Daily Catholic Mass Readings for December 24, 2020
First Reading: 2 Samuel 7.1-5, 8-12, 16
1Now it happened that, when the king had settled in his house, and the Lord had given him rest on every side from all his enemies2he said to the prophet Nathan, "Do you not see that I live in a house of cedar, and that the ark of God has been placed in the midst of tent skins?3And Nathan said to the king: "Go, do all that is in your heart. For the Lord is with you.4But it happened in that night, behold, the word of the Lord came to Nathan, saying5"Go, and say to my servant David: ‘Thus says the Lord: Should you build a house for me as a dwelling place8And now, so shall you speak to my servant David: ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts: I took you from the pastures, from following the sheep, so that you would be the leader over my people Israel9And I have been with you everywhere that you walked. And I have slain all your enemies before your face. And I have made you a great name, beside the name of the great ones who are upon the earth10And I will appoint a place for my people Israel, and I will plant them, and they shall live there, and they shall no longer be disturbed. Neither shall the sons of iniquity continue to afflict them as before11from the day when I appointed judges over my people Israel. And I will give rest to you from all your enemies. And the Lord foretells to you that the Lord himself will make a house for you12And when your days will have been fulfilled, and you will sleep with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring after you, who will go forth from your loins, and I will make firm his kingdom16And your house shall be faithful, and your kingdom shall be before your face, for eternity, and your throne shall be secure continuously.’
Psalm 89
1The understanding of Ethan the Ezrahite. I will sing the mercies of the Lord in eternity. I will announce your truth with my mouth, from generation to generation2For you have said: Mercy will be built in the heavens, unto eternity. Your truth will be prepared there3I have set up a covenant with my elect. I have sworn to David my servant4I will prepare your offspring, even in eternity. And I will build up your throne, from generation to generation5The heavens will confess your miracles, Lord, and also your truth, in the Church of the saints6For who among the clouds is equal to the Lord? Who among the sons of God is like God7God is glorified by the counsel of the saints. He is great and terrible above all those who are around him8O Lord, God of hosts, who is like you? You are powerful, Lord, and your truth is all around you9You rule over the power of the sea, and you even mitigate the movement of its waves10You have humbled the arrogant one, like one who has been wounded. You have scattered your enemies with the arm of your strength11Yours are the heavens, and yours is the earth. You founded the whole world in all its fullness12You created the north and the sea. Tabor and Hermon will exult in your name13Your arm acts with power. Let your hand be strengthened, and let your right hand be exalted14Justice and judgment are the preparation of your throne. Mercy and truth will precede your face15Blessed is the people that knows jubilation. They will walk in the light of your countenance, O Lord16and they will exult in your name all day long, and they will be exalted in your justice17For you are the glory of their virtue, and in your goodness, our horn will be exalted18For our assumption is of the Lord, and it is of our king, the holy one of Israel19Then you spoke in a vision to your holy ones, and you said: I have stationed help with the powerful one, and I have exalted the elect one from my people20I have found my servant David. I have anointed him with my holy oil21For my hand will assist him, and my arm will fortify him22The enemy will have no advantage over him, nor will the son of iniquity be positioned to harm him23And I will cut down his enemies before his face. And those who hate him, I will turn to flight24And my truth and my mercy will be with him. And his horn will be exalted in my name25And I will place his hand on the sea and his right hand on the rivers26He will invoke me: "You are my father, my God, and the support of my salvation.27And I will make him the first-born, preeminent before the kings of the earth28I will preserve my mercy for him eternally, and my covenant for him faithfully29And I will set his offspring from generation to generation, and his throne like the days of heaven30But if his sons abandon my law, and if they do not walk in my judgments31if they profane my justices, and if they do not keep my commandments32I will visit their iniquities with a rod, and their sins with a beating33But I will not scatter my mercy from him, and I will not do harm to my truth34And I will not profane my covenant, and I will not make void that which proceeds from my lips35I have sworn by my holiness one time: I will not lie to David36his offspring will remain for eternity. And his throne will be like the sun in my sight37and, like the moon, it is perfected in eternity, and it is a faithful witness in heaven38Yet, truly, you have rejected and despised, you have pushed away, my Christ39You have overthrown the covenant of your servant. You have profaned his sanctuary on earth40You have destroyed all his fences. You have made his territory dreadful41All who pass by the way have plundered him. He has become a disgrace to his neighbors42You have exalted the right hand of those who oppress him. You have brought joy to all his enemies43You have diverted the help of his sword, and you have not assisted him in battle44You have torn him away from cleansing, and you have smashed his throne down to the ground45You have reduced the days of his time. You have flooded him with confusion46How long, O Lord? Will you turn away unto the end? Will your wrath flare up like a fire47Remember what my substance is. For could you really have appointed all the sons of men in vain48Who is the man that will live, and yet not see death? Who will rescue his own soul from the hand of the underworld49O Lord, where are your mercies of antiquity, just as you swore to David in your truth50Be mindful, O Lord, of the disgrace of your servants (which I have sustained in my sinews) among many nations51With these, your enemies have reproached you, O Lord; with these, they have reproached the commutation of your Christ52Blessed is the Lord for all eternity. Amen. Amen
Gospel: Luke 1.67-79
67And his father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit. And he prophesied, saying68"Blessed is the Lord God of Israel. For he has visited and has wrought the redemption of his people69And he has raised up a horn of salvation for us, in the house of David his servant70just as he spoke by the mouth of his holy Prophets, who are from ages past71salvation from our enemies, and from the hand of all those who hate us72to accomplish mercy with our fathers, and to call to mind his holy testament73the oath, which he swore to Abraham, our father, that he would grant to us74so that, having been freed from the hand of our enemies, we may serve him without fear75in holiness and in justice before him, throughout all our days76And you, child, shall be called the prophet of the Most High. For you will go before the face of the Lord: to prepare his ways77to give knowledge of salvation to his people for the remission of their sins78through the heart of the mercy of our God, by which, descending from on high, he has visited us79to illuminate those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, and to direct our feet in the way of peace.
Sermon
In today's readings, we encounter profound reflections on God's promises and their fulfillment across the ages. The first reading from 2 Samuel recounts Nathan's prophecy to King David, where God establishes the Davidic dynasty, promising an eternal throne. This promise, given after David considered building a temple, shifts the focus from David's plans to God's greater plan—a dynasty, not a building. The Gospel from Luke presents Zechariah's song of praise, celebrating the redemption through the house of David and introducing John the Baptist's role in preparing the way for the Lord.
These readings are deeply connected, as both revolve around God's promises and their realization. The Davidic covenant in 2 Samuel finds its ultimate fulfillment in Jesus Christ, a descendant of David, as hinted in Luke. Zechariah's canticle highlights this fulfillment, emphasizing redemption and mercy, with John the Baptist paving the way for Jesus.
In our daily lives, these readings invite us to trust in God's providence. Just as David trusted God's promise for his dynasty, we too can trust in God's plan for our lives. Zechariah's song reminds us to live in holiness and justice, freed from fear, and to prepare the way for others to encounter God. The moral lesson here is one of faithfulness and hope—our trust and faithfulness contribute to God's larger plan, much like David and Zechariah. Let us embrace this hope, living with gratitude and preparing the way for others to know God's love.