Wednesday

18th Week of Ordinary Time
　

(I) 1st Reading: Numbers 13:1-2, 25-14:1, 26a-29a, 34-35

Reconnoitring the promised land
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[1] The Lord said to Moses [in the desert of Paran,] [2] "Send men to spy out
the land of Canaan, which I give to the people of Israel; from each tribe of their
fathers shall you send a man, everyone a leader among them."

The spies return
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[25] At the end of forty days they returned from spying out the land. [26] And
they came to Moses and Aaron and to all the congregation of the people of Is-
rael in the wilderness of Paran, at Kadesh; they brought back word to them and
to all the congregation, and showed them the fruit of the land. [27] And they told
him, "We came to the land to which you sent us; it flows with milk and honey,
and this is the fruit. [28] Yet the people who dwell in the land are strong, and the
cities are fortified and very large; and besides, we saw the descendants of Anak
there; [29] The Amalekites dwell in the land of Negeb; the Hittites, the Jebusites,
and the Amorites dwell in the hill country; and the Canaanites dwell by the sea,
and along the Jordan."

[30] But Caleb quieted the people before Moses, and said, "Let us go up at once,
and occupy it; for we are well able to overcome it." [31] Then the men who had
gone up with him said, "We are not able to go up against the people; for they are
stronger than we." [32] So they brought to the people of Israel an evil report of
the land which they had spied out, saying, "The land, through which we have 
gone, to spy it out, is a land that devours its inhabitants; and all the people that
we saw in it are men of great stature. [33] And there we saw the Nephilim (the
sons of Anak, who came from the Nephilim); and we seemed to ourselves like
grasshoppers, and so we seemed to them."

The rebellion of Israel
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[1] Then all the congregation raised a loud cry; and the people wept that night.

God’s new reply
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[26] And the Lord said to Moses and to Aaron, [27] "How long shall this wicked
congregation murmur against me? I have heard the murmurings of the people of
Israel, which they murmur against me. [28] Say to them, 'As I live,’ says the
Lord, 'what you have said in my hearing I will do to you: [29] your dead bodies
shall fall in this wilderness; [34] According to the number of the days in which
you spied out the land, forty days, for every day a year, you shall bear your in-
iquity, forty years, and you shall know my displeasure.’ [35] I, the Lord, have
spoken; surely this will I do to all this wicked congregation that are gathered to-
gether against me: in this wilderness they shall come to a full end, and there
they shall die."

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Commentary: 

13:1-14:45. The general background of the people’s rebelliousness, and God’s
forgiveness (chapters 13 and 14) helps to explain why the Israelites did not enter
the promised land immediately from Kadesh, but had to make a detour and enter
via Transjordan. The cause for this detour was, basically, their faltering obedi-
ence to the Lord, their disdain for the promised land and their nostalgia for Egypt.
In the account given here we find memories that go back to the earliest times,
such as, for example, the leadership shown by Caleb (from the tribe of Judah), a
reconnoitering of the Land which does not extend beyond the zone of Hebron, 
and a failed attempt to enter it via the Negeb (cf. 14:39-45).

13:27-29. The spies’ report confirms all God promised about the Land (cf. Ex 3:
9). In stressing the strength of the peoples who live there, God’s own strength is
being highlighted, as also his love for his people, because he will be the one who
uproots the present occupiers (cf. Deut 7;1); and, besides, it gives the back-
ground to the protests the text goes on to describe.

The descendents of Anak (v. 28) are the giants who, according to the Israelite tra-
dition, occupy the southern part of Canaan; an explanation of their origin is given
in Genesis 6:1-4.

The Amalekites were a semi-nomadic people who moved to the south of the Ne-
geb; the Israelites fought with them more than once (cf. Ex 17:8-6). The Hittites
had ruled a huge empire in the 14th century BC, and the Amorites occupied the
Tigris and Euphrates valleys. The Jebusites were earlier occupiers of Jerusalem.
The description given of where each of these people lived in the Land is a very
sketchy one.

13:30-33. There are two opposed attitudes here – that of Caleb, who is influenced
by faith, and that of the other scouts who, when they came up against obstacles
fail to count on God and in fact question the value of the gift God has promised,
the gift of the Land. This last point is what provokes their open rebellion against
God and Moses.

It is often easy to see the obstacles to any human or supernatural project. The
way to deal with these difficulties is not to close one’s eyes but to fight bravely 
and faithfully to overcome them. The Israelites were filled with fear at the pros-
pect of having to conquer the Land (because their enemies were so powerful);
so frightened were they that some came to reject and disparage the Land itself.
Something similar happens to a Christian when fearfulness makes him go into
reverse in his efforts to attain perfection. "I know that the moment we talk about
fighting we recall our weakness and we foresee falls and mistakes. God takes
this into account. As we walk along, it is inevitable that we will raise dust; we
are creatures and full of defects. I would almost say that we will always need
defects. They are the shadow which shows up the light of God’s grace and our
resolve to respond to God’s kindness. And this chiaroscuro will make us human,
humble, understanding and generous" (St. Josemaria Escriva, Christ is Passing
By, 76).

14:1-25. The rebellion reaches its climax; the people want to replace Moses with
someone else, return to Egypt and stone those who encourage trust in God. We
see Aaron backing up Moses, and Joshua sharing Caleb’s enthusiasm (vv. 5-6).
However, it will be the glory and might of God that sorts things out: he threatens
punishment and (the most terrible thing of all) to disinherit the people: he is ready
to create a new people, starting with Moses (vv. 11-12). But once more Moses
pleads on the people’s behalf; this time he uses the strongest argument he can
find – the very reputation of Yahweh among the nations, and his gracious and
merciful nature (according to his own description: (cf. Ex 34:6-7). And God in 
fact does forgive his people yet another time; he does not destroy them; but he
has to act in a just way, distinguishing between those who put their trust in him
(like Caleb) and those who rebelled against him as many as "ten times" (v. 22),
that is, totally and deliberately.

14:26-38. Once again the text mentions God’s reaction to the people’s com-
plaints and low spirits, and we are told about the punishment, which takes into
account the census held previously: except for Caleb and Joshua, no one over
twenty will escape the wrath of God. The forty years’ pilgrimage in the desert is
going to start now, and it corresponds to the forty days it took them to spy out
the Land: so it is a severe punishment and it is at the same time proportionate
to the crime. The first to receive this punishment were those who, although they
had the good fortune to actually see the Land, undermined the morale of the
others and instigated their protest – that is, those who, although they in some
way experienced the gift of God, failed to appreciate it out of cowardice and even
discredited it to the others.


(II) 1st Reading: Jeremiah 31:1-7

Restoration promised
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[1] "At that time, says the LORD, I will be the God of all the families of Israel, 
and they shall be my people."

[2] Thus says the LORD:
"The people who survived the sword
found grace in the wilderness;
when Israel sought for rest,
[3] the LORD appeared to him from afar.
I have loved you with an everlasting love;
therefore I have continued my faithfulness to you.
[4] Again I will build you, and you shall be built,
O virgin Israel!
Again you shall adorn yourself with timbrels,
and shall go forth in the dance of the merrymakers.
[5] Again you shall plant vineyards
upon the mountains of Samaria;
the planters shall plant,
and shall enjoy the fruit.
[6] For there shall be a day when watchmen will call
in the hill country of Ephraim:
'Arise, and let us go up to Zion,
to the LORD our God.'" 

[7] For thus says the Lord:
"Sing aloud with gladness for Jacob,
and raise shouts for the chief of the nations;
proclaim, give praise, and say, 
'The Lord has saved his people,
the remnant of Israel.'

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Commentary:

31:1-14. The oracles in this chapter hinge on the promise that Israel will relive its
experiences of earlier times, when it enjoyed the love and protection of God, its
father and shepherd, as it made its way through the wilderness to find tranquility
in the promised land.

The prophet again predicts the happy return of the exiles (vv. 2-3) and the resto-
ration of Israel and of the holy city, here given the glorious name of Zion (vv. 4-6).
The people will return home rejoicing at the goodness of God (vv. 7-9), who will
continue to shower blessings on them (vv. 10-14). The passage stresses the
kindness shown by God. He reveals himself as "a father to Israel" (v. 9) and
"shepherd" to his flock (v. 10), for he is faithful to the love he has for them (v. 3).

Referring to this and other passages in the prophetical books that speak of God's
tender mercy, John Paul II points out that "it is significant that in their preaching
the prophets link mercy, which they often refer to because of the people's sins,
with the incisive image of love on God's part. The Lord loves Israel with the love
of a special choosing, much like the love of a spouse (cf. e.g. Hos 2:21-25; Is 54:
6-8), and for this reason he pardons its sins and even its infidelities and betrayals.
When he finds repentance and true conversion, he brings his people back to
grace (cf. Jer 31:20; Ezek 39:25-29). In the preaching of the prophets, mercy sig-
nifies a special power of love, which prevails over the sin and infidelity of the cho-
sen people. [...] Connected with the mystery of creation is the mystery of the e-
lection, which in a special way shaped the history of the people whose spiritual
father is Abraham by virtue of his faith. Nevertheless, through this people which
journeys forward through the history both of the Old Covenant and of the New,
that mystery of election refers to every man and woman, to the whole great hu-
man family. 'I have loved you with an everlasting love, therefore I have continued
my faithfulness to you' (Jer 31:3)" ("Dives in Misericordia", 4).


Gospel Reading: Matthew 15:21-28

The Canaanite Woman
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[21] And Jesus went away from there and withdrew to the district of Tyre and
Sidon. [22] And behold, a Canaanite woman from that region came out and
cried, "Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David; my daughter is severely pos-
sessed by a demon." [23] But He did not answer her a word. And His disciples
came and begged Him, saying, "Send her away, for she is crying after us." [24]
He answered, "I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel." [25] But
she came and knelt before Him, saying, "Lord, help me." [26] And He answered,
"It is not fair to take the children's bread and throw it to the dogs." [27] She said,
"Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their master's table."
[28] Then Jesus answered her, "O woman, great is your faith! Be it done for you
as you desire." And her daughter was healed instantly.

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Commentary:

21-22. Tyre and Sidon were Phoenician cities on the Mediterranean coast, in
present-day Lebanon. They were never part of Galilee but they were near its
north-eastern border. In Jesus' time they were outside the territory of Herod Anti-
pas. Jesus withdrew to this area to escape persecution from Herod and from the
Jewish authorities and to concentrate on training His Apostles.

Most of the inhabitants of the district of Tyre and Sidon were pagans. St. Mat-
thew calls this woman a "Canaanite"; according to Genesis (10:15), this district
was one of the first to be settled by the Canaanites; St. Mark describes the wo-
man as a "Syrophoenician" (Mark 7:26). Both Gospels point out that she is a
pagan, which means that her faith in our Lord is more remarkable; the same
applies in the case of the centurion (Matthew 8:5-13).

The Canaanite woman's prayer is quite perfect: she recognizes Jesus as the
Messiah (the Son of David)--which contrasts with the unbelief of the Jews; she
expresses her need in clear, simple words; she persists, undismayed by obsta-
cles; and she expresses her request in all humility: "Have mercy on me." Our
prayer should have the same qualities of faith, trust, perseverance and humility.

24. What Jesus says here does not take from the universal reference of His tea-
ching (cf. Matthew 28:19-20; Mark 16:15-16). Our Lord came to bring His Gos-
pel to the whole world, but He Himself addressed only the Jews; later on He will
charge His Apostles to preach the Gospel to pagans. St. Paul, in his missionary
journeys, also adopted the policy of preaching in the first instance to the Jews
(Acts 13:46).

25-28. This dialogue between Jesus and the woman is especially beautiful. By
appearing to be harsh He so strengthens the woman's faith that she deserves
exceptional praise: "Great is your faith!" Our own conversation with Christ should
be like that: "Persevere in prayer. Persevere, even when your efforts seem barren.
Prayer is always fruitful" (St. J. Escriva, "The Way", 101).
　

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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].