The Book of Common Prayer Table
of contents
The Fourth Sunday in Advent
The Collect
O Lord, raise up
(we pray thee) thy power, and come among us, and with great might
succour us; that whereas, through our sins and wickedness, we are
sore let and hindered in running the race that is set before us,
thy bountiful grace and mercy may speedily help and deliver us;
through the satisfaction of thy Son our Lord, to whom with thee and
the Holy Ghost be honour and glory, world without end. Amen.
The Epistle
Philippians 4.4-7
Rejoice in the
Lord alway, and again I say, Rejoice. Let your moderation be
known unto all men. The Lord is at hand. Be careful for nothing:
but in every thing, by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving,
let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God,
which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds
through Christ Jesus.
The Gospel
St. John 1.19-28
This is the record
of John, when the Jews sent Priests and Levites from Jerusalem to
ask him, Who art thou? And he confessed, and denied not; but
confessed, I am not the Christ. And they asked him, What then? Art
thou Elias? And he saith, I am not. Art thou that Prophet? And he
answered, No. Then said they unto him, Who art thou? that we may
give an answer to them that sent us. What sayest thou of thyself?
He said, I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make
straight the way of the Lord, as said the prophet Esaias. And they
which were sent were of the Pharisees. And they asked him, and said
unto him, Why baptizest thou then, if thou be not that Christ, nor
Elias, neither that Prophet? John answered them, saying, I baptize
with water: but there standeth one among you, whom ye know not: he
it is who coming after me is preferred before me, whose shoe's
latchet I am not worthy to unloose. These things were done in
Bethabara beyond Jordan, where John was baptizing.
Text from The Book of Common Prayer, the
rights in which are vested in the Crown,
is reproduced by permission of the Crown's Patentee, Cambridge
University Press.