2025 Reflections
(Posted from latest to oldest articles.)
The Spear (7th Sunday in Ordinary Time)
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The second half of the book of 1 Samuel chronicles David’s rise to fame and his attempts to evade King Saul, who is actively trying to kill him upon realizing that God has anointed him as king, and is gaining the support of many of the people. David becomes the leader of a ragtag group of renegades who try to evade Saul, while at the same time acknowledging his legitimate rule over Israel and refraining from engaging in armed revolt against him.
The Old Testament reading is the second of two narratives where David is in a position to eliminate his opponent. The first was in chapter 24, where Saul goes to relieve himself in a cave where David happens to be hiding. Although David’s men encourage him to kill Saul right there and then, David takes the moral high ground and refuses to do so. Now, in chapter 26, he has a second chance at doing so again.
There are a number of reasons why David would not kill Saul even though it seems to be in his interests to do so. The first is that, even though God has chosen him to become the king in the future, Saul is still God’s anointed king in the present moment. Although David knows that he will eventually replace Saul as king, he does not presume to take matters into his own hands, but trusts God to accomplish His plans in His own way and time.
The second reason David doesn’t kill Saul is because it sets a bad precedent. Even if Saul proves to be a bad king, David cannot simply topple his rule. This would send a message to the Israelites that they could do the same thing later on if they feel David has forfeited his kingship. Thus, David discourages his people from thinking that assassination is a proper way of resolving political conflicts.
David’s choice to take Saul’s spear echoes the fact that Saul had earlier used this exact same spear to try and kill David, and later his own son Jonathan (1 Samuel 19:9-10, 20:33). David’s taking of Saul’s spear is thus a rebuke of Saul’s actions. At the same time, his refusal to use it signals his refusal to stoop down to Saul’s level.
Towards the end, Saul recognizes that he is in the wrong, and declares to David that he has acted foolishly (1 Samuel 26:21). However, David does not trust these words, as Saul said the exact same thing in the past and yet continued to hunt him down (1 Samuel 24:16-21). He prudently continues to evade him, thus avoiding the danger posed by Saul’s mental instability.
David’s decision is an excellent example of Jesus’ teaching in our Gospel reading that we are to love our enemies and turn the other cheek (Luke 6:27-38). His decision is also an example of how we are to trust in the Lord and not take matters into our own hands. He does not presume to act as the agent of God’s will, contrary to Abishai’s suggestion. Instead, he waits upon the Lord to fulfill His plans, knowing that He makes everything turn out well for those who love Him and are called according to His purposes, as St. Paul puts it (Romans 8:28)
Trusting in the Lord (6th Sunday in Ordinary Time)
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The prophet Jeremiah lived in the late seventh and sixth centuries BC, around the end of the kingdom of Judah. His lifetime coincided with the rise of the Neo-Babylonian empire, the vassalage of Judah under the Babylonians, and the destruction of Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar. As was revealed to Jeremiah, this destruction was God’s punishment on the Jews for their sins, in accordance with the curses in Deuteronomy 28.
A large portion of the book of Jeremiah consists of laments where the prophet bewails the sorry state of his people. It is these laments that earn him the moniker “The Weeping Prophet.” The particular lament found in our Old Testament reading speaks of the tendency of Judah to put their trust in things other than God, and how this results in their downfall.
This lament follows a literary device found in many Biblical passages, which is to contrast between two sets of behaviours. On the one hand is the person who trusts in men rather than God. On the other hand is the person who trusts God wholeheartedly. The passage shows not only the contrasting attitudes of the two men, but the contrasting outcomes of those attitudes as well.
This comes at a critical time in Judah’s history, as they are caught in a war between Babylon and Egypt. They believed that by siding with Egypt, they could cast off the yoke of Babylonian rule. Jeremiah has to warn them that they are sadly mistaken in this assumption, and that this conveys a lack of trust in God.
Instead, they must trust that God has reasons for putting Judah in this position, and allow His plans to play out, knowing that whatever He has in store is good. Those who trust God are described in terms similar to Psalm 1, as well-watered trees who bear much fruit, and do not whither even when the drought comes.
The contrast conveyed by Jeremiah in this reading is echoed by Jesus in His own preaching in our Gospel reading, who uses similar contrasts to flesh out what it means to trust in the Lord (Luke 6:17, 20-26). We can learn from Jeremiah’s warning to Judah as well as Jesus’ preaching that we should trust the Lord under all circumstances, rather than in our own machinations. A plan can only succeed if the Lord blesses it (Psalm 127:1-2), so we must commit our way to the Lord, and trust Him to bring about the best result (Psalm 37:5-7)
God’s Messenger (5th Sunday in Ordinary Time)
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Isaiah began his prophetic ministry during the reign of king Uzziah. Uzziah was one of the good kings of Judah, who obeyed the Law of the Lord and walked in His ways. He left a pattern of good leadership that instilled faithfulness among the people, which was continued by his son, Jotham. Unfortunately, this cycle would be broken by Ahaz, who was not as faithful as his father and grandfather, but was disobedient and led the people astray (2 Chronicles 26:3-4, 27:1-2, 28:1).
Thus, when Isaiah received the commission recorded in this passage, Judah was at one of its better points in history. But God let Isaiah know that this state of affairs was not to last, and that his prophetic ministry was to coincide with some dark periods as well.
The main theme that is highlighted in this passage is the contrast between the holiness of God and the sinfulness of man. The three-fold repetition of the word “Holy” is done for emphasis to accentuate how supremely holy God is (v. 3). Isaiah, becoming acutely aware of his unworthiness to stand before a holy God, laments his own sinfulness (v. 5). The angel comes to him with the burning coal and cleanses his lips (v. 6). This sacramental action is a foreshadowing of the forgiving graces that God would later make available to mankind through the New Testament sacraments.
Next, God asks who will go and be His messenger, to which Isaiah replies by volunteering to go for God (vv. 7-8). Despite his own unworthiness, he is willing to go and be God’s messenger. What follows is a prophecy that despite his best efforts, the people will harden their hearts and not listen to his message, which will ultimately lead to their ruin (Isaiah 6:9-13). Despite this, Isaiah is not deterred. He understands that his mission is not to change the people, but to proclaim God’s message without compromise.
Like Isaiah, we may feel that we are unworthy to go out and proclaim God’s message. Yet, God does not require perfection from us, but only our willingness to stand up for Him. Like the prophets and apostles of old, we will encounter stubborn resistance to the message of the Gospel. However, this should not deter us, because it is not our responsibility to compel others to believe. Instead, we pray that the Holy Spirit will soften the hearts of those who hear the Gospel message. As long as we speak the truth and not water it down or hide it from people, God will reward our faithfulness, and vindicate us on the last day.
The Day of the Lord (Feast of the Presentation)
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The book of Malachi is traditionally placed at the end of the Old Testament to signify the fact that it serves as a bridge to the New Testament. It talks about the sending of a messenger to herald the coming of the Lord. This messenger is referred to later in Malachi 4:5 as Elijah, and the Gospels tell us that this prophecy was fulfilled by the coming of John the Baptist (Matthew 11:10, Mark 1:2), who heralded the coming of the Messiah.
Malachi then speaks of the Lord suddenly coming to His Temple (vv. 1-2). The Temple was the focal point of Israel’s worship, and the site where they offered sacrifices. It is unsurprising then that in the life of Christ, the Temple features prominently in both ends of His life—both in the beginning, when He comes to the Temple for the Presentation, and towards the end, when He enters the Jerusalem Temple in preparation for his eventual Passion.
By book-ending His incarnate life with these two visits to the Temple, Jesus presents Himself as the coming Lord of Malachi’s prophecy, as well as the fulfillment of the Old Testament sacrifices. Hebrews 9-10 tells us how the sacrifices pointed forward to Christ’s sacrifice, which takes away sins once and for all.
Finally, Malachi tells us that the Day of the Lord will be like the refiner’s fire (vv. 3-4). The refining process removed impurities from gold and silver—a process which involved very intense fire. The discipline of the Lord will not be pleasant, and at times may even be downright painful, but if we willingly submit ourselves to it, we will be sanctified and perfected.
As we celebrate the Feast of the Presentation, let us rejoice that the Lord has come, and that He is at work in our lives to make us into Saints.
Hearing God’s Word (3rd Sunday in Ordinary Time)
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The book of Nehemiah details the return of the Jews from the Babylonian Exile back to the Promised Land. This was a pivotal moment in Israel’s history, as they attempted to reconstruct what had been destroyed seventy years earlier, including Jerusalem’s walls and the Temple that stood at Mt. Zion. However, they would never rebuild Jerusalem to its former glory.
Central to Nehemiah’s story was bringing knowledge of the Law to the returnees. Many of them had become accustomed to Babylonian customs, and it was necessary to re-acquaint them with the precepts of the Law so that they do not forget them.
The emphasis of Old Testament reading is on making sure that the Law was heard by as many people as possible. Everyone who could understand was to come and listen to the reading of the Law (v.2). The scribe Ezra read it from a platform (v.4), which enabled the reading to be heard by as many people as possible, and also served as a visual representation of the primacy of the Law to the life of Israel.
But it was not enough to merely hear the Law. They had to understand it as well, since they were to act upon it. Levites were stationed among the people to explain the meaning of the Law to them (v.7). This included translating the text from Hebrew to Aramaic, since Aramaic was adopted by the Jews as their spoken language.
This passage shows the importance of disseminating knowledge of Scripture among the masses. Pope Benedict XV quotes from St. Jerome, who famously said “Ignorance of the Bible means ignorance of Christ.” (Spiritus Paraclitus §63) Elsewhere, Pope Leo XIII encouraged “all the children of the Church, especially clerics, to reverence the Holy Scripture, to read it piously and meditate it constantly” (Quoted by Pope Pius XII in Divino Afflante Spiritu, §9). These quotes show the Church’s longstanding tradition of encouraging Bible reading as an act of devotion.
We should especially meditate on those Old Testament passages which point forward to Christ, such as the passage of Isaiah that is read by Jesus in our Gospel reading (Luke 4:14-21). Such passages show the seamless connection between the Old and New Testaments, and how they present the full picture of God’s salvific plan.
Finally, we should not only read Scripture, but apply it to our lives. This way, we internalize its precepts and allow it to transform as. Thus, we can say along with the Psalmist, “Your word is a lamp for my feet and a light for my path.” (Psalm 119:105)
For Zion’s Sake (2nd Sunday in Ordinary Time)
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Isaiah 60-66 addresses Israel’s post-exilic situation. As we learn from post-exilic books such as Ezra and Nehemiah, Jerusalem was left desolate after the Babylonian Exile, and even after many of the Jews returned to the land, much of the damage remained. The purpose of this passage is to comfort the people by assuring them that despite what has become of the Promised Land, God has not forsaken them, and will restore the land to its former glory. Whatever Israel received in punishment and sorrow for their sins, they will receive back in joy and blessing as a result of their repentance.
This Sunday’s Old Testament passage gives us a description of what God’s restoration will entail. The nations are said to see Zion’s righteousness (v.2). This hearkens back to the promise in Isaiah 2 that Zion will be made into the mountain from which the Law will go forth to all the nations, and they will come to the holy mountain, resulting in peace and justice. They will be crowned with glory (v. 3), and will no longer be called desolate or forsaken (vv. 4). This is meant to assure the people that they are still considered God’s covenant people, and can rest in His promise to be with them always. Finally, they are referred to as God’s bride, which is a motif used to show the intimacy with which God regards His people, and to communicate to them that He loves and protects them as a husband loves his wife (v. 5).
The marriage motif looms large in Scripture, both in the OT and Gospel readings (John 2:1-11). There is an incarnational focus in these readings. As Bergsma and Pitre explain, “The incarnation represents the ‘marriage’ of divine and human natures.”[1] Beyond this, the marriage motif is also important to salvation history. Just as Old Testament Israel is referred to as God’s bride, the New Testament Church is similarly spoken of as the bride of Christ (e.g. Ephesians 5:23ff).
This means that we can look upon the promises in Isaiah as applying to Christians today, and we can rest assured that God rejoices in us and will never forsake us, as long as we remain faithful to Him.
Note
[1] John Bergsma and Brant Pitre, A Catholic Introduction to the Bible: The Old Testament (Ignatius Press, 2018), 773.
Justice for the Nations (Baptism of the Lord)
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The reading from Isaiah is yet another of more well-known Messianic passages. Specifically, it is one of four “Servant Songs” in Isaiah, which depict a figure known as the “Servant of the Lord.” Besides this passage, the other three Servant Songs are Isaiah 49:1–13, 50:4–11, and 52:13-53:12. This Servant of the Lord is depicted in these songs to be God’s agent in bringing about justice and redemption for the world. The most significant of these Servant Songs is the last one, which is a direct prophecy of the servant’s redemptive death for the sins of the world (it is also one of the most oft-quoted prophecies in the New Testament).
The particular passage we are reading this Sunday focuses on the Servant’s role as an agent of justice and mercy. When the scripture speaks of Him not breaking a bruised reed or quenching the wick, it speaks of His mercy towards the weak and oppressed of this world. The reference to rescuing the captives refers to the spiritual captivity that is caused by sin, especially sins of injustice, which ensnare both body and soul. The reading also connects with other passages that speak of God’s law going out from Jerusalem to the ends of the earth. Through the Servant, God’s law (which is the perfect representation of justice) is progressively realized in this world, until it becomes fully established.
The Old Testament reading is directly related to two passages in the Gospels. The first is Luke 4:16-30, where Jesus reads this passage in the synagogue and declares that He is the fulfillment of that prophecy, causing everyone to marvel at Him. The other passage is our Gospel reading about the baptism of Jesus (Luke 3:15-16, 21-22, cf. Matthew 3:13-17). When the Holy Spirit comes down upon Jesus and the voice from Heaven declares “You are my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased,” this is alluding directly to the first verse of the Isaiah reading. It shows that Jesus’ baptism is also His commission to “fulfill all righteousness.”
Thus, we reflect on how Jesus, as the Servant of the Lord, will bring justice and righteousness to all the earth. We pray to see the justice envisioned in the Scriptures in our days, as we pray to God “Thy will be done on earth, as it is in Heaven.”
The Light of Israel (Feast of the Epiphany)
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This passage of Isaiah is addressed to the Jews exiled in Babylon. Here, the prophet predicts a future where the Jewish people would be gathered from all of the nations they were scattered in and brought to Zion. Then, the light of Israel would arise and give light to the nations, who would walk in that light, and give homage to Israel.
A partial fulfillment of this passage came when the King Cyrus of Persia decreed that the Jews would be allowed to return to their land and rebuild their temple. The glory of Israel would not be seen then, however. Even after the second temple was built, it lacked the glory of the first temple, where God Himself dwelt, whose presence was represented by the Ark of the Covenant. Thus, the passage would await a fuller fulfillment at the coming of Christ.
Traditionally, the passage has been interpreted as being fulfilled when the Magi came to worship the child Jesus, hence its association with the Feast of the Epiphany. We can readily see this from many details in the text. For example, the constant references to light, radiance and rising all point towards the star that shone over Bethlehem. Also, the nations are said to bring gold and frankincense to Israel (v. 6). The reference to Midian and Ephah can also be an indication that the Magi originated there. Also, the reference to kings in v. 3 has led to the interpretation that the Magi were kings. Whatever the case, it is not hard to see how the coming of the Magi would fulfill this prophecy.
This Old Testament scripture shows us how the events of the Nativity were foretold hundreds of years in advance. Today, we walk in the light of God’s glory in Christ, who is the Light of the World (John 8:12). Just as the Magi were guided by the star during Epiphany, may we also continue to be guided by His light.
