Night Watch Devotion

Opening

▼

Upon waking, make the sign of the cross and say:

In the Name of the Father and of the † Son and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.

O God, make speed to save me.
O Lord, make haste to help me.

Or:

At midnight I will rise to give thanks to You:
because of Your righteous judgments. Psalm 119:62

Psalmody

▼

Psalm 6

To the choirmaster: with stringed instruments; according to The Sheminith. A Psalm of David.
¹ O LORD, rebuke me not in your anger, nor discipline me in your wrath.
² Be gracious to me, O LORD, for I am languishing; heal me, O LORD, for my bones are troubled.
³ My soul also is greatly troubled. But you, O LORD—how long?
⁴ Turn, O LORD, deliver my life; save me for the sake of your steadfast love.
⁵ For in death there is no remembrance of you; in Sheol who will give you praise?
⁶ I am weary with my moaning; every night I flood my bed with tears; I drench my couch with my weeping.
⁷ My eye wastes away because of grief; it grows weak because of all my foes.
⁸ Depart from me, all you workers of evil, for the LORD has heard the sound of my weeping.
⁹ The LORD has heard my plea; the LORD accepts my prayer.
¹⁰ All my enemies shall be ashamed and greatly troubled; they shall turn back and be put to shame in a moment. (ESV)

Psalmody Plan:

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit;
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen.

Reading

▼

Matthew 25:1-13

¹ “Then the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom.
² Five of them were foolish, and five were wise.
³ For when the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them,
⁴ but the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps.
⁵ As the bridegroom was delayed, they all became drowsy and slept.
⁶ But at midnight there was a cry, ‘Here is the bridegroom! Come out to meet him.’
⁷ Then all those virgins rose and trimmed their lamps.
⁸ And the foolish said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’
⁹ But the wise answered, saying, ‘Since there will not be enough for us and for you, go rather to the dealers and buy for yourselves.’
¹⁰ And while they were going to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the marriage feast, and the door was shut.
¹¹ Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, ‘Lord, lord, open to us.’
¹² But he answered, ‘Truly, I say to you, I do not know you.’
¹³ Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour. (ESV)

Old Testament Reading

Zechariah 12:1-13:9

¹ The oracle of the word of the LORD concerning Israel: Thus declares the LORD, who stretched out the heavens and founded the earth and formed the spirit of man within him:
² “Behold, I am about to make Jerusalem a cup of staggering to all the surrounding peoples. The siege of Jerusalem will also be against Judah.
³ On that day I will make Jerusalem a heavy stone for all the peoples. All who lift it will surely hurt themselves. And all the nations of the earth will gather against it.
⁴ On that day, declares the LORD, I will strike every horse with panic, and its rider with madness. But for the sake of the house of Judah I will keep my eyes open, when I strike every horse of the peoples with blindness.
⁵ Then the clans of Judah shall say to themselves, ‘The inhabitants of Jerusalem have strength through the LORD of hosts, their God.’
⁶ “On that day I will make the clans of Judah like a blazing pot in the midst of wood, like a flaming torch among sheaves. And they shall devour to the right and to the left all the surrounding peoples, while Jerusalem shall again be inhabited in its place, in Jerusalem.
⁷ “And the LORD will give salvation to the tents of Judah first, that the glory of the house of David and the glory of the inhabitants of Jerusalem may not surpass that of Judah.
⁸ On that day the LORD will protect the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so that the feeblest among them on that day shall be like David, and the house of David shall be like God, like the angel of the LORD, going before them.
⁹ And on that day I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem.
¹⁰ “And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and pleas for mercy, so that, when they look on me, on him whom they have pierced, they shall mourn for him, as one mourns for an only child, and weep bitterly over him, as one weeps over a firstborn.
¹¹ On that day the mourning in Jerusalem will be as great as the mourning for Hadad-rimmon in the plain of Megiddo.
¹² The land shall mourn, each family by itself: the family of the house of David by itself, and their wives by themselves; the family of the house of Nathan by itself, and their wives by themselves;
¹³ the family of the house of Levi by itself, and their wives by themselves; the family of the Shimeites by itself, and their wives by themselves;
¹⁴ and all the families that are left, each by itself, and their wives by themselves.
¹ “On that day there shall be a fountain opened for the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, to cleanse them from sin and uncleanness.
² “And on that day, declares the LORD of hosts, I will cut off the names of the idols from the land, so that they shall be remembered no more. And also I will remove from the land the prophets and the spirit of uncleanness.
³ And if anyone again prophesies, his father and mother who bore him will say to him, ‘You shall not live, for you speak lies in the name of the LORD.’ And his father and mother who bore him shall pierce him through when he prophesies.
⁴ “On that day every prophet will be ashamed of his vision when he prophesies. He will not put on a hairy cloak in order to deceive,
⁵ but he will say, ‘I am no prophet, I am a worker of the soil, for a man sold me in my youth.’
⁶ And if one asks him, ‘What are these wounds on your back?’ he will say, ‘The wounds I received in the house of my friends.’
⁷ “Awake, O sword, against my shepherd, against the man who stands next to me,” declares the LORD of hosts. “Strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered; I will turn my hand against the little ones.
⁸ In the whole land, declares the LORD, two thirds shall be cut off and perish, and one third shall be left alive.
⁹ And I will put this third into the fire, and refine them as one refines silver, and test them as gold is tested. They will call upon my name, and I will answer them. I will say, ‘They are my people’; and they will say, ‘The LORD is my God.’” (ESV)

New Testament Reading

Titus 1:1-2:6

¹ Paul, a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ, for the sake of the faith of God’s elect and their knowledge of the truth, which accords with godliness,
² in hope of eternal life, which God, who never lies, promised before the ages began
³ and at the proper time manifested in his word through the preaching with which I have been entrusted by the command of God our Savior;
⁴ To Titus, my true child in a common faith: Grace and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior.
⁵ This is why I left you in Crete, so that you might put what remained into order, and appoint elders in every town as I directed you—
⁶ if anyone is above reproach, the husband of one wife, and his children are believers and not open to the charge of debauchery or insubordination.
⁷ For an overseer, as God’s steward, must be above reproach. He must not be arrogant or quick-tempered or a drunkard or violent or greedy for gain,
⁸ but hospitable, a lover of good, self-controlled, upright, holy, and disciplined.
⁹ He must hold firm to the trustworthy word as taught, so that he may be able to give instruction in sound doctrine and also to rebuke those who contradict it.
¹⁰ For there are many who are insubordinate, empty talkers and deceivers, especially those of the circumcision party.
¹¹ They must be silenced, since they are upsetting whole families by teaching for shameful gain what they ought not to teach.
¹² One of the Cretans, a prophet of their own, said, “Cretans are always liars, evil beasts, lazy gluttons.”
¹³ This testimony is true. Therefore rebuke them sharply, that they may be sound in the faith,
¹⁴ not devoting themselves to Jewish myths and the commands of people who turn away from the truth.
¹⁵ To the pure, all things are pure, but to the defiled and unbelieving, nothing is pure; but both their minds and their consciences are defiled.
¹⁶ They profess to know God, but they deny him by their works. They are detestable, disobedient, unfit for any good work.
¹ But as for you, teach what accords with sound doctrine.
² Older men are to be sober-minded, dignified, self-controlled, sound in faith, in love, and in steadfastness.
³ Older women likewise are to be reverent in behavior, not slanderers or slaves to much wine. They are to teach what is good,
⁴ and so train the young women to love their husbands and children,
⁵ to be self-controlled, pure, working at home, kind, and submissive to their own husbands, that the word of God may not be reviled.
⁶ Likewise, urge the younger men to be self-controlled. (ESV)

Old Testament

Job 25, Job 26, Job 27, Job 28, Job 29

¹ Then Bildad the Shuhite answered and said:
² “Dominion and fear are with God; he makes peace in his high heaven.
³ Is there any number to his armies? Upon whom does his light not arise?
⁴ How then can man be in the right before God? How can he who is born of woman be pure?
⁵ Behold, even the moon is not bright, and the stars are not pure in his eyes;
⁶ how much less man, who is a maggot, and the son of man, who is a worm!”

¹ Then Job answered and said:
² “How you have helped him who has no power! How you have saved the arm that has no strength!
³ How you have counseled him who has no wisdom, and plentifully declared sound knowledge!
⁴ With whose help have you uttered words, and whose breath has come out from you?
⁵ The dead tremble under the waters and their inhabitants.
⁶ Sheol is naked before God, and Abaddon has no covering.
⁷ He stretches out the north over the void and hangs the earth on nothing.
⁸ He binds up the waters in his thick clouds, and the cloud is not split open under them.
⁹ He covers the face of the full moon and spreads over it his cloud.
¹⁰ He has inscribed a circle on the face of the waters at the boundary between light and darkness.
¹¹ The pillars of heaven tremble and are astounded at his rebuke.
¹² By his power he stilled the sea; by his understanding he shattered Rahab.
¹³ By his wind the heavens were made fair; his hand pierced the fleeing serpent.
¹⁴ Behold, these are but the outskirts of his ways, and how small a whisper do we hear of him! But the thunder of his power who can understand?”

¹ And Job again took up his discourse, and said:
² “As God lives, who has taken away my right, and the Almighty, who has made my soul bitter,
³ as long as my breath is in me, and the spirit of God is in my nostrils,
⁴ my lips will not speak falsehood, and my tongue will not utter deceit.
⁵ Far be it from me to say that you are right; till I die I will not put away my integrity from me.
⁶ I hold fast my righteousness and will not let it go; my heart does not reproach me for any of my days.
⁷ “Let my enemy be as the wicked, and let him who rises up against me be as the unrighteous.
⁸ For what is the hope of the godless when God cuts him off, when God takes away his life?
⁹ Will God hear his cry when distress comes upon him?
¹⁰ Will he take delight in the Almighty? Will he call upon God at all times?
¹¹ I will teach you concerning the hand of God; what is with the Almighty I will not conceal.
¹² Behold, all of you have seen it yourselves; why then have you become altogether vain?
¹³ “This is the portion of a wicked man with God, and the heritage that oppressors receive from the Almighty:
¹⁴ If his children are multiplied, it is for the sword, and his descendants have not enough bread.
¹⁵ Those who survive him the pestilence buries, and his widows do not weep.
¹⁶ Though he heap up silver like dust, and pile up clothing like clay,
¹⁷ he may pile it up, but the righteous will wear it, and the innocent will divide the silver.
¹⁸ He builds his house like a moth’s, like a booth that a watchman makes.
¹⁹ He goes to bed rich, but will do so no more; he opens his eyes, and his wealth is gone.
²⁰ Terrors overtake him like a flood; in the night a whirlwind carries him off.
²¹ The east wind lifts him up and he is gone; it sweeps him out of his place.
²² It hurls at him without pity; he flees from its power in headlong flight.
²³ It claps its hands at him and hisses at him from its place.

¹ “Surely there is a mine for silver, and a place for gold that they refine.
² Iron is taken out of the earth, and copper is smelted from the ore.
³ Man puts an end to darkness and searches out to the farthest limit the ore in gloom and deep darkness.
⁴ He opens shafts in a valley away from where anyone lives; they are forgotten by travelers; they hang in the air, far away from mankind; they swing to and fro.
⁵ As for the earth, out of it comes bread, but underneath it is turned up as by fire.
⁶ Its stones are the place of sapphires, and it has dust of gold.
⁷ “That path no bird of prey knows, and the falcon’s eye has not seen it.
⁸ The proud beasts have not trodden it; the lion has not passed over it.
⁹ “Man puts his hand to the flinty rock and overturns mountains by the roots.
¹⁰ He cuts out channels in the rocks, and his eye sees every precious thing.
¹¹ He dams up the streams so that they do not trickle, and the thing that is hidden he brings out to light.
¹² “But where shall wisdom be found? And where is the place of understanding?
¹³ Man does not know its worth, and it is not found in the land of the living.
¹⁴ The deep says, ‘It is not in me,’ and the sea says, ‘It is not with me.’
¹⁵ It cannot be bought for gold, and silver cannot be weighed as its price.
¹⁶ It cannot be valued in the gold of Ophir, in precious onyx or sapphire.
¹⁷ Gold and glass cannot equal it, nor can it be exchanged for jewels of fine gold.
¹⁸ No mention shall be made of coral or of crystal; the price of wisdom is above pearls.
¹⁹ The topaz of Ethiopia cannot equal it, nor can it be valued in pure gold.
²⁰ “From where, then, does wisdom come? And where is the place of understanding?
²¹ It is hidden from the eyes of all living and concealed from the birds of the air.
²² Abaddon and Death say, ‘We have heard a rumor of it with our ears.’
²³ “God understands the way to it, and he knows its place.
²⁴ For he looks to the ends of the earth and sees everything under the heavens.
²⁵ When he gave to the wind its weight and apportioned the waters by measure,
²⁶ when he made a decree for the rain and a way for the lightning of the thunder,
²⁷ then he saw it and declared it; he established it, and searched it out.
²⁸ And he said to man, ‘Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom, and to turn away from evil is understanding.’”

¹ And Job again took up his discourse, and said:
² “Oh, that I were as in the months of old, as in the days when God watched over me,
³ when his lamp shone upon my head, and by his light I walked through darkness,
⁴ as I was in my prime, when the friendship of God was upon my tent,
⁵ when the Almighty was yet with me, when my children were all around me,
⁶ when my steps were washed with butter, and the rock poured out for me streams of oil!
⁷ When I went out to the gate of the city, when I prepared my seat in the square,
⁸ the young men saw me and withdrew, and the aged rose and stood;
⁹ the princes refrained from talking and laid their hand on their mouth;
¹⁰ the voice of the nobles was hushed, and their tongue stuck to the roof of their mouth.
¹¹ When the ear heard, it called me blessed, and when the eye saw, it approved,
¹² because I delivered the poor who cried for help, and the fatherless who had none to help him.
¹³ The blessing of him who was about to perish came upon me, and I caused the widow’s heart to sing for joy.
¹⁴ I put on righteousness, and it clothed me; my justice was like a robe and a turban.
¹⁵ I was eyes to the blind and feet to the lame.
¹⁶ I was a father to the needy, and I searched out the cause of him whom I did not know.
¹⁷ I broke the fangs of the unrighteous and made him drop his prey from his teeth.
¹⁸ Then I thought, ‘I shall die in my nest, and I shall multiply my days as the sand,
¹⁹ my roots spread out to the waters, with the dew all night on my branches,
²⁰ my glory fresh with me, and my bow ever new in my hand.’
²¹ “Men listened to me and waited and kept silence for my counsel.
²² After I spoke they did not speak again, and my word dropped upon them.
²³ They waited for me as for the rain, and they opened their mouths as for the spring rain.
²⁴ I smiled on them when they had no confidence, and the light of my face they did not cast down.
²⁵ I chose their way and sat as chief, and I lived like a king among his troops, like one who comforts mourners. (ESV)

New Testament

Matthew 21:33-46, Matthew 22:1-14

³³ “Hear another parable. There was a master of a house who planted a vineyard and put a fence around it and dug a winepress in it and built a tower and leased it to tenants, and went into another country.
³⁴ When the season for fruit drew near, he sent his servants to the tenants to get his fruit.
³⁵ And the tenants took his servants and beat one, killed another, and stoned another.
³⁶ Again he sent other servants, more than the first. And they did the same to them.
³⁷ Finally he sent his son to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’
³⁸ But when the tenants saw the son, they said to themselves, ‘This is the heir. Come, let us kill him and have his inheritance.’
³⁹ And they took him and threw him out of the vineyard and killed him.
⁴⁰ When therefore the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those tenants?”
⁴¹ They said to him, “He will put those wretches to a miserable death and let out the vineyard to other tenants who will give him the fruits in their seasons.”
⁴² Jesus said to them, “Have you never read in the Scriptures: “‘The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; this was the Lord’s doing, and it is marvelous in our eyes’?
⁴³ Therefore I tell you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people producing its fruits.
⁴⁴ And the one who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces; and when it falls on anyone, it will crush him.”
⁴⁵ When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard his parables, they perceived that he was speaking about them.
⁴⁶ And although they were seeking to arrest him, they feared the crowds, because they held him to be a prophet.

¹ And again Jesus spoke to them in parables, saying,
² “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who gave a wedding feast for his son,
³ and sent his servants to call those who were invited to the wedding feast, but they would not come.
⁴ Again he sent other servants, saying, ‘Tell those who are invited, “See, I have prepared my dinner, my oxen and my fat calves have been slaughtered, and everything is ready. Come to the wedding feast.”’
⁵ But they paid no attention and went off, one to his farm, another to his business,
⁶ while the rest seized his servants, treated them shamefully, and killed them.
⁷ The king was angry, and he sent his troops and destroyed those murderers and burned their city.
⁸ Then he said to his servants, ‘The wedding feast is ready, but those invited were not worthy.
⁹ Go therefore to the main roads and invite to the wedding feast as many as you find.’
¹⁰ And those servants went out into the roads and gathered all whom they found, both bad and good. So the wedding hall was filled with guests.
¹¹ “But when the king came in to look at the guests, he saw there a man who had no wedding garment.
¹² And he said to him, ‘Friend, how did you get in here without a wedding garment?’ And he was speechless.
¹³ Then the king said to the attendants, ‘Bind him hand and foot and cast him into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’
¹⁴ For many are called, but few are chosen.” (ESV)

Psalms & Proverbs

Psalm 18:7-15

⁷ Then the earth reeled and rocked; the foundations also of the mountains trembled and quaked, because he was angry.
⁸ Smoke went up from his nostrils, and devouring fire from his mouth; glowing coals flamed forth from him.
⁹ He bowed the heavens and came down; thick darkness was under his feet.
¹⁰ He rode on a cherub and flew; he came swiftly on the wings of the wind.
¹¹ He made darkness his covering, his canopy around him, thick clouds dark with water.
¹² Out of the brightness before him hailstones and coals of fire broke through his clouds.
¹³ The LORD also thundered in the heavens, and the Most High uttered his voice, hailstones and coals of fire.
¹⁴ And he sent out his arrows and scattered them; he flashed forth lightnings and routed them.
¹⁵ Then the channels of the sea were seen, and the foundations of the world were laid bare at your rebuke, O LORD, at the blast of the breath of your nostrils. (ESV)

Matthew 5-8

¹ Seeing the crowds, he went up on the mountain, and when he sat down, his disciples came to him.
² And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying:
³ “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
⁴ “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.
⁵ “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.
⁶ “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.
⁷ “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.
⁸ “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.
⁹ “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.
¹⁰ “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
¹¹ “Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account.
¹² Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
¹³ “You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people’s feet.
¹⁴ “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden.
¹⁵ Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house.
¹⁶ In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.
¹⁷ “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.
¹⁸ For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished.
¹⁹ Therefore whoever relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.
²⁰ For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.
²¹ “You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not murder; and whoever murders will be liable to judgment.’
²² But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment; whoever insults his brother will be liable to the council; and whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be liable to the hell of fire.
²³ So if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you,
²⁴ leave your gift there before the altar and go. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift.
²⁵ Come to terms quickly with your accuser while you are going with him to court, lest your accuser hand you over to the judge, and the judge to the guard, and you be put in prison.
²⁶ Truly, I say to you, you will never get out until you have paid the last penny.
²⁷ “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’
²⁸ But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart.
²⁹ If your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body be thrown into hell.
³⁰ And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body go into hell.
³¹ “It was also said, ‘Whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce.’
³² But I say to you that everyone who divorces his wife, except on the ground of sexual immorality, makes her commit adultery, and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery.
³³ “Again you have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not swear falsely, but shall perform to the Lord what you have sworn.’
³⁴ But I say to you, Do not take an oath at all, either by heaven, for it is the throne of God,
³⁵ or by the earth, for it is his footstool, or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King.
³⁶ And do not take an oath by your head, for you cannot make one hair white or black.
³⁷ Let what you say be simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’; anything more than this comes from evil.
³⁸ “You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’
³⁹ But I say to you, Do not resist the one who is evil. But if anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also.
⁴⁰ And if anyone would sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well.
⁴¹ And if anyone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles.
⁴² Give to the one who begs from you, and do not refuse the one who would borrow from you.
⁴³ “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’
⁴⁴ But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,
⁴⁵ so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.
⁴⁶ For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same?
⁴⁷ And if you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same?
⁴⁸ You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

¹ “Beware of practicing your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven.
² “Thus, when you give to the needy, sound no trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be praised by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward.
³ But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing,
⁴ so that your giving may be in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.
⁵ “And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites. For they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward.
⁶ But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.
⁷ “And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard for their many words.
⁸ Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.
⁹ Pray then like this: “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name.
¹⁰ Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
¹¹ Give us this day our daily bread,
¹² and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
¹³ And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
¹⁴ For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you,
¹⁵ but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.
¹⁶ “And when you fast, do not look gloomy like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces that their fasting may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward.
¹⁷ But when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face,
¹⁸ that your fasting may not be seen by others but by your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.
¹⁹ “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal,
²⁰ but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal.
²¹ For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
²² “The eye is the lamp of the body. So, if your eye is healthy, your whole body will be full of light,
²³ but if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light in you is darkness, how great is the darkness!
²⁴ “No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.
²⁵ “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?
²⁶ Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?
²⁷ And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life?
²⁸ And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin,
²⁹ yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.
³⁰ But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?
³¹ Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’
³² For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all.
³³ But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.
³⁴ “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.

¹ “Judge not, that you be not judged.
² For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to you.
³ Why do you see the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye?
⁴ Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when there is the log in your own eye?
⁵ You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye.
⁶ “Do not give dogs what is holy, and do not throw your pearls before pigs, lest they trample them underfoot and turn to attack you.
⁷ “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.
⁸ For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened.
⁹ Or which one of you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone?
¹⁰ Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent?
¹¹ If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!
¹² “So whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.
¹³ “Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many.
¹⁴ For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few.
¹⁵ “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves.
¹⁶ You will recognize them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes, or figs from thistles?
¹⁷ So, every healthy tree bears good fruit, but the diseased tree bears bad fruit.
¹⁸ A healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a diseased tree bear good fruit.
¹⁹ Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.
²⁰ Thus you will recognize them by their fruits.
²¹ “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.
²² On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’
²³ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’
²⁴ “Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock.
²⁵ And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock.
²⁶ And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand.
²⁷ And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it.”
²⁸ And when Jesus finished these sayings, the crowds were astonished at his teaching,
²⁹ for he was teaching them as one who had authority, and not as their scribes.

¹ When he came down from the mountain, great crowds followed him.
² And behold, a leper came to him and knelt before him, saying, “Lord, if you will, you can make me clean.”
³ And Jesus stretched out his hand and touched him, saying, “I will; be clean.” And immediately his leprosy was cleansed.
⁴ And Jesus said to him, “See that you say nothing to anyone, but go, show yourself to the priest and offer the gift that Moses commanded, for a proof to them.”
⁵ When he had entered Capernaum, a centurion came forward to him, appealing to him,
⁶ “Lord, my servant is lying paralyzed at home, suffering terribly.”
⁷ And he said to him, “I will come and heal him.”
⁸ But the centurion replied, “Lord, I am not worthy to have you come under my roof, but only say the word, and my servant will be healed.
⁹ For I too am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. And I say to one, ‘Go,’ and he goes, and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes, and to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.”
¹⁰ When Jesus heard this, he marveled and said to those who followed him, “Truly, I tell you, with no one in Israel have I found such faith.
¹¹ I tell you, many will come from east and west and recline at table with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven,
¹² while the sons of the kingdom will be thrown into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”
¹³ And to the centurion Jesus said, “Go; let it be done for you as you have believed.” And the servant was healed at that very moment.
¹⁴ And when Jesus entered Peter’s house, he saw his mother-in-law lying sick with a fever.
¹⁵ He touched her hand, and the fever left her, and she rose and began to serve him.
¹⁶ That evening they brought to him many who were oppressed by demons, and he cast out the spirits with a word and healed all who were sick.
¹⁷ This was to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah: “He took our illnesses and bore our diseases.”
¹⁸ Now when Jesus saw a crowd around him, he gave orders to go over to the other side.
¹⁹ And a scribe came up and said to him, “Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go.”
²⁰ And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.”
²¹ Another of the disciples said to him, “Lord, let me first go and bury my father.”
²² And Jesus said to him, “Follow me, and leave the dead to bury their own dead.”
²³ And when he got into the boat, his disciples followed him.
²⁴ And behold, there arose a great storm on the sea, so that the boat was being swamped by the waves; but he was asleep.
²⁵ And they went and woke him, saying, “Save us, Lord; we are perishing.”
²⁶ And he said to them, “Why are you afraid, O you of little faith?” Then he rose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm.
²⁷ And the men marveled, saying, “What sort of man is this, that even winds and sea obey him?”
²⁸ And when he came to the other side, to the country of the Gadarenes, two demon-possessed men met him, coming out of the tombs, so fierce that no one could pass that way.
²⁹ And behold, they cried out, “What have you to do with us, O Son of God? Have you come here to torment us before the time?”
³⁰ Now a herd of many pigs was feeding at some distance from them.
³¹ And the demons begged him, saying, “If you cast us out, send us away into the herd of pigs.”
³² And he said to them, “Go.” So they came out and went into the pigs, and behold, the whole herd rushed down the steep bank into the sea and drowned in the waters.
³³ The herdsmen fled, and going into the city they told everything, especially what had happened to the demon-possessed men.
³⁴ And behold, all the city came out to meet Jesus, and when they saw him, they begged him to leave their region. (ESV)

Reading Plan:

Prayers

▼

Kyrie

O Lord, have mercy upon us.
O Christ, have mercy upon us.
O Lord, have mercy upon us.

The Lord's Prayer

Our 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
and the power and the glory
forever and ever. Amen. Matthew 6:9-13

Prayer for Protection and Rest

I thank You, my Heavenly Father, through Jesus Christ, Your dear Son, that You have graciously kept me this far through the night; and I pray You to forgive me all my sins where I have done wrong, and graciously keep me until morning. For into Your hands I commend myself, my body and soul, and all things. Let Your holy angel be with me, that the Wicked Foe may have no power over me. Amen.

Concluding Prayer

Almighty God, rouse us from slumber and death and kindle within our hearts the flame of a new life of godliness. Create in me a clean heart, O God: and renew a right spirit within me. Grant, Lord, when I wake, I may of endless light partake. Amen.

Closing

▼

Nunc Dimittis

Lord, now You let Your servant go in peace;
Your word has been fulfilled.
My own eyes have seen the salvation
which You have prepared in the sight of every people:
a light to reveal You to the nations
and the glory of Your people Israel.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit;
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen. Luke 2:29-32

Bless we the Lord.
Thanks be to God.