Daily Catholic Mass Readings for August 16, 2018
First Reading: Ezekiel 12.1-16
1The word of the LORD also came unto me, saying,2Son of man, thou dwellest in the midst of a rebellious house, which have eyes to see, and see not; they have ears to hear, and hear not: for they are a rebellious house.3Therefore, thou son of man, prepare thee stuff for removing, and remove by day in their sight; and thou shalt remove from thy place to another place in their sight: it may be they will consider, though they be a rebellious house.4Then shalt thou bring forth thy stuff by day in their sight, as stuff for removing: and thou shalt go forth at even in their sight, as they that go forth into captivity.5Dig thou through the wall in their sight, and carry out thereby.6In their sight shalt thou bear it upon thy shoulders, and carry it forth in the twilight: thou shalt cover thy face, that thou see not the ground: for I have set thee for a sign unto the house of Israel.7And I did so as I was commanded: I brought forth my stuff by day, as stuff for captivity, and in the even I digged through the wall with mine hand; I brought it forth in the twilight, and I bare it upon my shoulder in their sight.8And in the morning came the word of the LORD unto me, saying,9Son of man, hath not the house of Israel, the rebellious house, said unto thee, What doest thou?10Say thou unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; This burden concerneth the prince in Jerusalem, and all the house of Israel that are among them.11Say, I am your sign: like as I have done, so shall it be done unto them: they shall remove and go into captivity.12And the prince that is among them shall bear upon his shoulder in the twilight, and shall go forth: they shall dig through the wall to carry out thereby: he shall cover his face, that he see not the ground with his eyes.13My net also will I spread upon him, and he shall be taken in my snare: and I will bring him to Babylon to the land of the Chaldeans; yet shall he not see it, though he shall die there.14And I will scatter toward every wind all that are about him to help him, and all his bands; and I will draw out the sword after them.15And they shall know that I am the LORD, when I shall scatter them among the nations, and disperse them in the countries.16But I will leave a few men of them from the sword, from the famine, and from the pestilence; that they may declare all their abominations among the heathen whither they come; and they shall know that I am the LORD.
Psalm 78
1Give ear, O my people, to my law: incline your ears to the words of my mouth.2I will open my mouth in a parable: I will utter dark sayings of old:3Which we have heard and known, and our fathers have told us.4We will not hide them from their children, shewing to the generation to come the praises of the LORD, and his strength, and his wonderful works that he hath done.5For he established a testimony in Jacob, and appointed a law in Israel, which he commanded our fathers, that they should make them known to their children:6That the generation to come might know them, even the children which should be born; who should arise and declare them to their children:7That they might set their hope in God, and not forget the works of God, but keep his commandments:8And might not be as their fathers, a stubborn and rebellious generation; a generation that set not their heart aright, and whose spirit was not stedfast with God.9The children of Ephraim, being armed, and carrying bows, turned back in the day of battle.10They kept not the covenant of God, and refused to walk in his law;11And forgat his works, and his wonders that he had shewed them.12Marvellous things did he in the sight of their fathers, in the land of Egypt, in the field of Zoan.13He divided the sea, and caused them to pass through; and he made the waters to stand as an heap.14In the daytime also he led them with a cloud, and all the night with a light of fire.15He clave the rocks in the wilderness, and gave them drink as out of the great depths.16He brought streams also out of the rock, and caused waters to run down like rivers.17And they sinned yet more against him by provoking the most High in the wilderness.18And they tempted God in their heart by asking meat for their lust.19Yea, they spake against God; they said, Can God furnish a table in the wilderness?20Behold, he smote the rock, that the waters gushed out, and the streams overflowed; can he give bread also? can he provide flesh for his people?21Therefore the LORD heard this, and was wroth: so a fire was kindled against Jacob, and anger also came up against Israel;22Because they believed not in God, and trusted not in his salvation:23Though he had commanded the clouds from above, and opened the doors of heaven,24And had rained down manna upon them to eat, and had given them of the corn of heaven.25Man did eat angels' food: he sent them meat to the full.26He caused an east wind to blow in the heaven: and by his power he brought in the south wind.27He rained flesh also upon them as dust, and feathered fowls like as the sand of the sea:28And he let it fall in the midst of their camp, round about their habitations.29So they did eat, and were well filled: for he gave them their own desire;30They were not estranged from their lust. But while their meat was yet in their mouths,31The wrath of God came upon them, and slew the fattest of them, and smote down the chosen men of Israel.32For all this they sinned still, and believed not for his wondrous works.33Therefore their days did he consume in vanity, and their years in trouble.34When he slew them, then they sought him: and they returned and enquired early after God.35And they remembered that God was their rock, and the high God their redeemer.36Nevertheless they did flatter him with their mouth, and they lied unto him with their tongues.37For their heart was not right with him, neither were they stedfast in his covenant.38But he, being full of compassion, forgave their iniquity, and destroyed them not: yea, many a time turned he his anger away, and did not stir up all his wrath.39For he remembered that they were but flesh; a wind that passeth away, and cometh not again.40How oft did they provoke him in the wilderness, and grieve him in the desert!41Yea, they turned back and tempted God, and limited the Holy One of Israel.42They remembered not his hand, nor the day when he delivered them from the enemy.43How he had wrought his signs in Egypt, and his wonders in the field of Zoan:44And had turned their rivers into blood; and their floods, that they could not drink.45He sent divers sorts of flies among them, which devoured them; and frogs, which destroyed them.46He gave also their increase unto the caterpiller, and their labour unto the locust.47He destroyed their vines with hail, and their sycomore trees with frost.48He gave up their cattle also to the hail, and their flocks to hot thunderbolts.49He cast upon them the fierceness of his anger, wrath, and indignation, and trouble, by sending evil angels among them.50He made a way to his anger; he spared not their soul from death, but gave their life over to the pestilence;51And smote all the firstborn in Egypt; the chief of their strength in the tabernacles of Ham:52But made his own people to go forth like sheep, and guided them in the wilderness like a flock.53And he led them on safely, so that they feared not: but the sea overwhelmed their enemies.54And he brought them to the border of his sanctuary, even to this mountain, which his right hand had purchased.55He cast out the heathen also before them, and divided them an inheritance by line, and made the tribes of Israel to dwell in their tents.56Yet they tempted and provoked the most high God, and kept not his testimonies:57But turned back, and dealt unfaithfully like their fathers: they were turned aside like a deceitful bow.58For they provoked him to anger with their high places, and moved him to jealousy with their graven images.59When God heard this, he was wroth, and greatly abhorred Israel:60So that he forsook the tabernacle of Shiloh, the tent which he placed among men;61And delivered his strength into captivity, and his glory into the enemy's hand.62He gave his people over also unto the sword; and was wroth with his inheritance.63The fire consumed their young men; and their maidens were not given to marriage.64Their priests fell by the sword; and their widows made no lamentation.65Then the Lord awaked as one out of sleep, and like a mighty man that shouteth by reason of wine.66And he smote his enemies in the hinder parts: he put them to a perpetual reproach.67Moreover he refused the tabernacle of Joseph, and chose not the tribe of Ephraim:68But chose the tribe of Judah, the mount Zion which he loved.69And he built his sanctuary like high palaces, like the earth which he hath established for ever.70He chose David also his servant, and took him from the sheepfolds:71From following the ewes great with young he brought him to feed Jacob his people, and Israel his inheritance.72So he fed them according to the integrity of his heart; and guided them by the skilfulness of his hands.
Gospel: Matthew 18.21 – 19.1
21Then came Peter to him, and said, Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? till seven times?22Jesus saith unto him, I say not unto thee, Until seven times: but, Until seventy times seven.23Therefore is the kingdom of heaven likened unto a certain king, which would take account of his servants.24And when he had begun to reckon, one was brought unto him, which owed him ten thousand talents.25But forasmuch as he had not to pay, his lord commanded him to be sold, and his wife, and children, and all that he had, and payment to be made.26The servant therefore fell down, and worshipped him, saying, Lord, have patience with me, and I will pay thee all.27Then the lord of that servant was moved with compassion, and loosed him, and forgave him the debt.28But the same servant went out, and found one of his fellowservants, which owed him an hundred pence: and he laid hands on him, and took him by the throat, saying, Pay me that thou owest.29And his fellowservant fell down at his feet, and besought him, saying, Have patience with me, and I will pay thee all.30And he would not: but went and cast him into prison, till he should pay the debt.31So when his fellowservants saw what was done, they were very sorry, and came and told unto their lord all that was done.32Then his lord, after that he had called him, said unto him, O thou wicked servant, I forgave thee all that debt, because thou desiredst me:33Shouldest not thou also have had compassion on thy fellowservant, even as I had pity on thee?34And his lord was wroth, and delivered him to the tormentors, till he should pay all that was due unto him.35So likewise shall my heavenly Father do also unto you, if ye from your hearts forgive not every one his brother their trespasses.
1And it came to pass, that when Jesus had finished these sayings, he departed from Galilee, and came into the coasts of Judaea beyond Jordan;
Sermon
In today’s readings, we encounter powerful lessons about God’s mercy, human stubbornness, and the call to live as instruments of forgiveness and compassion. Ezekiel’s prophetic actions in the first reading are a stark reminder of God’s judgment on those who refuse to see and hear. By packing his bags and leaving in the dark, Ezekiel enacts the fate of Jerusalem’s leaders, who will be carried away in exile. The people of Israel, despite their physical sight and hearing, are spiritually blind and deaf to God’s warnings. Ezekiel’s actions are a call to repentance, urging the people to recognize their sins and turn back to the Lord.
In the Gospel, Jesus teaches Peter and the disciples about the boundless nature of forgiveness. When Peter asks how many times he should forgive a brother, Jesus responds with the shocking figure of seventy times seven, emphasizing that forgiveness is not limited by numbers but is an endless act of mercy. The parable of the unforgiving servant drives this point home. The servant who is forgiven a massive debt but refuses to forgive a smaller one is condemned for his hardness of heart. Jesus makes it clear that receiving God’s mercy requires us to extend that same mercy to others.
These readings challenge us to reflect on our own relationship with God’s mercy and how we treat others. Ezekiel’s prophecy reminds us that God’s patience is not endless and that we must respond to His call while there is still time. Jesus’ teaching on forgiveness calls us to let go of grudges and resentments, not because others deserve it, but because we ourselves have been forgiven so much. As we go about our daily lives, let us ask ourselves: Do we see and hear God’s presence in our lives? Are we living as instruments of His mercy and compassion? May we strive to be people of forgiveness and love, reflecting the boundless mercy of our heavenly Father.