CCC Cross Reference:
Is 11:1-9 672; Is 11:1-2 712, 1831; Is 11:2 436, 536, 1286
Lk 10:21-23 2603; Lk 10:21 1083
Back to Deacon’s Bench '07
Back to Deacon's Bench '08
Back to Servant of the Word '09
Back to SOW II '11
Back ot SOW II '13
Back to SOW II '14
Back to SOW II '15
Back to SOW II '16
Back to SOW II '17
Back to SOW II '18
Back to SOW II '19
Back to SOW II '20
Reading 1
Is 11:1-10
On that day,
A shoot shall sprout from the stump of Jesse,
and from his roots a bud shall blossom.
The Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him:
a Spirit of wisdom and of understanding,
A Spirit of counsel and of strength,
a Spirit of knowledge and of fear of the Lord,
and his delight shall be the fear of the Lord.
Not by appearance shall he judge,
nor by hearsay shall he decide,
But he shall judge the poor with justice,
and decide aright for the land’s afflicted.
He shall strike the ruthless with the rod of his mouth,
and with the breath of his lips he shall slay the wicked.
Justice shall be the band around his waist,
and faithfulness a belt upon his hips.
Then the wolf shall be a guest of the lamb,
and the leopard shall lie down with the kid;
The calf and the young lion shall browse together,
with a little child to guide them.
The cow and the bear shall be neighbors,
together their young shall rest;
the lion shall eat hay like the ox.
The baby shall play by the cobra’s den,
and the child lay his hand on the adder’s lair.
There shall be no harm or ruin on all my holy mountain;
for the earth shall be filled with knowledge of the Lord,
as water covers the sea.
On that day,
The root of Jesse,
set up as a signal for the nations,
The Gentiles shall seek out,
for his dwelling shall be glorious.
Responsorial Psalm
Ps 72:1-2, 7-8, 12-13, 17
R. (see 7) Justice shall flourish in his time, and fullness of peace for ever.
O God, with your judgment endow the king,
and with your justice, the king’s son;
He shall govern your people with justice
and your afflicted ones with judgment.
R. Justice shall flourish in his time, and fullness of peace for ever.
Justice shall flower in his days,
and profound peace, till the moon be no more.
May he rule from sea to sea,
and from the River to the ends of the earth.
R. Justice shall flourish in his time, and fullness of peace for ever.
He shall rescue the poor when he cries out,
and the afflicted when he has no one to help him.
He shall have pity for the lowly and the poor;
the lives of the poor he shall save.
R. Justice shall flourish in his time, and fullness of peace for ever.
May his name be blessed forever;
as long as the sun his name shall remain.
In him shall all the tribes of the earth be blessed;
all the nations shall proclaim his happiness.
R. Justice shall flourish in his time, and fullness of peace for ever.
Gospel
Lk 10:21-24
Jesus rejoiced in the Holy Spirit and said,
“I give you praise, Father, Lord of heaven and earth,
for although you have hidden these things
from the wise and the learned
you have revealed them to the childlike.
Yes, Father, such has been your gracious will.
All things have been handed over to me by my Father.
No one knows who the Son is except the Father,
and who the Father is except the Son
and anyone to whom the Son wishes to reveal him.”
Turning to the disciples in private he said,
“Blessed are the eyes that see what you see.
For I say to you,
many prophets and kings desired to see what you see,
but did not see it,
and to hear what you hear, but did not hear it.”
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible
First reading Isaiah 11:1 – 10
A shoot springs from the stock of Jesse,
a scion thrusts from his roots:
on him the spirit of the Lord rests,
a spirit of wisdom and insight,
a spirit of counsel and power,
a spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord.
(The fear of the Lord is his breath.)
He does not judge by appearances,
he gives no verdict on hearsay,
but judges the wretched with integrity,
and with equity gives a verdict for the poor of the land.
His word is a rod that strikes the ruthless,
his sentences bring death to the wicked.
Integrity is the loincloth round his waist,
faithfulness the belt about his hips.
The wolf lives with the lamb,
the panther lies down with the kid,
calf and lion feed together,
with a little boy to lead them.
The cow and the bear make friends,
their young lie down together.
The lion eats straw like the ox.
The infant plays over the cobra’s hole;
into the viper’s lair
the young child puts his hand.
They do no hurt, no harm,
on all my holy mountain,
for the country is filled with the knowledge of the Lord
as the waters swell the sea.
That day, the root of Jesse
shall stand as a signal to the peoples.
It will be sought out by the nations
and its home will be glorious.
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 71(72):1-2,7-8,12-13,17
In his days justice shall flourish, and peace till the moon fails.
O God, give your judgement to the king,
to a king’s son your justice,
that he may judge your people in justice
and your poor in right judgement.
In his days justice shall flourish, and peace till the moon fails.
In his days justice shall flourish
and peace till the moon fails.
He shall rule from sea to sea,
from the Great River to earth’s bounds.
In his days justice shall flourish, and peace till the moon fails.
For he shall save the poor when they cry
and the needy who are helpless.
He will have pity on the weak
and save the lives of the poor.
In his days justice shall flourish, and peace till the moon fails.
May his name be blessed for ever
and endure like the sun.
Every tribe shall be blessed in him,
all nations bless his name.
In his days justice shall flourish, and peace till the moon fails.
Gospel Luke 10:21 – 24
Filled with joy by the Holy Spirit, Jesus said, ‘I bless you, Father, Lord of heaven and of earth, for hiding these things from the learned and the clever and revealing them to mere children. Yes, Father, for that is what it pleased you to do. Everything has been entrusted to me by my Father; and no one knows who the Son is except the Father, and who the Father is except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.’
Then turning to his disciples he spoke to them in private, ‘Happy the eyes that see what you see, for I tell you that many prophets and kings wanted to see what you see, and never saw it; to hear what you hear, and never heard it’.
Readings and Commentary from the Navarre Bible
Tuesday of the 1st Week of Advent
From: Isaiah 11:1-10
The New Descendant of David
--------------------------------------------
[1] There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse,
and a branch shall grow out of his roots.
[2] And the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him,
the spirit of wisdom and understanding,
the spirit of counsel and might,
the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord.
[3] And his delight shall be in the fear of the Lord.
He shall not judge by what his eyes see,
or decide by what his ears hear;
[4] but with righteousness he shall judge the poor,
and decide with equity for the meek of the earth;
and he shall smite the earth with the rod of his mouth,
and with the breath of his lips he shall slay the wicked.
[5] Righteousness shall be the girdle of his waist,
and faithfulness the girdle of his loins.
[6] The wolf shall dwell with the lamb,
and the leopard shall lie down with the kid,
and the calf and the lion and the failing together,
and a little child shall lead them.
[7] The cow and the bear shall feed;
their young shall lie down together;
and the lion shall eat straw like the ox.
[8] The sucking child shall play over the hole of the asp,
and the weaned child shall put his hand on the adders den.
[9] They shall not hurt or destroy
in all my holy mountain;
for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord
as the waters cover the sea.
The Return of the Exiles
-----------------------------------
[10] In that day the root of Jesse shall stand as an ensign to the peoples; him shall the nations seek, and his dwellings shall be glorious.
******************************************************************************************
Commentary:
11:1-9. This passage, which is regarded as the third Immanuel oracle, has two parts to it. The first (vv.1-5) announces that the shoot will spring from the stump of Jesse (David's father) at some future date. The second (vv. 6-9) describes the good things associated with his reign, using imagery to do with messianic peace: creation will be restored to its state of original justice.
The first part is a formal announcement of the accession of a new king in the line of David -- humble, because he comes from a tree that has been pruned yet has all the vitality of a tender shoot. It refers to a future king ("there shall come ...") and not the reigning monarch. The new king will be endowed with exceptional qualities that equip him to rule, thanks to the Holy Spirit who will descend upon him. The divine Spirit is an inner strength, a gift that God gives to key figures in salvation history to enable them to accomplish a difficult and dangerous mission -- Moses (cf. Num 11:17), the judges (cf. 3:10; 6:34) and David (1 Sam 16:13). The new descendant of David will rule over the people not in a heavy-handed way like the kings of the time, but with a charismatic dynamism that comes from God. Six gifts of the Spirit are mentioned, in pairs -- wisdom and understanding, referring to the skill and prudence that ensure that he will judge rightly; counsel and fortitude, the characteristics of an astute strategist like David; knowledge and the fear of the Lord, which have to do with the religious sphere, for the king must not forget that he is God's representative.
The second part describes very beautifully the messianic peace that will flower with this new "shoot". It paints a panorama of the harmony that reigned at the dawn of creation, only to be broken by sin. Even among wild beasts violence will disappear. No longer will man in his pride desire to be "like God, knowing good and evil" (Gen 3:5); instead he will be filled with the divine gift of the "knowledge of the Lord" (v. 9). The "child", mentioned twice (vv. 6, 8), is not directly connected with the child-king of the oracle found in 9:6 or with the Immanuel (7:14); however, in the mind of the prophet they must have had many points of contact, given the reference to the child having a leadership role (v. 6).
The image of the "shoot" from the royal line who will bring peace has been interpreted in Christian tradition as finding fulfillment in Jesus Christ. St Thomas Aquinas read this passage as referring to Christ, who brought about the restoation of mankind; he points out: "First, the birth of Christ the 'restorer', is spoken of (v. 1); then, his holiness (vv. 2-9) and his dignity (v. 10) are described" ("Expositio Super lsaiam", 11). And Bl. John Paul II comments: "Alluding to the coming of a mysterious personage, which the New Testament revelation will identify with Jesus, Isaiah connects his person and mission with a particular action of the Spirit of God -- the Spirit of the Lord.
"These are the words of the prophet: 'There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse, and a branch shall grow out of his roots. And "the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him," the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord. And his delight shall be the fear of the Lord' (Is 11:1-3). This text is important for the whole pneumatology of the Old Testament, because it constitutes a kind of bridge between the ancient biblical concept of 'spirit', understood primarily as a 'charismatic breath of wind', and the 'Spirit' as a person and as a gift, a gift for the person. The Messiah of the lineage of David ('from the stump of Jesse') is precisely that person upon whom the Spirit of the Lord 'shall rest.' It is obvious that in this case one cannot yet speak of a revelation of the Paraclete. However, with this veiled reference to the figure of the future Messiah there begins, so to speak, the path towards the full revelation of the Holy Spirit in the unity of the Trinitarian mystery, a mystery which will finally be manifested in the New Covenant" ("Dominum Et Vivificantem", 15).
A Christian reading of these words finds in them a reference to the action of the Holy Spirit in souls; the "spirits" that repose in the Messiah; are stable "gifts" through which the Holy Spirit acts. There are six of these gifts, according to the Hebrew text (which the New Vulgate and the RSV follow). The Greek translation of the Septuagint and the Vulgate divide the gift of fear into two -- piety and fear of the Lord. That is why catechesis and theology speak of there being seven gifts: "The seven 'gifts' of the Holy Spirit are wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude, knowledge, piety and fear of the Lord. They belong in their fullness to Christ, Son of David (cf. Is 11:1-2). They complete and perfect the virtues of those who receive them. They make the faithful docile in readily obeying divine inspirations" ("Catechism of the Catholic Church", 1831).
******************************************************************************************
From: Luke 10:21-24
Jesus Gives Thanks
------------------------------
[21] In that same hour He (Jesus) rejoiced in the Holy Spirit and said, "I thank Thee, Father, Lord of Heaven and earth, that thou hast hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to babes; yea, Father, for such was Thy gracious will. [22] All things have been delivered to Me by My Father; and no one knows who the Son is except the Father, or who the Father is except the Son and any one to whom the Son chooses to reveal Him."
[23] Then turning to the disciples He said privately, "Blessed are the eyes which see what you see! [24] For I tell you that many prophets and kings desired to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it."
*********************************************************************************************
Commentary:
21. This passage of the Gospel is usually called our Lord's "hymn of joy" and is also found in St. Matthew (11:25-27). It is one of those moments when Jesus rejoices to see humble people understanding and accepting the word of God.
Our Lord also reveals one of the effects of humility -- spiritual childhood. For example, in another passage He says: "Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the Kingdom of Heaven" (Matthew 18: 3). But spiritual childhood does not involve weakness, softness or ignorance: "I have often meditated on this life of spiritual childhood, which is not incompatible with fortitude, because it demands a strong will, proven maturity, an open and firm character [...]. To become children we must renounce our pride and self-sufficiency, recognizing that we can do nothing by ourselves. We must realize that we need grace, and the help of God our Father to find our way and keep it. To be little, you have to abandon yourself as children do, believe as children, beg as children beg" (St. J. Escriva, "Christ Is Passing By", 10 and 143).
22. "This statement is a wonderful help to our faith," St. Ambrose comments, "because when you read 'all' you realize that Christ is all-powerful, that He is not inferior to the Father, or less perfect than He; when you read 'have been delivered to me', you confess that Christ is the Son, to whom everything belongs by right of being one in substance [with the Father] and not by grace of gift" ("Expositio Evangelii Sec. Lucam, in loc.").
Here we see Christ as almighty Lord and God, consubstantial with the Father, and the only one capable of revealing who the Father is. At the same time, we can recognize the divine nature of Jesus only if the Father gives us the grace of faith -- as He did to St. Peter (cf. Matthew 16:17).
23-24. Obviously, seeing Jesus with one's own eyes was a wonderful thing for people who believed in him. However, our Lord will say to Thomas, "Blessed are those who have not seen and yet believe" (John 20:29). St. Peter, for his part, tells us: "Without having seen Him you love Him; though you do not see Him you believe in Him and rejoice with unutterable and exalted joy. As the outcome of your faith you obtain the salvation of your souls" (1 Peter 1:8-9).
*********************************************************************************************
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.
No comments:
Post a Comment