SR
← Holy Living and Holy Dying/Book 1 · The Rule and Exercises of Holy Living
Chapter 17HolyLiving.1.17

Another form of Evening Prayer, which may also be used at bed-time.

The Psalmist's Confidence

The prayer begins with the Lord's Prayer and a meditation on Psalm 121, affirming God as the keeper of the soul.

Our Father...✦ I'll lift my eyes to the hills, where my help comes from.✦ Psalm 121. 1, etc. My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.✦ He will not let your foot be moved; he who keeps you will not slumber.✦ Look, the one who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep.✦ The Lord is your guardian; the Lord is the shade at your right hand. The sun won't strike you by day, nor the moon by night. The Lord will protect you from all evil; he will protect your soul.✦ The Lord will watch over you as you go and as you come, from now on and forever.✦ Glory be to the Father, etc.

A Prayer for Nightly Protection

A petition for God's presence, angelic guardianship, and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit throughout the night.

I beg you, Lord, visit this home with your mercy, and visit me with your grace and salvation. Let your holy angels pitch their tents all around and dwell here, so that no illusion of the night may deceive me, the spirits of darkness may not come near to hurt me, and no evil or sad misfortune may oppress me; and let the eternal Spirit of the Father dwell in my soul and body, filling every corner of my heart with light and grace.✦✦1 Let no deed of darkness overtake me; and let your blessing, most blessed God, be upon me forever, through Jesus Christ our Lord.✦ Amen.

Commending the Soul to Christ

A formal act of entrustment, asking for sanctified rest and a watchful spirit until the final resurrection.

Into your hands, most blessed Jesus, I entrust my soul and body, for you have redeemed both with your precious blood. So bless and sanctify my sleep for me that it may be moderate, holy, and safe—a refreshment to my weary body, enabling it to serve my soul so well that both may serve you with a never-failing duty.2 O, never let me sleep in sin or in eternal death, but give me a watchful and prudent spirit, so that I miss no chance to serve you; so that whether I sleep or wake, live or die, I may be your servant and your child; so that when the work of my life is done, I may rest in the bosom of my Lord, until, by the voice of the archangel and the trumpet of God, I am awakened and called to sit down and feast at the eternal supper of the Lamb. Grant this, O Lamb of God, for the honor of your mercies and the glory of your name, O most merciful Savior and Redeemer Jesus. Amen.

Thanksgiving and Doxology

A concluding act of praise for God's daily providence, ending with the Trisagion and a plea for mercy.

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus, who has sent his angels and kept me this day from the destruction that walks at noon and the arrow that flies by day; and has given me his Spirit to restrain me from those evils to which my own weaknesses, my bad habits, and my restless enemies would easily betray me.✦✦ Blessed and forever hallowed be your name for that never-ending shower of blessing by which I live, and am content and blessed, and provided for in all my needs, and set forward in my duty and on my way to heaven.✦3 Blessing, honor, glory, and power be to him who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb, forever and ever.✦ Amen. Our God is holy! The Almighty is holy! The Immortal is holy! Holy, holy, holy, Lord God of Hosts, have mercy on me!✦4

Read the original Latin

Our Father, etc.

I will lift up my eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help. Psalm cxxi. 1, etc.

My help cometh of the Lord, which made heaven and earth.

He will not suffer thy foot to be moved: he that keepeth thee will not slumber.

Behold, he that keepeth Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep.

The Lord is thy keeper, the Lord is thy shade, upon thy right hand.

The sun shall not smite thee by day, neither the moon by night.

The Lord shall preserve thee from all evil; he shall preserve thy soul.

The Lord shall preserve thy going out and thy coming in, from this time forth for evermore.

Glory be to the Father, etc.

Visit, I beseech thee, O Lord, this habitation with thy mercy, and me with thy grace and salvation. Let thy holy angels pitch their tents round about and dwell here, that no illusion of the night may abuse me, the spirits of darkness may not come near to hurt me, no evil or sad accident oppress me; and let the eternal Spirit of the Father dwell in my soul and body, filling every corner of my heart with light and grace. Let no deed of darkness overtake me; and let thy blessing, most blessed God, be upon me for ever, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Into thy hands, most blessed Jesus, I commend my soul and body, for thou hast redeemed both with thy precious blood. So bless and sanctify my sleep unto me that it may be temperate, holy, and safe; a refreshment to my wearied body, to enable it so to serve my soul, that both may serve thee with a never-failing duty. O, let me never sleep in sin or death eternal, but give me a watchful and prudent spirit, that I may omit no opportunity of serving thee; that whether I sleep or awake, live or die, I may be thy servant and thy child: that when the work of my life is done, I may rest in the bosom of my Lord, till by the voice of the archangel, the trump of God, I shall be awakened, and called to sit down and feast in the eternal supper of the Lamb. Grant this, O Lamb of God, for the honour of thy mercies, and the glory of thy name, O most merciful Saviour and Redeemer Jesus. Amen.

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus, who hath sent his angels, and kept me this day from the destruction that walketh at noon, and the arrow that flieth by day; and hath given me his Spirit to restrain me from those evils to which my own weaknesses, and my evil habits, and my unquiet enemies, would easily betray me. Blessed and for ever hallowed by thy name for that never-ceasing shower of blessing, by which I live, and am content and blessed, and provided for in all necessities, and set forward in my duty and way to heaven. Blessing honour, glory, and power be unto Him that sitteth on the throne, and unto the Lamb, for ever and ever. Amen.

Holy is our God! Holy is the Almighty! Holy is the Immortal! Holy, holy, holy, Lord God of Sabbaoth, have mercy upon me!

Scripture echoes

  1. ↩Matt.6.9-Matt.6.13;Luke.11.2-Luke.11.4 — Pray then like this: Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Matt.6.10 — Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Matt.6.11 — Give us today our daily bread. Matt.6.12 — And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. Matt.6.13 — And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. Luke.11.2 — He said to them, "When you pray, say: Father, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come." Luke.11.3 — Give us each day our daily bread. Luke.11.4 — and forgive us our sins, for we ourselves also forgive everyone who is indebted to us. And do not bring us into temptation.
  2. ↩Ps.121.1 — A song of ascents. I lift up my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come?
  3. ↩Ps.121.2 — My help comes from the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth.
  4. ↩Ps.121.3;Ps.121.2 — He will not let your foot slip; your Keeper will not slumber. Ps.121.2 — My help comes from the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth.
  5. ↩Ps.121.4 — Behold, the Keeper of Israel neither slumbers nor sleeps.
  6. ↩Ps.121.7 — The LORD will keep you from all evil; he will keep your soul.
  7. ↩Ps.121.8 — The LORD will keep your going out and your coming in from this time forth and forevermore.
  8. ↩Ps.34.7 — This poor one cried out, and the LORD heard, and from all his troubles he saved him.
  9. ↩Ps.91.5 — You will not fear the terror of the night, nor the arrow that flies by day,
  10. ↩Rom.13.12;Eph.5.11 — The night is far gone, and the day is at hand; let us then cast off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light. Eph.5.11 — And do not participate in the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather even expose them.
  11. ↩Eph.1.3 — Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ,
  12. ↩Ps.91.5-Ps.91.6 — You will not fear the terror of the night, nor the arrow that flies by day, Ps.91.6 — Nor of the pestilence that walks in darkness, nor of the destruction that ravages at midday.
  13. ↩Matt.6.9;Luke.11.2 — Pray then like this: Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Luke.11.2 — He said to them, "When you pray, say: Father, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come."
  14. ↩Rev.5.13 — And every creature that is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all things in them — I heard them saying, 'To the one seated on the throne and to the Lamb be blessing and honor and glory and dominion forever and ever.'
  15. ↩Isa.6.3;Rev.4.8 — And one called to another and said, 'Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts; the fullness of the earth is his glory. Rev.4.8 — And the four living creatures, each having six wings, are full of eyes around and within. And they have no rest day and night, saying, 'Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God, the Almighty, who was and who is and who is to come.'

Notes

  1. 1 ↩Source 'abuse' carries the older sense 'deceive / misuse'; rendered 'deceive' for the night-illusion clause. 'Accident' is misfortune, not chance mishap only; rendered 'misfortune'.
  2. 2 ↩Source 'temperate' of sleep: rendered 'moderate' (ordered, not excessive), not mere temperature.
  3. 3 ↩Source reads 'hallowed by thy name'; rendered as doxological 'hallowed be your name' (Lord's-Prayer parallel and chapter prayer form). If the instrumental 'by' is intentional, sense would be that the speaker is blessed and made holy by God's name.
  4. 4 ↩Source spelling 'Sabbaoth' normalized to the standard liturgical form 'Sabaoth' (Lord of Hosts).

Holy Living and Holy Dying companion

A prayer for every moment, already on your phone

Chosen Portion puts a curated historic prayer in front of you each day — so the words are there before the moment arrives.

Chosen Portion is the digital descendant of the carried prayer book: the short daily prayers this collection preserves, delivered one a day to your pocket.

  • One short, memorable prayer delivered daily — build your repertoire a card at a time
  • Prayers matched to real situations: fear, gratitude, decisions, grief, sleep
  • Save favourites into your personal pocket collection you can open anywhere
Chosen Portion — Daily Prayer (free iOS app) →