with pain: pangs have taken hold upon me, as the pangs of a woman that travaileth: I was bowed down at the hearing of it; I was dismayed at the seeing of it.
My heart panted, fearfulness affrighted me: the night of my pleasure hath he turned into fear unto me.
Prepare the table, watch in the watchtower, eat, drink: arise, ye princes, and anoint the shield.
For thus hath the Lord said unto me, Go, set a watchman, let him declare what he seeth.
And he saw a chariot with a couple of horsemen, a chariot of asses, and a chariot of camels; and he hearkened diligently with much heed:
And he cried, A lion: My lord, I stand continually upon the watchtower in the daytime, and I am set in my ward whole nights:
And, behold, here cometh a chariot of men, with a couple of horsemen. And he answered and said, Babylon is fallen, is fallen; and all the graven images of her gods he hath broken unto the ground.
O my threshing, and the corn of my floor: that which I have heard of the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, have I declared unto you.
The burden of Dumah. He calleth to me out of Seir, Watchman, what of the night? Watchman, what of the night?
The watchman said, The morning cometh, and also the night: if ye will enquire, enquire ye: return, come.
The burden upon Arabia. In the forest in Arabia shall ye lodge, O ye travelling companies of Dedanim.
The inhabitants of the land of Tema brought water to him that was thirsty, they prevented with their bread him that fled.
For they fled from the swords, from the drawn sword, and from the bent bow, and from the grievousness of war.
For thus hath the Lord said unto me, Within a year, according to the years of an hireling, and all the glory of Kedar shall fail:
And the residue of the number of archers, the mighty men of the children of Kedar, shall be diminished: for the Lord God of Israel hath spoken it.
Here endeth the first lesson.

O all ye Works of the Lord, bless ye the Lord:

praise him, and magnify him for ever.

O ye Angels of the Lord, bless ye the Lord:

praise him, and magnify him for ever.

O ye Heavens, bless ye the Lord:

praise him, and magnify him for ever.

O ye Waters that be above the firmament, bless ye the Lord:

praise him, and magnify him for ever.

O all ye Powers of the Lord, bless ye the Lord:

praise him, and magnify him for ever.

O ye Sun and Moon, bless ye the Lord:

praise him, and magnify him for ever.

O ye Stars of heaven, bless ye the Lord:

praise him, and magnify him for ever.

O ye Showers and Dew, bless ye the Lord:

praise him, and magnify him for ever.

O ye Winds of God, bless ye the Lord:

praise him, and magnify him for ever.

O ye Fire and Heat, bless ye the Lord:

praise him, and magnify him for ever.

O ye Winter and Summer, bless ye the Lord:

praise him, and magnify him for ever.

O ye Dews and Frosts, bless ye the Lord:

praise him, and magnify him for ever.

O ye Frost and Cold, bless ye the Lord:

praise him, and magnify him for ever.

O ye Ice and Snow, bless ye the Lord:

praise him, and magnify him for ever.

O ye Nights and Days, bless ye the Lord:

praise him, and magnify him for ever.

O ye Light and Darkness, bless ye the Lord:

praise him, and magnify him for ever.

O ye Lightnings and Clouds, bless ye the Lord:

praise him, and magnify him for ever.

O let the Earth bless the Lord:

yea, let it praise him, and magnify him for ever.

O ye Mountains and Hills, bless ye the Lord:

praise him, and magnify him for ever.

O all ye Green things upon the earth, bless ye the Lord:

praise him, and magnify him for ever.

O ye Wells, bless ye the Lord:

praise him, and magnify him for ever.

O ye Seas and Floods, bless ye the Lord:

praise him, and magnify him for ever.

O ye Whales, and all that move in the waters, bless ye the Lord:

praise him, and magnify him for ever.

O all ye Fowls of the air, bless ye the Lord:

praise him, and magnify him for ever.

O all ye Beasts and Cattle, bless ye the Lord:

praise him, and magnify him for ever.

O ye Children of men, bless ye the Lord:

praise him, and magnify him for ever.

O let Israel bless the Lord:

praise him, and magnify him for ever.

O ye Priests of the Lord, bless ye the Lord:

praise him, and magnify him for ever.

O ye Servants of the Lord, bless ye the Lord:

praise him, and magnify him for ever.

O ye Spirits and Souls of the righteous, bless ye the Lord:

praise him, and magnify him for ever.

O ye Holy and Humble men of heart, bless ye the Lord:

praise him, and magnify him for ever.

O Ananias, Azarias, and Misael, bless ye the Lord:

praise him, and magnify him for ever.

Glory be to the Father,

and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;

As it was in the beginning,

is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Here beginneth the 5th chapter of Acts.
But a certain man named Ananias, with Sapphira his wife, sold a possession,
And kept back part of the price, his wife also being privy to it, and brought a certain part, and laid it at the apostles' feet.
But Peter said, Ananias, why hath Satan filled thine heart to lie to the Holy Ghost, and to keep back part of the price of the land?
Whiles it remained, was it not thine own? and after it was sold, was it not in thine own power? why hast thou conceived this thing in thine heart? thou hast not lied unto men, but unto God.
And Ananias hearing these words fell down, and gave up the ghost: and great fear came on all them that heard these things.
And the young men arose, wound him up, and carried him out, and buried him.
And it was about the space of three hours after, when his wife, not knowing what was done, came in.
And Peter answered unto her, Tell me whether ye sold the land for so much? And she said, Yea, for so much.
Then Peter said unto her, How is it that ye have agreed together to tempt the Spirit of the Lord? behold, the feet of them which have buried thy husband are at the door, and shall carry thee out.
Then fell she down straightway at his feet, and yielded up the ghost: and the young men came in, and found her dead, and, carrying her forth, buried her by her husband.
And great fear came upon all the church, and upon as many as heard these things.
And by the hands of the apostles were many signs and wonders wrought among the people; (and they were all with one accord in Solomon's porch.
And of the rest durst no man join himself to them: but the people magnified them.
And believers were the more added to the Lord, multitudes both of men and women.)
Insomuch that they brought forth the sick into the streets, and laid them on beds and couches, that at the least the shadow of Peter passing by might overshadow some of them.
There came also a multitude out of the cities round about unto Jerusalem, bringing sick folks, and them which were vexed with unclean spirits: and they were healed every one.
Then the high priest rose up, and all they that were with him, (which is the sect of the Sadducees,) and were filled with indignation,
And laid their hands on the apostles, and put them in the common prison.
But the angel of the Lord by night opened the prison doors, and brought them forth, and said,
Go, stand and speak in the temple to the people all the words of this life.
And when they heard that, they entered into the temple early in the morning, and taught. But the high priest came, and they that were with him, and called the council together, and all the senate of the children of Israel, and sent to the prison to have them brought.
But when the officers came, and found them not in the prison, they returned, and told,
Saying, The prison truly found we shut with all safety, and the keepers standing without before the doors: but when we had opened, we found no man within.
Now when the high priest and the captain of the temple and the chief priests heard these things, they doubted of them whereunto this would grow.
Then came one and told them, saying, Behold, the men whom ye put in prison are standing in the temple, and teaching the people.
Then went the captain with the officers, and brought them without violence: for they feared the people, lest they should have been stoned.
And when they had brought them, they set them before the council: and the high priest asked them,
Saying, Did not we straitly command you that ye should not teach in this name? and, behold, ye have filled Jerusalem with your doctrine, and intend to bring this man's blood upon us.
Then Peter and the other apostles answered and said, We ought to obey God rather than men.
The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom ye slew and hanged on a tree.
Him hath God exalted with his right hand to be a Prince and a Saviour, for to give repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins.
And we are his witnesses of these things; and so is also the Holy Ghost, whom God hath given to them that obey him.
When they heard that, they were cut to the heart, and took counsel to slay them.
Then stood there up one in the council, a Pharisee, named Gamaliel, a doctor of the law, had in reputation among all the people, and commanded to put the apostles forth a little space;
And said unto them, Ye men of Israel, take heed to yourselves what ye intend to do as touching these men.
For before these days rose up Theudas, boasting himself to be somebody; to whom a number of men, about four hundred, joined themselves: who was slain; and all, as many as obeyed him, were scattered, and brought to nought.
After this man rose up Judas of Galilee in the days of the taxing, and drew away much people after him: he also perished; and all, even as many as obeyed him, were dispersed.
And now I say unto you, Refrain from these men, and let them alone: for if this counsel or this work be of men, it will come to nought:
But if it be of God, ye cannot overthrow it; lest haply ye be found even to fight against God.
And to him they agreed: and when they had called the apostles, and beaten them, they commanded that they should not speak in the name of Jesus, and let them go.
And they departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for his name.
And daily in the temple, and in every house, they ceased not to teach and preach Jesus Christ.
Here endeth the second lesson.

Blessed be the Lord God of Israel;

for he hath visited and redeemed his people;

And hath raised up a mighty salvation for us,

in the house of his servant David;

As he spake by the mouth of his holy Prophets,

which have been since the world began;

That we should be saved from our enemies,

and from the hand of all that hate us:

To perform the mercy promised to our forefathers, and to remember his holy covenant;

To perform the oath which he sware to our forefather Abraham, that he would give us;

That we being delivered out of the hand of our enemies might serve him without fear;

In holiness and righteousness before him, all the days of our life.

And thou, Child, shalt be called the Prophet of the Highest:

for thou shalt go before the face of the Lord to prepare his ways;

To give knowledge of salvation unto his people

for the remission of their sins,

Through the tender mercy of our God;

whereby the Day-spring from on high hath visited us;

To give light to them that sit in darkness, and in the shadow of death,

and to guide our feet into the way of peace.

Glory be to the Father,

and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;

As it was in the beginning,

is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

❧

Almighty God, give us grace that we may cast away the works of darkness, and put upon us the armour of light, now in the time of this mortal life, in which thy Son Jesus Christ came to visit us in great humility; that in the last day, when he shall come again in his glorious Majesty to judge both the quick and the dead, we may rise to the life immortal, through him who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Ghost, now and ever. Amen.

O God, who art the author of peace, and lover of concord, in knowledge of whom standeth our eternal life, whose service is perfect freedom; Defend us thy humble servants in all assaults of our enemies; that we surely trusting in thy defence, may not fear the power of any adversaries, through the might of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

O Lord our heavenly Father, Almighty and everlasting God, who hast safely brought us to the beginning of this day; Defend us in the same with thy mighty power; and grant that this day we fall into no sin, neither run into any kind of danger; but that all our doings may be ordered by thy governance, to do always that isdoings, being ordered by thy governance, may be righteous in thy sight, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.