Faith Daily Lectio Thursday, October 29, 2026 Evening Psalm
Thursday, October 29, 2026 · Thursday in the week of the Twenty-second Sunday after Pentecost (Proper 25)
Evening Psalm
Oratio (prayer)
Lord, You hear my voice and my supplications. Send Your Holy Spirit as I pray Psalm 116 this evening, that I may call on Your name and rest in Your mercy through Jesus Christ. In Jesus' name, Amen.
Meditatio (meditation)
Psalm 116
1I love the LORD, because he hath heard my voice and my supplications.
2Because he hath inclined his ear unto me, therefore will I call upon him as long as I live.
3The sorrows of death compassed me, and the pains of hell gat hold upon me: I found trouble and sorrow.
4Then called I upon the name of the LORD; O LORD, I beseech thee, deliver my soul.
5Gracious is the LORD, and righteous; yea, our God is merciful.
6The LORD preserveth the simple: I was brought low, and he helped me.
7Return unto thy rest, O my soul; for the LORD hath dealt bountifully with thee.
8For thou hast delivered my soul from death, mine eyes from tears, and my feet from falling.
9I will walk before the LORD in the land of the living.
10I believed, therefore have I spoken: I was greatly afflicted:
11I said in my haste, All men are liars.
12What shall I render unto the LORD for all his benefits toward me?
13I will take the cup of salvation, and call upon the name of the LORD.
14I will pay my vows unto the LORD now in the presence of all his people.
15Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his saints.
16O LORD, truly I am thy servant; I am thy servant, and the son of thine handmaid: thou hast loosed my bonds.
17I will offer to thee the sacrifice of thanksgiving, and will call upon the name of the LORD.
18I will pay my vows unto the LORD now in the presence of all his people,
19In the courts of the LORD’s house, in the midst of thee, O Jerusalem. Praise ye the LORD.
Consider even rereading in another translation.
You could also consider listening to this chapter, narrated:
KJV (Max McLean) · ESV (Max McLean) · NIV (dramatized)
You might read the whole reading slowly, aloud, more than once.
Consider this verse, for example:
“What shall I render unto the LORD for all his benefits toward me?” (Psalm 116:12)
What other lines speak to you?
The Law The Psalmist does not hide how low he was: "The sorrows of death compassed me, and the pains of hell gat hold upon me" (v. 3). He even confesses, "I said in my haste, All men are liars" (v. 11). Sin and death press on us all, and we often speak in haste.
The Gospel But "Gracious is the LORD, and righteous; yea, our God is merciful" (v. 5). Christ went into death for you and rose again, so that God has "delivered my soul from death, mine eyes from tears, and my feet from falling" (v. 8). Tonight you may "take the cup of salvation, and call upon the name of the LORD" (v. 13), the cup Christ gives you at His Table. "Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his saints" (v. 15).
Prayer Lord, I confess my hasty words and fearful heart. Forgive me for Jesus' sake. Deliver my soul from death, and let me walk before You in the land of the living. In Jesus' name, Amen.
Tentatio (trial)
Grief, illness and the nearness of death can make the evening feel long. Under trial it may help to pray this line before sleep: "Return unto thy rest, O my soul; for the LORD hath dealt bountifully with thee" (v. 7). He has been good to you today, and He will keep you tonight.
Evening prayer Lord, I am Your servant, and You have loosed my bonds. Give my soul rest this night, and keep me in Your mercy. In Jesus' name, Amen.
Scripture quotations are from the King James Version.
My church home: Peace Lutheran Church, McMurray, PA. Looking for a church? See About Daily Lectio.
