The Benedictus

The Song of Zechariah, the Father of John the Baptist, Luke 1:68–79.

   In the Lutheran tradition, when used in the vernacular, the Benedictus is sung to a variant of the Seventh Psalm Tone (selection 7b in the Psalm Player).

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68Blessed be the Lord God of Israel;
for He hath visited and redeemed His people,
69and hath raised up an horn of salvation for us
in the house of His servant David;
70as He spake by the mouth of His holy prophets,
which have been since the world began:
71that we should be saved from our enemies,
and from the hand of all who hate us;
72to perform the mercy promised to our fathers,
and to remember His holy covenant;
73the oath which He sware to our father Abraham,
74that He would grant unto us
that we being delivered out of the hand of our enemies
might serve Him without fear,
75in holiness and righteousness before Him,
all the days of our life.
76And thou, child, shalt be called the prophet of the Highest;
for thou shalt go before the face of the Lord to prepare His ways;
77to give knowledge of salvation unto His people
by the remission of their sins,
78through the tender mercy of our God,
whereby the Dayspring from on high hath visited us,
79to give light to them that sit in darkness and in the shadow of death,
to guide our feet into the way of peace.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son,
and to the Holy Spirit;
as it was in the beginning, both now and ever,
and unto ages of ages. Amen.

68Blessed be the Lord | God ( of Is- ) raèl;*
for He hath visited and redeem- | ed His ( peo- ) ple,
69and hath raised up an horn of sal- | va- ( tion ) for us*
in the house of His | servant ( Da- ) vid;
70as He spake by the mouth of His | ho- ( ly ) prophets,*
which have been | since the ( world be- ) gan:
71that we should be saved | from ( our en- ) emies,*
and from the hand of | all who ( hate ) us;
72to perform the mercy promised | to ( our ) fathers,*
and to remember His | holy ( cove- ) nant;
73the oath which He sware to our | fa- ( ther A- ) braham,*
74that He would | grant un- ( to ) us
that we being delivered out of the hand | of ( our en- ) emies*
might | serve Him ( without ) fear,
75in holiness and righteous- | ness ( be- ) fore Him,*
all the | days of ( our ) life.
76And thou, child, shalt be called the prophet | of ( the ) Highest;*
for thou shalt go before the face of the Lord | to pre- ( pare His ) ways;
77to give knowledge of salvation un- | to ( His ) people*
by the re- | mission ( of their ) sins,
78through the tender | mer- ( cy of ) our God,*
whereby the Dayspring from on high hath | visit- ( ed ) us,
79to give light to them that sit in darkness and in the | shad- ( ow ) of death,*
to guide our feet in- | to the ( way of ) peace.

Glory be to the Father, | and ( to ) the Son,*
and to the | Holy ( Spir- ) it;
as it was in the beginning, both | now ( and ) ever,*
and unto ages of | ages. ( A- ) men.

The Benedictus is the daily Evangelical Canticle for Lauds.