Evening Prayer (Evensong) in Contemporary Language

¶ Evening Prayer
Epiphany Season
Thursday, 29 January 2026

Preparation

O God, make speed to save us.
AllO Lord, make haste to help us.

From the rising of the sun to its setting
Allyour glory is proclaimed in all the world.

One or more of the following is said or sung:

this or another prayer of thanksgiving

Blessed are you, Sovereign God,
our light and our salvation,
to you be glory and praise for ever.
You gave your Christ as a light to the nations,
and through the anointing of the Spirit
you established us as a royal priesthood.
As you call us into your marvellous light,
may our lives bear witness to your truth
and our lips never cease to proclaim your praise.
Blessed be God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
AllBlessed be God for ever.

A Song of God’s Splendour (page 561), the following or another suitable hymn

O worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness!
Bow down before him, his glory proclaim;
with gold of obedience, and incense of lowliness,
kneel and adore him, the Lord is his name!

Low at his feet lay thy burden of carefulness,
high on his heart he will bear it for thee,
comfort thy sorrows, and answer thy prayerfulness,
guiding thy steps as may best for thee be.

Fear not to enter his courts in the slenderness
of the poor wealth thou wouldst reckon as thine:
truth in its beauty, and love in its tenderness,
these are the offerings to lay on his shrine.

These though we bring them in trembling and fearfulness,
he will accept for the name that is dear;
mornings of joy give for evenings of tearfulness,
trust for our trembling and hope for our fear.

O worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness!
Bow down before him, his glory proclaim;
with gold of obedience, and incense of lowliness,
kneel and adore him, the Lord is his name!

J S B Monsell
(Tune: 13 10 13 10)

This opening prayer may be said

That this evening may be holy, good and peaceful,
let us pray with one heart and mind.

Silence is kept.

As our evening prayer rises before you, O God,
so may your mercy come down upon us
to cleanse our hearts
and set us free to sing your praise
now and for ever.
AllAmen.

The Word of God

Psalmody

The appointed psalmody is said.

Psalm 24

Refrain: The Lord of hosts: he is the King of glory.

1 The earth is the Lord’s and all that fills it, ♦
the compass of the world and all who dwell therein.

2 For he has founded it upon the seas ♦
and set it firm upon the rivers of the deep. R

3 ‘Who shall ascend the hill of the Lord, ♦
or who can rise up in his holy place?’

4 ‘Those who have clean hands and a pure heart, ♦
who have not lifted up their soul to an idol,
nor sworn an oath to a lie;

5 ‘They shall receive a blessing from the Lord, ♦
a just reward from the God of their salvation.’

6 Such is the company of those who seek him, ♦
of those who seek your face, O God of Jacob. R

7 Lift up your heads, O gates;
be lifted up, you everlasting doors; ♦
and the King of glory shall come in.

8 ‘Who is the King of glory?’ ♦
‘The Lord, strong and mighty,
the Lord who is mighty in battle.’

9 Lift up your heads, O gates;
be lifted up, you everlasting doors; ♦
and the King of glory shall come in.

10 ‘Who is this King of glory?’ ♦
‘The Lord of hosts,
he is the King of glory.’

Refrain: The Lord of hosts: he is the King of glory.

O Lord of hosts,
purify our hearts
that the King of glory may come in,
your Son, Jesus our redeemer.

Psalm 33

Refrain: The earth is full of the loving-kindness of the Lord.

1 Rejoice in the Lord, O you righteous, ♦
for it is good for the just to sing praises.

2 Praise the Lord with the lyre; ♦
on the ten-stringed harp sing his praise.

3 Sing for him a new song; ♦
play skilfully, with shouts of praise.

4 For the word of the Lord is true ♦
and all his works are sure.

5 He loves righteousness and justice; ♦
the earth is full of the loving-kindness of the Lord. R

6 By the word of the Lord were the heavens made ♦
and all their host by the breath of his mouth.

7 He gathers up the waters of the sea as in a waterskin ♦
and lays up the deep in his treasury.

8 Let all the earth fear the Lord; ♦
stand in awe of him, all who dwell in the world.

9 For he spoke, and it was done; ♦
he commanded, and it stood fast. R

10 The Lord brings the counsel of the nations to naught; ♦
he frustrates the designs of the peoples.

11 But the counsel of the Lord shall endure for ever ♦
and the designs of his heart from generation to generation.

12 Happy the nation whose God is the Lord ♦
and the people he has chosen for his own. R

13 The Lord looks down from heaven ♦
and beholds all the children of earth.

14 From where he sits enthroned he turns his gaze ♦
on all who dwell on the earth.

15 He fashions all the hearts of them ♦
and understands all their works.

16 No king is saved by the might of his host; ♦
no warrior delivered by his great strength.

17 A horse is a vain hope for deliverance; ♦
for all its strength it cannot save. R

18 Behold, the eye of the Lord
is upon those who fear him, ♦
on those who wait in hope for his steadfast love,

19 To deliver their soul from death ♦
and to feed them in time of famine.

20 Our soul waits longingly for the Lord; ♦
he is our help and our shield.

21 Indeed, our heart rejoices in him; ♦
in his holy name have we put our trust.

22 Let your loving-kindness, O Lord, be upon us, ♦
as we have set our hope on you.

Refrain: The earth is full of the loving-kindness of the Lord.

Feed your people, Lord,
with your holy word
and free us from the emptiness of our
wrongful desires,
that we may sing the new song of salvation
through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Each psalm or group of psalms may end with

AllGlory to the Father and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit;
as it was in the beginning is now
and shall be for ever. Amen.

If there are two Scripture readings, the first may be read here, or both may be read after the canticle.

Hosea 5.8 - 6.6

Blow the horn in Gibeah,
   the trumpet in Ramah.
Sound the alarm at Beth-aven;
   look behind you, Benjamin!
Ephraim shall become a desolation
   on the day of punishment;
among the tribes of Israel
   I declare what is sure.
The princes of Judah have become
   like those who remove the landmark;
on them I will pour out
   my wrath like water.
Ephraim is oppressed, crushed in judgement,
   because he was determined to go after vanity.
Therefore I am like maggots to Ephraim,
   and like rottenness to the house of Judah.
When Ephraim saw his sickness,
   and Judah his wound,
then Ephraim went to Assyria,
   and sent to the great king.
But he is not able to cure you
   or heal your wound.
For I will be like a lion to Ephraim,
   and like a young lion to the house of Judah.
I myself will tear and go away;
   I will carry off, and no one shall rescue.
I will return again to my place
   until they acknowledge their guilt and seek my face.
   In their distress they will beg my favour:

‘Come, let us return to the Lord;
   for it is he who has torn, and he will heal us;
   he has struck down, and he will bind us up.
After two days he will revive us;
   on the third day he will raise us up,
   that we may live before him.
Let us know, let us press on to know the Lord;
   his appearing is as sure as the dawn;
he will come to us like the showers,
   like the spring rains that water the earth.’
What shall I do with you, O Ephraim?
   What shall I do with you, O Judah?
Your love is like a morning cloud,
   like the dew that goes away early.
Therefore I have hewn them by the prophets,
   I have killed them by the words of my mouth,
   and my judgement goes forth as the light.
For I desire steadfast love and not sacrifice,
   the knowledge of God rather than burnt-offerings.

Canticle

A Song of Praise, or another suitable canticle, for example, number 63 (page 621) or number 71 (page 629), may be said

Refrain:

AllYou created all things, O God,
and are worthy of our praise for ever. Alleluia.

1You are worthy, our Lord and God, ♦
to receive glory and honour and power.

2For you have created all things, ♦
and by your will they have their being.

3You are worthy, O Lamb, for you were slain, ♦
and by your blood you ransomed for God
saints from every tribe and language and nation.

4You have made them to be a kingdom and priests
serving our God, ♦
and they will reign with you on earth.

Revelation 4.11; 5.9b, 10

AllTo the One who sits on the throne and to the Lamb ♦
be blessing and honour and glory and might, for ever and ever. Amen.

AllYou created all things, O God,
and are worthy of our praise for ever. Alleluia.

Scripture Reading

One or more readings appointed for the day are read.

The reading(s) may be followed by a time of silence.

1 Corinthians 11.2-16

I commend you because you remember me in everything and maintain the traditions just as I handed them on to you. But I want you to understand that Christ is the head of every man, and the husband is the head of his wife, and God is the head of Christ. Any man who prays or prophesies with something on his head disgraces his head, but any woman who prays or prophesies with her head unveiled disgraces her head—it is one and the same thing as having her head shaved. For if a woman will not veil herself, then she should cut off her hair; but if it is disgraceful for a woman to have her hair cut off or to be shaved, she should wear a veil. For a man ought not to have his head veiled, since he is the image and reflection of God; but woman is the reflection of man. Indeed, man was not made from woman, but woman from man. Neither was man created for the sake of woman, but woman for the sake of man. For this reason a woman ought to have a symbol of authority on her head, because of the angels. Nevertheless, in the Lord woman is not independent of man or man independent of woman. For just as woman came from man, so man comes through woman; but all things come from God. Judge for yourselves: is it proper for a woman to pray to God with her head unveiled? Does not nature itself teach you that if a man wears long hair, it is degrading to him, but if a woman has long hair, it is her glory? For her hair is given to her for a covering. But if anyone is disposed to be contentious—we have no such custom, nor do the churches of God.

A suitable song or chant, or a responsory in this or another form, may follow

Arise, shine, for your light has come;
the glory of the Lord is rising upon you.
AllArise, shine, for your light has come;
the glory of the Lord is rising upon you.
God’s salvation has been openly shown to all people.
AllThe glory of the Lord is rising upon you.
Glory to the Father and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit.
AllArise, shine, for your light has come;
the glory of the Lord is rising upon you.

from Isaiah 60

Gospel Canticle

The Magnificat (The Song of Mary) is normally said,
or A Song of Christ’s Appearing (page 621) may be said

Refrain:

AllBehold, my servant, whom I uphold,
my chosen, in whom my soul delights;
the anointed one on whom my Spirit rests.

1My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord,
my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour; ♦
he has looked with favour on his lowly servant.

2From this day all generations will call me blessed; ♦
the Almighty has done great things for me
and holy is his name.

3He has mercy on those who fear him, ♦
from generation to generation.

4He has shown strength with his arm ♦
and has scattered the proud in their conceit,

5Casting down the mighty from their thrones ♦
and lifting up the lowly.

6He has filled the hungry with good things ♦
and sent the rich away empty.

7He has come to the aid of his servant Israel, ♦
to remember his promise of mercy,

8The promise made to our ancestors, ♦
to Abraham and his children for ever.

Luke 1.46-55

AllGlory to the Father and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit;
as it was in the beginning is now
and shall be for ever. Amen.

Refrain:

AllBehold, my servant, whom I uphold,
my chosen, in whom my soul delights;
the anointed one on whom my Spirit rests.

Prayers

Thanksgiving may be made for the day.

Intercessions are offered
¶ for peace
¶ for individuals and their needs

Prayers may include the following concerns from the cycle on pages 364–365

¶ The unity of the Church
¶ The peace of the world
¶ The healing of the sick
¶ The revelation of Christ to those from whom his glory is hidden
¶ All who travel

A form of prayer found on page 379 may be used.

These responses may be used

Lord, in your mercy
hear our prayer

(or)

Lord, hear us.
Lord, graciously hear us.

Silence may be kept.

The Collect of the day is said

Almighty God,
whose Son revealed in signs and miracles
the wonder of your saving presence:
renew your people with your heavenly grace,
and in all our weakness
sustain us by your mighty power;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.
AllAmen.

The Lord’s Prayer is said

Believing the promises of God,
as our Saviour taught us, so we pray

AllOur Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins
as we forgive those who sin against us.
Lead us not into temptation
but deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power,
and the glory are yours
now and for ever.
Amen.

(or)

Believing the promises of God,
let us pray with confidence as our Saviour has taught us

AllOur Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name;
thy kingdom come;
thy will be done;
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation;
but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,
the power and the glory,
for ever and ever.
Amen.

The Conclusion

May Christ, who sends us to the nations,
give us the power of his Spirit.
AllAmen.

Let us bless the Lord. Alleluia, alleluia.
AllThanks be to God. Alleluia, alleluia.