Ribbon Placement:
Liturgy of the Hours Vol. III:
Ordinary: 651
Proper of Seasons: 57
Psalter: Tuesday, Week I, 722

Office of Readings for Tuesday in Ordinary Time

God, come to my assistance.
— Lord, make haste to help me.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
— as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen. Alleluia.

HYMN

O God, our help in ages past,
Our hope for years to come,
Our shelter from the stormy blast,
And our eternal home.

Beneath the shadow of Your throne
Your saints have dwelt secure;
Sufficient is your arm alone,
And our defense is sure.

Before the hills in order stood,
Or earth received her frame,
From everlasting you are God,
To endless years the same.

A thousand ages in your sight
Are like an evening gone;
Short as the watch that ends the night
Before the rising sun.

Time, like an ever rolling stream,
Bears all our lives away;
They fly, forgotten, as a dream
Dies at the opening day.

O God, our help in ages past,
Our hope for years to come,
Be now our guard while troubles last,
And our eternal home.

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"O God, Our Help in Ages Past" by Melinda Kirigin-Voss, Vince Clark • Title: O God, Our Help in Ages Past; Text: Based on Psalm 90; Isaac Watts, 1674-1748, Psalms of David..., 1719, alt.; Tune: ST. ANNE, CM; later form of melody (rhythm adapted), attr. to William Croft, 1678-1727, A Supplement to the New Version of Psalms, 1708; Artist: Melinda Kirigin-Voss, Vince Clark; Copyright 2016 Surgeworks Inc. • Albums that contain this Hymn: Divine Office

PSALMODY

Ant. 1 The Lord is just; he will defend the poor.

Psalm 10
Prayer of thanksgiving
Blessed are the poor; the kingdom of heaven is theirs (Luke 6:20).

Lord, why do you stand afar off
and hide yourself in times of distress?
The poor man is devoured by the pride of the wicked:
he is caught in the schemes that others have made.

For the wicked man boasts of his heart’s desires;
the covetous blasphemes and spurns the Lord.
In his pride the wicked says:
“He will not punish. There is no God.”
Such are his thoughts.

His path is ever untroubled;
your judgment is far from his mind.
His enemies he regards with contempt.
He thinks: “Never shall I falter;
misfortune shall never be my lot.”

His mouth is full of cursing, guile, oppression,
mischief and deceit under his tongue.
He lies in wait among the reeds;
the innocent he murders in secret.

His eyes are on the watch for the helpless man.
He lurks in hiding like a lion in his lair;
he lurks in hiding to seize the poor;
he seizes the poor man and drags him away.

He crouches, preparing to spring,
and the helpless fall beneath his strength.
He thinks in his heart: “God forgets,
he hides his face, he does not see.”

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
— as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

Ant. The Lord is just; he will defend the poor.

Ant. 2 Lord, you know the burden of my sorrow.

Arise then, Lord, lift up your hand!
O God, do not forget the poor!
Why should the wicked spurn the Lord
and think in his heart: “He will not punish”?

But you have seen the trouble and sorrow,
you note it, you take it in hand.
The helpless trusts himself to you;
for you are the helper of the orphan.

Break the power of the wicked and the sinner!
Punish his wickedness till nothing remains!
The Lord is king for ever and ever.
The heathen shall perish from the land he rules.

Lord, you hear the prayer of the poor;
you strengthen their hearts; you turn your ear
to protect the rights of the orphan and oppressed
so that mortal man may strike terror no more.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
— as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

Psalm-prayer

Rise up, Lord, in defense of your people, do not hide your face from our troubles. Father of orphans, wealth of the poor, we rejoice in making you known; may we find comfort and security in times of pain and anxiety.

Ant. Lord, you know the burden of my sorrow.

Ant. 3 The words of the Lord are true, like silver from the furnace.

Psalm 12
A cry for God’s help against powerful oppressors
The Father sent his Son into the world to defend the poor (Saint Augustine).

Help, O Lord, for good men have vanished:
truth has gone from the sons of men.
Falsehood they speak one to another,
with lying lips, with a false heart.

May the Lord destroy all lying lips,
the tongue that speaks high-sounding words,
those who say: “Our tongue is our strength;
our lips are our own, who is our master?”

“For the poor who are oppressed and the needy who groan
I myself will arise,” says the Lord.
“I will grant them the salvation for which they thirst.”

The words of the Lord are words without alloy,
silver from the furnace, seven times refined.

It is you, O Lord, who will take us in your care
and protect us for ever from this generation.
See how the wicked prowl on every side,
while the worthless are prized highly by the sons of men.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
— as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.

Psalm-prayer

Your light is true light, Lord, and your truth shines like the day. Direct us to salvation through your life-giving words. May we be saved by always embracing your word.

Ant. The words of the Lord are true, like silver from the furnace.

Sacred Silence (indicated by a bell)
A moment to reflect and receive in our hearts the full resonance of the voice of the Holy Spirit and to unite our personal prayer more closely with the word of God and public voice of the Church.

The Lord teaches the humble his way.
— He guides the gentle-hearted along the right path.

READINGS

First reading
From the book of Sirach
11:12-28
Put your trust in God alone

Another goes his way a weakling and a failure,
with little strength and great misery –
Yet the eyes of the Lord look favorably upon him;
he raises him free of the vile dust,
Lifts up his head and exalts him
to the amazement of the many.

Good and evil, life and death,
poverty and riches, are from the Lord.
Wisdom and understanding and knowledge of affairs,
love and virtuous paths are from the Lord.
Error and darkness were formed with sinners from their birth,
and evil grows old with evildoers.
The Lord’s gift remains with the just;
his favor brings continued success.
A man may become rich through a miser’s life,
and this is his allotted reward:
When he says: “I have found rest,
now I will feast on my possessions,”
He does not know how long it will be
till he dies and leaves them to others.

My son, hold fast to your duty, busy yourself with it,
grow old while doing your task.
Admire not how sinners live,
but trust in the Lord and wait for his light;
For it is easy with the Lord
suddenly, in an instant, to make a poor man rich.
God’s blessing is the lot of the just man,
and in due time his hopes bear fruit.
Say not: “What do I need?
What further pleasure can be mine?”
Say not: “I am independent.
What harm can come to me now?”

The day of prosperity makes one forget adversity;
the day of adversity makes one forget prosperity.
For it is easy with the Lord on the day of death
to repay man according to his deeds.