14th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle B (나해 연중 제14주일)


1st Reading: Ezekiel 2:2-5

The Prophet’s mission
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[2] And when he spoke to me, the Spirit entered into me and set me upon my 
feet; and I heard him speaking to me. [3] And he said to me, "Son of man, I
send you to the people of Israel, to a nation of rebels, who have rebelled against
me; they and their fathers have transgressed against me to this very day. [4]
The people also are impudent and stubborn: I send you to them; and you shall
say to them, 'Thus says the Lord God.' [5] And whether they ear or refuse to
hear (for they are a rebellious house) they will know that there has been a pro-
phet among them.

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Commentary: 

2:1-3:3. The vision by the river Chebar is all about the grandeur and glory of God,
who is sovereign over all things; whereas the account given of the call of Ezekiel
tells us about the prophet and about the people of Israel, for whom the message
is meant. The prophet is described as a son of man, whom the Spirit moves, a
prophet among the people; and they are a rebellious people. The account takes
the form of an address by the Lord containing a command to pass his word on
to the people (2: 1-7) and a symbolic action in which Ezekiel eats the scroll gi-
ven to him by God (2:8-3:3).

2:1. “Son of man”: this title is used repeatedly in these opening chapters. It oc-
curs later on, too, more than ninety times; but it has special significance here,
which is the first time it is used. Because Ezekiel is living in exile in a foreign
and therefore unclean country, he cannot be given grand titles. He is an ordinary
mortal, one creature among many, on an infinitely lower level than the Lord; one
more among his people, like them an exile, a person brought low, but also some-
one who has hope in his heart. St Gregory the Great explains the title like this:
“He is brought up often into heaven and his soul rejoices at great and beautiful
mysteries which remain invisible to us. But it is fitting that he be called "son of
man" while he contemplates those hidden wonders, so that he will not forget
who he is or glory in the splendour that has been revealed to him” ("Homiliae in
Ezechielem prophetam", 1, 12, 22).

2:2. “The Spirit set me upon my feet”. In the vision of God’s glory, the word
“spirit” has three meanings. It is a natural thing -- a stormy wind, breath, spirit
(1:4; cf. 13:11). From this comes the second meaning: "spirit" is an inner,
superhuman strength which guides the actions of living creatures and cherubim,
deciding when they should move and where they should go (cf. 1:12, 20, 21).
But in the account of the call of Ezekiel, “spirit” has a third meaning: it is life-
force, reminiscent of the “breath of life” that God breathed into man at the mo-
ment of creation (cf. Gen 2:7); this meaning will be seen more clearly in the vi-
sion of the bones brought back to life (cf. 37:5, 6, 8, 10). As a life-force, every
time that the spirit affects Ezekiel, it is to ‘‘set him on his feet’’ (cf. 2:1; 3:20),
to “lift him up’’ (cf. 3:12, 14, 24), so that he is better able to hear the word of
God and to see what is happening in the temple of Jerusalem cf. 8:3; 11:1; 43:
5) or in Babylon (cf. 11:24). It is therefore an inner energy that transforms the
prophet and helps him to hear or see things that he could not if left on his own,
for he is a mere “son of man”.

2:3. Israel is a “nation of rebels” or, as it is put a little further on in the text, a “re-
bellious house” (2:8). The book defines the people of Israel in this negative way
(cf. 2:5, 6, 8; 3:9) because it sums up the sinful history of their forebears and their
own hostility towards God. Their rebelliousness involves arrogance towards God,
rejection of his commandments, and refusal to listen to what he says. It makes
them stubborn: one can even see it in their faces. Time and again Ezekiel tells
them that their sin is grave, for they have freely chosen to adopt this attitude.
They “will not listen to you”, the Lord says to Ezekiel, “for they are not willing to
listen to me” (3:7). Precisely because sin requires a free act of the will, the pro-
phet puts special emphasis on personal responsibility. Each individual will be
punished for his or her sins, not for those of their forebears (cf. 18:1 32). Be-
cause the people are so rebellious, God wants the prophet to he especially do-
cile: “Do not be rebellious” (2:8). The Lord asks him to listen carefully to the
word of God and to accept it joyfully. The gesture of eating the scroll shows
what docility requires. Even though the scroll contains “words of lamentation
and mourning and woe” (2:10), the prophet will find it “sweet as honey” when he
does what he is told.

2:4. “Thus says the Lord God”: this makes it clear that the prophet is not speak-
ing on his own behalf. It is usually termed a “messenger formula” (words a mes-
senger uses to preface his message), and occurs often in other prophetical
books, particularly Isaiah and Jeremiah. However, in Ezekiel, where it appears
almost 130 times, the name of God is reinforced (“Lord God”), to signal the infinite
majesty of the Lord who speaks with full authority. The people’s stubbornness in
rejecting God’s word is an act of rebellion, and the docility shown by the prophet
is an almost obligatory act of submission. Ezekiel never resists the voice of the
Lord, never raises any personal objection or difficulty unlike Isaiah and Jeremiah.
On the contrary, knowing that he is passing on a divine message, not inventing
one of his own, he must do this bravely, and never flag, even if the people refuse
to listen (cf. 2:6-7; 3:11). “True prophets are those who say the words that God
has spoken to them; the prophet of God is the one who delivers the words of
God to men who cannot or do not deserve to understand God himself” (St Augus-
tine, "Quaestiones in Heptateuchum", 2, 17).

2:5. “They will know that there has been a prophet among them”: a formal con-
firmation that Ezekiel is indeed a prophet. At a time when there was no king (for
he was the prisoner of Nebuchadnezzar) and no temple (for it had been profaned
and destroyed) and no social or religious institutions among the Jews, prophets
acquired increased status. The prophet was God’s only representative among
the people; he was the only one with authority to demand that they listen to his
message.


2nd Reading: 2 Corinthians 12:7-10

Visions and Revelations
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[7] And to keep me [Paul] from being too elated by the abundance of revelations,
a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan, to harass me, to keep
me from being too elated. [8] Three times I besought the Lord about this, that it
should leave me; [9] but he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my
power is made perfect in weakness." I will all the more gladly boast of my weak-
nesses, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. [10] For the sake of Christ,
then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hard- ships, persecutions, and ca-
lamities; for when I am weak, then I am strong.

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Commentary:

7-10. Displaying admirable humility, St Paul now refers to the weakness God al-
lowed him to experience to ensure his supernatural gifts did not make him proud.
It is impossible to say what exactly the "thorn in his flesh" was. Some Fathers--
St Augustine, for example--and modern commentators think that it was some
particularly painful and humiliating physical ailment, possibly the same one as
he refers to in Galatians 4:13f, where he also speaks in general terms. Others,
like St John Chrysostom, are of the view that he is referring to the pain which
continual persecution caused him. Others--from St Gregory the Great onwards
--opt for an ascetical interpretation; they say he is referring to temptations to do
with conscience; but the supporters of the two other theses argue, for example,
that it is unlikely that St Paul would have mentioned anything of that kind, be-
cause it could have given his enemies ammunition for further attacks.

St Paul asked God to take this "thorn" away, but the heavenly answer he re-
ceived is very revealing: God's grace is enough to enable him to cope with this
difficulty--which serves to reveal God's power. And so it is that he boasts of and
is content with his weaknesses and the persecution he suffers: in these circum-
stances he is stronger than ever, thanks to God's supernatural help.

When commenting on this passage, St Thomas explains that God sometimes
permits certain kinds of evil in order to draw out greater good: for example, in or-
der to protect people from pride--the root of all vices -- he sometimes allows his
chosen ones to be humiliated by an illness, or a defect, or even by mortal sin, in
order that "the person who is humbled in this way might recognize that he cannot
stand firm by his own efforts alone. Hence it is said in Romans 8:28, 'We know
that in everything God works for good with those who love him'--not of course that
God seeks the sin but [the sinner's] turning to him" ("Commentary on 2 Cor, ad
loc.").

7. "A messenger of Satan", an angel of Satan: this is how he describes the hu-
miliating "thorn". This suggests that the disability could have been seen as an
obstacle to his work of evangelization--which the devil, logically, would have
been keen to frustrate (cf. 2:11; 11:14f).

8-10. Christians can learn a great deal about the ascetical struggle from these
words. They remind us, on the one hand, of the need to ask the Lord to help us
when we experience difficulties, and at the same time to be full of trust and to
abandon ourselves to God, who knows what is best for us. "The Lord is good",
St Jerome teaches, "because he often does not give us what we desire, in order
to give us something we would prefer" ("Epist. ad Paulinum").

The passage also shows us what attitude we should take to our own weakness:
"We have to glory", St Alphonsus says, "in the knowledge of our own weakness
in order to acquire the strength of Jesus Christ, which is holy humility", without
"giving in to lack of confidence, as the devil wants, and falling into more serious
sins" ("Treasury of Preaching Material", II, 6).

At the same time this passage teaches us that awareness of our personal short-
comings should lead us to put all our trust in God: "We have to cry out cease-
lessly with a strong and humble faith, 'Lord, put not your trust in me. But I, I put
my trust in you. ' Then, as we sense in our hearts the love, the compassion, the
tenderness of Christ's gaze upon us (for he never abandons us) we shall come
to understand the full meaning of those words of St Paul, "virtus in infirmitate
perficitur" (2 Cor 12:9). If we have faith in our Lord, in spite of our failings -- or
rather, with our failings--we shall be faithful to our Father, God; his divine power
will shine forth in us, sustaining us in our weakness" (St. J. Escriva, "Friends
of God", 194).
　

Gospel Reading: Mark 6:1-6

No Prophet Is Honored In His Own Country
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[1] He (Jesus) went away from there and came to His own country; and His
disciples followed Him. [2] And on the Sabbath He began to teach in the syna-
gogue; and many who heard Him were astonished saying, "Where did this man
get all this? What is the wisdom given to Him? What mighty works are wrought
by His hands! [3] Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary and brother of James
and Joses and Judah and Simon, and are not His sisters here with us?" And
they took offense at Him. [4] And Jesus said to them, "A prophet is not without
honor, except in his own country, and among his own kin, and in his own house."
[5] And He could do no mighty work there, except that He laid His hands upon
a few sick people and healed them. [6] And He marvelled because of their un-
belief.

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Commentary:

1-3. Jesus is here described by His occupation and by the fact that He is the
son of Mary. Does this indicate that St. Joseph is dead already? We do not
know, but it is likely. In any event, the description is worth underlining: in the
Gospels of St. Matthew and St. Luke we are told of the virginal conception of
Jesus. St. Mark's Gospel does not deal with our Lord's infancy, but there may
be an allusion here to His virginal conception and birth, in His being described
as "the son of Mary."

"Joseph, caring for the Child as he had been commanded, made Jesus a crafts-
man, transmitting his own professional skill to him. So the neighbors of Naza-
reth will call Jesus both "faber" and "fabri filius": the craftsman and the son of
the craftsman" (St. J. Escriva, "Christ Is Passing By", 55). This message of
the Gospel reminds us that our vocation to work is not marginal to God's plans.

"The truth that by means of work man participates in the activity of God Himself,
his Creator, was 'given particular prominence by Jesus Christ'--the Jesus at
whom many of His first listeners in Nazareth 'were astonished, saying, "Where
did this man get all this? What is the wisdom given to Him?... Is not this the
carpenter?'" (Mark 6:23). For Jesus not only proclaimed but first and foremost
fulfilled by His deeds the 'Gospel', the word of eternal Wisdom, that had been
entrusted to Him. Therefore this was also 'the gospel of work', because 'He
who proclaimed it was Himself a man of work', a craftsman like Joseph of Naza-
reth (cf. Matthew 13:55). And if we do not find in His words a special command
to work--but rather on one occasion a prohibition against too much anxiety about
work and life--(Matthew 6:25-34)--at the same time the eloquence of the life of
Christ is unequivocal: He belongs to the `working world', He has appreciation
and respect for human work. It can indeed be said the 'He looks with love upon
human work' and the different forms that it takes, seeing in each one of these
forms a particular facet of man's likeness with God, the Creator and Father"
(John Paul II, "Laborem Exercens", 26).

St. Mark mentions by name a number of brothers of Jesus, and refers in general
to His sisters. But the word "brother" does not necessarily mean son of the
same parents. It can also indicate other degrees of relationship--cousins, ne-
phews, etc. Thus in Genesis 13:8 and 14:14 and 16 Lot is called the brother of
Abraham (translated as "kinsman" in RSV), whereas we know that he was Abra-
ham's nephew, the son of Abraham's brother Haran. The same is true of Laban,
who is called the brother of Jacob (Genesis 29:15) although he was his mother's
brother (Genesis 29:15); there are other instances: cf. 1 Chronicles 23:21-22,
etc. This confusion is due to the poverty of Hebrew and Aramaic language: in the
absence of distinct terms, the same word, brother, is used to designate different
degrees of relationship.

성 마르코(St. Mark)는 이름으로써 몇 명의 예수님의 형제들을 말하며, 그리고 일반적으로 
당신의 자매들에 대하여 언급합니다. 그러나 "형제"라는 단어는 같은 부모들의 아들임을 
반드시 뜻하는 것은 아닙니다. 이 단어는, 사촌들, 조카들 등의 관계의 다른 정도들을 
또한 가리킵니다. 그러므로 창세기 13,8과 14,14 및 16에서 롯(Lot)은 (RSV에서 
"kinsman"으로 번역이 된) 아브라함(Abraham)의 형제로 불리나, 이와는 달리 우리는 
그가, 아브라함의 형제인 하란(Haran)의 아들인, 아브라함의 조카였음을 알고 있습니다. 
야곱(Jacob)의 형제로 불리는(창세기 29,15) 라반(Laban)의 경우에 있어서도, 
비록 그가 자신의 어머니의 형제였으나(창세기 29,15), 마찬가지이며, 그리고 다음과 
같은 다른 경우들도 있습니다: 1역대기 23,21-22 등을 참조하라. 이러한 혼란은
다음과 같은 히브리어와 아람어의 결여(poverty) 때문입니다: 별개의 용어들이 없어서, 
형제(brother)라는 꼭 같은 단어가 관계(relationship)의 다른 정도들을 나타내는 데에 
사용되어집니다.

From other Gospel passages we know that James and Joses, who are mentioned
here, were sons of Mary of Clophas (John 19:25). We know less about Judas and
Simon: it seems that they are the Apostles Simon the Cananaean (Matthew 10:4)
and Judas the son of James (Luke 6:16), the author of the Catholic Epistle, in
which he describes himself as "brother" of James. In any event, although James,
Simon and Judas are referred to as brothers of Jesus, it is nowhere said they were
"sons of Mary"--which would have been the natural thing if they had been our Lord's
brothers in the strict sense. Jesus always appears as an only son: to the people
of Nazareth, He is "the son of Mary" (Matthew 13:55). When He was dying Jesus
entrusted His mother to St. John (cf. John 19:26-27), which shows that Mary had
no other children. To this is added the constant belief of the Church, which regards
Mary as the ever-virgin: "a perfect virgin before, while, and forever after she gave
birth" (Paul IV, "Cum Quorumdam").

다른 복음서의 구절들로부터 우리는 여기서 언급되고 있는 야고보(James)와 요세(Joses)가 
클로파스의 [아내인] 마리아(Mary of Clophas)의 아들들(요한 복음서 19,25)이었음을 
알고 있습니다. 우리는 유다(Judas)와 시몬(Simon)에 관하여서는 다음과 같이 더 적게 
알고 있습니다: 그들은 가나안 사람인 시몬(Simon the Cananaean)(마태오 복음서 10,4)과, 
거기서 자신을 야고보의 "형제"로 그가 설명하는, 가톨릭 서간(Catholic Epistle)
[즉 유다 서간]의 저자인 야고보의 아들인 유다(the son of James) (루카 복음서 6,16)인 
사도(the Apostles)들인 것 같습니다. 아무튼, 비록 야고보, 시몬 그리고 유다가 예수님의 
형제들로 언급되고 있으나, 그들이 "마리아의 아들들"이었다고 어디에서도 말해지지 
않고 있는데, 그렇게 불리는 것은, 만약에 그들이 엄격한 의미에 있어 우리의 주님의 
형제들이었더라면, 자연스러운 일이었을 것입니다. 예수님께서는 다음과 같이 하나뿐인 
아들(the only son)로서 항상 등장하십니다(appears): 나자렛 사람들에게, 당신께서는 
"마리아의 아들"이십니다(마태오 복음서 13,55). 예수님께서는 당신께서 죽으실 때에 
당신의 어머니를 성 요한(St. John)에게 맡기셨는데(요한 복음서 19,26-27을 참조하라), 
이것은 마리아가 다른 자녀들을 전혀 가지지 않았음을 보여줍니다. 여기에다 교회의 
지속적인 믿음이 보태어지는데, 이 믿음은 마리아를, "그녀가 출산을 하기 전, 
출산하였음에도 불구하고, 그리고 출산 이후에도 영원히 완전한 동정녀"[바오로 4세 
교황(Paul IV), "Cum Quorumdam"]인, 평생 동정녀(the ever-virgin)로 여깁니다.

5-6. Jesus worked no miracles here: not because He was unable to do so, but as
punishment for the unbelief of the townspeople. God wants man to use the grace
offered him, so that, by cooperating with grace, he become disposed to receive
further graces. As St. Augustine neatly puts it, "He who made you without your
own self, will not justify you without yourself" ("Sermon" 169).
　

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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.


[참고: 이 파일은 저서명 "가톨릭 교회의 말씀 전례에 따른 성경공부 해설서"(엮은이: 소순태, 
출판사: 가톨릭출판사)의 각주의 연장으로 마련되었습니다. 그리고 우리말 번역에 대한 
저작권은 엮은이에게 있으며, 본문 중의 우리말 번역문들을 복사하여 가져가는 것을
허락하지 않습니다.]