Lectionary Readings Book of Common Prayer - 1979 First Sunday of Advent

The Collect

First Sunday of Advent
Almighty God, give us grace that we may cast away the works of darkness, and put upon us the armor of light, now in the time of this mortal life in which thy Son Jesus Christ came to visit us in great humility; that in the last day, when he shall come again in his glorious majesty to judge both the quick and the dead, we may rise to the life immortal; through him who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Ghost, one God, now and for ever. Amen
Preface of Advent

Old Testament Reading

Isaiah 2:1-5
¹The word that Isaiah the son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem. ²Now it shall come to pass in the latter days Thatthe mountain of the LORD's house Shall be established on the top of the mountains, And shall be exalted above the hills; And all nations shall flow to it. ³Many people shall come and say, " Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, To the house of the God of Jacob; He will teach us His ways, And we shall walk in His paths." For out of Zion shall go forth the law, And the word of the LORD from Jerusalem. ⁴He shall judge between the nations, And rebuke many people; They shall beat their swords into plowshares, And their spears into pruning hooks; Nation shall not lift up sword against nation, Neither shall they learn war anymore. ⁵O house of Jacob, come and let us walk In the light of the LORD. -- NKJV

Psalm

Psalm 122

Laetatus sum
1I was glad when they said to me, *
     "Let us go to the house of the LORD."
2Now our feet are standing *
     within your gates, O Jerusalem.
3Jerusalem is built as a city *
     that is at unity with itself;
4To which the tribes go up,
     the tribes of the LORD, *
     the assembly of Israel,
     to praise the Name of the LORD.
5For there are the thrones of judgment, *
     the thrones of the house of David.
6Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: *
     "May they prosper who love you.
7Peace be within your walls *
     and quietness within your towers.
8For my brethren and companions' sake, *
     I pray for your prosperity.
9Because of the house of the LORD our God, *
     I will seek to do you good."

New Testament Reading

Romans 13:8-14
⁸Owe no one anything except to love one another, for he who loves another has fulfilled the law. ⁹For the commandments, "You shall not commit adultery," "You shall not murder," "You shall not steal," "You shall not bear false witness," "You shall not covet," and if there is any other commandment, are all summed up in this saying, namely, "You shall love your neighbor as yourself." ¹⁰Love does no harm to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfillment of the law. ¹¹And do this, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep; for now our salvation is nearer than when we first believed. ¹²The night is far spent, the day is at hand. Therefore let us cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armor of light. ¹³Let us walk properly, as in the day, not in revelry and drunkenness, not in lewdness and lust, not in strife and envy. ¹⁴But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts. -- NKJV

Gospel Reading

Matthew 24:37-44
³⁷But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. ³⁸For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, ³⁹and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. ⁴⁰Then two men will be in the field: one will be taken and the other left. ⁴¹Two women will be grinding at the mill: one will be taken and the other left. ⁴²Watch therefore, for you do not know what hour your Lord is coming. ⁴³But know this, that if the master of the house had known what hour the thief would come, he would have watched and not allowed his house to be broken into. ⁴⁴Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect. -- NKJV