Margaret of Scotland, Queen, 1093

The Collect:

Rite I:
O God, who didst call thy servant Margaret to an earthly throne that she might advance thy heavenly kingdom, and gave her zeal for thy Church and love for thy people: Mercifully grant that we also may be fruitful in good works and attain to the glorious crown of thy saints; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Ghost, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Rite II:
O God, you called your servant Margaret to an earthly throne that she might advance your heavenly kingdom, and gave her zeal for your Church and love for your people: Mercifully grant that we also may be fruitful in good works, and attain to the glorious crown of your saints; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

First Lesson: Proverbs 31:10–20

¹⁰     A capable wife who can find?
           She is far more precious than jewels.
¹¹     The heart of her husband trusts in her,
           and he will have no lack of gain.
¹²     She does him good, and not harm,
           all the days of her life.
¹³     She seeks wool and flax,
           and works with willing hands.
¹⁴     She is like the ships of the merchant,
           she brings her food from far away.
¹⁵     She rises while it is still night
           and provides food for her household
           and tasks for her servant-girls.
¹⁶     She considers a field and buys it;
           with the fruit of her hands she plants a vineyard.
¹⁷     She girds herself with strength,
           and makes her arms strong.
¹⁸     She perceives that her merchandise is profitable.
           Her lamp does not go out at night.
¹⁹     She puts her hands to the distaff,
           and her hands hold the spindle.
²⁰     She opens her hand to the poor,
           and reaches out her hands to the needy.

Psalm: Psalm 139:10-17 

¹⁰ If I say, “Surely the darkness will cover me, *
and the light around me turn to night,”
¹¹ Darkness is not dark to you;
the night is as bright as the day; *
darkness and light to you are both alike.
¹² For you yourself created my inmost parts; *
you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
¹³ I will thank you because I am marvelously made; *
your works are wonderful, and I know it well.
¹⁴ My body was not hidden from you, *
while I was being made in secret
and woven in the depths of the earth.
¹⁵ Your eyes beheld my limbs, yet unfinished in the womb;
all of them were written in your book; *
they were fashioned day by day,
when as yet there was none of them.
¹⁶ How deep I find your thoughts, O God! *
how great is the sum of them!
¹⁷ If I were to count them, they would be more in number
than the sand; *
to count them all, my life span would need to
be like yours.

Second Lesson: 2 John 1-9 

¹ The elder to the elect lady and her children, whom I love in the truth, and not only I but also all who know the truth, ² because of the truth that abides in us and will be with us for ever:

³ Grace, mercy, and peace will be with us from God the Father and from Jesus Christ, the Father’s Son, in truth and love.

⁴ I was overjoyed to find some of your children walking in the truth, just as we have been commanded by the Father. ⁵ But now, dear lady, I ask you, not as though I were writing you a new commandment, but one we have had from the beginning, let us love one another. ⁶ And this is love, that we walk according to his commandments; this is the commandment just as you have heard it from the beginning—you must walk in it.

⁷ Many deceivers have gone out into the world, those who do not confess that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh; any such person is the deceiver and the antichrist! ⁸ Be on your guard, so that you do not lose what we have worked for, but may receive a full reward. ⁹ Everyone who does not abide in the teaching of Christ, but goes beyond it, does not have God; whoever abides in the teaching has both the Father and the Son.

Gospel: Matthew 13:44–46

⁴⁴ ‘The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which someone found and hid; then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.

⁴⁵ ‘Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls; ⁴⁶on finding one pearl of great value, he went and sold all that he had and bought it.

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