Welcome to Westminster Abbey. Daily prayer has been offered in this place for over a thousand years, and your participation in today's service is warmly welcomed. At choral Evensong most of the service is sung by the choir on our behalf. We participate through our presence and our listening, that the words and the music might become a prayer within us and lift us to contemplate God's beauty and glory.

The service always includes one or more psalms. These ancient prayers, taken from the Old Testament, reflect the full range of human emotions and experiences; from the depths of anger, resentment, and abandonment to the heights of ecstatic joy and praise. They were used by Jesus, and have always been at the heart of the Church's daily prayer.

The canticles Magnificat (Luke 1: 46–55) and Nunc dimittis (Luke 2: 29–32) reflect two responses to the Incarnation (God becoming fully human in Jesus Christ). Both speak of the fulfilment of God's promises, not just to 'Abraham and his seed', but also 'to be a light to lighten the Gentiles' (all nations). With their themes of fulfilment and completion, these texts have been given central place for many centuries in the Church's prayers for the evening and at the end of the day.

Please join in saying the words and singing the hymns printed in bold type.

The church is served by a hearing loop. Users should turn their hearing aid to the setting marked T.

Photography, filming, and sound recording are not allowed in the Abbey during services. Please ensure that mobile telephones and other electronic devices are silent.

During the Abbey Choir's vacation we welcome visiting choirs from the United Kingdom and beyond to lead the music at our services. Today's service is sung by the Choir of Christ Church, Greenwich, Connecticut, USA.

During the final hymn, a collection will be taken; the money from today's services will be divided equally between USPG and the work of the Abbey. USPG is an Anglican mission agency that partners with churches worldwide in God's mission to enliven faith, strengthen relationships, unlock potential, and champion justice.

Order of Service

All stand as the choir and clergy enter

The officiant welcomes the congregation

All remain standing as the officiant introduces a general Confession

Dearly beloved brethren, the Scripture moveth us in sundry places to acknowledge and confess our manifold sins and wickedness; and that we should not dissemble nor cloke them before the face of almighty God our heavenly Father; but confess them with an humble, lowly, penitent, and obedient heart; to the end that we may obtain forgiveness of the same, by his infinite goodness and mercy. And although we ought at all times humbly to acknowledge our sins before God; yet ought we most chiefly so to do, when we assemble and meet together to render thanks for the great benefits that we have received at his hands, to set forth his most worthy praise, to hear his most holy Word, and to ask those things which are requisite and necessary, as well for the body as the soul. Wherefore I pray and beseech you, as many as are here present, to accompany me with a pure heart, and humble voice, unto the throne of the heavenly grace, saying after me;

All kneel or sit

Almighty and most merciful Father,
we have erred, and strayed from thy ways like lost sheep.
We have followed too much the devices and desires of our own hearts.
We have offended against thy holy laws.
We have left undone those things which we ought to have done;
and we have done those things which we ought not to have done;
and there is no health in us.
But thou, O Lord, have mercy upon us, miserable offenders.
Spare thou them, O God, which confess their faults.
Restore thou them that are penitent;
according to thy promises declared unto mankind in Christ Jesu our Lord.
And grant, O most merciful Father, for his sake,
that we may hereafter live a godly, righteous, and sober life,
to the glory of thy holy name.
Amen.

The officiant gives the Absolution

Almighty God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who desireth not the death of a sinner, but rather that he may turn from his wickedness, and live; and hath given power and commandment to his ministers, to declare and pronounce to his people, being penitent, the absolution and remission of their sins: he pardoneth and absolveth all them that truly repent, and unfeignedly believe his holy gospel. Wherefore let us beseech him to grant us true repentance, and his Holy Spirit, that those things may please him, which we do at this present; and that the rest of our life hereafter may be pure, and holy; so that at the last we may come to his eternal joy; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

All say together 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,
the power, and the glory,
for ever and ever.
Amen.

All stand. The officiant and choir sing the Responses

Music: Philip Radcliffe (1905–86)

All sit. The choir sings Psalm 66

O be joyful in God, all ye lands : sing praises unto the honour of his name, make his praise to be glorious.
Say unto God, O how wonderful art thou in thy works : through the greatness of thy power shall thine enemies be found liars unto thee.
For all the world shall worship thee : sing of thee, and praise thy name.
O come hither, and behold the works of God : how wonderful he is in his doing toward the children of men.
He turned the sea into dry land : so that they went through the water on foot; there did we rejoice thereof.
He ruleth with his power for ever; his eyes behold the people : and such as will not believe shall not be able to exalt themselves.
O praise our God, ye people : and make the voice of his praise to be heard;
Who holdeth our soul in life : and suffereth not our feet to slip.
For thou, O God, hast proved us : thou also hast tried us, like as silver is tried.
Thou broughtest us into the snare : and laidest trouble upon our loins.
Thou sufferedst men to ride over our heads : we went through fire and water, and thou broughtest us out into a wealthy place.
I will go into thine house with burnt-offerings : and will pay thee my vows, which I promised with my lips, and spake with my mouth, when I was in trouble.
I will offer unto thee fat burnt-sacrifices, with the incense of rams : I will offer bullocks and goats.
O come hither, and hearken, all ye that fear God : and I will tell you what he hath done for my soul.
I called unto him with my mouth : and gave him praises with my tongue.
If I incline unto wickedness with mine heart : the Lord will not hear me.
But God hath heard me : and considered the voice of my prayer.
Praised be God who hath not cast out my prayer : nor turned his mercy from me.

All stand

Chant: Ivor Atkins (1869–1953)

All sit for the first Lesson, Job 19: 1–27a

Job answered:
'How long will you torment me,
   and break me in pieces with words?
These ten times you have cast reproach upon me;
   are you not ashamed to wrong me?
And even if it is true that I have erred,
   my error remains with me.
If indeed you magnify yourselves against me,
   and make my humiliation an argument against me,
know then that God has put me in the wrong,
   and closed his net around me.
Even when I cry out, "Violence!" I am not answered;
   I call aloud, but there is no justice.
He has walled up my way so that I cannot pass,
   and he has set darkness upon my paths.
He has stripped my glory from me,
   and taken the crown from my head.
He breaks me down on every side, and I am gone,
   he has uprooted my hope like a tree.
He has kindled his wrath against me,
   and counts me as his adversary.
His troops come on together;
   they have thrown up siege-works against me,
   and encamp around my tent.

'He has put my family far from me,
   and my acquaintances are wholly estranged from me.
My relatives and my close friends have failed me;
   the guests in my house have forgotten me;
my serving-girls count me as a stranger;
   I have become an alien in their eyes.
I call to my servant, but he gives me no answer;
   I must myself plead with him.
My breath is repulsive to my wife;
   I am loathsome to my own family.
Even young children despise me;
   when I rise, they talk against me.
All my intimate friends abhor me,
   and those whom I loved have turned against me.
My bones cling to my skin and to my flesh,
   and I have escaped by the skin of my teeth.
Have pity on me, have pity on me, O you my friends,
   for the hand of God has touched me!
Why do you, like God, pursue me,
   never satisfied with my flesh?

'O that my words were written down!
   O that they were inscribed in a book!
O that with an iron pen and with lead
   they were engraved on a rock for ever!
For I know that my Redeemer lives,
   and that at the last he will stand upon the earth;
and after my skin has been thus destroyed,
   then in my flesh I shall see God,
whom I shall see on my side,
   and my eyes shall behold, and not another.'

Here ends the first lesson.

All stand. The choir sings Magnificat

Evening Service in B flat, Charles Villiers Stanford (1852–1924)

All sit for the second Lesson, Hebrews 8

The main point in what we are saying is this: we have such a high priest, one who is seated at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens, a minister in the sanctuary and the true tent that the Lord, and not any mortal, has set up. For every high priest is appointed to offer gifts and sacrifices; hence it is necessary for this priest also to have something to offer. Now if he were on earth, he would not be a priest at all, since there are priests who offer gifts according to the law. They offer worship in a sanctuary that is a sketch and shadow of the heavenly one; for Moses, when he was about to erect the tent, was warned, 'See that you make everything according to the pattern that was shown you on the mountain.' But Jesus has now obtained a more excellent ministry, and to that degree he is the mediator of a better covenant, which has been enacted through better promises. For if that first covenant had been faultless, there would have been no need to look for a second one.

God finds fault with them when he says:
'The days are surely coming, says the Lord,
   when I will establish a new covenant with the house of Israel
   and with the house of Judah;
not like the covenant that I made with their ancestors,
   on the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt;
for they did not continue in my covenant,
   and so I had no concern for them, says the Lord.
This is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel
   after those days, says the Lord:
I will put my laws in their minds,
   and write them on their hearts,
and I will be their God,
   and they shall be my people.
And they shall not teach one another
   or say to each other, "Know the Lord",
for they shall all know me,
   from the least of them to the greatest.
For I will be merciful towards their iniquities,
   and I will remember their sins no more.'
In speaking of 'a new covenant', he has made the first one obsolete. And what is obsolete and growing old will soon disappear.

Here ends the second lesson.

All stand. The choir sings Nunc dimittis

Evening Service in B flat, Charles Vililers Stanford

All face east to say together the Apostles' Creed

I believe in God the Father almighty,
maker of heaven and earth:
and in Jesus Christ his only Son our Lord,
who was conceived by the Holy Ghost,
born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, dead, and buried.
He descended into hell;
the third day he rose again from the dead;
he ascended into heaven,
and sitteth on the right hand of God the Father almighty;
from thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Ghost;
the holy catholic Church;
the communion of saints;
the forgiveness of sins;
the resurrection of the body;
and the life everlasting.
Amen.

Let us pray.

All kneel or sit. The officiant and choir sing the Lesser Litany; the Lord's Prayer and the Responses

Our Father, which art in heaven, hallowed be thy name; thy kingdom come; thy will be done, in earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive them that trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation; but deliver us from evil. Amen.

The officiant sings the Collects; of the day, for peace, and for aid against all perils

Grant to us, Lord, we beseech thee, the spirit to think and do always such things as be rightful; 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.

O God, from whom all holy desires, all good counsels and all just works do proceed: Give unto thy servants that peace which the world cannot give; that both our hearts may be set to obey thy commandments, and also that by thee we being defended from the fear of our enemies may pass our time in rest and quietness; through the merits of Jesus Christ our Saviour. Amen.

Lighten our darkness we beseech thee, O Lord; and by thy great mercy defend us from all perils and dangers of this night; for the love of thy only Son, our Saviour, Jesus Christ. Amen.

Music: Philip Radcliffe

All sit. The choir sings the Anthem

O pray for the peace of Jerusalem:
   'They shall prosper that love thee.
Peace be within thy walls,
   and plenteousness within thy palaces.'

Words: Psalm 122: 6–7
Music: Herbert Howells (1892–1983)

All kneel or remain seated for the Intercessions

The officiant says the Prayers; for the Royal Family, and for the Members of the Order of the Bath

Almighty God, the fountain of all goodness, we humbly beseech thee to bless our most gracious Sovereign Lord King Charles, Queen Camilla, William Prince of Wales, the Princess of Wales, and all the Royal Family: endue them with thy Holy Spirit; enrich them with thy heavenly grace; prosper them with all happiness; and bring them to thine everlasting kingdom, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

God save our Gracious Sovereign, and all the Members of the Most Honourable Order of the Bath living and departed. Amen.

All say

The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ,
and the love of God,
and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit,
be with us all evermore.
Amen.

All stand to sing the Hymn

Thou art the Way: by thee alone
   from sin and death we flee;
and he who would the Father seek
   must seek him, Lord, by thee.

Thou art the Truth: thy word alone
   true wisdom can impart;
thou only canst inform the mind
   and purify the heart.

Thou art the Life: the rending tomb
   proclaims thy conquering arm;
and those who put their trust in thee
   nor death nor hell shall harm.

Thou art the Way, the Truth, the Life:
   grant us that Way to know,
that Truth to keep, that Life to win,
   whose joys eternal flow.

Words: George Washington Doane (1799–1859)
Tune: 'St James' 464 NEH, Raphael Courteville (c 1675–1735)

The Sermon by The Reverend Guy Willis, Vicar, St Benet and All Saints, Kentish Town, Diocese of London

All stand to sing the Hymn during which a collection will be taken. Alternatively, cash and contactless donations may be given as you leave via the Great West Door

Jesus lives! thy terrors now
   can, O Death, no more appal us;
Jesus lives! by this we know
   thou, O grave, canst not enthral us.
      Alleluia!

Jesus lives! henceforth is death
   but the gate of life immortal;
this shall calm our trembling breath,
   when we pass its gloomy portal.
      Alleluia!

Jesus lives! for us he died;
   then, alone to Jesus living,
pure in heart may we abide,
   glory to our Saviour giving.
      Alleluia!

Jesus lives! our hearts know well
   nought from us his love shall sever;
life, nor death, nor powers of hell
   tear us from his keeping ever.
      Alleluia!

Jesus lives! to him the throne
   over all the world is given;
may we go where he is gone,
   rest and reign with him in heaven.
      Alleluia!

Words: 'Jesus lebt, mit ihm auch ich' Christian Gellert (1715–69) translated by Frances Cox (1812–97)
Tune: 'St Albinus' 112 NEH, Henry Gauntlett (1805–76)

The Blessing. All respond Amen.

All remain standing as the clergy depart

Music after the service

Homage to Elgar, Martin How (1931–2022)

Those who wish to may sit for the remainder of the organ voluntary