Readings for Fourth Sunday of Lent [1][2]
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible
Commentary and Reflection if Cycle A is used for RCIA
(Note: Readings for Cycle can be accessed
through the footnote at this link)
Readings and Commentary:[3]
Reading 1: 2 Chronicles 36:14-16, 19-23
Likewise all the princes of Judah, the priests, and the people
added infidelity to infidelity,
practicing all the abominations of the nations
and polluting the LORD's temple
which he had consecrated in Jerusalem.
Early and often did the LORD, the God of their fathers,
send his messengers to them,
for he had compassion on his people and his dwelling place.
But they mocked the messengers of God,
despised his warnings, and scoffed at his prophets,
until the anger of the LORD against his people was so inflamed
that there was no remedy.
Their enemies burnt the house of God,
tore down the walls of Jerusalem,
set all its palaces afire,
and destroyed all its precious objects.
Those who escaped the sword were carried captive to Babylon,
where they became servants of the king of the Chaldeans and his sons
until the kingdom of the Persians came to power.
All this was to fulfill the word of the LORD spoken by Jeremiah:
"Until the land has retrieved its lost sabbaths,
during all the time it lies waste it shall have rest
while seventy years are fulfilled."
In the first year of Cyrus, king of Persia,
in order to fulfill the word of the LORD spoken by Jeremiah,
the LORD inspired King Cyrus of Persia
to issue this proclamation throughout his kingdom,
both by word of mouth and in writing:
"Thus says Cyrus, king of Persia:
All the kingdoms of the earth
the LORD, the God of heaven, has given to me,
and he has also charged me to build him a house
in Jerusalem, which is in Judah.
Whoever, therefore, among you belongs to any part of his people,
let him go up, and may his God be with him!"
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Readings from the Jerusalem Bible
Commentary and Reflection if Cycle A is used for RCIA
(Note: Readings for Cycle can be accessed
through the footnote at this link)
Readings and Commentary:[3]
Reading 1: 2 Chronicles 36:14-16, 19-23
Likewise all the princes of Judah, the priests, and the people
added infidelity to infidelity,
practicing all the abominations of the nations
and polluting the LORD's temple
which he had consecrated in Jerusalem.
Early and often did the LORD, the God of their fathers,
send his messengers to them,
for he had compassion on his people and his dwelling place.
But they mocked the messengers of God,
despised his warnings, and scoffed at his prophets,
until the anger of the LORD against his people was so inflamed
that there was no remedy.
Their enemies burnt the house of God,
tore down the walls of Jerusalem,
set all its palaces afire,
and destroyed all its precious objects.
Those who escaped the sword were carried captive to Babylon,
where they became servants of the king of the Chaldeans and his sons
until the kingdom of the Persians came to power.
All this was to fulfill the word of the LORD spoken by Jeremiah:
"Until the land has retrieved its lost sabbaths,
during all the time it lies waste it shall have rest
while seventy years are fulfilled."
In the first year of Cyrus, king of Persia,
in order to fulfill the word of the LORD spoken by Jeremiah,
the LORD inspired King Cyrus of Persia
to issue this proclamation throughout his kingdom,
both by word of mouth and in writing:
"Thus says Cyrus, king of Persia:
All the kingdoms of the earth
the LORD, the God of heaven, has given to me,
and he has also charged me to build him a house
in Jerusalem, which is in Judah.
Whoever, therefore, among you belongs to any part of his people,
let him go up, and may his God be with him!"
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Commentary on 2 Chr 36:14-16, 19-23
In this selection the Chronicler summarizes the last fifty eight verses of Kings and adds some of his own comment. The verses describe how the Hebrews violated God’s law and were not contrite. The did not heed the warnings of Jeremiah the Prophet and as a consequence Jerusalem was sacked, the Temple destroyed, and the people sent exiled from the land God had given them; being sent to Babylon. This condensed account also describes how interceded on behalf of the people swaying the King of Persia (Babylon), Cyrus; ending the exile.
These events are mentioned else where: “The words of these verses are identical with those of Ezra 1:1-3a. Originally Ezra-Nehemiah formed the last part of the single work of the Chronicler, of which 1 and 2 Chronicles formed the first part. But when Ezra-Nehemiah was regarded as a natural sequence to the Books of Samuel and of Kings, it was separated from 1 and 2 Chronicles and placed before them. Thus, 1 and 2 Chronicles became the last part of the Hebrew Bible. To prevent this work from ending on a note of doom, Ezra 1:1-3a was repeated as 2 Chron 36:22-23”[4]
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Responsorial Psalm:[5] Psalm 137:1-2, 3, 4-5, 6
R. (6ab) Let my tongue be silenced, if I ever forget you!
By the streams of Babylon
we sat and wept
when we remembered Zion.
On the aspens of that land
we hung up our harps.
R. Let my tongue be silenced, if I ever forget you!
For there our captors asked of us
the lyrics of our songs,
And our despoilers urged us to be joyous:
"Sing for us the songs of Zion!"
R. Let my tongue be silenced, if I ever forget you!
How could we sing a song of the LORD
in a foreign land?
If I forget you, Jerusalem,
may my right hand be forgotten!
R. Let my tongue be silenced, if I ever forget you!
May my tongue cleave to my palate
if I remember you not,
If I place not Jerusalem
ahead of my joy.
R. Let my tongue be silenced, if I ever forget you!
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In this selection the Chronicler summarizes the last fifty eight verses of Kings and adds some of his own comment. The verses describe how the Hebrews violated God’s law and were not contrite. The did not heed the warnings of Jeremiah the Prophet and as a consequence Jerusalem was sacked, the Temple destroyed, and the people sent exiled from the land God had given them; being sent to Babylon. This condensed account also describes how interceded on behalf of the people swaying the King of Persia (Babylon), Cyrus; ending the exile.
These events are mentioned else where: “The words of these verses are identical with those of Ezra 1:1-3a. Originally Ezra-Nehemiah formed the last part of the single work of the Chronicler, of which 1 and 2 Chronicles formed the first part. But when Ezra-Nehemiah was regarded as a natural sequence to the Books of Samuel and of Kings, it was separated from 1 and 2 Chronicles and placed before them. Thus, 1 and 2 Chronicles became the last part of the Hebrew Bible. To prevent this work from ending on a note of doom, Ezra 1:1-3a was repeated as 2 Chron 36:22-23”[4]
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Responsorial Psalm:[5] Psalm 137:1-2, 3, 4-5, 6
R. (6ab) Let my tongue be silenced, if I ever forget you!
By the streams of Babylon
we sat and wept
when we remembered Zion.
On the aspens of that land
we hung up our harps.
R. Let my tongue be silenced, if I ever forget you!
For there our captors asked of us
the lyrics of our songs,
And our despoilers urged us to be joyous:
"Sing for us the songs of Zion!"
R. Let my tongue be silenced, if I ever forget you!
How could we sing a song of the LORD
in a foreign land?
If I forget you, Jerusalem,
may my right hand be forgotten!
R. Let my tongue be silenced, if I ever forget you!
May my tongue cleave to my palate
if I remember you not,
If I place not Jerusalem
ahead of my joy.
R. Let my tongue be silenced, if I ever forget you!
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Commentary on Ps 137:1-2, 3, 4-5, 6
The sadness that drove Nehemiah to return to Jerusalem to rebuild is reflected in this communal lament. The people of God, dispersed throughout the region, recall the joys of being in God’s presence in Zion (Jerusalem). We feel in this hymn our own anticipation of being together in God’s presence as a community of faith.
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Reading II: Ephesians 2:4-10
But God, who is rich in mercy,
because of the great love he had for us,
even when we were dead in our transgressions,
brought us to life with Christ — by grace you have been saved —,
raised us up with him,
and seated us with him in the heavens in Christ Jesus,
that in the ages to come
He might show the immeasurable riches of his grace
in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus.
For by grace you have been saved through faith,
and this is not from you; it is the gift of God;
it is not from works, so no one may boast.
For we are his handiwork, created in Christ Jesus for the good works
that God has prepared in advance,
that we should live in them.
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The sadness that drove Nehemiah to return to Jerusalem to rebuild is reflected in this communal lament. The people of God, dispersed throughout the region, recall the joys of being in God’s presence in Zion (Jerusalem). We feel in this hymn our own anticipation of being together in God’s presence as a community of faith.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Reading II: Ephesians 2:4-10
But God, who is rich in mercy,
because of the great love he had for us,
even when we were dead in our transgressions,
brought us to life with Christ — by grace you have been saved —,
raised us up with him,
and seated us with him in the heavens in Christ Jesus,
that in the ages to come
He might show the immeasurable riches of his grace
in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus.
For by grace you have been saved through faith,
and this is not from you; it is the gift of God;
it is not from works, so no one may boast.
For we are his handiwork, created in Christ Jesus for the good works
that God has prepared in advance,
that we should live in them.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Commentary on Eph 2:4-10
St. Paul places in sharp contrast the mercy and power of God and the weakness of the person. He describes how, only out of His great mercy God rescued mankind “…dead in our transgressions” though His Son, Jesus. The Apostle describes the mechanism by which salvation is bestowed “…For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not from you; it is the gift of God.” St. Paul also provides a motive for (though none is needed) for God’s creative act with the statement that the Christian has been “…created in Christ Jesus for the good works”
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Gospel: John 3:14-21
"And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert,
so must the Son of Man be lifted up,
so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life."
For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son,
so that everyone who believes in him might not perish
but might have eternal life.
For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world,
but that the world might be saved through him.
Whoever believes in him will not be condemned,
but whoever does not believe has already been condemned,
because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.
And this is the verdict,
that the light came into the world,
but people preferred darkness to light,
because their works were evil.
For everyone who does wicked things hates the light
and does not come toward the light,
so that his works might not be exposed.
But whoever lives the truth comes to the light,
so that his works may be clearly seen as done in God.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
St. Paul places in sharp contrast the mercy and power of God and the weakness of the person. He describes how, only out of His great mercy God rescued mankind “…dead in our transgressions” though His Son, Jesus. The Apostle describes the mechanism by which salvation is bestowed “…For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not from you; it is the gift of God.” St. Paul also provides a motive for (though none is needed) for God’s creative act with the statement that the Christian has been “…created in Christ Jesus for the good works”
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Gospel: John 3:14-21
"And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert,
so must the Son of Man be lifted up,
so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life."
For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son,
so that everyone who believes in him might not perish
but might have eternal life.
For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world,
but that the world might be saved through him.
Whoever believes in him will not be condemned,
but whoever does not believe has already been condemned,
because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.
And this is the verdict,
that the light came into the world,
but people preferred darkness to light,
because their works were evil.
For everyone who does wicked things hates the light
and does not come toward the light,
so that his works might not be exposed.
But whoever lives the truth comes to the light,
so that his works may be clearly seen as done in God.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Commentary on Jn 3:14-21
Jesus tells Nicodemus that humanity will be saved when the Son of Man is lifted up on the Cross. The passage continues as a monologue of the great profession of Jesus’ relation as only Son of God the Father and the redemptive mission upon which he was sent. The reference at the beginning to Moses and how he “…lifted up the serpent in the desert” is referring to Numbers 21:4-9. The incident in the desert is a corollary to God’s saving power and St. John links this to Christ’s crucifixion (“…so must the Son of Man be lifted up”) which has a double significance of both his death and being raised to glory in the resurrection. Both these words appear in Isaiah 52:13 to describe the Servant of the Lord.
The passage continues, clearly in the Evangelist’s voice “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life.” In doing so he provides “the only explanation that we shall ever have of the gift of eternal life made possible for us in the redemption achieved in Christ is the incredible love of God for the world.”[6] In as much as Christ has been set to the world for its salvation, failure to believe in that saving event is its own condemnation.
The Evangelist concludes this selection describing evil-doers as children of darkness who will not approach the light which is Christ. On the other hand, the one who "lives the truth"; this is an Old Testament expression (see Genesis 24:49 and Ezekiel 18:9f).
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Jesus tells Nicodemus that humanity will be saved when the Son of Man is lifted up on the Cross. The passage continues as a monologue of the great profession of Jesus’ relation as only Son of God the Father and the redemptive mission upon which he was sent. The reference at the beginning to Moses and how he “…lifted up the serpent in the desert” is referring to Numbers 21:4-9. The incident in the desert is a corollary to God’s saving power and St. John links this to Christ’s crucifixion (“…so must the Son of Man be lifted up”) which has a double significance of both his death and being raised to glory in the resurrection. Both these words appear in Isaiah 52:13 to describe the Servant of the Lord.
The passage continues, clearly in the Evangelist’s voice “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life.” In doing so he provides “the only explanation that we shall ever have of the gift of eternal life made possible for us in the redemption achieved in Christ is the incredible love of God for the world.”[6] In as much as Christ has been set to the world for its salvation, failure to believe in that saving event is its own condemnation.
The Evangelist concludes this selection describing evil-doers as children of darkness who will not approach the light which is Christ. On the other hand, the one who "lives the truth"; this is an Old Testament expression (see Genesis 24:49 and Ezekiel 18:9f).
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Reflection:
A very good friend refers to Sundays during Lent as “Little Easters”. Indeed that is what they are for on these days we take time out from our Lenten discipline to remember that Christ is risen and we should all rejoice in that fact since it brings us live as well.
The readings for today illustrate that fact in spades. Especially the Gospel from John gives us food indeed. Jesus reminds us that his mission is to come into the world to reveal God to all mankind and through that revelation show us the way to live in God’s love so that we might share in the New Covenant for which he is the seal and sacrifice.
When he came to us we did not know him. When he called to us, we did not answer. It was not until he had endured his terrible passion, suffered humiliation and death and then, as he told us he would, rose from the dead so that we might finally understand. And that understanding needs to be revisited time and again. We, as we have heard said many times in scripture, are a stiff necked and stubborn lot, easily lead astray.
Today, however, we celebrate Christ, and Him Crucified.
“For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son,
so that everyone who believes in him might not perish
but might have eternal life.” (Jn 3, 16)
That is our hope and our prayer. We remember today that it is through Christ’s great love that the gates of heaven are thrown open and God’s hand is extended to us.
Pax
[1] ALTRE
[2] The picture used today is “Christ the Man of Sorrows” by Colijn de Coter, 1500
[3] Text of Readings is taken from the New American Bible, Copyright © Libreria Editrice Vaticana
[4] Jerome Biblical Commentary, Prentice Hall, Inc.© 1968, 34; 80
[5] Excerpts from the English translation of The Roman Missal © 1973, International Committee on English in the Liturgy, Inc. All rights reserved.
[6] Jerome Biblical Commentary, Prentice Hall, Inc.© 1968
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