SANCTIFICATION OF THE SABBATH. Thou didst sanctify the seventh day to thy name: it was the completion of the work of the heavens and of the earth. Thou didst bless and sanctify it above all other days. For thus it is written: "And the heavens and the earth were finished and all their host. And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made, and he rested on the seventh day from all the work which he had made. And God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because he rested thereon from all his work, which God had created and made." They who observe the Sabbath and call it a delight; the people who sanctify the seventh day shall rejoice in thy kingdom. They shall all be satisfied and delighted with thy goodness. For thou wast pleased with and didst sanctify the seventh day; the most desirable of days didst thou call it, a memorial of the work of creation. And it is written in thy law: "And the children of Israel shall keep the Sabbath, observing the Sabbath throughout their generations for a perpetual covenant. It is a sign between me and the children of Israel for ever. For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day he rested." Blessed art thou, O Lord God, king of the world! who hast instituted the Sabbath for thy rational creatures. Our God, and the God of our fathers! we beseech thee to accept this which thou hast appointed as our day of rest. Sanctify us with thy commandments, and ordain our portion to be in thy law. O satisfy us with thy goodness, rejoice our souls with thy salvation, and purify our hearts to serve thee in truth. Teach us, O Lord, our God! to inherit thy holy Sabbath with love and joy; and grant that all the children of Israel who sanctify thy name, may have rest thereon. Blessed art thou, O Lord! who sanctifiest the Sabbath. (End of the Sanctification) We gratefully acknowledge that thou art the Lord our God, and the God of our fathers, for evermore. Thou art our rock, the rock of our life and shield of our salvation. Through all generations will we render thanks unto thee, and recount thy praise, for our life which is in thine hand; and for our souls, which are ever under thy care; and for thy miraculous providence, which we daily experience; and for thy wonders and thy loving kindness, which are at all times manifested towards us, in the morning, at noon, and in the evening. Thou alone art good, for thy mercies never fail: Thou alone art merciful, for thy kindness never ceases; therefore have we put our trust in thee. (Responses.) O my God! guard thou my tongue from evil, and my lips from uttering deceit. Open my heart to receive thy law, that my soul may pursue thy commandments. Frustrate, I beseech thee, speedily the devices and destroy the machinations of all those who rise up against me for evil. O grant it for thy name! hand! Grant it for thy law! ness! Grant it for thy right O, save me with thy right hand, and answer me! May the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be always acceptable in thy sight, O Lord! who art my rock and my redeemer. May he who ordaineth peace in his high heaven, through his infinite mercy grant peace unto us, unto all Israel, and unto all mankind. AMEN. It is our especial duty to praise with gratitude the Lord of all; to ascribe greatness unto him, who formed the world in the beginning; since he hath not made us as the unenlightened nations; nor placed us in darkness like the heathen multitude; nor cast our lot in ignorance and idolatry; nor suffered us to worship vanity and emptiness, like those, who make supplication to a god that cannot save. But we bow down before the Supreme King of kings, the holy and blessed One! him who stretched out the heavens, and laid the foundations of the earth: whose glory is in the heavens above; and the divine majesty of his power in the highest heaven. He is our God, and there is none other. Our king is truth, and there is none beside him, as it is written, Know therefore this day and reflect in thine heart, that the Lord he is God; in heaven above and on the earth beneath. There is none else. (Here read a portion of the Prophets; after which follows a Psalm by the choir; then conclude with the following Prayer :) Thou hast heard our voice, most merciful Father! Have compassion on us, and favourably accept our prayers; for thou art the God who hearkenest to supplication. Dismiss us not empty from thy presence, but be gracious unto us. Hear and answer our prayers, for thou hearest the prayer of every mouth; accept also our thanksgivings, for thou knowest the gratitude of every heart. Grant unto us, O our Father! to lie down in peace, and to rise up again to a happy and peaceable life. Direct us with good counsel; remove the adversary from before and behind us; shield us under the shadow of thy wing; and guard us, O Lord! at our going out and at our coming in, from henceforth and for ever. AMEN. (End of the Sabbath Eve Service.) SABBATH MORNING SERVICE. (The choir open with a Hymn; the minister then follows with a Prayer; the choir then chaunt another Hymn; the minister then proceeds:) O God of all! the soul which thou hast given to man, is pure unless defiled by sin. Thou hast created and breathed it into him. Thou hast taught him, that it is his precious gem, and the immortal bond between him and thee. Thou dost carefully guard it within him; at the hour of his death thou wilt take it from him; thou wilt purify it from the stain of human frailties; thou wilt restore it unto him strong and renovated in futurity. While soul and body are united, we do acknowledge before thee, O Lord our God and the God of our fathers! that thou art Sovereign of all works, Ruler of all creatures, and Lord of all souls. We therefore praise thee for ever and ever. (The 33d Psalm is then to be read, first in Hebrew and then in English.) 33D PSALM. Rejoice in the Lord, O ye righteous! for to the upright praise is comely. Praise ye the Lord with the harp, sing unto him with the psaltery and the tenstringed instrument. Sing unto him a new hymn, let the trumpet utter a melodious sound. For the word of the Lord is right, and all his works are done in truth. He loveth righteousness and justice; the earth is full of the mercy of the Lord. By the word of the Lord were the heavens made, and all their host by the breath of his mouth. He gathereth together the waters of the sea as a heap; he layeth up the depths in store houses. Let all the earth, then, fear the Lord. Let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him. For he spake, and it was done; he commanded, and it stood fast. The Lord doth frustrate the counsels of the nations; he bringeth to nought the devices of the people. The counsel of the Lord shall stand for ever, and the purposes of his mind to all generations. Happy is the nation whose God is the Lord; happy the people whom he hath chosen for his own inheritance. The Lord looketh down from heaven; he beholdeth all the sons of men. From the place of his residence he watcheth over all the inhabitants of the earth. He fashioneth all their hearts and understandeth all their works. Behold! the eyes of the Lord are upon them who fear him, upon them who hope in his mercy, to deliver their souls from death, and to keep them alive in times of peril. Our soul waiteth for the Lord, he is our help and our shield. In him shall our heart rejoice, because we have trusted in his holy name. Let thy mercy, O Lord, be with us, according as we trust in thee. (Responses.) O Lord! open thou my lips, and my mouth shall declare thy praise. O Lord! be gracious unto us, we have waited for thee. Be thou our strength every morning; our salvation also in time of distress. We will give thanks unto God, who ceased from all his work, and on the seventh day exalted himself and sat on the throne of his glory. With honour did he adorn the day of rest, and called the Sabbath a day of delight. |