Daily Readings

The word of the LORD came to me: Son of man, you live in the midst of a rebellious house;they have eyes to see but do not see,and ears to hear but do not hear,for they are a rebellious house.Now, son of man, during the day while they are looking on,prepare your baggage as though for exile, and again while they are looking on,migrate from where you live to another place;perhaps they will see that they are a rebellious house.You shall bring out your baggage like an exile in the daytime while they are looking on;in the evening, again while they are looking on,you shall go out like one of those driven into exile;while they look on, dig a hole in the wall and pass through it;while they look on, shoulder the burden and set out in the darkness;cover your face that you may not see the land,for I have made you a sign for the house of Israel.

I did as I was told.During the day I brought out my baggageas though it were that of an exile,and at evening I dug a hole through the wall with my handand, while they looked on, set out in the darkness,shouldering my burden.

Then, in the morning, the word of the LORD came to me:Son of man, did not the house of Israel, that rebellious house,ask you what you were doing?Tell them: Thus says the Lord GOD:This oracle concerns Jerusalemand the whole house of Israel within it.I am a sign for you: as I have done, so shall it be done to them;as captives they shall go into exile.The prince who is among them shall shoulder his burdenand set out in darkness,going through a hole he has dug out in the wall,and covering his face lest he be seen by anyone.

R. (see 7b)  Do not forget the works of the Lord!They tempted and rebelled against God the Most High,and kept not his decrees.They turned back and were faithless like their fathers;they recoiled like a treacherous bow.R. Do not forget the works of the Lord!They angered him with their high placesand with their idols roused his jealousy.God heard and was enragedand utterly rejected Israel.R. Do not forget the works of the Lord!And he surrendered his strength into captivity,his glory in the hands of the foe.He abandoned his people to the swordand was enraged against his inheritance.R. Do not forget the works of the Lord!

R. Alleluia, alleluia.Let your countenance shine upon your servantand teach me your statutes.R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Peter approached Jesus and asked him,“Lord, if my brother sins against me,how often must I forgive him?As many as seven times?”Jesus answered, “I say to you, not seven times but seventy-seven times.That is why the Kingdom of heaven may be likened to a kingwho decided to settle accounts with his servants.When he began the accounting,a debtor was brought before him who owed him a huge amount.Since he had no way of paying it back,his master ordered him to be sold,along with his wife, his children, and all his property,in payment of the debt.At that, the servant fell down, did him homage, and said,‘Be patient with me, and I will pay you back in full.’Moved with compassion the master of that servantlet him go and forgave him the loan.When that servant had left, he found one of his fellow servantswho owed him a much smaller amount.He seized him and started to choke him, demanding,‘Pay back what you owe.’Falling to his knees, his fellow servant begged him,‘Be patient with me, and I will pay you back.’But he refused.Instead, he had the fellow servant put in prisonuntil he paid back the debt.Now when his fellow servants saw what had happened,they were deeply disturbed,and went to their master and reported the whole affair.His master summoned him and said to him, ‘You wicked servant!I forgave you your entire debt because you begged me to.Should you not have had pity on your fellow servant,as I had pity on you?’Then in anger his master handed him over to the torturersuntil he should pay back the whole debt.So will my heavenly Father do to you,unless each of you forgives his brother from his heart.”

When Jesus finished these words, he left Galileeand went to the district of Judea across the Jordan.

The LORD cried loud for me to hear:Come, you scourges of the city!With that I saw six men coming from the directionof the upper gate which faces the north,each with a destroying weapon in his hand.In their midst was a man dressed in linen,with a writer’s case at his waist.They entered and stood beside the bronze altar.Then he called to the man dressed in linenwith the writer’s case at his waist, saying to him:Pass through the city, through Jerusalem,and mark a “Thau” on the foreheads of those who moan and groanover all the abominations that are practiced within it.To the others I heard the LORD say:Pass through the city after him and strike!Do not look on them with pity nor show any mercy!Old men, youths and maidens, women and children–wipe them out!But do not touch any marked with the “Thau”; begin at my sanctuary.So they began with the men, the elders, who were in front of the temple.Defile the temple, he said to them, and fill the courts with the slain;then go out and strike in the city.

Then the glory of the LORD left the threshold of the templeand rested upon the cherubim.These lifted their wings, and I saw them rise from the earth,the wheels rising along with them.They stood at the entrance of the eastern gate of the Lord’s house,and the glory of the God of Israel was up above them.Then the cherubim lifted their wings, and the wheels went along with them,while up above them was the glory of the God of Israel.

R. (4b)  The glory of the Lord is higher than the skies.or:R. Alleluia.Praise, you servants of the LORD,praise the name of the LORD.Blessed be the name of the LORDboth now and forever.R. The glory of the Lord is higher than the skies.or:R.  Alleluia.From the rising to the setting of the sunis the name of the LORD to be praised.High above all nations is the LORD;above the heavens is his glory.R. The glory of the Lord is higher than the skies.or:R. Alleluia.Who is like the LORD, our God, who is enthroned on high,and looks upon the heavens and the earth below?R. The glory of the Lord is higher than the skies.or:R. Alleluia.

R. Alleluia, alleluia.God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ,and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation.R. Alleluia, alleluia. 

Jesus said to his disciples:"If your brother sins against you,go and tell him his fault between you and him alone.If he listens to you, you have won over your brother.If he does not listen,take one or two others along with you,so that  every fact may be establishedon the testimony of two or three witnesses.If he refuses to listen to them, tell the Church.If he refuses to listen even to the Church,then treat him as you would a Gentile or a tax collector.Amen, I say to you,whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven,and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.Again, amen, I say to you, if two of you agree on earthabout anything for which they are to pray,it shall be granted to them by my heavenly Father.For where two or three are gathered together in my name,there am I in the midst of them."

The Lord GOD said to me:As for you, son of man, obey me when I speak to you:be not rebellious like this house of rebellion,but open your mouth and eat what I shall give you.

It was then I saw a hand stretched out to me,in which was a written scroll which he unrolled before me.It was covered with writing front and back,and written on it was: Lamentation and wailing and woe!

He said to me: Son of man, eat what is before you;eat this scroll, then go, speak to the house of Israel.So I opened my mouth and he gave me the scroll to eat.Son of man, he then said to me,feed your belly and fill your stomachwith this scroll I am giving you.I ate it, and it was as sweet as honey in my mouth.He said: Son of man, go now to the house of Israel,and speak my words to them.

R. (103a)  How sweet to my taste is your promise!In the way of your decrees I rejoice,as much as in all riches.R. How sweet to my taste is your promise!Yes, your decrees are my delight;they are my counselors.R. How sweet to my taste is your promise!The law of your mouth is to me more preciousthan thousands of gold and silver pieces.R. How sweet to my taste is your promise!How sweet to my palate are your promises,sweeter than honey to my mouth!R.  How sweet to my taste is your promise!Your decrees are my inheritance forever;the joy of my heart they are.R.  How sweet to my taste is your promise!I gasp with open mouth,in my yearning for your commands.R.  How sweet to my taste is your promise!

R. Alleluia, alleluia.Take my yoke upon you and learn from me,for I am meek and humble of heart.R. Alleluia, alleluia.

The disciples approached Jesus and said,“Who is the greatest in the Kingdom of heaven?”He called a child over, placed it in their midst, and said,“Amen, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children,you will not enter the Kingdom of heaven.Whoever becomes humble like this childis the greatest in the Kingdom of heaven.And whoever receives one child such as this in my name receives me.

“See that you do not despise one of these little ones,for I say to you that their angels in heavenalways look upon the face of my heavenly Father.What is your opinion?If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them goes astray,will he not leave the ninety-nine in the hillsand go in search of the stray?And if he finds it, amen, I say to you, he rejoices more over itthan over the ninety-nine that did not stray. In just the same way, it is not the will of your heavenly Fatherthat one of these little ones be lost."