Reading 1-WPS Office

Reading 1
Is 40:1-11
Comfort, give comfort to my people,
says your God.
Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and proclaim to her
that her service is at an end,
her guilt is expiated;
Indeed, she has received from the hand of the LORD
double for all her sins.
A voice cries out:
In the desert prepare the way of the LORD!
Make straight in the wasteland a highway for our God!
Every valley shall be filled in,
every mountain and hill shall be made low;
The rugged land shall be made a plain,
the rough country, a broad valley.
Then the glory of the LORD shall be revealed,
and all people shall see it together;
for the mouth of the LORD has spoken.
A voice says, "Cry out!"
I answer, "What shall I cry out?"
"All flesh is grass,
and all their glory like the flower of the field.

The grass withers, the flower wilts,
when the breath of the LORD blows upon it.
So then, the people is the grass.
Though the grass withers and the flower wilts,
the word of our God stands forever."
Go up onto a high mountain,
Zion, herald of glad tidings;
Cry out at the top of your voice,
Jerusalem, herald of good news!
Fear not to cry out
and say to the cities of Judah:
Here is your God!
Here comes with power
the Lord GOD,
who rules by his strong arm;
Here is his reward with him,
his recompense before him.
Like a shepherd he feeds his flock;
in his arms he gathers the lambs,
Carrying them in his bosom,
and leading the ewes with care.
Responsorial Psalm
Ps 96:1-2, 3 and 10ac, 11-12, 13
R.(see Isaiah 40:10ab) The Lord our God comes with power.
Sing to the LORD a new song;
sing to the LORD, all you lands.
Sing to the LORD; bless his name;
announce his salvation, day after day.
R. The Lord our God comes with power.
Tell his glory among the nations;
among all peoples, his wondrous deeds.
Say among the nations: The LORD is king;
he governs the peoples with equity.
Let the heavens be glad and the earth rejoice;
let the sea and what fills it resound;
let the plains be joyful and all that is in them!
Then let all the trees of the forest rejoice.
They shall exult before the LORD, for he comes;
for he comes to rule the earth.
He shall rule the world with justice
and the peoples with his constancy.
Alleluia
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
The day of the Lord is near;
Behold, he comes to save us.
Gospel
Mt 18:12-14
Jesus said to his disciples:
"What is your opinion?
If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them goes astray,
will he not leave the ninety-nine in the hills
and go in search of the stray?
And if he finds it, amen, I say to you, he rejoices more over it
than over the ninety-nine that did not stray.
In just the same way, it is not the will of your heavenly Father
that one of these little ones be lost."
God loves each one of us. Yes, every one of us is special in His eyes. No matter how insignificant we feel
of ourselves, our creator who happens to be our Father too thinks highly of us. That is why He sent His
only begotten Son that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish but have everlasting life (John
3:16).
Indeed, Jesus left the safety and comfort of heaven to find the lost including you and me. This is the real
meaning of Christmas, the celebration of the incarnation. We celebrate because we were lost but the
King searched and found us.
December 10
Saturday of the Second Week of Advent
Lectionary: 186
Reading I
Sir 48:1-4, 9-11
In those days,
like a fire there appeared the prophet Elijah
whose words were as a flaming furnace.
Their staff of bread he shattered,
in his zeal he reduced them to straits;
By the Lord’s word he shut up the heavens
and three times brought down fire.
How awesome are you, Elijah, in your wondrous deeds!
Whose glory is equal to yours?
You were taken aloft in a whirlwind of fire,
in a chariot with fiery horses.
You were destined, it is written, in time to come
to put an end to wrath before the day of the LORD,
To turn back the hearts of fathers toward their sons,
and to re-establish the tribes of Jacob.
Blessed is he who shall have seen you
and who falls asleep in your friendship.
Responsorial Psalm
80:2ac and 3b, 15-16, 18-19
R. (4) Lord, make us turn to you; let us see your face and we shall be saved.
O shepherd of Israel, hearken,
From your throne upon the cherubim, shine forth.
Rouse your power.

R. Lord, make us turn to you; let us see your face and we shall be saved.
Once again, O LORD of hosts,
look down from heaven, and see;
Take care of this vine,
and protect what your right hand has planted
the son of man whom you yourself made strong.
May your help be with the man of your right hand,
with the son of man whom you yourself made strong.
Then we will no more withdraw from you;
give us new life, and we will call upon your name.
Alleluia
Lk 3:4, 6
Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight his paths:
All flesh shall see the salvation of God.
Gospel
Mt 17:9a, 10-13
As they were coming down from the mountain,
the disciples asked Jesus,
“Why do the scribes say that Elijah must come first?”

He said in reply, “Elijah will indeed come and restore all things;
but I tell you that Elijah has already come,
and they did not recognize him but did to him whatever they pleased.
So also will the Son of Man suffer at their hands.”
Then the disciples understood
that he was speaking to them of John the Baptist.
At times, we also do not understand what Jesus is saying to us. At times, it may be difficult for us to hear
Jesus’ voice. The busyness and noise in our lives can make us deaf to what Jesus may be saying to us.
Today may we open our ears, our minds and our hearts! May we listen attentively for Jesus’ voice. Jesus
will speak. Will we listen? Today, may we listen with the “ear of our heart.” I know people who can
easily recognize someone from their distant past. I cannot, but from personal and witnessed
experiences, know how God often elevates other related attributes. The unique value of each student
was one of the reasons why I discerned to pursue education in De La Salle Medical and Health Sciences
Institute. God wants me to be an Elijah, prophesying good tidings to all people. Are you eager to
do God’s will and are you prepared to meet the Lord Jesus when he returns in glory?
Matthew 17:9a, 10-13 – Second Week of Advent
Elijah, the prophet, is the central character in today’s first reading as well as in the Gospel. The reading
from the Book of Sirach describes Elijah as a man who was bigger than life. He would be a great
character for an adventure movie. The reading from Sirach also says that Elijah’s words “flamed like a
furnace.” What a powerful image! He also brought down fire to the earth and did many other
astonishing deeds.
Today the scribes are doing what they normally do: they were teaching in the temple. On that day they
were preaching about Elijah, the prophet, and they were predicting that one day Elijah would return to
the earth.
Jesus’ disciples did not understand this prophecy. They asked Him if Elijah would return to earth in the
future. Jesus told them that yes, Elijah would return. However, Jesus continues by saying that Elijah
already had come to the earth. However, no one recognized him. Elijah was rejected by the people!
In speaking of Elijah, Jesus is predicting His own death. He is preparing his disciples for what will come.
Jesus tells them “the Son of Man will suffer.” However, the disciples assume that Jesus is talking about
John the Baptist. As usual, Jesus’ disciples did not understand.
At times, we also do not understand what Jesus is saying to us. At times, it may be difficult for us to hear
Jesus’ voice. The busyness and noise in our lives can make us deaf to what Jesus may be saying to us.
Today may we open our ears, our minds and our hearts! May we listen attentively for Jesus’ voice! Jesus
will speak. Will we listen? Today, may we listen with the “ear of our heart.”

Reading 1-WPS Office

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Description:

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Reading 1-WPS Office

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Reading 1

Comfort, give comfort to my people,

says your God.

Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and proclaim to her

that her service is at an end,

her guilt is expiated;

Indeed, she has received from the hand of the LORD

double for all her sins.

A voice cries out:

In the desert prepare the way of the LORD!

Make straight in the wasteland a highway for our God!

Every valley shall be filled in,

every mountain and hill shall be made low;

The rugged land shall be made a plain,

the rough country, a broad valley.

Then the glory of the LORD shall be revealed,

and all people shall see it together;

for the mouth of the LORD has spoken.

A voice says, "Cry out!"

I answer, "What shall I cry out?"

"All flesh is grass,

and all their glory like the flower of the field.

when the breath of the LORD blows upon it.

So then, the people is the grass.

Though the grass withers and the flower wilts,

the word of our God stands forever."

Go up onto a high mountain,

Zion, herald of glad tidings;

Cry out at the top of your voice,

Jerusalem, herald of good news!

Fear not to cry out

and say to the cities of Judah:

Here is your God!

Here comes with power

the Lord GOD,

who rules by his strong arm;

Here is his reward with him,

his recompense before him.

Like a shepherd he feeds his flock;

in his arms he gathers the lambs,

Carrying them in his bosom,

and leading the ewes with care.

Ps 96:1-2, 3 and 10ac, 11-12, 13

sing to the LORD, all you lands.

Sing to the LORD; bless his name;

announce his salvation, day after day.

R. The Lord our God comes with power.

Tell his glory among the nations;

among all peoples, his wondrous deeds.

Say among the nations: The LORD is king;

he governs the peoples with equity.

R. The Lord our God comes with power.

Let the heavens be glad and the earth rejoice;

let the sea and what fills it resound;

let the plains be joyful and all that is in them!

Then let all the trees of the forest rejoice.

R. The Lord our God comes with power.

They shall exult before the LORD, for he comes;

for he comes to rule the earth.

He shall rule the world with justice

and the peoples with his constancy.

R. The Lord our God comes with power.

The day of the Lord is near;