나바르 매일미사 독서/묵상

Friday

3rd Week of Ordinary Time

(I) 1st Reading: Hebrews 10:32-39

Motives for Perseverance (Continuation)
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[32] But recall the former days when, after you were enlightened, you endured
a hard struggle with sufferings, [33] sometimes being publicly exposed to abuse
and affliction, and sometimes being partners with those so treated. [34] For you
had compassion on the prisoners, and you joyfully accepted the plundering of
your property, since you knew that you yourselves had a better possession and
an abiding one.[35] Therefore do not throw away your confidence, which has a
great reward. [36] For you have need of endurance, so that you may do the will
of God and receive what is promised. [37] "For yet a little while, and the coming
one shall come and shall not tarry; [38] but my righteous one shall live by faith,
and if he shrinks back, my soul has no pleasure in him." [39] But we are not of
those who shrink back and are destroyed, but of those who have faith and keep
their souls.

********************************************************************************** Commentary:

32-34. A Christian is called to share the persecution which Christ suffered. "A
disciple is not above his teacher", our Lord said (cf. Mt 10:22-25; Lk 12:11-12;
In 15:18); anyone who wanted to follow him would have to carry his cross (cf.
Mt 10:38; 16:24; Mk 8:34; Lk 9:23; 14:27). These words of our Lord have al-
ways been borne out in practice. In the Acts of the Apostles we are told of how
the Sanhedrin persecuted the Apostles, and of how certain Jews acted against
Stephen, and Herod against James and Peter, etc. The early Christians bore
these afflictions bravely and even availed of them to spread the faith--first to Sa-
maria, then to Antioch, and later throughout the whole Roman empire. The text
here speaks of their courage. It may be thinking of the severe persecution insti-
tuted by Nero after the burning of Rome. Given these circumstances, the addres-
sees, and Christians in general, need to keep their baptismal faith, their "enligh-
tenment", intact: they should be mindful of "the former days" and copy those
who compete and fight in public not minding that they are making a "public exhi-
bition" of themselves (cf. 1 Cor 4:9).

Undoubtedly the persecution suffered by Christians who were converted from
Judaism was severe. They were subject to "abuse" and "affliction", words which
point to affronts, insults, ridicule, and treatment typical of religious persecution
-- confiscation of property, imprisonment and even flogging and other forms of
punishment. Our early brethren in the faith not only bore these afflictions but
also showed their solidarity and charity by generously sharing the suffering of
those who were thrown in prison.

And yet even these persecutions had very good effects (cf. 1 Pet 1:6-9; Jas
1:3-4), in that they helped the people concerned to be detached from material
things and place their hope in divine rewards. In the same type of way, every
Christian needs to face up to the difficulties and contradictions he experiences
in life.

"Are things going against you? Are you going through a rough time? Say very
slowly, as if relishing it, this powerful and courageous prayer: 'May the most
just and lovable will of God be done, be fulfilled, be praised and eternally exalted
above all things. Amen. Amen.' I assure you that you will find peace" ("The
Way", 691).

35-39. The "confidence" mentioned in v. 35 is a translation of a Greek word
which refers to the ease and trusting frankness with which a person addresses
a good friend or God.

The sacred writer renews his call to endurance in the face of persecution. St
John Chrysostom compares the situation of the Christians addressed in this let-
ter with that of an athlete who has won a competition and is now simply waiting
for the president of the games to award him the laurels. "From now on there is
no further combat; all you must do is hold on to the merit you have won, and
you will not lose your reward [...]. No further combat is called for: all that is ne-
cesary is perseverance. Just hold out and you will gain your laurels; you have
already suffered all you need to obtain them--contentions, chains, pain, loss of
property. What more could you have done? All that remains for you to do is wait
patiently for the prize to be given you. If there is a delay, it will only be for a short
while" ("Hom. on Heb., ad loc.").

Here, as St Thomas comments, endurance refers to two things--the strength
that enables one to stay loyal despite persecution, and the assurance of one
who is confident of obtaining certain things he does not yet possess. The letter's
exhortation to endurance is supported by two quotations from Sacred Scripture.
The first, from Isaiah 26:20, is a reminder that God will soon judge the impious;
the second from Habakkuk 2:3-4 (also quoted by St Paul in Rom 1:17; Gal 3:
11), announces the coming liberation of the people of Israel. The sacred text ac-
curately prophesied that those Jews who remained faithful to God would be re-
leased from captivity in Babylon and survive the experience. Moved by the Holy
Spirit, the present writer states that the ancient prophecy has been fulfilled in
Christ; he is "the coming one", that is, he will come a second time. Therefore,
the Christian should await the outcome of persecution loyally and cheerfully.
"Stand your ground like an anvil under the hammer. The mark of a true cham-
pion is to stand up to punishment and still come out victorious. It is our duty,
particularly when the cause is God's, to accept trials of all kinds, if we our-
selves are to be accepted by him" (St Ignatius of Antioch, "Letter to Polycarp",
III, 1).
***********

(II) 1st Reading: 2 Samuel 11:1-4a, 5-10a, 13-17

David’s Sin
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[1] In the spring of the year, the time when kings go forth to battle, David sent
Joab, and his servants with him, and all Israel; and they ravaged the Ammonites,
and besieged Rabbah. But David remained at Jerusalem.

[2] It happened, late one afternoon, when David arose from his couch and was
walking upon the roof of the king’s house, that he saw from the roof a woman
bathing; and the woman was very beautiful. [3] And David sent and inquired about
the woman. And one said, “Is not this Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam, the wife
of Uriah the Hittite?” [4a] So David sent messengers, and took her; and she came
to him, and he lay with her. Then she returned to her house. [5] And the woman
conceived; and she sent and told David, “I am with child.”

[6] So David sent word to Joab, “Send me Uriah the Hittite.” And Joab sent Uriah
to David. [7] When Uriah came to him, David asked how Joab was doing, and how
the people fared, and how the war prospered. [8] Then David said to Uriah, “Go
down to your house, and wash your feet.” And Uriah went out of the king’s house,
and there followed him a present from the king. [9] But Uriah slept at the door of
the king’s house with all the servants of his lord, and did not go down to his house.
[10a] (When) they told David, “Uriah did not go down to his house.” [13] And David
invited him, and he ate in his presence and drank, so that he made him drunk; and
in the evening he went out to lie on his couch with the servants of his lord, but he
did not go down to his house.

[14] In the morning David wrote a letter to Joab, and sent it by the hand of Uriah.
[15] In the letter he wrote, “Set Uriah in the forefront of the hardest fighting, and
then draw back from him, that he may be struck down, and die.” [16] And as Joab
was besieging the city, he assigned Uriah to the place where he knew there were
valiant men. [17] And the men of the city came out and fought with Joab; and
some of the servants of David among the people fell. Uriah the Hittite was slain
also.

*********************************************************************************************
Commentary:

11-12:25. The birth of Solomon, chosen by God to be the first and greatest of
David’s successors (12:20-25), is preceded by the drama that results from the
gravest sins committed by David. The book of Chronicles, perhaps in a desire
not to tarnish the image of David, makes no mention of David’s adultery. But the
book of Samuel reports it in detail; by so doing it shows that salvation history is
not the result of the merits and virtues of its protagonists, but of the mercy of God
who forgives sins and always keeps his project of salvation on track. Here we see
David, like Adam, and despite all God has given him, yielding to temptation and
committing the two most grievous sins, the only sins punishable by death both in
Israel and among its neighbors--murder and adultery. And yet as also happened
in the case of Adam, the mercy of God prevails and David finds his way again.
Once he has repented and been pardoned he will have another son by Bathsheba,
“by the wife of Uriah” (Mt 1:6), but this time within marriage, thereby fulfilling the
prophecy of Nathan. This son, Solomon called by Nathan "Jedidiah" that is,
“beloved of the Lord” (12:25), will be the first link in the “sons of David” and will
mark the start of hope in a future Messiah.

11:1-27. David’s grave sin involves three actions--adultery (vv. 1-5), the scheme
to cover up evidence of that sin and avoid the penalty attaching to it (vv. 6-13),
and his decision to get rid of Uriah (vv. 14-24).

The adultery is reported very plainly, just enough to identify David as the father
of the child. The text also shows in a veiled way (by referring to Bathsheba’s
imprudence in bathing within sight of the king) that she herself is not an innocent
party. Thus there is a marked analogy between this sin and that of Adam and
Eve. The woman who will play an important part in the life of Solomon also had
an active role from the very start of her relationship with David. The image of the
idle king, exposed to the onslaught of passion, is used in Christian tradition as
a warning about the need to keep one’s senses under control in order to avoid
falling into other sins. “The appetites are inflamed by the sensuality of the gaze,
and our eyes, used to looking lustfully at our neighbor because we are so idle,
spark impure desires” (Clement of Alexandria, "Paedagogus", 3, 77, 1). And [St]
J. Escrivá writes: “The eyes! Through them many iniquities enter the soul. So
many experiences like David’s !--If you guard your sight you will have assured the
guard of your heart” ("The Way", 183).

The account goes into more detail when describing the malice of the king as he
makes every effort to ensure that his good name is not sullied: he twice tries to
get Uriah to go down to his house (“wash your feet”: v. 8 is a euphemism for
marital relations) and, when he sees that he cannot make Uriah responsible for
Bathsheba’s pregnancy, he decides to arrange for him to die in battle. It is the
worst sort of cynicism a king could be guilty of. The death of Uriah (vv. 16-17),
one of the best and most loyal soldiers in the army, marks the climax of David’s
sin: the murderer has planned a perfect crime which hides his own part in that
crime and will also cover up his earlier adultery. His accomplice in this sordid
business is Joab, his cold and unscrupulous lieutenant who is interested only
in his personal advantage (vv. 19-21) and who has nothing to lose.

Everything seemed to go smoothly once Bathsheba was installed in the palace
as the king’s wife and gave birth to her son. But David, as Adam was in the first
days, is unmasked by the Lord: just when the cover-up seems to have worked,
a severe divine sentence is pronounced: “the thing that David had done
displeased the Lord” (v. 27).

Gospel Reading: Mark 4:26-34

Parables of the Seed and of the Mustard Seed
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[26] And He (Jesus) said, "The Kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter
seed upon the ground, [27] and should sleep and rise night and day, and the
seed should sprout and grow, he knows not how. [28] The earth produces of
itself, first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear. [29] But when
the grain is ripe, at once he puts in the sickle, because the harvest is come."

[30] And He said, "With what can we compare the Kingdom of God, or what
parable shall we use for it? [31] It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when
sown upon the ground, is the smallest of all the seeds on earth; [32] yet when
it is sown it grows up and becomes the greatest of all shrubs, and puts forth
large branches, so that the birds of the air can make nests in its shade."

The End of the Parables Discourse
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[33] With many such parables He spoke the word to them, as they were able to
hear it; [34] He did not speak to them without a parable, but privately to His own
disciples He explained everything.

*********************************************************************************************
Commentary:

26-29. Farmers spare no effort to prepare the ground for the sowing; but once
the grain is sown there is nothing more they can do until the harvest; the grain
develops by itself. Our Lord uses this comparison to describe the inner strength
that causes the Kingdom of God on earth to grow up to the day of harvest (cf.
Joel 3:13 and Revelation 14:15), that is, the day of the Last Judgment.

26-29. 농부들은 씨를 뿌리기 위한 땅을 준비하는 데에 노력을 아끼지 않습니다만,
그러나 일단 씨앗이 뿌려진 이후에는 수확 때까지 그들이 할 수 있는 일이 별로
없으며, 씨앗은 스스로 자랍니다. 우리의 주님께서는 하느님의 나라를 지상에서
수확의 날에요엘 3,13 및 요한 묵시록 14,15를 참조하라), 즉 최후의 심판의 날에
이르기까지 성장하게 하는 내면적 굳셈(the inner strength)을 묘사하기 위하여
이러한 비교를 사용하십니다.

Jesus is telling His disciples about the Church: the preaching of the Gospel, the
generously sown seed, will unfailingly yield its fruit, independently of who sows
or who reaps: it is God who gives the growth (cf. 1 Corinthians 3:5-9). It will all
happen "he knows not how", without men being fully aware of it.

예수님께서는 당신의 제자들에게 교회에 관하여 다음과 같이 말씀하십니다: 관대하게
뿌려진 씨인 복음의 설교는, 누가 씨를 뿌리고 누가 거두어들임에 무관하게, 그 열매를
틀림없이 산출할(yield) 것입니다: 성장을 제공하시는 분은 바로 하느님이십니다
(1코린토 3,5-9를 참조하라). 사람들이 그것에 대하여 완전하게 알아차림 없이, 그것은
"그가 어떻게 그리 되는지 모르게" 갑자기 발생할 것입니다.

The Kingdom of God also refers to the action of grace in each soul: God silently
works a transformation in us, whether we sleep or watch, causing resolutions to
take shape in our soul--resolutions to be faithful, to surrender ourselves, to res-
pond to grace--until we reach "mature manhood" (cf. Ephesians 4:13). Even
though it is necessary for man to make this effort, the real initiative lies with God,
"because it is the Holy Spirit who, with His inspirations, gives a supernatural tone
to our thoughts, desires and actions. It is He who leads us to receive Christ's
teaching and to assimilate it in a profound way. It is He who gives us the light
by which we perceive our personal calling and the strength to carry out all that
God expects of us. If we are docile to the Holy Spirit, the image of Christ will be
found more and more fully in us, and we will be brought closer every day to God
the Father. `For whoever are led by the Spirit of God, they are the children of
God' (Romans 8:14)" (St. J. Escriva, "Christ Is Passing By", 135).

하느님의 나라(the Kingdom of God)는 또한 각 영혼에 있어 은총의 작용에
대한 언급입니다: 하느님께서는, 우리가 잠을 자거나 혹은 지켜보고 있거나 간에,
우리 안에 변화를 조용히 실행하시어, 그 결과, 우리가 "성숙한 사람" (에페소 4,13
을 참조하라)에 도달할 때까지, 성실하겠다는, 자신을 포기하겠다는, 은총에
응답하겠다는 결심들인, 우리의 영혼에 있어 모양을 갖추겠다는 결심들을 하게
합니다. 비록 사람이 이러한 노력을 하는 것이 필요하지만, 실제 주도는 하느님께
있는데, "이는, 당신의 영감들과 함께, 우리의 생각들, 욕구들 그리고 행위들에 초자연적
음조(a supernatural tone)를 주시는 분이 바로 성령이시기 때문입니다. 그리스도의
가르침을 받아들도록 그리고 깊이있는 방식으로 소화 흡수하도록 우리를 이끄시는 분이
바로 성령이십니다. 그것에 의하여 우리가 자신에 대한 인격적 부르심(personal calling)을
인지하고(perceive) 그리고, 하느님께서 우리에게 기대하시는 모든 것을 수행할 굳셈을
인지하는 빛(light)을 우리에게 제공하시는 분이 바로 성령이십니다. 우리가 성령께
유순하다면, 그리스도의 모습은 더욱 더 충만하게 우리 안에서 발견될 것이며, 그리고
우리는 날마다 성부이신 하느님께 더 가까이 데려가질 것입니다. '하느님의 영의 인도를
받는 이들은 모두 하느님의 자녀입니다' (로마 8,14) [성 호세마리아 에스크리바
(St. J. Escriva), "Christ Is Passing By", 135].

30-32. The main meaning of this parable has to do with the contrast between the
great and the small. The seed of the Kingdom of God on earth is something very
tiny to begin with (Luke 12:32; Acts 1:15); but it will grow to be a big tree. Thus
we see how the small initial group of disciples grows in the early years of the
Church (cf Acts 2:47; 6:7; 12:24), and spreads down the centuries and becomes
a great multitude "which no man could number" (Revelation 7:9). This mysterious
growth which our Lord refers to also occurs in each soul: "the Kingdom of God is
in the midst of you" (Luke 17:21); we can see a prediction of this in the words of
Psalm 92:12: "The righteous grow like a cedar in Lebanon." To allow the mercy
of God to exalt us, to make us grow, we must make ourselves small, humble
(Ezekiel 17:22-24; Luke 18:9-14).

30-32. 이 비유의 중요 의미는 고귀한 자들과 미천한 자들(the great and the small)
사이의 대조와 관련이 있습니다. 하느님의 나라의 씨앗은 지상에서 처음에는 매우
작은 어떤 것이었으나(루카 복음서 12,32; 사도행전 1,15), 그러나 이 나라는
커다란 나무가 되도록 자랄 것입니다. 그 결과로 우리는 교회의 초기 시절들에
있어 제자들로 이루어진 처음의 작은 집단이 어떻게 자라는지를 우리는 보며
(사도행전 2,47; 6,7; 12,24를 참조하라), 그리고 여러 세기들 동안에 퍼져 그리하여
"아무도 수를 셀 수 없을 만큼"(요한 묵시록 7,9) 큰 무리가 됨을 우리는 봅니다.
우리의 주님께서 언급하시는 이러한 신비로운 성장은 또한 각자의 영혼 안에
나타납니다(occurs in each soul): "하느님의 나라는 너희 가운데에 있다(the
Kingdom of God is in the midst of you"(루카 복음서 17,21). 그리고 우리는
다음과 같은 시편 92,13의 표현에서 이러한 예언(a prediction)을 봅니다: "의인
(the righteous)은 야자나무처럼 돋아나고 레바논의 향백나무처럼 자라리라."
하느님의 자비가 우리를 높이는 것을(exalt), 우리를 성장하게 하는 것을
허락하도록(allow) 하기 위하여, 우리는 우리 자신들을 미천하게(small),
겸손하게(humble) 만들어야만 합니다(에제키엘 17,22-24; 루카 복음서 18,9-14).
　

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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.