Ribbon Placement: Liturgy of the Hours Vol. IV: Ordinary: 615 Proper of Seasons: 523 Psalter: Friday, Week IV, 1194 Christian Prayer: Does not contain Office of Readings. Office of Readings for Friday in Ordinary Time God, come to my assistance. — Lord, make haste to help me. Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: — as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen. Alleluia. PSALMODY Ant. 1 My God, do not reject my cry for help, assailed as I am by the wicked. Psalm 55 Against a friend proved traitor Jesus was seized with fear and distress (Mark 14:33). I O God, listen to my prayer, do not hide from my pleading, attend to me and reply; with my cares, I cannot rest. I tremble at the shouts of the foe, at the cries of the wicked; for they bring down evil upon me. They assail me with fury. My heart is stricken within me, death’s terror is on me, trembling and fear fall upon me and horror overwhelms me. O that I had wings like a dove to fly away and be at rest. So I would escape far away and take refuge in the desert. I would hasten to find a shelter from the raging wind, from the destructive storm, O Lord, and from their plotting tongues. Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: — as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen. Ant. My God, do not reject my cry for help, assailed as I am by the wicked. Ant. 2 The Lord himself will free us from hostile and treacherous hands. II For I can see nothing but violence and strife in the city. Night and day they patrol high on the city walls. It is full of wickedness and evil; it is full of sin. Its streets are never free from tyranny and deceit. If this had been done by an enemy I could bear his taunts. If a rival had risen against me, I could hide from him. But it is you, my own companion, my intimate friend! How close was the friendship between us. We walked together in harmony in the house of God. Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: — as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen. Ant. The Lord himself will free us from hostile and treacherous hands. Ant. 3 Entrust your cares to the Lord; he will sustain you. III As for me, I will cry to God and the Lord will save me. Evening, morning and at noon I will cry and lament. He will deliver my soul in peace in the attack against me: for those who fight me are many, but he hears my voice. God will hear and will humble them, the eternal judge: for they will not amend their ways. They have no fear of God. The traitor has turned against his friends; he has broken his word. His speech is softer than butter, but war is in his heart. His words are smoother than oil, but they are naked swords. Entrust your cares to the Lord and he will support you. He will never allow the just man to stumble. But you, O God, will bring them down to the pit of death. Deceitful and bloodthirsty men shall not live half their days. O Lord, I will trust in you. Glory to the Father, and to the Son,