Wednesday of the Twelfth Week in Ordinary Time

“Josiah” by Julius Schnorr von Carolsfeld, c. 1850's

Readings for Wednesday of the Twelfth Week in Ordinary Time [1]
 
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible [2]
 
Readings and Commentary: [3]
 
Reading 1: 2 Kings 22:8-13; 23:1-3
 
The high priest Hilkiah informed the scribe Shaphan,
“I have found the book of the law in the temple of the Lord.”
Hilkiah gave the book to Shaphan, who read it.
Then the scribe Shaphan went to the king and reported,
“Your servants have smelted down the metals available in the temple
and have consigned them to the master workmen
in the temple of the Lord.”
The scribe Shaphan also informed the king
that the priest Hilkiah had given him a book,
and then read it aloud to the king.
When the king heard the contents of the book of the law,
he tore his garments and issued this command to Hilkiah the priest,
Ahikam, son of Shaphan,
Achbor, son of Micaiah, the scribe Shaphan,
and the king’s servant Asaiah:
“Go, consult the Lord for me, for the people, for all Judah,
about the stipulations of this book that has been found,
for the anger of the Lord has been set
furiously ablaze against us,
because our fathers did not obey the stipulations of this book,
nor fulfill our written obligations.”
 
The king then had all the elders of Judah
and of Jerusalem summoned together before him.
The king went up to the temple of the Lord with all the men of Judah
and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem:
priests, prophets, and all the people, small and great.
He had the entire contents of the book of the covenant
that had been found in the temple of the Lord, read out to them.
Standing by the column, the king made a covenant before the Lord
that they would follow him
and observe his ordinances, statutes and decrees
with their whole hearts and souls,
thus reviving the terms of the covenant
which were written in this book.
And all the people stood as participants in the covenant.
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Commentary on 2 Kgs 22:8-13; 23:1-3
 
This passage chronicles the reign of King Josiah, who followed King Manasseh, who had reigned for 55 years and had done evil in the eyes of the Lord, following “abominable practices” (2 Kings 21:2ff). King Josiah had ordered the gifts of precious metals given to the temple to be melted down, and paid out to workmen who repaired the temple. During this renovation, the book of the law was rediscovered, and the people were brought back to the faith through the reaffirmation of the covenant.  The historical ebb and flow of faith in Israel continues.
 
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Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 119:33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 40
 
R. (33a) Teach me the way of your decrees, O Lord.
 
Instruct me, O LORD, in the way of your statutes,
that I may exactly observe them.
R. Teach me the way of your decrees, O Lord.
 
Give me discernment, that I may observe your law
and keep it with all my heart.
R. Teach me the way of your decrees, O Lord.
 
Lead me in the path of your commands,
for in it I delight.
R. Teach me the way of your decrees, O Lord.
 
Incline my heart to your decrees
and not to gain.
R. Teach me the way of your decrees, O Lord.
 
Turn away my eyes from seeing what is vain:
by your way give me life.
R. Teach me the way of your decrees, O Lord.
 
Behold, I long for your precepts;
in your justice give me life.
R. Teach me the way of your decrees, O Lord.
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Commentary on Ps 119:33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 40
 
The strophes selected from this very long psalm focus on the fidelity of the singer to the “ordinances, statutes and decrees” of the law, in direct reference to the communal lament offered in 2 Kings 22. Psalm 119 is an individual lament asking for God’s support in times of difficulty.
 
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Gospel: Matthew 7:15-20
 
Jesus said to his disciples:
“Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing,
but underneath are ravenous wolves.
By their fruits you will know them.
Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles?
Just so, every good tree bears good fruit,
and a rotten tree bears bad fruit.
A good tree cannot bear bad fruit,
nor can a rotten tree bear good fruit.
Every tree that does not bear good fruit will be cut down
and thrown into the fire.
 
So by their fruits you will know them.”
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Commentary on Mt 7:15-20
 
In this section of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus warns against people claiming to be God’s messengers, but whose message goes against God’s commands. Jesus uses an analogy of the fruit produced by various plants as a way to test the authenticity of those who claim to come in God’s name. He tells them that the product, or result, of the words offered by a self-proclaimed messenger will identify them. In his time, this was probably another warning about the teaching of the scribes and Pharisees, who placed self-serving demands upon the people.
 
CCC: Mt 7:15 2285; Mt 7:20 2005
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Reflection:
 
Between February 28 and April 19, 1993, a great tragedy occurred in Waco Texas at the compound of a religious group called the Branch Davidians. A charismatic leader named David Koresh was able to convince a large group of people that he was from God and was leading them to God. The fruits of his teaching tell us what he truly was. On November 18, 1978, in a place commonly known as Jonestown in Guyana, a charismatic religious leader named Jimmy Jones lead 913 men women and children to mass suicide claiming that he was leading them to God. The fruits of his teaching identified him clearly.
 
If we believe that the warning from the Lord repeated in Sacred Scripture regarding false teachers can be lightly taken because we have two thousand years of history and understanding to fortify us against those who might lead us down the wrong path, all we need to do is look at recent history. If we believe that, because we have saints who fought the battles to defeat challenges to Church teaching throughout history, we are free from those who would twist the word of God to their own purposes, then look at the present day. Look at the saga of Jose Luis De Jesus Miranda who died in 2013. He was building a financial empire based in Miami predicated upon the idea that he himself was the incarnation of God, and people believed him!
 
The words of Jesus come rushing upon us today. We are reminded that we base our hope and trust on those whose fruits are clearly seen. The Church, for all her faults, is an on-going force for good in the world. Her message of the Risen Lord, justice for the poor and love for all mankind is what we look at and see the fingerprints of God. Let us take the time to inform ourselves and inform those we love about the truth, so they too may avoid the many false prophets who come, seeming good, but whose fruits proclaim them as messengers of darkness.
 
Pax

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[1] The picture used today is “Josiah” by Julius Schnorr von Carolsfeld, c. 1850's.
[2] S.S. Commemoratio
[3] The readings are taken from the New American Bible with the exception of the Psalm and its response which were developed by the International Committee for English in Liturgy (ICEL). This republication is not authorized by USCCB and is for private use only.