The Festival of
NINE LESSONS AND CAROLS
Source: Provost and
Fellows of King's College,
The Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols is a
service of Christian worship traditionally celebrated on or near Christmas Eve.
The story of the fall of humanity, the promise of the Messiah, and the birth of
Jesus is told in nine short Bible readings or lessons from Genesis, the
prophetic books and the Gospels, interspersed with the singing of Christmas
carols, hymns and choir anthems. It traditionally begins with the carol, “Once
In David’s
Contents
PRELUDE
CAROL – Once In
David’s Royal City
INVOCATION AND BIDDING PRAYER
The Dean: Let us begin
our worship in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.
Beloved in Christ, be it
this Christmas Eve our care and delight to prepare ourselves to hear again the
message of the angels: in heart and mind to go even unto Bethlehem and see this
thing which is come to pass, and with the Magi adore the Child lying in his
Mother's arms.
Let us read and mark in
Holy Scripture the tale of the loving purposes of God from the first days of
our disobedience unto the glorious Redemption brought us by this Holy Child;
and let us make this chapel, dedicated to his pure and lowly Mother, glad with
our carols of praise:
But first let us pray
for the needs of his whole world; for peace and goodwill over all the earth;
for unity and brotherhood within the Church he came to build, within the dominions
of our nation, and within this place. And let us at this time remember in his
name the poor and the helpless, the cold, the hungry and the oppressed; the
sick in body and in mind and them that mourn; the lonely and the unloved; the
aged and the little children; and all who know not the loving kindness of God.
Lastly let us remember
before God all those who rejoice with us, but upon another shore and in a
greater light, that multitude which no man can number, whose hope was in the
Word made flesh, and with whom we for evermore are one. These prayers and
praises let us humbly offer up to the throne of heaven, in the words which
Christ himself hath taught us: Our Father...
All: Our Father, which
art in heaven, Hallowed be thy Name, Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, in
earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread; And forgive us our
trespasses, As we forgive those that trespass against us; And lead us not into
temptation, But deliver us from evil, for Thine is the kingdom and the power
and the glory forever. Amen.
The Dean: May The
Almighty God bless us with his grace: Christ give us the joys of everlasting
life: and unto the fellowship of the citizens above may the King of Angels
bring us all.
All: Amen.
BIDDING CAROL
FIRST LESSON Genesis
3:8-15.
God tells sinful Adam
that he has lost the life of
And they heard the voice
of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day: and Adam and his
wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God amongst the trees of the
garden. And the Lord God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou?
And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was
naked; and I hid myself. And he said, Who told you that you were naked? Have
you eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded you that you should not eat? And the
man said, The woman whom you gave to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I
did eat. And the Lord God said unto the woman, What is this that thou hast
done? And the woman said, The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat. And the Lord
God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above
all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go,
and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life: and I will put enmity between
thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy
head, and thou shalt bruise his heel. And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast
hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I
commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy
sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; thorns also and
thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the
field; in the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the
ground; for out of it wast thou taken; for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt
thou return.
Thanks be to God
CAROL
From Heaven High I
Come to You
SECOND LESSON Genesis 22:15-18
God promises to faithful
Abraham that in his seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed.
And the angel of the
Lord called unto Abraham out of heaven the second time, and said, By myself
have I sworn, says the Lord, for because thou hast done this thing, and hast
not withheld thy son, thine only son: that in blessing I will bless thee, and
in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the
sand which is upon the sea shore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his
enemies; and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because
thou hast obeyed my voice.
Thanks be to God
CAROL
THIRD LESSON Isaiah 9:2, 6-7
The prophet foretells
the coming of the Savior.
The people that walked
in darkness have seen a great light: they that dwell in the land of the shadow
of death, upon them hath the light shined. For unto us a child is born, unto us
a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name
shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father,
The Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be
no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to
establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The
zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this.
Thanks be to God
CAROL
FOURTH LESSON Micah 2:2,4, Isaiah 11:1-4.
The peace that Christ
will bring is foreshown.
But thou, Bethlehem
Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee
shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth
have been from of old, from everlasting.
There shall come forth a
rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a branch shall grow out of his roots: and the
spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding,
the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the
Lord; and shall make him of quick understanding in the fear of the Lord. With
righteousness shall he judge the poor, and reprove with equity for the meek of
the earth.
He shall stand and feed
His flock in the strength of the LORD, in the majesty of the name of the LORD
his God; and they will live securely: for His greatness will extend unto the
ends of the earth, and there will be peace.
Thanks be to God
CAROL
FIFTH LESSON Luke 1:26-38
The angel Gabriel
salutes the Blessed Virgin Mary.
And in the sixth month
the angel Gabriel was sent from God unto a city of
Thanks be to God
CAROL
SIXTH LESSON Luke 2:1-7
St Luke tells of the
birth of Jesus.
And it came to pass in
those days, that there went out a decree from Cæsar Augustus, that all the world
should be taxed. And all went to be taxed, every one into his own city. And
Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judæa, unto
the city of David, which is called Bethlehem; (because he was of the house and
lineage of David:) to be taxed with Mary his espoused wife, being great with
child. And so it was, that, while they were there, the days were accomplished
that she should be delivered. And she brought forth her firstborn son, and
wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was
no room for them in the inn.
Thanks be to God
CAROL
SEVENTH LESSON Luke 2:18-16
The shepherds go to the
manger.
And there were in the
same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by
night. And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord
shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. And the angel said unto them,
Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to
all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which
is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe
wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. And suddenly there was with
the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, Glory to
God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men. And it came to
pass, as the angels were gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds said
one to another, Let us now go even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing which is
come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us. And they came with haste,
and found Mary, and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger.
Thanks be to God
CAROL
While Shepherds Watched Their Flocks by Night
Angels from the Realms of Glory
EIGHTH LESSON Matthew 2:1-11
The wise men are led by
the star to Jesus.
Now when Jesus was born
in Bethlehem of Judæa in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise
men from the east to Jerusalem, saying, Where is he that is born King of the
Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him. When
Herod the king had heard these things, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with
him. And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people
together, he demanded of them where Christ should be born. And they said unto
him, In Bethlehem of Judæa: for thus it is written by the prophet, And thou
Bethlehem, in the land of Juda, art not the least among the princes of Juda:
for out of thee shall come a Governor, that shall rule my people Israel. Then
Herod, when he had privily called the wise men, inquired of them diligently
what time the star appeared. And he sent them to Bethlehem, and said, Go and
search diligently for the young child; and when ye have found him, bring me
word again, that I may come and worship him also. When they had heard the king,
they departed; and lo, the star, which they saw in the east, went before them, till
it came and stood over where the young child was. When they saw the star, they
rejoiced with exceeding great joy. And when they were come into the house, they
saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him:
and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts, gold,
and frankincense, and myrrh. And being warned of God in a dream that they
should not return to Herod, they departed into their own country another way.
Thanks be to God
CAROL
NINTH LESSON John 1:1-14
The congregation stands
for the Ninth Lesson.
St John unfolds the great mystery of the Incarnation.
In the beginning was the
Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the
beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any
thing made that was made. In him was life; and the life was the light of men.
And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not. There
was a man sent from God, whose name was John. The same came for a witness, to
bear witness of the light, that all men through him might believe. He was not
that light, but was sent to bear witness of that light. That was the true
light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world. He was in the
world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not. He came unto
his own, and his own received him not. But as many as received him, to them
gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:
who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of
man, but of God. And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld
his glory, the glory as of the only-begotten of the Father, full of grace and
truth.
Thanks be to God
CAROL
The Dean: The Lord be with you.
All: And with thy
spirit.
The Dean: Let us pray.
O God, who makes us glad
with the yearly remembrance of the birth of thy only son, Jesus Christ: Grant
that as we joyfully receive him for our redeemer, so we may with sure
confidence behold him, when he shall come to be our judge; who lives and reigns
with thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, world without end.
All: Amen.
The Dean:
May he who by his Incarnation gathered into one things earthly and heavenly, grant you the fullness of inward peace and goodwill; and the blessing of God Almighty, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, be upon you and remain with you always.
CAROL
Hark the Herald Angels
Sing
All: Amen.