Morning Prayer
Feria (Green); Day of Abstinence
Psalms: Psalm 56
King James Version
1 Be merciful unto me, O God: for man would swallow me up; he fighting daily oppresseth me. 2 Mine enemies would daily swallow me up: for they be many that fight against me, O thou most High. 3 What time I am afraid, I will trust in thee. 4 In God I will praise his word, in God I have put my trust; I will not fear what flesh can do unto me. 5 Every day they wrest my words: all their thoughts are against me for evil. 6 They gather themselves together, they hide themselves, they mark my steps, when they wait for my soul. 7 Shall they escape by iniquity? in thine anger cast down the people, O God. 8 Thou tellest my wanderings: put thou my tears into thy bottle: are they not in thy book? 9 When I cry unto thee, then shall mine enemies turn back: this I know; for God is for me. 10 In God will I praise his word: in the LORD will I praise his word. 11 In God have I put my trust: I will not be afraid what man can do unto me. 12 Thy vows are upon me, O God: I will render praises unto thee. 13 For thou hast delivered my soul from death: wilt not thou deliver my feet from falling, that I may walk before God in the light of the living?
First Lesson: Jeremiah 22:20-23:8
King James Version
20 Go up to Lebanon, and cry; and lift up thy voice in Bashan, and cry from the passages: for all thy lovers are destroyed. 21 I spake unto thee in thy prosperity; but thou saidst, I will not hear. This hath been thy manner from thy youth, that thou obeyedst not my voice. 22 The wind shall eat up all thy pastors, and thy lovers shall go into captivity: surely then shalt thou be ashamed and confounded for all thy wickedness. 23 O inhabitant of Lebanon, that makest thy nest in the cedars, how gracious shalt thou be when pangs come upon thee, the pain as of a woman in travail! 24 As I live, saith the LORD, though Coniah the son of Jehoiakim king of Judah were the signet upon my right hand, yet would I pluck thee thence; 25 And I will give thee into the hand of them that seek thy life, and into the hand of them whose face thou fearest, even into the hand of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, and into the hand of the Chaldeans. 26 And I will cast thee out, and thy mother that bare thee, into another country, where ye were not born; and there shall ye die. 27 But to the land whereunto they desire to return, thither shall they not return. 28 Is this man Coniah a despised broken idol? is he a vessel wherein is no pleasure? wherefore are they cast out, he and his seed, and are cast into a land which they know not? 29 O earth, earth, earth, hear the word of the LORD. 30 Thus saith the LORD, Write ye this man childless, a man that shall not prosper in his days: for no man of his seed shall prosper, sitting upon the throne of David, and ruling any more in Judah. 1 Woe be unto the pastors that destroy and scatter the sheep of my pasture! saith the LORD. 2 Therefore thus saith the LORD God of Israel against the pastors that feed my people; Ye have scattered my flock, and driven them away, and have not visited them: behold, I will visit upon you the evil of your doings, saith the LORD. 3 And I will gather the remnant of my flock out of all countries whither I have driven them, and will bring them again to their folds; and they shall be fruitful and increase. 4 And I will set up shepherds over them which shall feed them: and they shall fear no more, nor be dismayed, neither shall they be lacking, saith the LORD. 5 Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth. 6 In his days Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely: and this is his name whereby he shall be called, THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS. 7 Therefore, behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that they shall no more say, The LORD liveth, which brought up the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt; 8 But, The LORD liveth, which brought up and which led the seed of the house of Israel out of the north country, and from all countries whither I had driven them; and they shall dwell in their own land.
Second Lesson: Ephesians 4:31-5:21
King James Version
31 Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice: 32 And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you. 1 Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children; 2 And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweetsmelling savour. 3 But fornication, and all uncleanness, or covetousness, let it not be once named among you, as becometh saints; 4 Neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor jesting, which are not convenient: but rather giving of thanks. 5 For this ye know, that no whoremonger, nor unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, hath any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God. 6 Let no man deceive you with vain words: for because of these things cometh the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience. 7 Be not ye therefore partakers with them. 8 For ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light: 9 (For the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness and righteousness and truth;) 10 Proving what is acceptable unto the Lord. 11 And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them. 12 For it is a shame even to speak of those things which are done of them in secret. 13 But all things that are reproved are made manifest by the light: for whatsoever doth make manifest is light. 14 Wherefore he saith, Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light. 15 See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, 16 Redeeming the time, because the days are evil. 17 Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is. 18 And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit; 19 Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord; 20 Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ; 21 Submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God.
Reflection
“What time I am afraid, I will trust in thee.” That sentence from Psalm 56 is not the confidence of a man who has never known fear. It is the confession of one who knows fear well, but knows God better. David speaks of enemies who press upon him, of words twisted against him, and of tears that God Himself has gathered and remembered. Faith does not pretend that danger is unreal. Faith brings danger into the presence of God.
That is important because the other readings are equally realistic about the danger which comes, not only from enemies outside, but from failure within. Jeremiah speaks sternly against the shepherds who have scattered the flock. These were the rulers and leaders of Judah, entrusted with the care of God’s people. They had not visited the flock; they had not fed it; they had used their office without fulfilling its duty. Therefore the Lord says, “I will visit upon you the evil of your doings.”
Yet judgement is not the last word. The Lord promises to gather the remnant, to set faithful shepherds over them, and above all to raise up for David “a righteous Branch,” a King who shall execute judgement and justice. His name shall be called, “THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS.” The failure of earthly shepherds does not mean that God has abandoned His sheep. He Himself will provide the Shepherd-King.
For Christians, that promise finds its fulfilment in our Lord Jesus Christ, the true Shepherd and King. He does not scatter His people but gathers them. He does not feed upon the flock but gives Himself for it. And, as Saint Paul says, He “hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweetsmelling savour.” Our righteousness is not manufactured by our own respectability. It is Christ who is the Lord our righteousness. Nevertheless, those who belong to Him are called to walk in a new manner.
“Ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light.” Notice that Saint Paul does not merely say that we have been shown the light, or that we have learned to speak about the light. We are to walk in it. The Gospel must become visible in our habits, our speech, our treatment of one another, and the use we make of the time God gives us.
So bitterness, wrath, anger, clamour, evil speaking, and malice are to be put away. In their place are kindness, tender-heartedness, and forgiveness. This is not weakness. It is the character of those who have themselves been forgiven by God for Christ’s sake. Nor is it a superficial improvement in manners. Saint Paul connects our ordinary conduct with the kingdom of Christ. Our words and tempers reveal which kingdom we are serving.
This day of abstinence gives us a fitting opportunity to practise that truth. We may abstain from food, or from some other lawful pleasure, as an act of discipline and prayer. But let us also ask whether there is some bitterness from which we need to abstain: some cherished grievance, some readiness to speak harshly, some secret indulgence which keeps us in darkness. True Christian fasting is never merely an empty stomach. It is a heart being turned again towards God.
Saint Paul tells us instead to be “filled with the Spirit,” giving thanks to God and submitting ourselves to one another “in the fear of God.” That holy fear is not servile terror. It is the reverent awareness that our lives are lived before the Shepherd who sees every wandering, counts every tear, and calls His people into the light.
Therefore, when afraid, trust God. When tempted to bitterness, remember Christ’s forgiveness. When uncertain how to live, walk circumspectly, seeking what is acceptable to the Lord. The righteous Branch reigns; the scattered flock is being gathered; and the Lord our righteousness will not fail His people.
Evening Prayer
Feria (Green); Day of Abstinence
Psalms: Psalm 57
King James Version
1 Be merciful unto me, O God, be merciful unto me: for my soul trusteth in thee: yea, in the shadow of thy wings will I make my refuge, until these calamities be overpast. 2 I will cry unto God most high; unto God that performeth all things for me. 3 He shall send from heaven, and save from the reproach of him that would swallow me up. Selah. God shall send forth his mercy and his truth. 4 My soul is among lions: and I lie even among them that are set on fire, even the sons of men, whose teeth are spears and arrows, and their tongue a sharp sword. 5 Be thou exalted, O God, above the heavens; let thy glory be above all the earth. 6 They have prepared a net for my steps; my soul is bowed down: they have digged a pit before me, into the midst whereof they are fallen themselves. Selah. 7 My heart is fixed, O God, my heart is fixed: I will sing and give praise. 8 Awake up, my glory; awake, psaltery and harp: I myself will awake early. 9 I will praise thee, O Lord, among the people: I will sing unto thee among the nations. 10 For thy mercy is great unto the heavens, and thy truth unto the clouds. 11 Be thou exalted, O God, above the heavens: let thy glory be above all the earth.
First Lesson: Jeremiah 24
King James Version
1 The LORD shewed me, and, behold, two baskets of figs were set before the temple of the LORD, after that Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon had carried away captive Jeconiah the son of Jehoiakim king of Judah, and the princes of Judah, with the carpenters and smiths, from Jerusalem, and had brought them to Babylon. 2 One basket had very good figs, even like the figs that are first ripe: and the other basket had very naughty figs, which could not be eaten, they were so bad. 3 Then said the LORD unto me, What seest thou, Jeremiah? And I said, Figs; the good figs, very good; and the evil, very evil, that cannot be eaten, they are so evil. 4 Again the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, 5 Thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel; Like these good figs, so will I acknowledge them that are carried away captive of Judah, whom I have sent out of this place into the land of the Chaldeans for their good. 6 For I will set mine eyes upon them for good, and I will bring them again to this land: and I will build them, and not pull them down; and I will plant them, and not pluck them up. 7 And I will give them an heart to know me, that I am the LORD: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God: for they shall return unto me with their whole heart. 8 And as the evil figs, which cannot be eaten, they are so evil; surely thus saith the LORD, So will I give Zedekiah the king of Judah, and his princes, and the residue of Jerusalem, that remain in this land, and them that dwell in the land of Egypt: 9 And I will deliver them to be removed into all the kingdoms of the earth for their hurt, to be a reproach and a proverb, a taunt and a curse, in all places whither I shall drive them. 10 And I will send the sword, the famine, and the pestilence, among them, till they be consumed from off the land that I gave unto them and to their fathers.
Second Lesson: John 7:25-end
King James Version
25 Then said some of them of Jerusalem, Is not this he, whom they seek to kill? 26 But, lo, he speaketh boldly, and they say nothing unto him. Do the rulers know indeed that this is the very Christ? 27 Howbeit we know this man whence he is: but when Christ cometh, no man knoweth whence he is. 28 Then cried Jesus in the temple as he taught, saying, Ye both know me, and ye know whence I am: and I am not come of myself, but he that sent me is true, whom ye know not. 29 But I know him: for I am from him, and he hath sent me. 30 Then they sought to take him: but no man laid hands on him, because his hour was not yet come. 31 And many of the people believed on him, and said, When Christ cometh, will he do more miracles than these which this man hath done? 32 The Pharisees heard that the people murmured such things concerning him; and the Pharisees and the chief priests sent officers to take him. 33 Then said Jesus unto them, Yet a little while am I with you, and then I go unto him that sent me. 34 Ye shall seek me, and shall not find me: and where I am, thither ye cannot come. 35 Then said the Jews among themselves, Whither will he go, that we shall not find him? will he go unto the dispersed among the Gentiles, and teach the Gentiles? 36 What manner of saying is this that he said, Ye shall seek me, and shall not find me: and where I am, thither ye cannot come? 37 In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink. 38 He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. 39 (But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified.) 40 Many of the people therefore, when they heard this saying, said, Of a truth this is the Prophet. 41 Others said, This is the Christ. But some said, Shall Christ come out of Galilee? 42 Hath not the scripture said, That Christ cometh of the seed of David, and out of the town of Bethlehem, where David was? 43 So there was a division among the people because of him. 44 And some of them would have taken him; but no man laid hands on him. 45 Then came the officers to the chief priests and Pharisees; and they said unto them, Why have ye not brought him? 46 The officers answered, Never man spake like this man. 47 Then answered them the Pharisees, Are ye also deceived? 48 Have any of the rulers or of the Pharisees believed on him? 49 But this people who knoweth not the law are cursed. 50 Nicodemus saith unto them, (he that came to Jesus by night, being one of them,) 51 Doth our law judge any man, before it hear him, and know what he doeth? 52 They answered and said unto him, Art thou also of Galilee? Search, and look: for out of Galilee ariseth no prophet. 53 And every man went unto his own house.
Reflection
There is a curious contrast in today’s readings. Jeremiah is shown two baskets of figs: one full of fruit so good that it may be eaten with delight, the other so bad that it cannot be eaten at all. In the Gospel, meanwhile, the people are divided about Jesus. Some say, “Of a truth this is the Prophet.” Others say, “This is the Christ.” Others object that he comes from Galilee. The officers sent to arrest him return empty-handed, saying, “Never man spake like this man.”
The question beneath both readings is this: how do we recognise what is truly of God?
The people in Jerusalem have heard Jesus teach, and they have seen his works. Yet they cannot agree about him. They know something about his earthly origins, or think they do, and this becomes an excuse for refusing to hear his heavenly origin. They judge him according to appearances, according to rumour, according to the verdict of the crowd. But Jesus does not come on his own authority. “I am not come of myself,” he says, “but he that sent me is true.”
The difficulty is not that God has failed to speak clearly. The difficulty is that the human heart is often unwilling to receive what God says. We may prefer a Christ who confirms our expectations, a religion which leaves our habits undisturbed, and a truth which can be managed by our own opinions. But the living Christ cannot be reduced to our categories. He speaks with an authority which searches us as well as instructs us.
That is why the officers’ answer is so striking: “Never man spake like this man.” They had been sent to seize him, but they returned having been seized, as it were, by the power of his word. They had listened. The rulers had not. The rulers appeal to their own standing and to their knowledge of the law: “Have any of the rulers or of the Pharisees believed on him?” But Nicodemus quietly asks the elementary question which authority and indignation have forgotten: “Doth our law judge any man, before it hear him, and know what he doeth?”
It is a question worth asking of ourselves. Have we really heard Christ? Have we listened to his words in the Gospels, not merely to the opinions formed about him? Have we allowed his teaching to correct us, rather than selecting from it whatever happens to suit us? The Church of England, in her sober and wholesome way, bids us hear the Scriptures read continually, and to test all things by the apostolic faith. That is no invitation to private fancies or passing enthusiasms, but to patient obedience before the Word of God.
Jeremiah’s good figs are those whom God has sent into exile for their good. Their difficult circumstances are not proof that God has abandoned them. Indeed, God says, “I will give them an heart to know me.” He can use even chastening, loss, and displacement to turn his people back to himself. The bad figs, by contrast, are those who remain hardened, refusing the judgment which might have restored them.
So the distinction is not between people who have easy lives and people who have hard ones. It is between hearts which receive God’s dealings and hearts which resist them. A good heart is not one that has never been troubled; it is one that is willing to be taught.
On this day of abstinence, we are reminded that our appetites do not rule us. We may deny ourselves some earthly nourishment in order to become more attentive to the hunger beneath all other hungers. At the feast Jesus cries, “If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink.” He does not merely offer information about God. He offers God’s own life: the living water of the Holy Ghost, poured forth through the glorified Christ.
The psalmist, surrounded by danger, says, “My heart is fixed, O God, my heart is fixed.” That is the fruit for which we pray: not a heart untouched by difficulty, but a heart made steadfast beneath the wings of God. Let us come to Christ with our thirst, hear his word with humility, and ask the Holy Ghost to make us good fruit—people who, having been corrected and fed by grace, return to the Lord with our whole heart.