CCC Cross Reference:
Lk 21:24 58, 674; Lk 21:27 671, 697
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Reading 1
Dn 6:12-28
Some men rushed into the upper chamber of Daniel’s home
and found him praying and pleading before his God.
Then they went to remind the king about the prohibition:
“Did you not decree, O king,
that no one is to address a petition to god or man
for thirty days, except to you, O king;
otherwise he shall be cast into a den of lions?”
The king answered them, “The decree is absolute,
irrevocable under the Mede and Persian law.”
To this they replied, “Daniel, the Jewish exile,
has paid no attention to you, O king,
or to the decree you issued;
three times a day he offers his prayer.”
The king was deeply grieved at this news
and he made up his mind to save Daniel;
he worked till sunset to rescue him.
But these men insisted.
They said, “Keep in mind, O king,
that under the Mede and Persian law
every royal prohibition or decree is irrevocable.”
So the king ordered Daniel to be brought and cast into the lions’ den.
To Daniel he said,
“May your God, whom you serve so constantly, save you.”
To forestall any tampering,
the king sealed with his own ring and the rings of the lords
the stone that had been brought to block the opening of the den.
Then the king returned to his palace for the night;
he refused to eat and he dismissed the entertainers.
Since sleep was impossible for him,
the king rose very early the next morning
and hastened to the lions’ den.
As he drew near, he cried out to Daniel sorrowfully,
“O Daniel, servant of the living God,
has the God whom you serve so constantly
been able to save you from the lions?”
Daniel answered the king: “O king, live forever!
My God has sent his angel and closed the lions’ mouths
so that they have not hurt me.
For I have been found innocent before him;
neither to you have I done any harm, O king!”
This gave the king great joy.
At his order Daniel was removed from the den,
unhurt because he trusted in his God.
The king then ordered the men who had accused Daniel,
along with their children and their wives,
to be cast into the lions’ den.
Before they reached the bottom of the den,
the lions overpowered them and crushed all their bones.
Then King Darius wrote to the nations and peoples of every language,
wherever they dwell on the earth: “All peace to you!
I decree that throughout my royal domain
the God of Daniel is to be reverenced and feared:
“For he is the living God, enduring forever;
his Kingdom shall not be destroyed,
and his dominion shall be without end.
He is a deliverer and savior,
working signs and wonders in heaven and on earth,
and he delivered Daniel from the lions’ power.”
Responsorial Psalm
Daniel 3:68, 69, 70, 71, 72, 73, 74
R. (59b) Give glory and eternal praise to him.
“Dew and rain, bless the Lord;
praise and exalt him above all forever.”
R. Give glory and eternal praise to him.
“Frost and chill, bless the Lord;
praise and exalt him above all forever.”
R. Give glory and eternal praise to him.
“Ice and snow, bless the Lord;
praise and exalt him above all forever.”
R. Give glory and eternal praise to him.
“Nights and days, bless the Lord;
praise and exalt him above all forever.”
R. Give glory and eternal praise to him.
“Light and darkness, bless the Lord;
praise and exalt him above all forever.”
R. Give glory and eternal praise to him.
“Lightnings and clouds, bless the Lord;
praise and exalt him above all forever.”
R. Give glory and eternal praise to him.
“Let the earth bless the Lord,
praise and exalt him above all forever.”
R. Give glory and eternal praise to him.
Gospel
Lk 21:20-28
Jesus said to his disciples:
“When you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies,
know that its desolation is at hand.
Then those in Judea must flee to the mountains.
Let those within the city escape from it,
and let those in the countryside not enter the city,
for these days are the time of punishment
when all the Scriptures are fulfilled.
Woe to pregnant women and nursing mothers in those days,
for a terrible calamity will come upon the earth
and a wrathful judgment upon this people.
They will fall by the edge of the sword
and be taken as captives to all the Gentiles;
and Jerusalem will be trampled underfoot by the Gentiles
until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.
“There will be signs in the sun, the moon, and the stars,
and on earth nations will be in dismay,
perplexed by the roaring of the sea and the waves.
People will die of fright
in anticipation of what is coming upon the world,
for the powers of the heavens will be shaken.
And then they will see the Son of Man
coming in a cloud with power and great glory.
But when these signs begin to happen,
stand erect and raise your heads
because your redemption is at hand.”
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible
First reading Daniel 6:12 – 28
The presidents and satraps came along in a body and found Daniel praying and pleading with God. They then came to the king and said, ‘Have you not just signed an edict forbidding any man for the next thirty days to pray to anyone, god or man, other than to yourself O king, on pain of being thrown into the lions’ den?’ ‘The decision stands,’ the king replied ‘as befits the law of the Medes and the Persians, which cannot be revoked.’ Then they said to the king, ‘O king, this man Daniel, one of the exiles from Judah, disregards both you and the edict which you have signed: he is at his prayers three times each day’. When the king heard these words he was deeply distressed, and determined ; to save Daniel; he racked his brains until sunset to find some way out. But the men came back in a body to the king and said, ‘O king, remember that in conformity with the law of the Medes and the Persians, no edict or decree can be altered when once issued by the king’.
The king then ordered Daniel to be fetched and thrown into the lion pit. The king said to Daniel, ‘Your God himself, whom you have served so faithfully, will have to save you’. A stone was then brought and laid over the mouth of the pit; and the king sealed it with his own signet and with that of his noblemen, so that there could be no going back on the original decision about Daniel. The king returned to his palace, spent the night in fasting and refused to receive any of his concubines. Sleep eluded him, and at the first sign of dawn he was up, and hurried off to the lion pit. As he approached the pit he shouted in anguished tones, ‘Daniel, servant of the living God! Has your God, whom you serve so faithfully, been able to save you from the lions?’ Daniel replied, ‘O king, live for ever! My God sent his angel who sealed the lions’ jaws, they did me no harm, since in his sight I am blameless, and I have never done you any wrong either, O king.’ The king was overjoyed, and ordered Daniel to be released from the pit. Daniel was released from the pit, and found to be quite unhurt, because he had trusted in his God. The king sent for the men who had accused Daniel and had them thrown into the lion pit, they, their wives and their children: and they had not reached the floor of the pit before the lions had seized them and crushed their bones to pieces.
King Darius then wrote to men of all nations, peoples and languages throughout the world, ‘May peace be always with you! I decree: in every kingdom of my empire let all tremble with fear before the God of Daniel:
‘He is the living God, he endures for ever,
his sovereignty will never be destroyed
and his kingship never end.
He saves, sets free, and works signs and wonders
in the heavens and on earth;
he has saved Daniel from the power of the lions.’
This Daniel flourished in the reign of Darius and the reign of Cyrus the Persian.
Responsorial Psalm: Daniel 3:68 – 74
Dews and sleet! bless the Lord:
give glory and eternal praise to him.
Frost and cold! bless the Lord:
give glory and eternal praise to him.
Ice and snow! bless the Lord:
give glory and eternal praise to him.
Nights and days! bless the Lord:
give glory and eternal praise to him.
Light and darkness! bless the Lord:
give glory and eternal praise to him.
Lightning and clouds! bless the Lord:
give glory and eternal praise to him.
Let the earth bless the Lord,
give glory and eternal praise to him.
Gospel Luke 21:20 – 28
Jesus said: ‘When you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, you must realise that she will soon be laid desolate. Then those in Judaea must escape to the mountains, those inside the city must leave it, and those in country districts must not take refuge in it. For this is the time of vengeance when all that scripture says must be fulfilled. Alas for those with child, or with babies at the breast, when those days come!
They will fall by the edge of the sword and be led captive to every pagan country; and Jerusalem will be trampled down by the pagans until the age of the pagans is completely over.
‘There will be signs in the sun and moon and stars; on earth nations in agony, bewildered by the clamor of the ocean and its waves; men dying of fear as they await what menaces the world, for the powers of heaven will be shaken. And then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. When these things begin to take place, stand erect, hold your heads high, because your liberation is near at hand.’
Readings and Commentary from the Navarre Bible
Thursday of the 34th and Final Week in Ordinary Time
From: Daniel 6:12-28
Daniel Sentenced to be Put in the Lions' Den (Continuation)
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([11] Then these men came by agreement (into the upper chamber of Daniel's house) and found Daniel making petition and supplication before his God.) [12] Then they came near and said before the king, concerning the interdict, "0 king! Did you not sign an interdict, that any man who makes petition to any god or man within thirty days except to you, 0 king, shall be cast into the den of lions?” The king answered, "The thing stands fast, according to the law of the Medes and Persians, which cannot be revoked.” [13] Then they answered before the king, "That Daniel, who is one of the exiles from Judah, pays no heed to you, 0 king, or the interdict you have signed, but makes his petition three times a day.”
[14] Then the king, when he heard these words, was much distressed, and set his mind to deliver Daniel; and he labored till the sun went down to rescue him. [15] Then these men came by agreement to the king, and said to the king, "Know, 0 king, that it is a law of the Medes and Persians that no interdict or ordinance which the king establishes can be changed.”
[16] Then the king commanded, and Daniel was brought and cast into the den of lions. The king said to Daniel, "May your God, whom you serve continually, deliver you!” [17] And a stone was brought and laid upon the mouth of the den, and the king sealed it with his own signet and with the signet of his lords, that nothing might be changed concerning Daniel. [18] Then the king went to his palace, and spent the night fasting; no diversions were brought to him, and sleep fled from him.
Daniel's Miraculous Escape
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[19] Then, at break of day, the king arose and went in haste to the den of lions. [20] When he came near to the den where Daniel was, he cried out in a tone of anguish and said to Daniel, "0 Daniel, servant of the living God, has your God, whom you serve continually, been able to deliver you from the lions?” [21] Then Daniel said to the king, "O king, live for ever! [22] My God sent his angel and
shut the lions' mouths, and they have not hurt me, because I was found blameless before him, and also before you, 0 king, I have done no wrong.” [23] Then the king was exceedingly glad, and commanded that Daniel be taken up out of the den. So Daniel was taken up out of the den, and no kind of hurt was found upon him, because he had trusted in his God.
The King's Profession of Faith
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[24] And the king commanded, and those men who had accused Daniel were brought and cast into the den of lions--they, their children, and their wives and before they reached the bottom of the den the lions overpowered them and broke all their bones in pieces.
[25] Then King Darius wrote to all the peoples, nations, and languages that dwell in all the earth: "Peace be multiplied to you. [26] I make a decree, that in all my royal dominion men tremble and fear before the God of Daniel, for he is the living God, enduring for ever his kingdom shall never be destroyed, and his dominion shall be to the end. [27] He delivers and rescues, he works signs and wonders in heaven and on earth, he who has saved Daniel from the power of the lions.” ([28] So this Daniel prospered during the reign of Darius and the reign of Cyrus the Persian.)
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Commentary:
6:1-28. This passage, which is similar in parts to chapter 3, begins by showing how difficult it was for the Jews to stay true to their religion in the midst of a pagan society (vv. 1-18); then we see how God comes to their rescue (vv. 19-24); finally, the pagan king acknowledges the God of Israel (vv. 25-28). As in chapter 5, Daniel is center-stage; in fact, his companions are not even mentioned. The episode has no particular connection with the previous ones; in fact, it seems to be a unit in its own right; it rounds off the part of the book dealing with Daniel at the court of Babylon. The fact that the story involves Darius the Mede, a king unknown to historical scholarship (see pp. 794f, above), reinforces the impression that this is a moral tale designed to get across the message that God helps those who strive to obey the precepts of the Jewish religion.
6:1-18. Daniel seems to be very much part of the social and political world of Babylon; thanks to his skill and loyalty, he is second only to the king. The plot against him may have been hatched out of jealousy, but the fact that he was a foreigner and a Jew probably did not help. His enemies set a sort of legal trap for Daniel. The king in his vanity issues a decree which, for a period of thirty days, makes him the only god there is. It is a decree that even he cannot revoke -- much as he would wish to do so, in order to liberate Daniel from its penalty. Here Daniel the Jew is not being obliged to do something against his religion: he is being required to refrain from doing something that his religion enjoins -- to pray to God facing towards Jerusalem (cf. 1 Kings 8:48). Daniel's opponents
have managed to manipulate the king and change the law, in such a way that they can accuse Daniel of breaking the law for religious reasons; he cannot be faulted on any other score.
When Daniel learned about the interdict, he did not change his standard pattern of prayer (v. 11); there is a lesson here for Christians, as the Fathers point out. Origen, for example, says: "The commandment to "pray without ceasing" (cf. Lk 18:1) can be understood and fulfilled only if we believe that the whole of man's life is a single, unbroken prayer. One part of this long prayer of life is what we call prayer, and we should pray no less than three times a day, as is made clear in the book of Daniel, who prayed three times a day even in the midst of great dangers” ("De Oratione", 12, 2).
6:19-24. Through divine intervention (once again by means of an angel: cf. 3:26), no harm comes to Daniel from the lions. It is as if Daniel is innocent in the sight of God--a point not lost on the king (v. 22) either; in fact, it spurs him to take control of the situation, assert his rights, and see that justice is done (vv. 23-24). Daniel's fidelity to his religion, and the fact that God protected him in his ordeal,
expose the perversity of the king's edict, and cause the king to right the wrong he has done. The sacred writer points out why God intervened miraculously --because Daniel "trusted in his God” (v. 23). Daniel's rivals were punished in line with the customs of the time, that is, they were punished very severely.
St Augustine comments that the lions refrained from harming Daniel because he was faithful to God: "Submit to the one who has power over you, and you will be raised above those who once held you in thrall. In committing sin, man places above himself what should always be beneath him; he submits to things that are less than him. [...] Acknowledge the one who has power over you, so that the things that are below you will see where you stand above them. For when Daniel acknowledged the power of the Lord God, the lions saw the superiority of Daniel over them and did not touch him” ("In Epistolam Ioannis", 8).
6:25-28: The king readily issues a decree that goes against his earlier one (cf. 6:9); the tenor of it is like that issued by Nebuchadnezzar in 4:1-3. So, both the Babylonian king and Darius the Mede acknowledged the God of the Jews as the one true God whose kingdom lasts forever; and they reached that point thanks to the wisdom that God gave the Jews (particularly Daniel) and to the exemplary fidelity of the Jews to their religion in the midst of trials.
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From: Luke 21:20-28
Discourse on the Destruction of Jerusalem and the End of the World
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(Jesus said to his disciples), [20] "But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then know that its desolation has come near. [21] Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains, and let those who are inside the city depart, and let not those who are out in the country enter it; [22] for these are days of vengeance, to fulfill all that is written. [23] Alas for those who are with child and for those who give suck in those days! For great distress shall be upon the earth and wrath upon this people; [24] they shall be upon the earth and wrath upon this people; [24] they will fall by the edge of the sword, and be led captive among all nations; and Jerusalem will be trodden down by the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.
[25] "And there will be signs in sun and moon and stars, and upon the earth distress of nations in perplexity at the roaring of the sea and the waves, [26] men fainting with fear and foreboding of what is coming on the world; for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. [27] And then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. [28] Now when these things begin to take
place, look up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.
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Commentary:
20-24. Jesus gives quite a detailed prophecy of the destruction of the Holy City. When the Christians living there saw the armies getting closer, they remembered this prophecy and fled to Transjordan (cf. Eusebius, "Ecclesiastical History," III, 5). Christ had advised them to flee as soon as possible because this is the time when God would punish Jerusalem for its sins, as the Old Testament predicted (Is 5:5-6).
Catholic tradition sees Israel as symbolizing the Church. In fact, in the Book of Revelation the Church triumphant is called the heavenly Jerusalem (cf. Rev 21:2). Therefore, by applying this passage to the Church, the sufferings the Holy City experiences can symbolize the contradictions the pilgrim Church will experience due to the sins of men, for "she herself takes her place among the creatures which groan and travail yet and await the revelation of the children of God" Vatican II, "Lumen Gentium", 48).
24. "The times of the Gentiles" means the period in which the Gentiles, who do not belong to the Jewish people, will become members of the new people of God, the Church, until the Jews themselves are converted at the end of the world (cf. Rom 11:11-32).
25-26. Jesus refers to the dramatic changes in natural elements when the world is coming to an end. "The powers of the heavens will be shaken"; that is to say, the whole universe will tremble at the Lord's coming in power and glory.
27-28. Applying to himself the prophecy of Daniel (7:13-14), our Lord speaks of his coming in glory at the end of time. Mankind will see the power and glory of the Son of man, coming to judge the living and the dead. Christ will deliver this judgment in his human capacity. Sacred Scripture describes the solemnity of this event, when the sentence passed on each person in the particular judgment will be confirmed, and God's justice and mercy to men throughout history will shine out for all to see. "It was necessary not only that rewards should await the just and punishments the wicked, in the life to come, but that they should be awarded by a public and general judgment. Thus they will become better known and will be rendered more conspicuous to all, and a tribute of praise will be of-
fered by all to the justice and providence of God" ("St Pius V Catechism", I, 8, 4).
This coming of the Lord is, then, a day of terror for evildoers and of joy for those who have remained faithful. The disciples should hold their heads high because their redemption is at hand. It is the day they will receive their reward. The victory won by Christ on the cross -- victory over sin, over the devil and over death -- will now be seen clearly, with all its implications. Therefore St Paul recommends that we be "awaiting our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ" (Titus 2:13).
"He [Christ] ascended into heaven whence he will come again to judge the living and the dead, each according to his merits. Those who have responded to the love and compassion of God will go into eternal life. Those who have refused them to the end will be consigned to the fire that is never extinguished" (Paul VI, "Creed of the People of God", 12).
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Source: "The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries". Biblical text from the Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries by members of the Faculty of Theology, University of Navarre, Spain.
Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and by Scepter Publishers in the United States. We encourage readers to purchase The Navarre Bible for personal study. See Scepter Publishers for details.
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