CCC Cross Reference:
2 Jn 7 465, 675
Lk 17:19-31 2463; Lk 17:33 1889
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Reading 1
2 Jn 4-9
[Chosen Lady:]
I rejoiced greatly to find some of your children walking in the truth
just as we were commanded by the Father.
But now, Lady, I ask you,
not as though I were writing a new commandment,
but the one we have had from the beginning:
let us love one another.
For this is love, that we walk according to his commandments.
this is the commandment, as you heard from the beginning,
in which you should walk.
Many deceivers have gone out into the world,
those who do not acknowledge Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh;
such is the deceitful one and the antichrist.
Look to yourselves that you do not lose what we worked for
but may receive a full recompense.
Anyone who is so “progressive”
as not to remain in the teaching of the Christ does not have God;
whoever remains in the teaching has the Father and the Son.
Responsorial Psalm
Ps 119:1, 2, 10, 11, 17, 18
R. (1b) Blessed are they who follow the law of the Lord!
Blessed are they whose way is blameless,
who walk in the law of the LORD.
R. Blessed are they who follow the law of the Lord!
Blessed are they who observe his decrees,
who seek him with all their heart.
R. Blessed are they who follow the law of the Lord!
With all my heart I seek you;
let me not stray from your commands.
R. Blessed are they who follow the law of the Lord!
Within my heart I treasure your promise,
that I may not sin against you.
R. Blessed are they who follow the law of the Lord!
Be good to your servant, that I may live
and keep your words.
R. Blessed are they who follow the law of the Lord!
Open my eyes, that I may consider
the wonders of your law.
R. Blessed are they who follow the law of the Lord!
Gospel
Lk 17:26-37
Jesus said to his disciples:
“As it was in the days of Noah,
so it will be in the days of the Son of Man;
they were eating and drinking,
marrying and giving in marriage up to the day
that Noah entered the ark,
and the flood came and destroyed them all.
Similarly, as it was in the days of Lot:
they were eating, drinking, buying,
selling, planting, building;
on the day when Lot left Sodom,
fire and brimstone rained from the sky to destroy them all.
So it will be on the day the Son of Man is revealed.
On that day, someone who is on the housetop
and whose belongings are in the house
must not go down to get them,
and likewise one in the field
must not return to what was left behind.
Remember the wife of Lot.
Whoever seeks to preserve his life will lose it,
but whoever loses it will save it.
I tell you, on that night there will be two people in one bed;
one will be taken, the other left.
And there will be two women grinding meal together;
one will be taken, the other left.”
They said to him in reply, “Where, Lord?”
He said to them, “Where the body is,
there also the vultures will gather.”
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible
First reading 2 John 1:4-9
It has given me great joy to find that your children have been living the life of truth as we were commanded by the Father. I am writing now, dear lady, not to give you any new commandment, but the one which we were given at the beginning, and to plead: let us love one another.
To love is to live according to his commandments: this is the commandment which you have heard since the beginning, to live a life of love.
There are many deceivers about in the world, refusing to admit that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh. They are the Deceiver; they are the Antichrist. Watch yourselves, or all our work will be lost and not get the reward it deserves. If anybody does not keep within the teaching of Christ but goes beyond it, he cannot have God with him: only those who keep to what he taught can have the Father and the Son with them.
Responsorial Psalm:
Psalm 118(119):1-2,10-11,17-18
They are happy who follow God’s law.
They are happy whose life is blameless,
who follow God’s law!
They are happy who do his will,
seeking him with all their hearts.
They are happy who follow God’s law.
I have sought you with all my heart;
let me not stray from your commands.
I treasure your promise in my heart
lest I sin against you.
They are happy who follow God’s law.
Bless your servant and I shall live
and obey your word.
Open my eyes that I may see
the wonders of your law.
They are happy who follow God’s law.
Jesus said to the disciples:
‘As it was in Noah’s day, so will it also be in the days of the Son of Man. People were eating and drinking, marrying wives and husbands, right up to the day Noah went into the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all. It will be the same as it was in Lot’s day: people were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building, but the day Lot left Sodom, God rained fire and brimstone from heaven and it destroyed them all. It will be the same when the day comes for the Son of Man to be revealed.
‘When that day comes, anyone on the housetop, with his possessions in the house, must not come down to collect them, nor must anyone in the fields turn back either. Remember Lot’s wife. Anyone who tries to preserve his life will lose it; and anyone who loses it will keep it safe. I tell you, on that night two will be in one bed: one will be taken, the other left; two women will be grinding corn together: one will be taken, the other left.’ The disciples interrupted. ‘Where, Lord?’ they asked. He said, ‘Where the body is, there too will the vultures gather.’
Readings and Commentary from the Navarre Bible
Friday of the 32nd Week in Ordinary Time
From: 2 John 4-9
The Law of Love
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[4] I rejoiced greatly to find some of your children following the truth, just as we have been commanded by the Father. [5] And now I beg you, lady, not as though I were writing you a new commandment, but the one we have had from the beginning, that we love one another. [6] And this is love, that we follow his commandments; this is the commandment, as you have heard from the beginning, that you follow love.
Precautions Against Heretics
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[7] For many deceivers have gone out into the world, men who will not acknowledge the coming of Jesus Christ in the flesh; such a one is the deceiver and the antichrist. [8] Look to yourselves, that you may not lose what you have worked for, but may win a full reward. [9] Any one who goes ahead and does not abide in the doctrine of Christ does not have God; he who abides in the doctrine has both the Father and the Son.
Commentary:
4-6. Among all similarities of language and content between the Second and Third Letters, this passage is a particularly significant one.
The Apostle's joy (v. 4) is based on the fact that the Christians have learned that walking in the truth entails keeping the commandment of brotherly love, which they have had from the beginning. The verses sum up one of the main themes of the First Letter, where St John expounds these teachings at greater length (cf. 1 Jn 2:7-11; 3:11-24; 4:7-21 and notes on same).
"That you follow love": the Greek is ambiguous and literally says "that you follow it"; "it" could refer to the commandment (that is how the New Vulgate reads it) or to love. The sense is not very different, if one remembers that in St John's teaching the commandments reduce to love of God and love of neighbor: "Listen carefully to a brief precept", St Augustine exhorts, "love and do what you like" ("In Epist. Ioann Ad Parthos", 7, 8).
St John also emphasizes that this is a commandment they have had "from the beginning" (vv. 5 and 6); that is, Tradition is so definite on this point that anyone who teaches otherwise is a liar and a deceiver. This helps to explain the connection between these verses and the ones which follow. In fact the false teachers were causing harm in two ways -- by corrupting the faith and by destroying unity and mutual love.
7-ll. These warnings are a summary of things said in the First Letter (cf. 2:18-29; 4:1-6; 5:1-5; and notes on same). St John shows how to recognize these heretics -- by the fact that they do not acknowledge the divinity of Jesus Christ incarnate (cf. 1 Jn 4:2-3 and note); and he warns that anyone who turns his back on sound teaching is abandoning the Father and the Son (cf. 1 Jn 2:22-25 and notes). The passage ends with instructions on precautions to take in dealings with those people (vv. 10-11).
On the "antichrist" (v. 7), see the note on 1 Jn 2:18.
8. "That you may not lose what you have worked for": many important codices read "what we have worked for", referring to the efforts of the Apostles. Both readings have equal support in the Greek codices; both make sense and show that in order to persevere in the faith (and obtain the reward for doing so) care and effort are needed, on the part of both pastors and other faithful.
St Cyril of Jerusalem exhorted: "Keep careful watch, to ensure that the enemy does not make off with any who are off guard or remiss; and that no heretic may pervert part of what you have been given. Accepting the faith is like putting into the bank the money we have given you; God will ask you for an account of this deposit" ("Catechesis V, Defide Et Symbolo").
From: Luke 17:26-37
The Day of the Son of Man (Continuation)
------------------------------------------------------------
(Jesus said to His disciples,) [26] "As it was in the days of Noah, so will it be in the days of the Son of Man. [27] They ate, they drank, they married, they were given in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all. [28] Likewise as it was in the days of Lot -- they ate, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they built, [29] but on the day when Lot went out from Sodom fire and brimstone rained from Heaven and destroyed them all -- [30] so will it be on the day when the Son of Man is revealed.
[31] On that day, let him who is on the housetop, with his goods in the house, not come down to take them away; and likewise let him who is in the field not turn back. [32] Remember Lot's wife. [33] Whoever seeks to gain his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life will preserve it. [34] I tell you, in that night there will be two men in one bed; one will be taken and the other left. [35] There will be two women grinding together; one will be taken and the other left." [37] And they said to Him, "Where Lord?" He said to them, "Where the body is, there the eagles will be gathered together."
Commentary:
23-36. These words of our Lord are a prophecy about the last coming of the Son of Man. We should remember that prophecy often involves events on different levels, many symbols, a terminology of its own; the "chiaroscuro" which they create gives us insight into future events, but the concrete details only become clear when the events actually occur. Our Lord's last coming will be something sudden and unexpected; it will catch many people unprepared. Jesus illustrates this by giving examples from sacred history: as in the time of Noah (cf. Genesis 6:9-19: 7) and that of Lot (cf. Genesis 18:16-19:27) divine judgment will be visited on men without warning.
However, it is useful to recall here that everyone will find himself before the divine Judge immediately when he dies, at the Particular Judgment. Thus Jesus' teaching has also a present urgency about it: here and now a disciple should scrutinize his own conduct, for the Lord can call him when he least expects.
33. "Will preserve it": what the Greek word literally means is "will engender (his life)", that is to say, "will give true life to the soul". Thus our Lord seems to mean the following: he who wants to save his life at all costs, making it his basic value, will lose eternal life; whereas he who is ready to lose his earthly life -- that is, to resist even to death the enemies of God and of his soul -- will obtain eternal happiness through this struggle. In content this passage is almost identical with Luke 9:24.
36. In the Vulgate this verse reads: "Una assumetur, et altera relinquetur. Duo in agro; unus assumetur, et alter relinquetur" ("One will be taken and the other left. Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other left"). These words seem to be an addition to Luke, taken from Matthew 24:40; they do not appear in the better Greek manuscripts, which is why the New Vulgate omits them.
37. "Where the body is, there the eagles will gather": the Greek text uses a word which could mean either eagle or vulture. In any event the proverb indicates the speed with which birds of prey swoop down on their victims -- apparently referring to the sudden, unexpected way the Second Coming or Last Judgment will happen. Sacred Scripture also deals with this subject in other passages: "But as to the times and the seasons, brethren, you have no need to have anything written to you. For you yourselves know well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night" (1 Thessalonians 5:1-2). Once more Jesus is exhorting us to be watchful: we should never neglect the most important thing in life – eternal salvation. "All that, which worries you for the moment, is of relative importance. What is of absolute importance is that you be happy, that you be saved" (St. J. Escriva, "The Way", 297). So curious are the Pharisees and the disciples about the time and place of the Last Coming that they are distracted from Jesus' main point; the same thing happens to us: for example, we can spend a lot of time pondering the circumstances of the deaths of people we know, and fail to grasp the warning these deaths contain -- that this life is going to end one way or another and that after it we too will meet God.
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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