8 February 2026         SECOND SUNDAY BEFORE LENT

FIRST READING Genesis 1.1 – 2.3

A reading from the book of Genesis.

In the beginning when God created the heavens and the earth,

the earth was a formless void and darkness covered the face of the deep, while a wind from God swept over the face of the waters.

Then God said,

‘Let there be light’; and there was light.

And God saw that the light was good;

and God separated the light from the darkness.

God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night.

And there was evening and there was morning, the first day.

And God said,

‘Let there be a dome in the midst of the waters,

and let it separate the waters from the waters.’

 

So God made the dome and separated the waters that were under the dome from the waters that were above the dome.

And it was so.

God called the dome Sky.

And there was evening and there was morning, the second day.

And God said,

‘Let the waters under the sky be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear.’

And it was so.

God called the dry land Earth, and the waters that were gathered together he called Seas.

And God saw that it was good.

Then God said,

‘Let the earth put forth vegetation: plants yielding seed,

and fruit trees of every kind on earth that bear fruit with the seed in it.’

And it was so.

The earth brought forth vegetation: plants yielding seed of every kind, and trees of every kind bearing fruit with the seed in it.

And God saw that it was good.

And there was evening and there was morning, the third day.

And God said,

‘Let there be lights in the dome of the sky to separate the day from the night;

and let them be for signs and for seasons and for days and years,

and let them be lights in the dome of the sky to give light upon the earth.’

And it was so.

God made the two great lights –

the greater light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the night – and the stars.

God set them in the dome of the sky to give light upon the earth,

to rule over the day and over the night,

and to separate the light from the darkness.

And God saw that it was good.

And there was evening and there was morning, the fourth day.

And God said,

‘Let the waters bring forth swarms of living creatures,

and let birds fly above the earth across the dome of the sky.’

So God created the great sea monsters

and every living creature that moves, of every kind,

with which the waters swarm, and every winged bird of every kind.

And God saw that it was good.

God blessed them, saying,

‘Be fruitful and multiply and fill the waters in the seas,

and let birds multiply on the earth.’

And there was evening and there was morning, the fifth day.

And God said,

‘Let the earth bring forth living creatures of every kind:

cattle and creeping things

and wild animals of the earth of every kind.’

And it was so.

God made the wild animals of the earth of every kind,

and the cattle of every kind,

and everything that creeps upon the ground of every kind.

And God saw that it was good.

Then God said,

‘Let us make humankind in our image, according to our likeness;

and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea,

and over the birds of the air,

and over the cattle,

and over all the wild animals of the earth,

and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth.’

So God created humankind in his image,

in the image of God he created them;

male and female he created them.

God blessed them, and God said to them,

‘Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it;

and have dominion over the fish of the sea

and over the birds of the air

and over every living thing that moves upon the earth.’

God said,

‘See, I have given you every plant yielding seed

that is upon the face of all the earth,

and every tree with seed in its fruit;

you shall have them for food.

And to every beast of the earth, and to every bird of the air,

and to everything that creeps on the earth,

everything that has the breath of life,

I have given every green plant for food.’

And it was so.

God saw everything that he had made,

and indeed, it was very good.

And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.

Thus the heavens and the earth were finished,

and all their multitude.

And on the seventh day God finished the work that he had done,

and he rested on the seventh day from all the work

that he had done.

So God blessed the seventh day and hallowed it,

because on it God rested from all the work

that he had done in creation.

 

PSALM Psalm 136.1–9, (10–22), 23–26

1 Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good,

for his mercy endures for ever.

2 Give thanks to the God of gods,

for his mercy endures for ever.

3 Give thanks to the Lord of lords,

for his mercy endures for ever.

4 Who only does great wonders,

for his mercy endures for ever;

5 Who by his wisdom made the heavens,

for his mercy endures for ever;

6 Who spread out the earth upon the waters,

for his mercy endures for ever;

7 Who created great lights,

for his mercy endures for ever;

8 The sun to rule the day,

for his mercy endures for ever;

9 The moon and the stars to govern the night,

for his mercy endures for ever.

[ 10 Who struck down the first-born of Egypt,

for his mercy endures for ever;

11 And brought out Israel from among them,

for his mercy endures for ever;

12 With a mighty hand and a stretched-out arm,

for his mercy endures for ever;

13 Who divided the Red Sea in two,

for his mercy endures for ever;

14 And made Israel to pass through the midst of it,

for his mercy endures for ever;

15 But swept Pharaoh and his army into the Red Sea,

for his mercy endures for ever;

16 Who led his people through the wilderness,

for his mercy endures for ever.

17 Who struck down great kings,

for his mercy endures for ever;

18 And slew mighty kings,

for his mercy endures for ever;

19 Sihon, king of the Amorites,

for his mercy endures for ever;

20 And Og, the king of Bashan,

for his mercy endures for ever;

21 And gave away their lands of an inheritance,

for his mercy endures for ever;

22 An inheritance for Israel his servant,

for his mercy endures for ever. ]

23 It is he who remembered us in our low estate,

for his mercy endures for ever;

24 And delivered us from our enemies,

for his mercy endures for ever;

25 Who gives food to all creatures,

for his mercy endures for ever;

26 Give thanks to the God of heaven,

for his mercy endures for ever.

SECOND READING Romans 8.18–25

A reading from the letter of Paul to the Romans.

1 I consider that the sufferings of this present time

are not worth comparing with the glory

about to be revealed to us.

For the creation waits with eager longing

for the revealing of the children of God;

for the creation was subjected to futility,

not of its own will

but by the will of the one who subjected it,

in hope that the creation itself

will be set free from its bondage to decay

and will obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God.

We know that the whole creation

has been groaning in labour pains until now;

and not only the creation,

but we ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit,

groan inwardly while we wait for adoption,

the redemption of our bodies.

For in hope we were saved.

Now hope that is seen is not hope.

For who hopes for what is seen?

But if we hope for what we do not see,

we wait for it with patience.

GOSPEL Matthew 6.25–34

Hear the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Matthew.

Jesus taught his disciples, saying:

‘Therefore I tell you,

do not worry about your life,

what you will eat or what you will drink,

or about your body, what you will wear.

Is not life more than food,

and the body more than clothing?

Look at the birds of the air;

they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns,

and yet your heavenly Father feeds them.

Are you not of more value than they?

And can any of you by worrying

add a single hour to your span of life?

And why do you worry about clothing?

Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow;

they neither toil nor spin,

yet I tell you,

even Solomon in all his glory was not clothed like one of these.

But if God so clothes the grass of the field,

which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the oven,

will he not much more clothe you –

you of little faith?

Therefore do not worry,

saying, “What will we eat?”

or “What will we drink?”

or “What will we wear?”

For it is the Gentiles who strive for all these things;

and indeed your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.

But strive first for the kingdom of God and his righteousness,

and all these things will be given to you as well.

So do not worry about tomorrow,

for tomorrow will bring worries of its own.

Today’s trouble is enough for today.’

 SUNDAY 15^th FEBRUARY 2026  SUNDAY NEXT BEFORE LENT

FIRST READING Exodus 24.12–18

A reading from the book of Exodus.

The LORD said to Moses,

‘Come up to me on the mountain, and wait there;

and I will give you the tablets of stone,

with the law and the commandment, which I have written for their instruction.’

So Moses set out with his assistant Joshua,

and Moses went up into the mountain of God.

To the elders he had said, ‘Wait here for us,

until we come to you again;

for Aaron and Hur are with you;

whoever has a dispute may go to them.’

Then Moses went up on the mountain,

and the cloud covered the mountain.

The glory of the LORD settled on Mount Sinai,

and the cloud covered it for six days;

on the seventh day he called to Moses out of the cloud.

Now the appearance of the glory of the LORD

was like a devouring fire on the top of the mountain

in the sight of the people of Israel.

Moses entered the cloud, and went up on the mountain.

Moses was on the mountain for forty days and forty nights.

PSALM

Either Psalm 2

R You are my Son; this day have I begotten you.

1 Why are the nations in an uproar?

Why do the peoples mutter empty threats?

2 Why do the kings of the earth rise up in revolt

and the princes plot together,

against the Lord and against his anointed? R

3 ‘Let us break their yoke’, they say;

‘let us cast off their bonds from us.’

4 He whose throne is in heaven is laughing;

the Lord has them in derision. R

5 Then he speaks to them in his wrath

and his rage fills them with terror.

6 ‘I myself have set my king

upon my holy hill of Zion.’

7 Let me announce the decree of the Lord:

he said to me, ‘You are my Son;

this day have I begotten you. R

8 Ask of me and I will give you the nations

for your inheritance

and the ends of the earth for your possession.

9 You shall crush them with an iron rod

and shatter them like a piece of pottery.’ R

10 And now, you kings, be wise;

be warned, you rulers of the earth.

11 Submit to the Lord with fear,

and with trembling bow before him;

12 Lest he be angry and you perish;

for his wrath is quickly kindled.

13 Happy are they all

who take refuge in him! R

Or Psalm 99

R He spoke to them out of the pillar of cloud.

1 The Lord is king; let the people tremble;

he is enthroned upon the cherubim; let the earth shake.

2 The Lord is great in Zion;

he is high above all peoples.

3 Let them confess his name, which is great and awesome;

he is the Holy One. R

4 ‘O mighty King, lover of justice,

you have established equity;

you have executed justice and righteousness in Jacob.’

5 Proclaim the greatness of the Lord our God

and fall down before his footstool;

he is the Holy One. R

6 Moses and Aaron among his priests,

and Samuel among those who call upon his name,

they called upon the Lord and he answered them.

7 He spoke to them out of the pillar of cloud;

they kept his testimonies

and the decree that he gave them. R

8 ‘O Lord our God, you answered them indeed;

you were a God who forgave them,

yet punished them for their evil deeds.’

9 Proclaim the greatness of the Lord our God

and worship him upon his holy hill;

for the Lord our God is the Holy One. R

SECOND READING 2 Peter 1.16–21

A reading from the second letter of Peter.

We did not follow cleverly devised myths

when we made known to you

the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ,

but we had been eyewitnesses of his majesty.

For he received honour and glory from God the Father

when that voice was conveyed to him by the Majestic Glory,

saying, ‘This is my Son, my Beloved,

with whom I am well pleased.’

We ourselves heard this voice come from heaven,

while we were with him on the holy mountain.

So we have the prophetic message more fully confirmed.

You will do well to be attentive to this

as to a lamp shining in a dark place,

until the day dawns

and the morning star rises in your hearts.

First of all you must understand this,

that no prophecy of scripture is a matter of one’s own interpretation,

because no prophecy ever came by human will,

but men and women moved by the Holy Spirit

spoke from God.

GOSPEL Matthew 17.1–9

Hear the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Matthew.

Jesus took with him Peter and James and his brother John

and led them up a high mountain, by themselves.

And he was transfigured before them,

and his face shone like the sun,

and his clothes became dazzling white.

Suddenly there appeared to them Moses and Elijah, talking with him.

Then Peter said to Jesus,

‘Lord, it is good for us to be here;

if you wish, I will make three dwellings here,

one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.’

While he was still speaking,

suddenly a bright cloud overshadowed them,

and from the cloud a voice said,

‘This is my Son, the Beloved;

with him I am well pleased; listen to him!’

When the disciples heard this,

they fell to the ground and were overcome by fear.

But Jesus came and touched them, saying,

‘Get up and do not be afraid.’

And when they looked up,

they saw no one except Jesus himself alone.

As they were coming down the mountain, Jesus ordered them,

‘Tell no one about the vision

until after the Son of Man has been raised from the dead.’