O GOD, whom year by year we praise for the dedication of this
church; Hear, we beseech thee, the prayers of thy people, and
grant that whosoever shall worship before thee in this place,
may obtain thy merciful aid and protection; through Jesus Christ
our Lord. Amen.
The Epistle. 1 St. Peter ii. 1.
LAYING aside all malice, and all guile, and hypocrisies, and
envies, and all evil speakings, as newborn babes, desire the
sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby: if so be
ye have tasted that the Lord is gracious. To whom coming, as
unto a living stone, disallowed indeed of men, but chosen of
God, and precious, ye also, as lively stones, are built up a
spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices,
acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.
The Gospel. St. Matthew xxi. 12.
JESUS went into the temple of God, and cast out all them that
sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the
money-changers, and the seats of them that sold doves, and said
unto them, It is written, My house shall be called the house
of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves. And the blind
and the lame came to him in the temple; and he healed them. And
when the chief priests and scribes saw the wonderful things that
he did, and the children crying in the temple, and saying, Hosanna
to the son of David; they were sore displeased, and said unto
him, Hearest thou what these say? And Jesus saith unto them,
Yea; have ye never read, Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings
thou hast perfected praise?