Daily Catholic Mass Readings for July 23, 2025
First Reading: Exodus 16.1-5, 9-15
1They set out from Elim, and all the congregation of the people of Israel came to the wilderness of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month after they had departed from the land of Egypt.2And the whole congregation of the people of Israel grumbled against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness,3and the people of Israel said to them, "Would that we had died by the hand of the LORD in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the meat pots and ate bread to the full, for you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger."4Then the LORD said to Moses, "Behold, I am about to rain bread from heaven for you, and the people shall go out and gather a day's portion every day, that I may test them, whether they will walk in my law or not.5On the sixth day, when they prepare what they bring in, it will be twice as much as they gather daily."9Then Moses said to Aaron, "Say to the whole congregation of the people of Israel, 'Come near before the LORD, for he has heard your grumbling.'"10And as soon as Aaron spoke to the whole congregation of the people of Israel, they looked toward the wilderness, and behold, the glory of the LORD appeared in the cloud.11And the LORD said to Moses,12"I have heard the grumbling of the people of Israel. Say to them, 'At twilight you shall eat meat, and in the morning you shall be filled with bread. Then you shall know that I am the LORD your God.'"13In the evening quail came up and covered the camp, and in the morning dew lay around the camp.14And when the dew had gone up, there was on the face of the wilderness a fine, flake-like thing, fine as frost on the ground.15When the people of Israel saw it, they said to one another, "What is it?" For they did not know what it was. And Moses said to them, "It is the bread that the LORD has given you to eat.
Psalm 78
1Give ear, O my people, to my teaching; incline your ears to the words of my mouth!2I will open my mouth in a parable; I will utter dark sayings from of old,3things that we have heard and known, that our fathers have told us.4We will not hide them from their children, but tell to the coming generation the glorious deeds of the LORD, and his might, and the wonders that he has done.5He established a testimony in Jacob and appointed a law in Israel, which he commanded our fathers to teach to their children,6that the next generation might know them, the children yet unborn, and arise and tell them to their children,7so that they should set their hope in God and not forget the works of God, but keep his commandments;8and that they should not be like their fathers, a stubborn and rebellious generation, a generation whose heart was not steadfast, whose spirit was not faithful to God.9The Ephraimites, armed with the bow, turned back on the day of battle.10They did not keep God's covenant, but refused to walk according to his law.11They forgot his works and the wonders that he had shown them.12In the sight of their fathers he performed wonders in the land of Egypt, in the fields of Zoan.13He divided the sea and let them pass through it, and made the waters stand like a heap.14In the daytime he led them with a cloud, and all the night with a fiery light.15He split rocks in the wilderness and gave them drink abundantly as from the deep.16He made streams come out of the rock and caused waters to flow down like rivers.17Yet they sinned still more against him, rebelling against the Most High in the desert.18They tested God in their heart by demanding the food they craved.19They spoke against God, saying, "Can God spread a table in the wilderness?20He struck the rock so that water gushed out and streams overflowed. Can he also give bread or provide meat for his people?"21Therefore, when the LORD heard, he was full of wrath; a fire was kindled against Jacob; his anger rose against Israel,22because they did not believe in God and did not trust his saving power.23Yet he commanded the skies above and opened the doors of heaven,24and he rained down on them manna to eat and gave them the grain of heaven.25Man ate of the bread of the angels; he sent them food in abundance.26He caused the east wind to blow in the heavens, and by his power he led out the south wind;27he rained meat on them like dust, winged birds like the sand of the seas;28he let them fall in the midst of their camp, all around their dwellings.29And they ate and were well filled, for he gave them what they craved.30But before they had satisfied their craving, while the food was still in their mouths,31the anger of God rose against them, and he killed the strongest of them and laid low the young men of Israel.32In spite of all this, they still sinned; despite his wonders, they did not believe.33So he made their days vanish like a breath, and their years in terror.34When he killed them, they sought him; they repented and sought God earnestly.35They remembered that God was their rock, the Most High God their redeemer.36But they flattered him with their mouths; they lied to him with their tongues.37Their heart was not steadfast toward him; they were not faithful to his covenant.38Yet he, being compassionate, atoned for their iniquity and did not destroy them; he restrained his anger often and did not stir up all his wrath.39He remembered that they were but flesh, a wind that passes and comes not again.40How often they rebelled against him in the wilderness and grieved him in the desert!41They tested God again and again and provoked the Holy One of Israel.42They did not remember his power or the day when he redeemed them from the foe,43when he performed his signs in Egypt and his marvels in the fields of Zoan.44He turned their rivers to blood, so that they could not drink of their streams.45He sent among them swarms of flies, which devoured them, and frogs, which destroyed them.46He gave their crops to the destroying locust and the fruit of their labor to the locust.47He destroyed their vines with hail and their sycamores with frost.48He gave over their cattle to the hail and their flocks to thunderbolts.49He let loose on them his burning anger, wrath, indignation, and distress, a company of destroying angels.50He made a path for his anger; he did not spare them from death, but gave their lives over to the plague.51He struck down every firstborn in Egypt, the firstfruits of their strength in the tents of Ham.52Then he led out his people like sheep and guided them in the wilderness like a flock.53He led them in safety, so that they were not afraid, but the sea overwhelmed their enemies.54And he brought them to his holy land, to the mountain which his right hand had won.55He drove out nations before them; he apportioned them for a possession and settled the tribes of Israel in their tents.56Yet they tested and rebelled against the Most High God and did not keep his testimonies,57but turned away and acted treacherously like their fathers; they twisted like a deceitful bow.58For they provoked him to anger with their high places; they moved him to jealousy with their idols.59When God heard, he was full of wrath, and he utterly rejected Israel.60He forsook his dwelling at Shiloh, the tent where he dwelt among mankind,61and delivered his power to captivity, his glory to the hand of the foe.62He gave his people over to the sword and vented his wrath on his heritage.63Fire devoured their young men, and their young women had no marriage song.64Their priests fell by the sword, and their widows made no lamentation.65Then the Lord awoke as from sleep, like a strong man shouting because of wine.66And he put his adversaries to rout; he put them to everlasting shame.67He rejected the tent of Joseph; he did not choose the tribe of Ephraim,68but he chose the tribe of Judah, Mount Zion, which he loves.69He built his sanctuary like the high heavens, like the earth, which he has founded forever.70He chose David his servant and took him from the sheepfolds;71from following the nursing ewes he brought him to shepherd Jacob his people, Israel his inheritance.72With upright heart he shepherded them and guided them with his skillful hand.
Gospel: Matthew 13.1-9
1That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat beside the sea.2And great crowds gathered about him, so that he got into a boat and sat down. And the whole crowd stood on the beach.3And he told them many things in parables, saying: "A sower went out to sow.4And as he sowed, some seeds fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured them.5Other seeds fell on rocky ground, where they did not have much soil, and immediately they sprang up, since they had no depth of soil,6but when the sun rose they were scorched. And since they had no root, they withered away.7Other seeds fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them.8Other seeds fell on good soil and produced grain, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.9He who has ears, let him hear."
Sermon
The readings today invite us to reflect on God’s providence and our response to His Word. In the first reading from Exodus, the Israelites find themselves in the desert, murmuring against Moses and Aaron because of their hunger and frustration. They had left the abundance of Egypt but now felt abandoned. Yet, in their despair, God provides manna, a miraculous bread from heaven, to sustain them. This gift was not only physical sustenance but also a test of their trust in Him. The Israelites were to gather only what they needed each day, learning to rely on God’s daily provision rather than their own efforts.
In the Gospel, Jesus teaches the parable of the sower, which speaks to how we receive the Word of God. The seed falls on different types of soil, representing the various ways people respond to God’s message. Some hearts are hard and unresponsive, like the rocky ground; others are distracted by the cares of the world, like the thorny soil. But the good soil, fertile and open, bears abundant fruit. Jesus’ parable reminds us that our receptivity to God’s Word determines its fruitfulness in our lives.
Both readings call us to examine our relationship with God. The Israelites in the desert had to learn to trust in God’s daily provision, even when the future seemed uncertain. Similarly, Jesus invites us to cultivate hearts that are open and receptive to His Word. In our daily lives, we often face challenges and uncertainties, but these are opportunities to deepen our faith. Let us ask ourselves: Do we grumble and doubt, or do we trust in God’s providence? Do we allow the cares of the world to choke the Word in our hearts, or do we nurture it with prayer and gratitude? May we strive to be like the good soil, bearing fruit in abundance, and may we remember that God’s grace is always sufficient for us, even in the wilderness.