Isaiah 30:19-21,23-26
19 Yea, O people in Zion who dwell at Jerusalem; you shall weep no more. He will surely be gracious to you at the sound of your cry; when he hears it, he will answer you.20 And though the Lord give you the bread of adversity and the water of affliction, yet your Teacher will not hide himself any more, but your eyes shall see your Teacher.21 And your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, “This is the way, walk in it,” when you turn to the right or when you turn to the left.
23 And he will give rain for the seed with which you sow the ground, and grain, the produce of the ground, which will be rich and plenteous. In that day your cattle will graze in large pastures;24 and the oxen and the asses that till the ground will eat salted provender, which has been winnowed with shovel and fork.25 And upon every lofty mountain and every high hill there will be brooks running with water, in the day of the great slaughter, when the towers fall.26 Moreover the light of the moon will be as the light of the sun, and the light of the sun will be sevenfold, as the light of seven days, in the day when the LORD binds up the hurt of his people, and heals the wounds inflicted by his blow.
Matthew 9:35-38;10:1,5-8
35 And Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every disease and every infirmity.36 When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.37 Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few;38 pray therefore the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.”1 And he called to him his twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal every disease and every infirmity.
5 These twelve Jesus sent out, charging them, “Go nowhere among the Gentiles, and enter no town of the Samaritans,
6 but go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.7 And preach as you go, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’8 Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers, cast out demons. You received without paying, give without pay.
MEDITATION
ISAIAH PAINTS a futuristic picture that points to a prosperous time for the people of Israel. “Bread of adversity” harkens back to the captivity of the Hebrew people who were unable to bake leavened bread because of their long working hours, whereas the “water of affliction” points to their subsequent victorious escape from their slave masters through the Red Sea.
THE GOSPEL READING: Christ Jesus is aware of the precarious state of the Israelite people who appeared to suffer from all manner of afflictions such that they did not know how to escape from their debilitating conditions. Christ identify that Satan is at the root of the sickness of the Hebrew people whereupon He assembled the twelve Apostles and gave them authority dispel the evil spirit who hold the people captive.
Jesus lays down a systematic order of operation that starts with the assembly or gathering of the designated “lost” people.This is followed by the delivering of a ‘homilia’ or sermon to announce that the “kingdom of heaven is at hand,” which would have been taken to mean that Christ Jesus has the power over all spiritual forces. We who are harassed and in a state of helplessness are called to present ourselves to those whom Christ has authorized to compassionately exorcise evil and heal our wounds, without expectation of any recompense for their labour.
LET US PRAY:Psalms 147:1-61 Praise the LORD! For it is good to sing praises to our God; for he is gracious, and a song of praise is seemly.
2 The LORD builds up Jerusalem; he gathers the outcasts of Israel.
3 He heals the brokenhearted, and binds up their wounds.4 He determines the number of the stars, he gives to all of them their names.5 Great is our LORD, and abundant in power; his understanding is beyond measure.
6 The LORD lifts up the downtrodden, he casts the wicked to the ground.
1 Praise the LORD! For it is good to sing praises to our God; for he is gracious, and a song of praise is seemly.
2 The LORD builds up Jerusalem; he gathers the outcasts of Israel.
3 He heals the brokenhearted, and binds up their wounds.4 He determines the number of the stars, he gives to all of them their names.5 Great is our LORD, and abundant in power; his understanding is beyond measure.
6 The LORD lifts up the downtrodden, he casts the wicked to the ground.
Author. Henry R SYLVESTER
Note: The daily scripture readings are taken from the Roman Missal which the Catholic Church use in the daily Celebration of the Holy Eucharist throughout the world.Some weekly readings may differ because of the celebration of local feast days.
Morning Coffee Meditations. 