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| “The Great day of the Lord” (Destruction of Jerusalem by Titus) by Wilhelm von Kaulbach, 1860’s |
Commentary:
Reading 1: Zephaniah 3:1-2, 9-13
Commentary on Zep 3:1-2, 9-13
This reading from the Book of the Prophet Zephaniah contains parts of two Oracles. In the first section (v. 1-2), the leaders of Jerusalem are chastised as far from God (“She hears no voice” – To hear the voice of God was to be holy, the antithesis is to hear no voice.). Although not explicit in the verses given, in v. 8 the oracle foresees that God will judge the unholy and they shall be thrown down.
The next section (v.9-13) speaks of the coming messianic era, a time after the tyranny has passed, when the faithful remnant will be rewarded with salvation. The “poor in spirit” are saved and they shall live in peace (“They shall pasture and couch their flocks with none to disturb them”). This poetic vision is used elsewhere as an image of peace (see Isaiah 14:30, Ezekiel 34:25, and Micah 4:4). The definition developed by the Prophet of the “poor in spirit” will be used by Jesus later describing the messianic expectation.
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Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 34:2-3, 6-7, 17-18, 19 and 23
R. (7a) The Lord hears the cry of the poor.
Commentary on Ps 34:2-3, 6-7, 17-18, 19 and 23
Psalm 34 is a song of thanksgiving. The psalmist, fresh from the experience of being rescued (Psalm 34:5, 7), can teach the "poor," those who are defenseless, to trust in God alone. This psalm, in the words of one being unjustly persecuted, echoes hope for deliverance and freedom with the often used response: “The LORD redeems the lives of his servants; no one incurs guilt who takes refuge in him."
CCC: Ps 34:3 716
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Gospel: Matthew 21:28-32
Commentary on Mt 21:28-32
This passage is the first of three parables concerning the judgment of the people of Israel. The parable could be taken simply as the difference between saying and doing (see also Matthew 7:21; 12:50). Jesus clarifies his meaning by posing a question to religious leaders using the hypothetical situation of the “two sons.”
The point of his example is intended to be analogous to the difference between those who disbelieved the message of repentance taught by St. John the Baptist and those who believed it, the sinners (tax collectors and prostitutes) who have repented. Presented as it is, as a question to the Jewish leaders, the Chief Priests are forced to admit that (in the story of the two sons) the son who did the father’s will was the one justified (those who accepted the message of St. John the Baptist). Ultimately the example tells the Jewish leaders that those they look down upon (the sinners who had rejected the Law), because of their acts of repentance and devotion, are achieving the inheritance of God before the leaders themselves.
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Reflection:
The events described in St. Matthew’s Gospel give us some insight into how well the Lord understands human nature. In the situation described in the Gospel, the Lord was taking the Jewish leaders to task. It is because they gave only lip service to their belief in what God had told the people through the prophets. While they used pious acts to outwardly show others that they were faithful, first by their rejection of John the Baptist, the Voice calling them to repent, and then their rejection of Jesus, they had failed to follow their own vows to God.
On the other hand, the sinners and tax collectors who accepted Jesus, even though they recognized they had sinned against God, would be the ones to inherit God’s Kingdom. His moral, accepted even by the Chief Priests, was that those who do God’s will, even if they are imperfect in voicing their acceptance of it, will be the ones who receive God’s favor.
Seeing this description, we understand why the Gospel is called the Good News. Have we not all found ourselves rejecting what God asks of us, because it is hard? Haven’t we all, at least in prayer, asked God to give us an easier way? Worse, haven’t we gone along with a crowd doing what we know would be displeasing to God: professed our faith in Church, but in practice done just the opposite?
At these times the Lord (and St. John the Baptist) calls us to repent, turn away from sin and be true to the Gospel. It is an offer, an invitation, that is always being extended and one we are tasked with extending as well. When the Lord tells the Chief Priests the story related in the Gospel, it is not to condemn them. It is to point out their error and invite them once more to put aside their disbelief and believe.
Today we pray that we will have the strength to be different from either of the sons in his story. We pray that our yes will mean yes and our no, no. We pray that our yes will always be to humbly walk with the Lord and do his will, as we have promised.
Pax
[2] The picture is “The Great day of the Lord” (Destruction of Jerusalem by Titus) by Wilhelm von Kaulbach, 1860’s
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