Thursday
34th Week of Ordinary Time
(I) 1st Reading: Daniel 6:12-28
Daniel Sentenced to be Put in the Lions' Den (Continuation)
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([11] Then these men came by agreement (into the upper chamber of Daniel's
house) and found Daniel making petition and supplication before his God.) [12]
Then they came near and said before the king, concerning the interdict, "0 king!
Did you not sign an interdict, that any man who makes petition to any god or
man within thirty days except to you, 0 king, shall be cast into the den of lions?”
The king answered, "The thing stands fast, according to the law of the Medes
and Persians, which cannot be revoked.” [13] Then they answered before the
king, "That Daniel, who is one of the exiles from Judah, pays no heed to you,
0 king, or the interdict you have signed, but makes his petition three times a
day.”
[14] Then the king, when he heard these words, was much distressed, and set
his mind to deliver Daniel; and he labored till the sun went down to rescue him.
[15] Then these men came by agreement to the king, and said to the king,
"Know, 0 king, that it is a law of the Medes and Persians that no interdict or
ordinance which the king establishes can be changed.”
[16] Then the king commanded, and Daniel was brought and cast into the den
of lions. The king said to Daniel, "May your God, whom you serve continually,
deliver you!” [17] And a stone was brought and laid upon the mouth of the den,
and the king sealed it with his own signet and with the signet of his lords, that
nothing might be changed concerning Daniel. [18] Then the king went to his pa-
lace, and spent the night fasting; no diversions were brought to him, and sleep
fled from him.
Daniel's Miraculous Escape
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[19] Then, at break of day, the king arose and went in haste to the den of lions.
[20] When he came near to the den where Daniel was, he cried out in a tone of
anguish and said to Daniel, "0 Daniel, servant of the living God, has your God,
whom you serve continually, been able to deliver you from the lions?” [21] Then
Daniel said to the king, "0 king, live for ever! [22] My God sent his angel and
shut the lions' mouths, and they have not hurt me, because I was found blame-
less before him, and also before you, 0 king, I have done no wrong.” [23] Then
the king was exceedingly glad, and commanded that Daniel be taken up out of
the den. So Daniel was taken up out of the den, and no kind of hurt was found
upon him, because he had trusted in his God.
The King's Profession of Faith
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[24] And the king commanded, and those men who had accused Daniel were
brought and cast into the den of lions--they, their children, and their wives and
before they reached the bottom of the den the lions overpowered them and broke
all their bones in pieces.
[25] Then King Darius wrote to all the peoples, nations, and languages that dwell
in all the earth: "Peace be multiplied to you. [26] I make a decree, that in all my
royal dominion men tremble and fear before the God of Daniel, for he is the living
God, enduring for ever his kingdom shall never be destroyed, and his dominion
shall be to the end. [27] He delivers and rescues, he works signs and wonders
in heaven and on earth, he who has saved Daniel from the power of the lions.”
([28] So this Daniel prospered during the reign of Darius and the reign of Cyrus
the Persian.)
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Commentary:
6:1-28. This passage, which is similar in parts to chapter 3, begins by showing
how difficult it was for the Jews to stay true to their religion in the midst of a pa-
gan society (vv. 1-18); then we see how God comes to their rescue (vv. 19-24);
finally, the pagan king acknowledges the God of Israel (vv. 25-28). As in chapter
5, Daniel is center-stage; in fact, his companions are not even mentioned. The
episode has no particular connection with the previous ones; in fact, it seems
to be a unit in its own right; it rounds off the part of the book dealing with Daniel
at the court of Babylon. The fact that the story involves Darius the Mede, a king
unknown to historical scholarship (see pp. 794f, above), reinforces the impres-
sion that this is a moral tale designed to get across the message that God
helps those who strive to obey the precepts of the Jewish religion.
6:1-18. Daniel seems to be very much part of the social and political world of
Babylon; thanks to his skill and loyalty, he is second only to the king. The plot
against him may have been hatched out of jealousy, but the fact that he was a
foreigner and a Jew probably did not help. His enemies set a sort of legal trap
for Daniel. The king in his vanity issues a decree which, for a period of thirty
days,makes him the only god there is. It is a decree that even he cannot revoke
-- much as he would wish to do so, in order to liberate Daniel from its penalty.
Here Daniel the Jew is not being obliged to do something against his religion:
he is being required to refrain from doing something that his religion enjoins --
to pray to God facing towards Jerusalem (cf. 1 Kings 8:48). Daniel's opponents
have managed to manipulate the king and change the law, in such a way that
they can accuse Daniel of breaking the law for religious reasons; he cannot be
faulted on any other score.
When Daniel learned about the interdict, he did not change his standard pattern
of prayer (v. 11); there is a lesson here for Christians, as the Fathers point out.
Origen, for example, says: "The commandment to "pray without ceasing" (cf.
Lk 18:1) can be understood and fulfilled only if we believe that the whole of man's
life is a single, unbroken prayer. One part of this long prayer of life is what we
call prayer, and we should pray no less than three times a day, as is made
clear in the book of Daniel, who prayed three times a day even in the midst of
great dangers” ("De Oratione", 12, 2).
6:19-24. Through divine intervention (once again by means of an angel: cf. 3:26),
no harm comes to Daniel from the lions. It is as if Daniel is innocent in the sight
of God--a point not lost on the king (v. 22) either; in fact, it spurs him to take
control of the situation, assert his rights, and see that justice is done (vv. 23-24).
Daniel's fidelity to his religion, and the fact that God protected him in his ordeal,
expose the perversity of the king's edict, and cause the king to right the wrong
he has done. The sacred writer points out why God intervened miraculously --
because Daniel "trusted in his God” (v. 23). Daniel's rivals were punished in line
with the customs of the time, that is, they were punished very severely.
St Augustine comments that the lions refrained from harming Daniel because he
was faithful to God: "Submit to the one who has power over you, and you will be
raised above those who once held you in thrall. In committing sin, man places
above himself what should always be beneath him; he submits to things that are
less than him. [...] Acknowledge the one who has power over you, so that the
things that are below you will see where you stand above them. For when Daniel
acknowledged the power of the Lord God, the lions saw the superiority of Daniel
over them and did not touch him” ("In Epistolam Ioannis", 8).
6:25-28: The king readily issues a decree that goes against his earlier one (cf.
6:9); the tenor of it is like that issued by Nebuchadnezzar in 4:1-3. So, both the
Babylonian king and Darius the Mede acknowledged the God of the Jews as the
one true God whose kingdom lasts forever; and they reached that point thanks
to the wisdom that God gave the Jews (particularly Daniel) and to the exemplary
fidelity of the Jews to their religion in the midst of trials.
(II) 1st Reading: Revelation 18:1-2, 21-23; 19:1-3, 9a
The Fall of Babylon Proclaimed
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[1] After this I saw another angel coming down from heaven, having great autho-
rity; and the earth was made bright with his splendor. [2] And he called out with
a mighty voice, "Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great! It has become a dwelling
place of demons, a haunt for every foul spirit, a haunt of every foul and hateful
bird.
[21] Then a mighty angel took up a stone like a great millstone and threw it into
the sea, saying, "So shall Babylon the great city be thrown down with violence,
and shall be found no more; [22] and the sound of harpers and minstrels, of
flute players and trumpeters, shall be heard in thee no more; and a craftsman
of any craft shall be found in thee no more; and the sound of the millstone shall
be heard in thee" more; [23] and the light of a lamp shall shine in thee no more;
and the voice of bridegroom and bride shall be heard in thee no more; for thy
merchants were the great men of the earth, and all nations were deceived by
thy sorcery.
Songs of Victory in Heaven
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[1] After this I heard what seemed to be the mighty voice of a great multitude in
heaven, crying, "Hallelujah! Salvation and glory and power belong to our God, [2]
for his judgments are true and just; he has judged the great harlot who corrupted
the earth with her fornication, and he has avenged on her the blood of his ser-
vants." [3] Once more they cried, "Hallelujah! The smoke from her goes up for
ever and ever."
[9a] And the angel said to me, "Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to
the marriage supper of the Lamb."
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Commentary:
1-3. These verses describing the downfall of Rome follow the prophetical style of
foretelling a future event by reporting it as something that has already happened.
First the fall of the city is proclaimed (vv. 1-3). Then the people of God are exho-
rted to leave the city and escape the terrible punishment soon to befall it (vv. 4-8).
This is followed by the lament of the kings who were allied to Rome (vv. 9-10), of
the merchants who prospered by trading with her (v. 11-17a) and of the sailors
(17b-19). Finally we are shown the joy of those who suffered under her yoke and
now see justice done.
In words reminiscent of Old Testament passages foretelling the destruction of
hostile cities (cf. Is 13:21-22; 21:9; Jer 50:30; Ezek 43:3-5), St John describes
the fate of Rome in the last days before its desolation. Among the sins which
have brought about its ruin is unbridled sexual indulgence (cf. also vv. 7 and 12-
14). Such behavior leads to the degradation and self-destruction of society, as
witness the history of civilization and contemporary experience. Consumerism,
self-indulgence and greed for possessions, clearly feature of our time, were de-
nounced by Pius XI when he said that "the disease of the modern age, and the
main source of the evils we all deplore, is that lack of reflection, that continuous
and quite feverish pursuit of external things, that immoderate desire for wealth
and pleasure, which gradually causes the heart to lose sight of its nobler ideals,
drowning them in a sea of impermanent, earthly things, and preventing them
from contemplating higher, eternal things" ("Mens Nostra", 6).
20-24. In sharp contrast with the previous lamentation is this invitation to rejoice
--the reply to which comes in 19:1-8, where we are told that the elect j oyfully in-
tone songs in praise of God almighty. The throwing of the millstone into the sea
is an instance of "prophetic action"; it comes from Jeremiah 51:60-64, which
uses this device to prophesy the total downfall of Babylon. The millstone also
appears is Luke 17:2 and par, as a symbol of disgrace and shame.
The sepulchral silence and darkness of the city are described in detail. The rea-
son for this terrible punishment was its opulence, its idolatry and the fact that it
was where the Christian martyrs were tortured and put to death. Like Jerusalem
it is called "city of blood" (cf, Ezek 24:6). and just as the ancient capital of Israel
was accused by Jesus of murdering the prophets and messengers of God and
was told that all the blood it had spilt would come back upon it (cf. Mt 23:35), so
will Rome be punished for martyring the saints.
1-4. The righteous rejoice to see their enemy overwhelmed; the praises they sing
of God end in three loud "Hallelujahs". In the following passage (vv. 64), they wel-
come the establishment of the Kingdom of God and the imminent marriage of the
Lamb.
This is the first and only time the word "Hallelujah" appears in the New Testament.
It is a Hebrew term ("hallelu-yah") meaning "Praise Yahweh" used especially in
the psalms (cf., e.g., Ps 111; 114; 115). The Church uses it, unchanged, usually
to express to God its joy and praise at the resurrection of Christ. It is used particu-
larly at Eastertide and also on many other days, both in the divine office and in the
celebration of the Eucharist.
These shouts of praise are motivated by the salvation which comes from God and
by the rightness of his judgments as evidenced by the punishment inflicted on the
great harlot who is turned into a fire which burns forever.
9. On the instructions of the angel who is explaining the vision to him (cf. 17:1), St
John tells Christians to count themselves blessed (v.9); God guarantees the truth
of this assurance. At Mass the priest makes a similar proclamation just before dis-
tributing Holy Communion: "Happy are those who are called to his (the Lord's] sup-
per." This shows that the Eucharist truly is "a pledge of future glory".
Gospel Reading: Luke 21:20-28
Discourse on the Destruction of Jerusalem
and the End of the World (Continuation)
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(Jesus said to his disciples), [20] "But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by
armies, then know that its desolation has come near. [21] Then let those who
are in Judea flee to the mountains, and let those who are inside the city depart,
and let not those who are out in the country enter it; [22] for these are days of
vengeance, to fulfill all that is written. [23] Alas for those who are with child and
for those who give suck in those days! For great distress shall be upon the earth
and wrath upon this people; [24] they shall be upon the earth and wrath upon this
people; [24] they will fall by the edge of the sword, and be led captive among all
nations; and Jerusalem will be trodden down by the Gentiles, until the times of
the Gentiles are fulfilled.
[25] "And there will be signs in sun and moon and stars, and upon the earth dis-
tress of nations in perplexity at the roaring of the sea and the waves, [26] men
fainting with fear and foreboding of what is coming on the world; for the powers of
the heavens will be shaken. [27] And then they will see the Son of Man coming
in a cloud with power and great glory. [28] Now when these things begin to take
place, look up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.
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Commentary:
20-24. Jesus gives quite a detailed prophecy of the destruction of the Holy City.
When the Christians living there saw the armies getting closer, they remembered
this prophecy and fled to Transjordan (cf. Eusebius, "Ecclesiastical History," III,
5). Christ had advised them to flee as soon as possible because this is the time
when God would punish Jerusalem for its sins, as the Old Testament predicted
(Is 5:5-6).
Catholic tradition sees Israel as symbolizing the Church. In fact, in the Book of
Revelation the Church triumphant is called the heavenly Jerusalem (cf. Rev 21:2).
Therefore, by applying this passage to the Church, the sufferings the Holy City
experiences can symbolize the contradictions the pilgrim Church will experience
due to the sins of men, for "she herself takes her place among the creatures
which groan and travail yet and await the revelation of the children of God" Vati-
can II, "Lumen Gentium", 48).
24. "The times of the Gentiles" means the period in which the Gentiles, who do
not belong to the Jewish people, will become members of the new people of God,
the Church, until the Jews themselves are converted at the end of the world (cf.
Rom 11:11-32).
25-26. Jesus refers to the dramatic changes in natural elements when the world
is coming to an end. "The powers of the heavens will be shaken"; that is to say,
the whole universe will tremble at the Lord's coming in power and glory.
27-28. Applying to himself the prophecy of Daniel (7:13-14), our Lord speaks of
his coming in glory at the end of time. Mankind will see the power and glory of
the Son of man, coming to judge the living and the dead. Christ will deliver this
judgment in his human capacity. Sacred Scripture describes the solemnity of
this event, when the sentence passed on each person in the particular judg-
ment will be confirmed, and God's justice and mercy to men throughout history
will shine out for all to see. "It was necessary not only that rewards should await
the just and punishments the wicked, in the life to come, but that they should be
awarded by a public and general judgment. Thus they will become better known
and will be rendered more conspicuous to all, and a tribute of praise will be of-
fered by all to the justice and providence of God" ("St Pius V Catechism", I, 8,
4).
This coming of the Lord is, then, a day of terror for evildoers and of joy for those
who have remained faithful. The disciples should hold their heads high because
their redemption is at hand. It is the day they will receive their reward. The victo-
ry won by Christ on the cross--victory over sin, over the devil and over death --
will now be seen clearly, with all its implications. Therefore St Paul recommends
that we be "awaiting our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great
God and Savior Jesus Christ" (Titus 2:13).
"He [Christ] ascended into heaven whence he will come again to judge the living
and the dead, each according to his merits. Those who have responded to the
love and compassion of God will go into eternal life. Those who have refused
them to the end will be consigned to the fire that is never extinguished" (Paul
VI, "Creed of the People of God", 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.
[참고: 이 파일은 저서명 "가톨릭 교회의 말씀 전례에 따른 성경공부 해설서"(엮은이: 소순태, 출판사: 가톨릭출판사)의 각주의 연장으로 마련되었습니다].