A reading from the prophet Isaiah (41:13-20)
For I, the Lord your God,
I grasp you by your right hand;
I tell you, ‘Do not be afraid, I shall be your help.’
Do not be afraid, you worm Jacob,
you insect Israel!
‘I shall be your help,’
– declares the Lord;
your redeemer is the Holy One of Israel.
Look, I am making of you a threshing-sledge,
sharp, new, equipped with teeth.
You will thresh the mountains to dust
and reduce the hills to chaff.
You will winnow them and the wind will carry them off,
the gale will scatter them;
but you will rejoice in the Lord,
will glory in the Holy One of Israel.
The oppressed and needy search for water,
and there is none,
their tongue is parched with thirst.
I the Lord will provide for them.
I the God of Israel will not abandon them.
I shall open up rivers on bare heights
and waterholes among the ravines;
I shall turn the desert into a lake
and dry ground into springs of water.
I shall place cedar trees in the desert,
acacias, myrtles and olives;
in the wastelands I shall put cypress trees,
plane trees and pine together,
so that people may see and know,
so that they may all observe and understand
that the hand of the Lord has done this,
that the Holy One of Israel has created it.
The prophet is called to announce to the exiles that God, who ‘grasps you by your right hand’ is ready to bring them back home. ‘Do not be afraid’, says the Lord, to the ‘worm’ Jacob, to the ‘insect’ Israel. These strange ways of addressing the people simply underline their helplessness when left to their own devices. God will transform them into a ‘threshing-sledge’, another unique image, but now one of strength. They will resume control of their own destiny. The second half of this passage takes up again the common themes of second Isaiah, providing for the needy, and transforming creation for the benefit of people. An extraordinary list of shrubs illustrates the generosity of God. All this is what the ‘hand of the Lord’ can do.
Psalm 145 (144) God is ‘king’, and his name is blessed. His reign lasts ‘from age to age’.
A reading from the holy gospel according to Matthew (11:11-15)
Jesus spoke to the crowds: ‘Amen I say to you, of the children born to women, none has been raised up greater than John the Baptist; yet the least in the kingdom of Heaven is greater than he. Since John the Baptist came, up to this present time, the kingdom of Heaven has been subjected to violence and the violent are taking it by storm. For all the prophets and the Law prophesied until John the Baptist; and he, if you will accept it, is Elijah who was to come. Anyone who has ears should listen!’
The gospel readings on Advent weekdays constantly refer to John the Baptist from this point. Jesus’ words about the greatness of John are qualified by reference to those in the kingdom of heaven, who, Jesus continues, are all even greater. John is the last of the long line of prophets, indeed he is ‘Elijah who was to come’, as suggested in the book of Malachi chapter 3. The figure of Elijah and his fierce commitment to the true God are a fitting model for John. The ‘violence’ needed by those who enter the kingdom may be interpreted as their single-minded commitment, for those who enter it are even more determined than John.
How committed am I to entering the kingdom of Heaven?
Striving for the kingdom should be our first priority.