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THE PRAYER OF MANASSEH

Ascription of Praise

¹ O Lord Almighty,
God of our ancestors,
of Abraham and Isaac and Jacob
and of their righteous offspring;
² you who made heaven and earth
with all their order;
³ who shackled the sea by your word of command,
who confined the deep
and sealed it with your terrible and glorious name;
⁴ at whom all things shudder,
and tremble before your power,
⁵ for your glorious splendour cannot be borne,
and the wrath of your threat to sinners is unendurable;
⁶ yet immeasurable and unsearchable
is your promised mercy,
⁷ for you are the Lord Most High,
of great compassion, long-suffering, and very merciful,
and you relent at human suffering.
O Lord, according to your great goodness
you have promised repentance and forgiveness
to those who have sinned against you,
and in the multitude of your mercies
you have appointed repentance for sinners,
so that they may be saved.^*
8 Therefore you, O Lord, God of the righteous,
have not appointed repentance for the righteous,
for Abraham and Isaac and Jacob, who did not sin against you,
but you have appointed repentance for me, who am a sinner.

Confession of Sins

⁹ For the sins I have committed are more in number than the sand of the sea;
my transgressions are multiplied, O Lord, they are multiplied!
I am not worthy to look up and see the height of heaven
because of the multitude of my iniquities.
¹⁰ I am weighted down with many an iron fetter,
so that I am rejected^* because of my sins,
and I have no relief;
for I have provoked your wrath
and have done what is evil in your sight,
setting up abominations and multiplying offences.

Supplication for Pardon

¹¹ And now I bend the knee of my heart,
imploring you for your kindness.
¹² I have sinned, O Lord, I have sinned,
and I acknowledge my transgressions.
¹³ I earnestly implore you,
forgive me, O Lord, forgive me!
Do not destroy me with my transgressions!
Do not be angry with me for ever or store up evil for me;
do not condemn me to the depths of the earth.
For you, O Lord, are the God of those who repent,
¹⁴ and in me you will manifest your goodness;
for, unworthy as I am, you will save me according to your great mercy,
¹⁵ and I will praise you continually all the days of my life.
For all the host of heaven sings your praise,
and yours is the glory for ever. Amen.

²⁷ Why do you say, O Jacob,
   and speak, O Israel,
‘My way is hidden from the Lord,
   and my right is disregarded by my God’?
²⁸ Have you not known? Have you not heard?
The Lord is the everlasting God,
   the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He does not faint or grow weary;
   his understanding is unsearchable.
²⁹ He gives power to the faint,
   and strengthens the powerless.
³⁰ Even youths will faint and be weary,
   and the young will fall exhausted;
³¹ but those who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength,
   they shall mount up with wings like eagles,
they shall run and not be weary,
   they shall walk and not faint.

Israel Assured of God’s Help

41Listen to me in silence, O coastlands;
   let the peoples renew their strength;
let them approach, then let them speak;
   let us together draw near for judgement.

² Who has roused a victor from the east,
   summoned him to his service?
He delivers up nations to him,
   and tramples kings under foot;
he makes them like dust with his sword,
   like driven stubble with his bow.
³ He pursues them and passes on safely,
   scarcely touching the path with his feet.
⁴ Who has performed and done this,
   calling the generations from the beginning?
I, the Lord, am first,
   and will be with the last.
⁵ The coastlands have seen and are afraid,
   the ends of the earth tremble;
   they have drawn near and come.
⁶ Each one helps the other,
   saying to one another, ‘Take courage!’
⁷ The artisan encourages the goldsmith,
   and the one who smooths with the hammer encourages the one who strikes the anvil,
saying of the soldering, ‘It is good’;
   and they fasten it with nails so that it cannot be moved.
⁸ But you, Israel, my servant,
   Jacob, whom I have chosen,
   the offspring of Abraham, my friend;
⁹ you whom I took from the ends of the earth,
   and called from its farthest corners,
saying to you, ‘You are my servant,
   I have chosen you and not cast you off ’;
¹⁰ do not fear, for I am with you,
   do not be afraid, for I am your God;
I will strengthen you, I will help you,
   I will uphold you with my victorious right hand.

¹¹ Yes, all who are incensed against you
   shall be ashamed and disgraced;
those who strive against you
   shall be as nothing and shall perish.
¹² You shall seek those who contend with you,
   but you shall not find them;
those who war against you
   shall be as nothing at all.
¹³ For I, the Lord your God,
   hold your right hand;
it is I who say to you, ‘Do not fear,
   I will help you.’