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Sunday – 08 December 2013
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Verses:
Isaiah 11:1-10
Psalm 72:1-2, 7-8, 12-13, 17
Romans 15:4-9
Matthew 3:1-12
FIRST READING: A Reading from the Prophet Isaiah (Isaiah
11:1-10)
The Branch From Jesse
11 A shoot will
come up from the stump of Jesse;
from his roots a Branch will bear fruit.
2 The Spirit of the Lord will rest on him—
the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding,
the Spirit of counsel and of might,
the Spirit of the knowledge and fear of the Lord—
3 and he will delight in the fear of the Lord.
from his roots a Branch will bear fruit.
2 The Spirit of the Lord will rest on him—
the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding,
the Spirit of counsel and of might,
the Spirit of the knowledge and fear of the Lord—
3 and he will delight in the fear of the Lord.
He
will not judge by what he sees with his eyes,
or decide by what he hears with his ears;
4 but with righteousness he will judge the needy,
with justice he will give decisions for the poor of the earth.
He will strike the earth with the rod of his mouth;
with the breath of his lips he will slay the wicked.
5 Righteousness will be his belt
and faithfulness the sash around his waist.
or decide by what he hears with his ears;
4 but with righteousness he will judge the needy,
with justice he will give decisions for the poor of the earth.
He will strike the earth with the rod of his mouth;
with the breath of his lips he will slay the wicked.
5 Righteousness will be his belt
and faithfulness the sash around his waist.
6 The wolf will
live with the lamb,the leopard will lie down with the goat,
the calf and the lion and the yearling together;
and a little child will lead them.
7 The cow will feed with the bear,
their young will lie down together,
and the lion will eat straw like the ox.
8 The infant will play near the cobra’s den,
and the young child will put its hand into the viper’s nest.
9 They will neither harm nor destroy
on all my holy mountain,
for the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the Lord
as the waters cover the sea.
10 In that day the
Root of Jesse will stand as a banner for the peoples; the nations will rally to
him, and his resting place will be glorious.
RESPONSORIAL PSALM (Psalm 72:1-2, 7-8,
12-13, 17)
1 Endow the king
with your justice, O God,
the royal son with your righteousness.
2 May he judge your people in righteousness,
your afflicted ones with justice.
the royal son with your righteousness.
2 May he judge your people in righteousness,
your afflicted ones with justice.
7 In his days may
the righteous flourish
and prosperity abound till the moon is no more.
and prosperity abound till the moon is no more.
8 May he rule
from sea to sea
and from the River to the ends of the earth.
and from the River to the ends of the earth.
12 For he will
deliver the needy who cry out,
the afflicted who have no one to help.
13 He will take pity on the weak and the needy
and save the needy from death.
the afflicted who have no one to help.
13 He will take pity on the weak and the needy
and save the needy from death.
17 May his name
endure forever;
may it continue as long as the sun.
may it continue as long as the sun.
Then
all nations will be blessed through him,
and they will call him blessed.
and they will call him blessed.
SECOND READING: A Reading from the Letter of Saint Paul to
the Romans (Romans 15:4-9)
4 For everything that was written
in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in
the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope.
5 May the God who gives endurance and
encouragement give you the same attitude of mind toward each other that Christ
Jesus had, 6 so that with one mind and
one voice you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
7 Accept one another, then, just as Christ
accepted you, in order to bring praise to God. 8 For
I tell you that Christ has become a servant of the Jews on behalf of
God’s truth, so that the promises made to the patriarchs might be confirmed
9 and, moreover, that the Gentiles might
glorify God for his mercy. As it is written:
“Therefore
I will praise you among the Gentiles;
I will sing the praises of your name.”
I will sing the praises of your name.”
GOSPEL: A Reading from the Holy Gospel According to Matthew
(Matthew 3:1-12)
John the Baptist Prepares the Way
3 In those days John the Baptist
came, preaching in the wilderness of Judea 2 and saying, “Repent, for
the kingdom of heaven has come near.” 3 This
is he who was spoken of through the prophet Isaiah:
“A
voice of one calling in the wilderness,
‘Prepare the way for the Lord,
make straight paths for him.’”
‘Prepare the way for the Lord,
make straight paths for him.’”
4 John’s clothes
were made of camel’s hair, and he had a leather belt around his waist. His food
was locusts and wild honey. 5 People went out to him
from Jerusalem and all Judea and the whole region of the Jordan. 6 Confessing their sins, they were baptized by him
in the Jordan River.
7 But when he saw many of the Pharisees and
Sadducees coming to where he was baptizing, he said to them: “You brood of
vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? 8 Produce
fruit in keeping with repentance. 9 And
do not think you can say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ I tell
you that out of these stones God can raise up children for Abraham. 10 The ax is already at the root of the trees, and
every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into
the fire.
11 “I baptize you with water for
repentance. But after me comes one who is more powerful than I, whose sandals I
am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and
fire. 12 His winnowing fork is in his
hand, and he will clear his threshing floor, gathering his wheat into the barn
and burning up the chaff with unquenchable fire.”
For the Homily, you may visit: http://www.patheos.com/blogs/deaconsbench/2013/12/homily-for-december-8-2013-2nd-sunday-of-advent/
Bible
source:
New International Version (NIV)
