Solemnity of Christ the King - Cycle B
1st Reading: Daniel 7:13-14
Daniel's Vision (Continuation)
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[9] As I looked, thrones were placed and one that was ancient of days took his
seat; his raiment was white as snow, and the hair of his head like pure wool; his
throne was fiery flames, its wheels were burning fire. [10] A stream of fire issued
and came forth from before him; a thousand thousands served him, and ten thou-
sand times ten thousand stood before him; the court sat in judgment, and the
books were opened.
[13] I saw in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven there came
one like a son of man, and he came to the Ancient of Days and was presented
before him. [14] And to him was given dominion and glory and kingdom, that all
peoples, nations, and languages should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting
dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom one that shall not be des-
troyed.
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Commentary:
7:9-14. Divine judgment is passed on the kingdoms in this scene. God is depicted
as being seated on a throne in heaven, his glory flashing out and angels all around.
Judgment is about to take place, and it will be followed by execution of the sen-
tence. The books (v. 10) contain all the actions of men (cf. Jer 17:1; Mal 3:16; Ps
56:8; Rev 20:12). The seer is shown history past (not laid out according to chrono-
logy: all the empires are included in one glance), and he notes that a more severe
sentence is passed on the blasphemous horn than on the other beasts. They had
their lives extended (v. 12), that is, their deprivation of power did not spell the end;
but the little horn is destroyed forthwith. "Following in the steps of the prophets and
John the Baptist, Jesus announced the judgment of the Last Day in his preaching
(cf. Dan 7:10; Joel 3-4; Mal 3:19; Mt 3:7-42)" ("Catechism of the Catholic Church",
678).
The one "like a son of man" who comes with the clouds of heaven and who, after
the judgment, is given everlasting dominion over all the earth, is the very antithe-
sis of the beasts. He has not risen from a turbulent sea like them; there is nothing
ferocious about him. Rather, he has been raised up by God (he comes with the
clouds of heaven) and he shares the human condition. The dignity of all mankind
is restored through this son of man's triumph over the beasts. This figure, as we
will discover later, stands for 'the people of the saints of the Most High' (7:27), that
is, faithful Israel. However, he is also an individual (just as the winged lion was an
individual, and the little horn), and insofar as he is given a kingdom, he is a king.
What we have here is an individual who represents the people. In Jewish circles
around the time of Christ, this "son of man" was interpreted as being the Messiah,
a real person (cf. "Book of the Parables of Enoch"); but it was a title that became
linked to the sufferings of the Messiah and to his resurrection from the dead only
when Jesus Christ applied it to himself in the Gospel. "Jesus accepted Peter's
profession of faith, which acknowledged him to be the Messiah, by announcing
the imminent Passion of the Son of Man (cf. Mt 16:23). He unveiled the authentic
content of his messianic kingship both in the transcendent identity of the Son of
Man 'who came down from heaven' (Jn 3:13; cf. Jn 6:62; Dan 7:13), and in his
redemptive mission as the suffering Servant: 'The Son of Man came not to be
served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many' (Mt 20:28; cf. Is
53:10-12)" ("Catechism of the Catholic Church", 440).
When the Church proclaims in the Creed that Christ is seated at the right hand
of the Father, she is saying that it was to Christ that dominion was given; "Being
seated at the Father's right hand signifies the inauguration of the Messiah's king-
dom, the fulfillment of the prophet Daniel's vision concerning the Son of man; 'To
him was given domination and glory and kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and
languages should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall
not pass away, and his kingdom one that shall not be destroyed' (Dan 7:14). After
this event the apostles became witnesses of the 'kingdom [that] will have no end'
(Nicene Creed)" ("Catechism of the Catholic Church", 664).
2nd Reading: Revelation 1:5-8
Address and Greeting
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[5] And from Jesus Christ the faithful witness, the first-born of the dead, and the
ruler of kings on earth.
To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood [6] and made
us a kingdom, priests to his God and Father, to him be glory and dominion for
ever and ever. Amen. [7] Behold, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye
will see him, every one who pierced him; and all tribes of the earth will wail on
account of him. Even so. Amen.
[8] "I am the Alpha and the Omega," says the Lord God, who is and who was
and who is to come, the Almighty."
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Commentary:
5-6. Three messianic titles taken from Psalm 89:28-38 are given a new meaning
in the light of fulfillment of Christian faith and applied to Jesus Christ. He is "the
faithful witness" of the fulfillment of God's Old Testament promises of a Savior,
a son of David (cf. 2 Sam 7:14; Rev 5:5;), for it is Christ who has in fact brought
about salvation. That is why, later on in the book, St John calls Jesus Christ "the
Amen" (Rev 3:4) -- which is like saying that through what Christ did God has rati-
fied and kept his word; St John also calls him "Faithful and True" (Rev 19;11),
because God's fidelity and the truth of his promises have been manifested in
Jesus. This is to be seen in the Resurrection, which made Jesus "the first-born
from the dead", in the sense that the Resurrection constituted a victory in which
all who abide in him share (cf. Col 1:18). Christ is also "the ruler of kings on
earth" because he is Lord of the world: this will be clearly seen when he comes
a second time, but his dominion is already making itself felt because he has be-
gun to conquer the power of sin and death.
The second part of v. 5 and all v. 6 are a kind of paean in praise of Christ recalling
his great love for us as expressed in his words, "Greater love has no man than
this, that a man lay down his life for his friends" (Jn 15:13). Christ's love for us
knows no bounds: his generosity led him to sacrifice his life by the shedding of
his blood, which redeemed us from our sins. There was nothing we could have
done to redeem ourselves. "All were held captive by the devil", St Augustine com-
ments, "and were in the thrall of demons; but they have been rescued from that
captivity. The Redeemer came and paid the ransom: he shed his blood and with
it purchased the entire orb of the earth" ("Enarrationes in Psalmos", 95, 5).
Not content with setting us free from our sins, our Lord gave us a share in his
kingship and priesthood. "Christ the Lord, high priest taken from among men (cf.
Heb 5:1-5), made the new people 'a kingdom of priests to his God and Father'
(Rev 1:6; cf. 5:9-10). The baptized, by regeneration and the anointing of the Holy
Spirit, are consecrated to be a spiritual house and a holy priesthood, that through
all the works of Christian men and women they may offer spiritual sacrifices and
proclaim the perfection of him who has called them out of darkness into his mar-
velous light (cf. 1 Pet 2:4-10)" (Vatican II, "Lumen Gentium", 10).
7. Christ's work is not finished. He has assembled his holy people on earth to
bring them enduring salvation, and he will be revealed in all his glory to the whole
world at the end of time. Although the text speaks in the present tense--"he is
coming with the clouds"--this should be understood as referring to the future: the
prophet was seeing future events as if they were actually happening (cf. Dan 7:13).
This will be the day of final victory, when those who crucified Jesus, "every one
who pierced him" (cf. Zech 12:10; Jn 19:37), will be astonished by the grandeur
and glory of the crucified One. "The Sacred Scriptures inform us that there are
two comings of the Son of God--one when he assumed human flesh for our salva-
tion in the womb of a virgin; the other when he shall come at the end of the world
to judge all mankind [...]; and if, from the beginning of the world that day of the
Lord, on which he was clothed with our flesh, was sighed for by all as the founda-
tion of their hope of deliverance; so also, after the death and ascension of the Son
of God, we should make that other day of the Lord the object of our most earnest
desires, 'awaiting our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God'
(Titus 2:13)" ("St Pius V Catechism", I, 8, 2).
Commenting on this passage of the Apocalypse, St Bede says: "He who at his
first coming came in a hidden way and in order to be judged (by men) will then
come in a manifest way. (John) recalls these truths in order to help the Church
bear its suffering: now it is being persecuted by its enemies, later it will reign at
Christ's side" ("Explanatio Apocalypsis", 1, 1).
The joy of those who put their hope in this glorious manifestation of Christ will
contrast with the pains of those who reject God's love and mercy to the very end.
"Then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of man
coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory" (Mt 24:30).
8. The coming of the Lord in glory, the climax of his dominion, is guaranteed by
the power of God, the absolute master of the world and its destiny. Alpha and
Omega are the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet; here they are used
to proclaim that God is the beginning and end of all things, of the world and of
history; he is present at all times -- times past, present and future.
Gospel Reading: John 18:33b-37
The Trial before Pilate: Jesus is King (Continuation)
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[33] Pilate entered the praetorium again and called Jesus, and said to him,
"Are you the King of the Jews?" [34] Jesus answered, "Do you say this of your
own accord, or did others say it to you about me?" [35] Pilate answered, "Am I
a Jew? Your own nation and the chief priests have handed you over to me; what
have you done?" [36] Jesus answered, "My kingship is not of this world; if my
kingship were of this world, my servants would fight, that I might not be handed
over to the Jews; but my kingship is not from the world." [37] Pilate said to him,
"So you are a king?" Jesus answered, "You say that I am a king. For this I was
born, and for this I have come into the world, to bear witness the truth. Every
one who is of the truth hears my voice."
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Commentary
33-34. There is no onus on Pilate to interfere in religious questions, but because
the accusation levelled against Jesus had to do with politics and public order, he
begins his interrogation naturally by examining him on the main charge: "Are you
the King of the Jews?"
By replying with another question, Jesus is not refusing to answer: he wishes to
make quite clear, as he has always done, that his mission is a spiritual one. And
really Pilate's was not an easy question to answer, because, to a Gentile, a king
of the Jews meant simply a subverter of the Empire; whereas, to a Jewish natio-
nalist, the King-Messiah was a politico-religious liberator who would obtain their
freedom from Rome. The true character of Christ's messiahship completely tran-
scends both these concepts--as Jesus explains to the procurator, although he
realizes how enormously difficult it is for Pilate to understand what Christ's King-
ship really involves.
35-36. After the miracle of the multiplication of the loaves and the fish, Jesus re-
fused to be proclaimed king because the people were thinking in terms of an ear-
thly kingdom (cf. Jn 6:15). However, Jesus did enter Jerusalem in triumph, and
he did accept acclamation as King-Messiah. Now, in the passion, he acknowled-
ges before Pilate that he is truly a King, making it clear that his kingship is not
an earthly one. Thus, "those who expected the Messiah to have visible temporal
power were mistaken. 'The kingdom of God does not mean food and drink but
righteousess and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit' (Rom 14:17). Truth and justice,
peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. That is the kingdom of Christ: the divine activity
which saves men and which will reach its culmination when history ends and the
Lord comes from the heights of paradise finally to judge men" (St. J. Escriva,
"Christ is Passing By", 180).
37. This is what his kingship really is: his kingdom is "the kingdom of Truth and
Life, the kingdom of Holiness and Grace, the kingdom of Justice, Love and
Peace" (Preface of the Mass of Christ the King). Christ reigns over those who
accept and practise the truth revealed by him--his Father's love for the world (Jn
3:16; 1 Jn 4:9). He became man to make this truth known and to enable men to
accept it. And so, those who recognize Christ's kingship and sovereignty accept
his authority, and he thus reigns over them in an eternal and universal kingdom.
For its part, "the Church, looking to Christ who bears witness to the truth, must
always and everywhere ask herself, and in a certain sense also contemporary
'world', how to make good emerge from man, how to liberate the dynamism of
the good that is in man, in order that it may be stronger than evil, than any mo-
ral, social or other evil" (John Paul II, "General Audience", February 1979).
"If we [Christians] are trying to have Christ as our king we must be consistent.
We must start by giving him our heart. Not to do that and still talk about the king-
dom of Christ would be completely hollow. There would be no real Christian sub-
stance in our behavior. We would be making an outward show of a faith which
simply did not exist We would be misusing God's name to human advantage.
[...] If we let Christ reign in our soul, we will not become authoritarian. Rather we
will serve everyone. How l like that word: service! To serve my king and, through
him, all those who have been redeemed by his blood. I really wish we Christians
knew how to serve, for only by serving can we know and love Christ and make
him known and loved" (St. J. Escriva, "Christ is Passing By", 181-182).
By his death and resurrection, Jesus shows that the accusations laid against
him were based on lies: it was he who was telling the truth, not his judges and
accusers, and God confirms the truth of Jesus--the truth of his words, of deeds,
of his revelation--by the singular miracle of his resurrection. To men Christ's king-
ship may seem paradoxical: he dies, yet he lives for ever; he is defeated and is
crucified, yet he is victorious. "When Jesus Christ him appeared as a prisoner
before Pilate's tribunal and was interrogated by him...did he not answer: 'For this
I was born, and for this I have come into the world, to bear witness to the truth'?
It was as if with these words [...] he was once more confirming what he had said
earlier: 'You will know the truth, and truth will make you free'. In the course of so
many centuries, of so many generations, from the time of the Apostles on, is it
not often Jesus Christ himself that has made an appearance at the side of peo-
ple judged for the sake of truth? And has he not gone to death with people con-
demned for the sake of truth? Does he ever cease to be the continuous spokes-
man and advocate for person who lives 'in spirit and truth'? (cf. Jn 4:23). Just as
he does not cease to be it before the Father, he is it also with regard to the his-
tory of man" (J Paul II,"Redemptor Hominis", 12).
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Source: "The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries". Biblical text from the
Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries by members of
the Faculty of Theology, University of Navarre, Spain.
Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and
by Scepter Publishers in the United States. We encourage readers to purchase
The Navarre Bible for personal study. See Scepter Publishers for details.
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