One thing I have asked of the Lord, this is what I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life; to behold the beauty of the Lord and to seek Him in His temple.
Praise to You, Lord Jesus Christ, King of endless glory.
“I will bless those who bless you and curse those who treat you with contempt. All the families on earth will be blessed through you.” – Genesis 12:3 (NLT)
Eze 25:6-7 – “This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Because you clapped and danced and cheered with glee at the destruction of my people, I will raise my fist of judgment against you. I will give you as plunder to many nations. I will cut you off from being a nation and destroy you completely. Then you will know that I am the Lord.”
Judgement
Sovereign Lord: you have made a covenant of blessing and protection with the Jewish people – to bless those who bless them and curse those who curse them. Your judgement on those who do the Jewish people harm or profit from doing them harm is absolute.
And, Lord, you have made a new covenant of blessing and protection with your people in the church through faith in Jesus Christ – to bless those who bless them and curse those who curse them. Your judgement on those who do Christians harm or profit from doing them harm is no less absolute.
Sovereign Lord: visit our world today – enact your righteous judgement on those who would persecute and oppress your people, both Jew and Christian. Expose their evil schemes and put them to shame – that all may know you are the Lord. Through Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Restoration
Eze 28:25-26 – “This is what the Sovereign Lord says: The people of Israel will again live in their own land, the land I gave my servant Jacob. For I will gather them from the distant lands where I have scattered them. I will reveal to the nations of the world my holiness among my people. They will live safely in Israel and build homes and plant vineyards. And when I punish the neighboring nations that treated them with contempt, they will know that I am the Lord their God.”
__________
May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you, wherever He may send you. May He guide you through the wilderness, protect you through the storm. May He bring you home rejoicing at the wonders He has shown you. May He bring you home rejoicing once again into our doors.
__________
+ In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen!
+ In the name of the Father and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen
Opening sentences
Lord, open my lips and my mouth will proclaim your praise.
I arise today, through God’s strength to pilot me:
God’s might to uphold me, God’s wisdom to guide me,
God’s eye to look before me, God’s ear to hear me,
God’s word to speak for me, God’s hand to guard me,
God’s way to lie before me, God’s shield to protect me,
God’s host to secure me: against snares of devils,
against temptations of vices, against inclinations of nature,
against everyone who shall wish me ill,
afar and anear, alone and in a crowd.
Revelation 17:6b–18 (ESV) – to be read aloud
The Whore Babylon, Revelation 17:1-18 circa 1530-1532 Mathias GerungOttheinrich-Bibel, Bayerische Staatsbibliothek
When I saw her, I marveled greatly. But the angel said to me, “Why do you marvel? I will tell you the mystery of the woman, and of the beast with seven heads and ten horns that carries her. The beast that you saw was, and is not, and is about to rise from the bottomless pit and go to destruction. And the dwellers on earth whose names have not been written in the book of life from the foundation of the world will marvel to see the beast, because it was and is not and is to come. This calls for a mind with wisdom: the seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman is seated; they are also seven kings, five of whom have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come, and when he does come he must remain only a little while. As for the beast that was and is not, it is an eighth but it belongs to the seven, and it goes to destruction. And the ten horns that you saw are ten kings who have not yet received royal power, but they are to receive authority as kings for one hour, together with the beast. These are of one mind, and they hand over their power and authority to the beast. They will make war on the Lamb, and the Lamb will conquer them, for he is Lord of lords and King of kings, and those with him are called and chosen and faithful.”
And the angel said to me, “The waters that you saw, where the prostitute is seated, are peoples and multitudes and nations and languages. And the ten horns that you saw, they and the beast will hate the prostitute. They will make her desolate and naked, and devour her flesh and burn her up with fire, for God has put it into their hearts to carry out his purpose by being of one mind and handing over their royal power to the beast, until the words of God are fulfilled. And the woman that you saw is the great city that has dominion over the kings of the earth.”
Reflection
THE THIRD VISION (17:1-21:8)
The Prostitute and the Scarlet Beast(17:1-18)
The vision interpreted (17:6b-18)
The interpreting angel sets out to explain to John the mystery of the woman and the beast she rides…. In a general sense we immediately understand that here we see the appropriate end of “Babylon,” the cruel oppressor of God’s people.It is a picture of the self-destructive power of evil….
The woman and the beast cannot be understood apart from one another. While the remainder of chapter 17 is primarily concerned with the interpretation of the beast, 18:1-19:5 details the judgment of the prostitute. (Mounce, p.313-4)
One would expect that the angel’s explanation would deal largely with the mystery of the great harlot, but the angel says that he will explain also the mystery of the beast. This shows the inseparable relationship between the woman and the beast. The last center of civilization will derive its character altogether from the one fact that it is supported by the beast. THere are not two mysteries; the one mystery includes both the beast and the harlot. (Ladd, p.226)
__________
__________
Canticle
Christ, as a light – illumine and guide me.
Christ, as a shield – overshadow me.
Christ under me; Christ over me; Christ beside me – on my left and my right.
This day be within and without me, lowly and meek, yet all-powerful.
Be in the heart of each to whom I speak; in the mouth of each who speaks unto me.
This day be within and without me, lowly and meek, yet all-powerful.
Christ as a light; Christ as a shield; Christ beside me – on my left and my right.
Blessing
May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you, wherever He may send you.
May He guide you through the wilderness, protect you through the storm.
May He bring you home rejoicing at the wonders He has shown you.
May He bring you home rejoicing once again into our doors.
+ In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen
_____________________________________
Peanut Gallery: In September, we will begin reading through the Book of Revelation (ESV). Our purpose will be devotional, i.e. to discover the word of blessing that God has for us in these troubled times… to find hope and help for our daily lives.
The general format for Morning Prayer is adapted from the Northumbrian Community‘s Daily Office, as found in Celtic Daily Prayer (see online resources here.) On Sundays, we’ll return to the USCCB readings (see online resources here) and various liturgical resources in order to reflect the Church’s worship and concerns throughout the world. Photo illustrations and music videos, available online, are included as they illustrate or illuminate the readings. I will try to give credit and link to sources as best I can.
+ In the name of the Father and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen
Opening sentences
Lord, open my lips and my mouth will proclaim your praise.
I arise today, through God’s strength to pilot me:
God’s might to uphold me, God’s wisdom to guide me,
God’s eye to look before me, God’s ear to hear me,
God’s word to speak for me, God’s hand to guard me,
God’s way to lie before me, God’s shield to protect me,
God’s host to secure me: against snares of devils,
against temptations of vices, against inclinations of nature,
against everyone who shall wish me ill,
afar and anear, alone and in a crowd.
Revelation 17:1-6 (ESV) – to be read aloud
Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the judgment of the great prostitute who is seated on many waters, with whom the kings of the earth have committed sexual immorality, and with the wine of whose sexual immorality the dwellers on earth have become drunk.”
The Woman on the Beast: angel shows St. John a vision of the great Harlot seated on a seven-headed monster, from the Lambeth Apocalypse, c.1260
And he carried me away in the Spirit into a wilderness, and I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast that was full of blasphemous names, and it had seven heads and ten horns. The woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet, and adorned with gold and jewels and pearls, holding in her hand a golden cup full of abominations and the impurities of her sexual immorality. And on her forehead was written a name of mystery:
“Babylon the great, mother of prostitutes and of earth’s abominations.”
And I saw the woman, drunk with the blood of the saints, the blood of the martyrs of Jesus.
When I saw her, I marveled greatly.
Reflection
THE THIRD VISION (17:1-21:8)
The Prostitute and the Scarlet Beast(17:1-18)
The vision (17:1-6)
Babylon (17:1-2)
Here the harlot is Babylon, the symbol of human civilization with all its pomp and circumstance organized in opposition to God (vs. 18)…. Babylon became the personification of wickedness, and John has taken over the Old Testament symbolism and used Babylon to represent the final manifestation of the total history of godless nations. The city had a historical manifestation in first-century Rome, but the full significance of the wicked city is eschatological… seducing all the world to worship that which is not God…. She seduces the nations to share her ungodly character. They have joined in her sins against God. (Ladd, p.221-2)
The blasphemous beast (17:3)
Blasphemy in this context refers to the self-deification of the Antichrist and his demand for the worship of his subjects. His blasphemies… consist of the derogation of deity by his own claim to self-deification. (Ladd, p. 223)
The phrase that describes the Antichrist in our Lord’s Olivet Discourse is literally, the abomination of desolation, i.e., the abomination that brings desolation. The main thought is that with the promise of wealth and luxury, the woman entices men away from the worship of God. (Ladd, p. 224)
Mother of harlots (17:5-6)
Babylon is the “mother of harlots.” She was not satisfied herself alone to entice men away from God; she insisted that her daughters join her in her nefarious and blasphemous designs. Along with her blasphemous harlotry she gave birth to all sorts of abominations, which filled the earth. (Ladd, p..224)
As the capital of the beast, she will be the city most noted for the persecution and martyrdom of the saints. Nothing as far-reaching as this had yet befallen the Christian church…. John looks for a day when the chief city of the beast will be infamous for her persecution of the saints primarily on religious grounds…. John is thinking of eschatological Babylon. (Ladd, p.225)
__________
__________
Canticle
Christ, as a light – illumine and guide me.
Christ, as a shield – overshadow me.
Christ under me; Christ over me; Christ beside me – on my left and my right.
This day be within and without me, lowly and meek, yet all-powerful.
Be in the heart of each to whom I speak; in the mouth of each who speaks unto me.
This day be within and without me, lowly and meek, yet all-powerful.
Christ as a light; Christ as a shield; Christ beside me – on my left and my right.
Blessing
May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you, wherever He may send you.
May He guide you through the wilderness, protect you through the storm.
May He bring you home rejoicing at the wonders He has shown you.
May He bring you home rejoicing once again into our doors.
+ In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen
_____________________________________
Peanut Gallery: In September, we will begin reading through the Book of Revelation (ESV). Our purpose will be devotional, i.e. to discover the word of blessing that God has for us in these troubled times… to find hope and help for our daily lives.
The general format for Morning Prayer is adapted from the Northumbrian Community‘s Daily Office, as found in Celtic Daily Prayer (see online resources here.) On Sundays, we’ll return to the USCCB readings (see online resources here) and various liturgical resources in order to reflect the Church’s worship and concerns throughout the world. Photo illustrations and music videos, available online, are included as they illustrate or illuminate the readings. I will try to give credit and link to sources as best I can.
+ In the name of the Father and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen
Opening sentences
Lord, open my lips and my mouth will proclaim your praise.
I arise today, through God’s strength to pilot me:
God’s might to uphold me, God’s wisdom to guide me,
God’s eye to look before me, God’s ear to hear me,
God’s word to speak for me, God’s hand to guard me,
God’s way to lie before me, God’s shield to protect me,
God’s host to secure me: against snares of devils,
against temptations of vices, against inclinations of nature,
against everyone who shall wish me ill,
afar and anear, alone and in a crowd.
Revelation 17:1-6 (ESV) – to be read aloud
Whore of Babylon Russian , ca. 1800 Russian engraving
Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the judgment of the great prostitute who is seated on many waters, with whom the kings of the earth have committed sexual immorality, and with the wine of whose sexual immorality the dwellers on earth have become drunk.”
And he carried me away in the Spirit into a wilderness, and I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast that was full of blasphemous names, and it had seven heads and ten horns. The woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet, and adorned with gold and jewels and pearls, holding in her hand a golden cup full of abominations and the impurities of her sexual immorality. And on her forehead was written a name of mystery:
“Babylon the great, mother of prostitutes and of earth’s abominations.”
And I saw the woman, drunk with the blood of the saints, the blood of the martyrs of Jesus.
When I saw her, I marveled greatly.
Reflection
THE THIRD VISION (17:1-21:8)
The Prostitute and the Scarlet Beast (17:1-18)
The vision in summary (17:1-6)
John now views the punishment to be meted out to the notorious prostitute with whom the kings of the earth have committed adultery and whose adulteries have intoxicated the inhabitants of the earth (vv 1-2). Taken into the desert by the Spirit, John sees a prostitute astride a scarlet, seven-headed beast (vv 3-6). In her hand is a golden cup filled with the filth of her adulteries, and on her forehead she bears the title “Mother of Prostitutes.” Her ultimate sin is that she has gorged herself on the blood fo God’s people. She is the one responsible for the suffering and bloodshed brought upon the struggling church. (Mounce, p.307)
__________
O soul, be afraid, thou shalt reckon with God,
And pass ’neath the scourge of His wrathful rod;
Thy heart torn with anguish shall hear at the last,
“The day of His grace is past.”
Refrain:
The day of His grace is past,
The day of His grace is past;
How sad when He’ll say, “Depart ye for aye,”
When the day of His grace is past.
O soul, be afraid, in thy sins thou shalt die
If Christ thou reject while He’s passing by;
Thy doom shall be sealed at the trumpet’s loud blast,
When the day of His grace is past.
O soul, be afraid, for the judgment shall come,
And thou shalt be turned from that blissful home;
Wilt thou be contented with that which thou hast
When the day of His grace is past?
O soul, be afraid, in His presence thou art,
Dismayed thou shalt stand when Christ says depart,
With demons in torment fore’er to be cast,
When the day of His grace is past.
__________
Canticle
Christ, as a light – illumine and guide me.
Christ, as a shield – overshadow me.
Christ under me; Christ over me; Christ beside me – on my left and my right.
This day be within and without me, lowly and meek, yet all-powerful.
Be in the heart of each to whom I speak; in the mouth of each who speaks unto me.
This day be within and without me, lowly and meek, yet all-powerful.
Christ as a light; Christ as a shield; Christ beside me – on my left and my right.
Blessing
May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you, wherever He may send you.
May He guide you through the wilderness, protect you through the storm.
May He bring you home rejoicing at the wonders He has shown you.
May He bring you home rejoicing once again into our doors.
+ In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen
_____________________________________
Peanut Gallery: In September, we will begin reading through the Book of Revelation (ESV). Our purpose will be devotional, i.e. to discover the word of blessing that God has for us in these troubled times… to find hope and help for our daily lives.
The general format for Morning Prayer is adapted from the Northumbrian Community‘s Daily Office, as found in Celtic Daily Prayer (see online resources here.) On Sundays, we’ll return to the USCCB readings (see online resources here) and various liturgical resources in order to reflect the Church’s worship and concerns throughout the world. Photo illustrations and music videos, available online, are included as they illustrate or illuminate the readings. I will try to give credit and link to sources as best I can.
+ In the name of the Father and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen
Opening sentences
Lord, open my lips and my mouth will proclaim your praise.
I arise today, through God’s strength to pilot me:
God’s might to uphold me, God’s wisdom to guide me,
God’s eye to look before me, God’s ear to hear me,
God’s word to speak for me, God’s hand to guard me,
God’s way to lie before me, God’s shield to protect me,
God’s host to secure me: against snares of devils,
against temptations of vices, against inclinations of nature,
against everyone who shall wish me ill,
afar and anear, alone and in a crowd.
Revelation 8:6-12 (ESV) – to be read aloud
Now the seven angels who had the seven trumpets prepared to blow them.
The first angel blew his trumpet, and there followed hail and fire, mixed with blood, and these were thrown upon the earth. And a third of the earth was burned up, and a third of the trees were burned up, and all green grass was burned up.
An angel blowing a trumpet leading to shipwrecks on earth. The Apocalypse Tapestry (1377–1382) Musée de la Tapisserie, Château d’Angers, Angers
The second angel blew his trumpet, and something like a great mountain, burning with fire, was thrown into the sea, and a third of the sea became blood. A third of the living creatures in the sea died, and a third of the ships were destroyed.
The third angel blew his trumpet, and a great star fell from heaven, blazing like a torch, and it fell on a third of the rivers and on the springs of water. The name of the star is Wormwood. A third of the waters became wormwood, and many people died from the water, because it had been made bitter.
The fourth angel blew his trumpet, and a third of the sun was struck, and a third of the moon, and a third of the stars, so that a third of their light might be darkened, and a third of the day might be kept from shining, and likewise a third of the night.
Reflection
THE SECOND VISION – THE SEVEN TRUMPETS
Overview: God is about to answer the prayers of the saints. The thunders, rumblings, flashes of lightning, and earthquake that follow are reminiscent of the theophany at Sinai (Ex 19:16ff) and remind us that the world still trembles before the presence of God…. The trumpets reveal the active involvement of God in bringing punishment upon a wicked world.
The church is not in view in the judgements that follow…. The trumpet-plagues are directed against a world that is adamant in its hostility toward God. As the intensity of judgements increases, so also so does the vehemence with which people refuse to repent. But the trumpet-judgements are not final… since they do not affect the entire earth. Their purpose is not so much retribution, as it is to lead people to repentance.
As plagues preceded the release of the children of Israel from their Egyptian masters, so plagues will precede the Exodus of the church from hostile political powers. They are the prelude to that great and final Exodus in which the church is taken out of the world and enters into the eternal presence of God…. We are dealing here with that montage of divine judgements upon a recalcitrant world which leads to the return of Jesus Christ as sovereign Lord. (Mounce, p.175-177)
The First Four Trumpets (8:6-12)
The first four trumpet-plagues involve natural catastrophes… analogous to the Egyptian plagues… the precise nature of which is unclear.
Land: Great devastation is caused by the sounding of the first trumpet summoning hail and fire, mixed with blood which scorches one-third of the land…. Its purpose is to warn people of the full wrath of God yet to fall, and in so doing to bring them to repentance.
Sea: The second trumpet brings destruction to one-third of the sea… killing marine life and destroying shipping and commerce… It is affected by something like a huge mountain of fire thrown into the sea…. The plague represents an eschatological judgement that goes beyond any explanation in terms of natural phenomenon. The purpose is to warn and lead to repentance.
Water: The third plague consists of a burning star that falls from the sky on the inland waters, turning them bitter and causing the death of many people…. The star is called Wormwood after the bitter taste of the plant by that name…. A portion of the inland waters were contaminated by this spectacular act of God and many people died as a result of drinking the water…. Like the other plagues… it is dircted primarily against the world of nature… and only indirectly affects people or the spirit world.
Light: The fourth plague darkens the sun, moon and stars for a third of the day and the night… indicating a total absence of light during that time….. This absolute darkness would be far more terrifying than a partial eclipse…. Darkness as a symbol of judegement runs throughout the OT…. The fourth trumpet-plague is a fulfillment of these prophecies (Mk 13;24; Is 13:10).
The darkness of the fourth plague anticipates the transition from divine warnings to demonic woes. It previews that ultimate excommunication of unrepentant people to the punishment prepared for the devil and his angels (Mt 25:41).
(Mounce, p.178-182)
__________
__________
Canticle
Christ, as a light – illumine and guide me.
Christ, as a shield – overshadow me.
Christ under me; Christ over me; Christ beside me – on my left and my right.
This day be within and without me, lowly and meek, yet all-powerful.
Be in the heart of each to whom I speak; in the mouth of each who speaks unto me.
This day be within and without me, lowly and meek, yet all-powerful.
Christ as a light; Christ as a shield; Christ beside me – on my left and my right.
Blessing
May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you, wherever He may send you.
May He guide you through the wilderness, protect you through the storm.
May He bring you home rejoicing at the wonders He has shown you.
May He bring you home rejoicing once again into our doors.
+ In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen
_____________________________________
Peanut Gallery: In September, we will begin reading through the Book of Revelation (ESV). Our purpose will be devotional, i.e. to discover the word of blessing that God has for us in these troubled times… to find hope and help for our daily lives.
The general format for Morning Prayer is adapted from the Northumbrian Community‘s Daily Office, as found in Celtic Daily Prayer (see online resources here.) On Sundays, we’ll return to the USCCB readings (see online resources here) and various liturgical resources in order to reflect the Church’s worship and concerns throughout the world. Photo illustrations and music videos, available online, are included as they illustrate or illuminate the readings. I will try to give credit and link to sources as best I can.
The Peanut Gallery 