PRAYERS.

SCRIPTURAL FORMS OF BENEDICTIONS AND
PRAYERS.

These may be used at the close of public worship or at the close of a public or family prayer or alone.

I. APOSTOLIC BENEDICTION.

II. COR. 13:14. The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Ghost, be with you all. Amen.

II. A BENEDICTION OF PEACE.

PHIL. 4:7. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall guard your hearts and your thoughts in Christ Jesus.

JOHN 14:27. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be fearful. Amen.

III. PAUL'S BENEDICTION.

EPH. 3:20, 21. Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, unto him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus unto all generations for ever and ever. Amen.

IV. JUDE'S BENEDICTION.

JUDE 24, 25. Now unto him that is able to guard you from stumbling, and to set you before the presence of his glory without blemish in exceeding joy, to the only God our Saviour, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion and power, before all time, and now, and for evermore. Amen.

V. ANCIENT ISRAEL'S BENEDICTION.

NUM. 6: 24-26. The Lord bless thee, and keep thee:

The Lord make his face to shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee:

The Lord lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace. Amen.

VI. MIZPAH BENEDICTION.

GEN. 31:49. The Lord watch between me and thee, when we are absent one from another. Amen.

VII. A BENEDICTION FROM THE GOD OF PEACE.

HEB. 13:20, 21. Now the God of peace, who brought again from the dead the great shepherd of the sheep with the blood of the eternal covenant, even our Lord Jesus, make you perfect in every good thing to do his will, working in us that which is well-pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ; to whom be the glory for ever and ever. Amen.

VIII. THE LORD'S PRAYER.

MATT. 6: 9-13. Our Father, who 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 debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.

BLESSINGS OR THANKS BEFORE MEALS.

IX. Our Father in heaven, we give thee thanks for the gifts of thy bounty and grace. Give us day by day our daily bread, and cause our hearts to love thee and our lives to honor thee. For Christ's sake. Amen.

X. O Lord God, thy bounty supplies our daily needs. Thy providence upholds our lives. In thee we live and move and have our being. Whether we eat or drink or whatsoever we do, may it be done to thy glory. Amen.

XI. Almighty God, while, in thy kind providence, we eat and drink of the food that strengthens our bodies, may we share the bread that cometh down from heaven, and the water of eternal life. May we ever live in thy presence with gladness and gratitude. For our Redeemer's sake. Amen.

XII. Our Father in heaven, thou openest thy hands and satisfiest the needs of all thy creatures. Much more dost thou provide for the needs of thy children, even beyond the gifts of all earthly parents. Cause our hearts to abound in gratitude and love, and our lives to honor thee, by our doing thy will on earth as it is done in heaven. In the name of Jesus. Amen.

XIII. Our Father in heaven, thou art also the Father of all men. As we partake of thy bounty this day may all thy dear children share the same blessings and grace. And may our gratitude abound even as our needs, which thou suppliest through our Redeemer. Amen.

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DAILY PRAYERS.

XIV. A DAILY PRAYER.

Lord God of heaven and earth, we praise thee, and magnify thy name as the greatest and best of beings, and to us the author and giver of every good gift.

We come to thee as poor and needy and sinful. Thou hast taught us to draw near to thy presence, and to call thee our Father; oh, bless us with the portion of thy children.

Grant to us an interest in the work of thy dear Son. Let thy Holy Spirit dwell in our hearts, and shape and control our lives. Under his teaching may we be wise unto salvation, and grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ.

Grant us penitence for our sins, diligence in duty, patience under trials, annoyances, and discouragements.

Bless our parents and brothers and sisters and all our loved ones everywhere. Revive thy church day by day, and awaken her to a new activity of faith and love. Elevate our nation by a true Christian civilization; and make us a blessing to the other nations of the earth. All these things we ask in the name of our gracious Redeemer. Amen. -Selected.

XV. A PRAYER FOR THE HOLY SPIRIT.

Come, Holy Spirit, and send from heaven a ray of thy light! Come, thou Father of the poor, thou giver of gifts, thou light of the world, thou blessed Comforter, the sweet guest of the soul and its sweetest refreshment; thou, our repose in labor, our coolness in heat, our comfort in affliction! O most blessed Spirit, fill full the hearts of thy faithful people! Without thy influence there is nothing in man that is not weakness and guilt. Oh, cleanse that which is sordid; bedew that which is dried up; heal that which is wounded; bend that which is stubborn; cherish in thy bosom that which is cold; guide that which is wandering; and grant unto thy servants, putting their trust in thee, the merit of thy righteousness; grant thou everlasting joy!

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O Lord, hear our prayer and let our cry come unto thee. And to thee and to the Father and to the Son be praise and honor and glory forever. Amen. —From an ancient Breviary.

XVI. A DAILY PRAYER.

O Thou that hearest prayer, unto thee shall all flesh come. We come unto thee in his all-prevailing name who suffered, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God. For his sake look upon us, and be merciful unto us. May we not be rash with our mouth or hasty in our spirit to utter anything before thee.

Oh, let our heart be right with thee; deliver us from all self-seeking and self-pleasing. Mercifully grant that in all we do we may have a single eye to thy glory; and that we may study to show ourselves approved unto thee. Who can understand his errors? Cleanse thou us from secret faults, and let not any iniquity have dominion

over us.

Teach us, we beseech thee, by thy heavenly inspiration, to have a right judgment in all things. Make us kind and yielding in our temper, and upright and liberal in all our doings. Let thy heavenly grace regulate our conduct towards our fellow-men.

Oh, that we may fulfill the royal law of love, and in all things whatsoever we would that men should do unto us, may we do even so unto them, remembering that this is the law and the prophets.

All this we ask in the name and for the sake of Jesus Christ, our most blessed Lord and Saviour. Amen.

-Edgar M. Levy.

XVII. EVENING PRAYER.

Most merciful God, our Heavenly Father, we thank thee for the privilege of the evening and the morning worship. We come now to offer our evening sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving for all the blessings of this day.

Thou art worthy to be loved, to be feared, to be adored by all on earth, as well as all in heaven; not only because thou art our Creator, but because thou art the best, the most glorious being in the universe; great in goodness, good in greatness, ever working wonders of love and mercy among the children of men, and displaying thy wisdom, power, and glory before the armies of heaven. Wherefore, we desire