Morning Prayer (Mattins) in Contemporary Language

Blessed are you, creator of all,
to you be praise and glory for ever.
As your dawn renews the face of the earth
bringing light and life to all creation,
may we rejoice in this day you have made;
as we wake refreshed from the depths of sleep,
open our eyes to behold your presence
and strengthen our hands to do your will,
that the world may rejoice and give you praise.
Blessed be God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
AllBlessed be God for ever.

after Lancelot Andrewes (1626)

or a suitable hymn,

or A Song of God’s Compassion

This opening prayer may be said

The night has passed, and the day lies open before us;
let us pray with one heart and mind.

Silence is kept.

As we rejoice in the gift of this new day,
so may the light of your presence, O God,
set our hearts on fire with love for you;
now and for ever.
AllAmen.

The Word of God

Psalmody

The appointed psalmody is said.

Psalm 1

Refrain: The Lord knows the way of the righteous.

1 Blessed are they who have not walked
in the counsel of the wicked, ♦
nor lingered in the way of sinners,
nor sat in the assembly of the scornful.

2 Their delight is in the law of the Lord ♦
and they meditate on his law day and night.

3 Like a tree planted by streams of water
bearing fruit in due season, with leaves that do not wither, ♦
whatever they do, it shall prosper. R

4 As for the wicked, it is not so with them; ♦
they are like chaff which the wind blows away.

5 Therefore the wicked shall not be able to stand in the judgement, ♦
nor the sinner in the congregation of the righteous.

6 For the Lord knows the way of the righteous, ♦
but the way of the wicked shall perish.

Refrain: The Lord knows the way of the righteous.

Christ our wisdom,
give us delight in your law,
that we may bear fruits of patience and peace
in the kingdom of the righteous;
for your mercy’s sake.

Psalm 2

Refrain: The Lord is the strength of his people, a safe refuge for his anointed.

1 Why are the nations in tumult, ♦
and why do the peoples devise a vain plot?

2 The kings of the earth rise up,
and the rulers take counsel together, ♦
against the Lord and against his anointed:

3 ‘Let us break their bonds asunder ♦
and cast away their cords from us.’ R

4 He who dwells in heaven shall laugh them to scorn; ♦
the Lord shall have them in derision.

5 Then shall he speak to them in his wrath ♦
and terrify them in his fury:

6 ‘Yet have I set my king ♦
upon my holy hill of Zion.’ R

7 I will proclaim the decree of the Lord; ♦
he said to me: ‘You are my Son; this day have I begotten you.

8 ‘Ask of me and I will give you the nations for your inheritance ♦
and the ends of the earth for your possession.

9 ‘You shall break them with a rod of iron ♦
and dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel.’ R

10 Now therefore be wise, O kings; ♦
be prudent, you judges of the earth.

11 Serve the Lord with fear, and with trembling kiss his feet, ♦
lest he be angry and you perish from the way,
for his wrath is quickly kindled.

12 Happy are all they ♦
who take refuge in him.

Refrain: The Lord is the strength of his people, a safe refuge for his anointed.

Most high and holy God,
lift our eyes to your Son
enthroned on Calvary;
and as we behold his meekness,
shatter our earthly pride;
for he is Lord for ever and ever.

Psalm 3

Refrain: You, Lord, are a shield about me.

1 Lord, how many are my adversaries; ♦
many are they who rise up against me.

2 Many are they who say to my soul, ♦
‘There is no help for you in your God.’ R

3 But you, Lord, are a shield about me; ♦
you are my glory, and the lifter up of my head.

4 When I cry aloud to the Lord, ♦
he will answer me from his holy hill;

5 I lie down and sleep and rise again, ♦
because the Lord sustains me.

6 I will not be afraid of hordes of the peoples ♦
that have set themselves against me all around. R

7 Rise up, O Lord, and deliver me, O my God, ♦
for you strike all my enemies on the cheek
and break the teeth of the wicked.

8 Salvation belongs to the Lord: ♦
may your blessing be upon your people.

Refrain: You, Lord, are a shield about me.

Shield us, Lord, from all evil,
and lift us from apathy and despair,
that even when we are terrified,
we may trust your power to save;
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.

Job 7

‘Do not human beings have a hard service on earth,
   and are not their days like the days of a labourer?
Like a slave who longs for the shadow,
   and like labourers who look for their wages,
so I am allotted months of emptiness,
   and nights of misery are apportioned to me.
When I lie down I say, “When shall I rise?”
   But the night is long,
   and I am full of tossing until dawn.
My flesh is clothed with worms and dirt;
   my skin hardens, then breaks out again.
My days are swifter than a weaver’s shuttle,
   and come to their end without hope.

‘Remember that my life is a breath;
   my eye will never again see good.
The eye that beholds me will see me no more;
   while your eyes are upon me, I shall be gone.
As the cloud fades and vanishes,
   so those who go down to Sheol do not come up;
they return no more to their houses,
   nor do their places know them any more.

‘Therefore I will not restrain my mouth;
   I will speak in the anguish of my spirit;
   I will complain in the bitterness of my soul.
Am I the Sea, or the Dragon,
   that you set a guard over me?
When I say, “My bed will comfort me,
   my couch will ease my complaint”,
then you scare me with dreams
   and terrify me with visions,
so that I would choose strangling
   and death rather than this body.
I loathe my life; I would not live for ever.
   Let me alone, for my days are a breath.
What are human beings, that you make so much of them,
   that you set your mind on them,
visit them every morning,
   test them every moment?
Will you not look away from me for a while,
   let me alone until I swallow my spittle?
If I sin, what do I do to you, you watcher of humanity?
   Why have you made me your target?
   Why have I become a burden to you?
Why do you not pardon my transgression
   and take away my iniquity?
For now I shall lie in the earth;
   you will seek me, but I shall not be.’

Canticle

A Song of Deliverance, or another suitable canticle, for example, number 40 (page 591), may be said

Refrain:

AllAll the earth, shout and sing for joy,
for great in your midst is the Holy One. Alleluia.

1‘Behold, God is my salvation; ♦
I will trust and will not be afraid;

2‘For the Lord God is my strength and my song, ♦
and has become my salvation.’

3With joy you will draw water ♦
from the wells of salvation.

4On that day you will say, ♦
‘Give thanks to the Lord, call upon his name;

5‘Make known his deeds among the nations, ♦
proclaim that his name is exalted.

6‘Sing God’s praises, who has triumphed gloriously; ♦
let this be known in all the world.

7‘Shout and sing for joy, you that dwell in Zion, ♦
for great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel.‘

Isaiah 12.2-6

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.

AllAll the earth, shout and sing for joy,
for great in your midst is the Holy One. Alleluia.

Scripture Reading

One or more readings appointed for the day are read.

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

Romans 4.1-12

What then are we to say was gained by Abraham, our ancestor according to the flesh? For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God. For what does the scripture say? ‘Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness.’ Now to one who works, wages are not reckoned as a gift but as something due. But to one who without works trusts him who justifies the ungodly, such faith is reckoned as righteousness. So also David speaks of the blessedness of those to whom God reckons righteousness irrespective of works:
‘Blessed are those whose iniquities are forgiven,
   and whose sins are covered;
blessed is the one against whom the Lord will not reckon sin.’

Is this blessedness, then, pronounced only on the circumcised, or also on the uncircumcised? We say, ‘Faith was reckoned to Abraham as righteousness.’ How then was it reckoned to him? Was it before or after he had been circumcised? It was not after, but before he was circumcised. He received the sign of circumcision as a seal of the righteousness that he had by faith while he was still uncircumcised. The purpose was to make him the ancestor of all who believe without being circumcised and who thus have righteousness reckoned to them, and likewise the ancestor of the circumcised who are not only circumcised but who also follow the example of the faith that our ancestor Abraham had before he was circumcised.

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

Trust in the Lord with all your heart;
and be not wise in your own sight.
AllTrust in the Lord with all your heart;
and be not wise in your own sight.
In all your ways acknowledge him
and he will make straight your paths.
AllTrust in the Lord with all your heart.
Glory to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit.
AllTrust in the Lord with all your heart;
and be not wise in your own sight.

from Proverbs 3

Gospel Canticle

The Benedictus (The Song of Zechariah) is normally said,
or the Te Deum Laudamus (A Song of the Church) (page 636) may be said

Refrain:

All I will give you shepherds after my own heart
who will feed you with knowledge and understanding. Alleluia.

1Blessed be the Lord the God of Israel, ♦
who has come to his people and set them free.

2He has raised up for us a mighty Saviour, ♦
born of the house of his servant David.

3Through his holy prophets God promised of old ♦
to save us from our enemies,
from the hands of all that hate us,

4To show mercy to our ancestors, ♦
and to remember his holy covenant.

5This was the oath God swore to our father Abraham: ♦
to set us free from the hands of our enemies,

6Free to worship him without fear, ♦
holy and righteous in his sight
all the days of our life.

7And you, child, shall be called the prophet of the Most High, ♦
for you will go before the Lord to prepare his way,

8To give his people knowledge of salvation ♦
by the forgiveness of all their sins.

9In the tender compassion of our God ♦
the dawn from on high shall break upon us,

10To shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death, ♦
and to guide our feet into the way of peace.

Luke 1.68-79

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:

All I will give you shepherds after my own heart
who will feed you with knowledge and understanding. Alleluia.

Prayers

Intercessions are offered
¶ for the day and its tasks
¶ for the world and its needs
¶ for the Church and her life

Prayers may include the following concerns from the cycle on pages 362–363

¶ The media and the arts
¶ Farming and fishing
¶ Commerce and industry
¶ Those whose work is unfulfilling, stressful or fraught with danger
¶ All who are unemployed

One of the forms of prayer found on pages 362–371 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

Most merciful redeemer,
who gave to your bishop Richard a love of learning,
a zeal for souls and a devotion to the poor:
grant that, encouraged by his example,
we may know you more clearly,
      love you more dearly,
      and follow you more nearly,
day by day,
who with the Father and the Holy Spirit are alive and reign,
one God, now and for ever.
AllAmen.

The Lord’s Prayer is said

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)

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

The Lord bless us, and preserve us from all evil,
and keep us in eternal life.
AllAmen.

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