16th Century – Page 20 – A Collection of Prayers

The Purpose of Crosses

May the almighty and gracious God,
the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
forgive us all our sins,
help us to live in daily repentance,
and grant that whatever crosses he sends
serve to lead us to despise and avoid what is evil
and love and practice what is good,
until we depart this life and enter eternal life.
Amen.

Translation of “Der allmaechtige und guetige Gott” by Paul C. Stratman is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License. Please contact for any commercial usage.

Original in German:

Der allmaechtige und guetige Gott, der Vater unsers Herrn Jesus Christi, vergebe uns alle unsere Suende; helfe, dass wir in taeglicher Busse leben, und verleihe, dass uns das liebe Kreuz diene, dazu er uns solchest zuschickt, dass wir das Boese neiden und meiden, und das Gute lieben und ueben, bis zum Ausgang aus diesem zeitlichen, und zum Eingang in jenes ewige Leben. Amen.

This revision/translation of The Collects of Veit Dietrich is licensed by Paul C. Stratman under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License. Please contact for permission for any commercial use.

Purify, Instruct and Console

missale_romanum_glagolitice Almighty everlasting God,
do not rebuke us in your anger,
but purify, instruct,
and console us with your boundless mercy,
and consider the weakness of our mortal nature.
Just as we are not able to please you without you,
we may be holy by your grace alone;
through Christ our Lord.
Amen.

Source: Gregorian Rite

Source of this version: Modified from A Book of Prayers: Together with Psalms and Hymns and Spiritual Songs, Ancient and Modern, Ed. Charles Leffingwell, Morehouse Publishing Company, 1921, p. 94 #3

For Right Living

Lord,
give us a spirit
to always think and do what is right.
Since we cannot do anything good without you,
empower us to live according to your will;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.

Source: Leonine Sacramentary.

Original in Latin:

Largire nobis, quaesumus, Domine, semper spiritum cogitandi quae recta sunt, propitius et agendi: ut, qui sine te esse non possumus, secundum te vivere valeamus.

This prayer also appears in Die pommersche Kirchen-Ordnung und Agenda, p. 298.

O Herr, wir bltten, gib uns allezeit gnadiglich einen Geist zu gedenken und zu thun, was recht ist, auf daß wir, die wir ohne dich nicht sei können, nach dir auch leben mögen, durch Jesum Christum unsern Herrn, der mit dir in vereinigter Gottheit des heiligen Geistes lebet und regieret immer und ewiglich, Amen.

I Come in Confidence in Your Sweet Word

brooklyn_museum_-_the_communion_of_the_apostles_la_communion_des_apc3b4tres_-_james_tissot Lord Jesus Christ,
truly I am not worthy that you should come under my roof,
yet I need your help and desire your grace,
that I may attain godliness and salvation.
I come now in no other confidence than this,
that I have heard the sweet words of your invitation to your table,
and though I am unworthy, you promised me
forgiveness of my sins through your body and blood
which I eat and drink in this Sacrament.
O dear Lord, I know that your divine Word and promise are true.
I do not doubt them,
and resting on them,
I eat and drink with you.
Let it be to me according to your word.
Amen.

Source: Martin Luther

Source of this version: Modified from Prayers from the collection of the late baron Bunsen, selected [from Versuch eines allgemeinen evangelischen Gesang – und Gebetbuchs] and tr. by C. Winkworth, 1871, p.182

Picture by James Tissot, public domain

Variant:

Lord, it is certainly true that I am unworthy to have you come under my roof, but I am so needy and long for your help and grace so that I may become righteous. Therefore, I come to you, trusting in nothing other than the sweet words which I have heard, with which you invite me to your Table and say to me, who am so unworthy, that I will receive forgiveness of my sins through your Body and Blood if I eat and drink of them in this Sacrament. Amen! Dear Lord, your word is true; this I do not doubt; and on this promise I eat and drink with you; let it be to me according to your will and word. Amen.

Source: Modified from http://www.godrules.net/library/luther/NEW1luther_f7.htm

Keep Us Repentant, Keep Us Strong in Faith

Blessed Lord,
give us your Holy Spirit
to work in us daily a true and lasting repentance,
and lead us as repentant Christian people,
always willing to acknowledge, mourn and lament our sins,
yet also keep us steadfast and strong in our faith
in the forgiveness of sins
and in our purpose to amend our lives;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.

Source: Johann Eichhorn, d. 1564

Graphic: Church of the Atonement (Crooksville, Ohio), photo by Nheyob, Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license.

Forgive Our Sins

0940_Cranach_nR 001 Almighty, eternal God, Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
Creator of heaven and earth, and man,
together with your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, your word and image,
and with your Holy Spirit, have mercy upon us,
and forgive us our sins for your Son’s sake,
whom you have made our Mediator according to your wonderful counsels,
and guide and sanctify us by your Holy Spirit,
which was poured out upon the Apostles.
Grant that we may truly know and praise you throughout all eternity! Amen.

Source: Philip Melanchthon

Source of this version: https://thekingsdale.wordpress.com/2013/10/28/a-prayer-of-philipp-melanchthon/

Prayers by Philip Melanchthon are included in Prayers from the Evangelical-Lutheran Heritage, available from Amazon.com, and also available for Amazon Kindle. It is a collection of prayers from the history of the Evangelical-Lutheran Church from Luther to Loehe. The collection includes prayers by Johannes Bugenhagen, Georg C. Dieffenbach, Veit Dietrich, Matthias Flacius, Wilhelm Loehe, Martin Luther, Philip Melanchthon, Joachim Mynsinger, Johann G. Olearius, Johann Jacob Rambach, and the early agendas and prayer books of the Austrian, Brunswick, Hamburg, Lueneberg, Norwegian, Nuremberg, Pomeranian, Riga, Russian, Saxon, Schleswig-Holstein, and Swedish Evangelical-Lutheran churches.

Grant Us Patience when Hurt

coverdale O God, give us patience when the wicked hurt us.
O how impatient and angry we are
when we think ourselves unjustly slandered, reviled, and hurt!
Christ suffers strokes upon his cheek,
the innocent for the guilty;
yet we may not abide one rough word for his sake.
O Lord, grant us virtue and patience,
power and strength,
that we may take all adversity with good will,
and with a gentle mind overcome it.
And if necessity and your honor require us to speak,
grant that we may do so with meekness and patience,
that the truth and your glory may be defended,
and our patience and steadfast continuance perceived.
Amen.

Souce: Miles Coverdale

Source of this version: https://thevalueofsparrows.com/tag/patience-2/

Give Us Patience

coverdale Give us patience and steadfastness in adversity,
strengthen our weakness,
comfort us in trouble and distress,
help us to fight;
grant that in true obedience and satisfaction of mind
we may give over our own wills
to you our Father in all things,
according to the example of your beloved Son;
that in adversity we grudge not,
but offer up ourselves to you without contradiction….
Give us a willing and cheerful mind,
that we may gladly suffer and bear all things for your sake.

Souce: Miles Coverdale

Source of this version: Modified from http://fubar.com/s/bp4/681/

Original in traditional English:

Give us patience and steadfastness in adversity,
strengthen our weakness,
comfort us in trouble and distress,
help us to fight;
grant unto us
that in true obedience and satisfaction of mind
we may give over our own wills
unto thee our Father in all things,
according to the example of thy beloved Son;
that in adversity we grudge not,
but offer up ourselves unto thee without contradiction….
Give us a willing and cheerful mind,
that we may gladly suffer and bear all things for thy sake.

Source of this version: http://fubar.com/s/bp4/681/

Draw Our Hearts to You

coverdale
O Lord Jesus Christ, draw our hearts to you;
join them together in inseparable love,
that we may abide in you and you in us,
and that the everlasting covenant between us may stand sure forever.

Let the fiery darts of your love pierce through
all our slothful members and inward powers,
that we, being happily wounded,
may so become whole and sound.

Let us have no lover but yourself alone;
let us seek no joy nor comfort except in you.

Souce: Miles Coverdale

Source of this version: Modified from http://marccortez.com/2014/01/19/prayer-sunday-miles-coverdale/

Original in traditional English:

O Lord Jesus Christ, draw thou our hearts unto thee;
join them together in inseparable love,
that we may abide in thee and thou in us,
and that the everlasting covenant between us may stand sure for ever.

Let the fiery darts of thy love pierce through
all our slothful members and inward powers,
that we, being happily wounded,
may so become whole and sound.

Let us have no lover but thyself alone;
let us seek no joy nor comfort except in thee.

“draw our hearts to you” is a reference to Song of Solomon 1:4

“that we may abide in you and you in us” is a reference to John 15:4-7

Give Us a Right Understanding

O God,
by the teaching of the Holy Spirit
you have instructed the hearts of your faithful.
By the same Spirit give us a right understanding,
that we always rejoice in his holy comfort;
through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Source: Private Prayers, p. 30