17th August 2025 Morning Prayer

The Psalter

Psalm 115

Non nobis, Domine

NOT unto us, O LORD, not unto us, but unto thy Name give the praise; * for thy loving mercy, and for thy truth's sake.

Wherefore shall the heathen say, * Where is now their God?

As for our God, he is in heaven: * he hath done whatsoever pleased him.

Their idols are silver and gold, * even the work of men's hands.

They have mouths, and speak not; * eyes have they, and see not.

They have ears, and hear not; * noses have they, and smell not.

They have hands, and handle not; feet have they, and walk not; * neither speak they through their throat.

They that make them are like unto them; * and so are all such as put their trust in them.

But thou, house of Israel, trust thou in the LORD; * he is their helper and defender.

Ye house of Aaron, put your trust in the LORD; * he is their helper and defender.

Ye that fear the LORD, put your trust in the LORD; * he is their helper and defender.

The LORD hath been mindful of us, and he shall bless us; * even he shall bless the house of Israel, he shall bless the house of Aaron.

He shall bless them that fear the LORD, * both small and great.

The LORD shall increase you more and more, * you and your children.

Ye are the blessed of the LORD, * who made heaven and earth.

All the whole heavens are the LORD'S; * the earth hath he given to the children of men.

The dead praise not thee, O LORD, * neither all they that go down into silence.

But we will praise the LORD, * from this time forth for evermore. Praise the LORD.

The First Lesson

Ezek14:1-11

14 Then came certain of the elders of Israel unto me, and sat before me.

And the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,

Son of man, these men have set up their idols in their heart, and put the stumblingblock of their iniquity before their face: should I be enquired of at all by them?

Therefore speak unto them, and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord God; Every man of the house of Israel that setteth up his idols in his heart, and putteth the stumblingblock of his iniquity before his face, and cometh to the prophet; I the Lord will answer him that cometh according to the multitude of his idols;

That I may take the house of Israel in their own heart, because they are all estranged from me through their idols.

Therefore say unto the house of Israel, Thus saith the Lord God; Repent, and turn yourselves from your idols; and turn away your faces from all your abominations.

For every one of the house of Israel, or of the stranger that sojourneth in Israel, which separateth himself from me, and setteth up his idols in his heart, and putteth the stumblingblock of his iniquity before his face, and cometh to a prophet to enquire of him concerning me; I the Lord will answer him by myself:

And I will set my face against that man, and will make him a sign and a proverb, and I will cut him off from the midst of my people; and ye shall know that I am the Lord.

And if the prophet be deceived when he hath spoken a thing, I the Lord have deceived that prophet, and I will stretch out my hand upon him, and will destroy him from the midst of my people Israel.

And they shall bear the punishment of their iniquity: the punishment of the prophet shall be even as the punishment of him that seeketh unto him;

That the house of Israel may go no more astray from me, neither be polluted any more with all their transgressions; but that they may be my people, and I may be their God, saith the Lord God.

The Second Lesson

1Thess4:1-12

Furthermore then we beseech you, brethren, and exhort you by the Lord Jesus, that as ye have received of us how ye ought to walk and to please God, so ye would abound more and more.

For ye know what commandments we gave you by the Lord Jesus.

For this is the will of God, even your sanctification, that ye should abstain from fornication:

That every one of you should know how to possess his vessel in sanctification and honour;

Not in the lust of concupiscence, even as the Gentiles which know not God:

That no man go beyond and defraud his brother in any matter: because that the Lord is the avenger of all such, as we also have forewarned you and testified.

For God hath not called us unto uncleanness, but unto holiness.

He therefore that despiseth, despiseth not man, but God, who hath also given unto us his holy Spirit.

But as touching brotherly love ye need not that I write unto you: for ye yourselves are taught of God to love one another.

And indeed ye do it toward all the brethren which are in all Macedonia: but we beseech you, brethren, that ye increase more and more;

And that ye study to be quiet, and to do your own business, and to work with your own hands, as we commanded you;

That ye may walk honestly toward them that are without, and that ye may have lack of nothing.

The Ninth Sunday after Trinity

Grant to us, Lord, we beseech thee, the spirit to think and do always such things as are right; that we, who cannot do any thing that is good without thee, may by thee be enabled to live according to thy will; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.