Reading 1
Is 49:8-15
Thus says the LORD:
In a time of favor I answer you,
on the day of salvation I help you;
and I have kept you and given you as a covenant to the people,
To restore the land
and allot the desolate heritages,
Saying to the prisoners: Come out!
To those in darkness: Show yourselves!
Along the ways they shall find pasture,
on every bare height shall their pastures be.
They shall not hunger or thirst,
nor shall the scorching wind or the sun strike them;
For he who pities them leads them
and guides them beside springs of water.
I will cut a road through all my mountains,
and make my highways level.
See, some shall come from afar,
others from the north and the west,
and some from the land of Syene.
Sing out, O heavens, and rejoice, O earth,
break forth into song, you mountains.
For the LORD comforts his people
and shows mercy to his afflicted.
But Zion said, “The LORD has forsaken me;
my Lord has forgotten me.”
Can a mother forget her infant,
be without tenderness for the child of her womb?
Even should she forget,
I will never forget you.
Ps 145:8-9, 13cd-14, 17-18
Responsorial PsalmR. (8a)
The Lord is gracious and merciful.
The LORD is gracious and merciful,
slow to anger and of great kindness.
The LORD is good to all
and compassionate toward all his works.
R. The Lord is gracious and merciful.
The LORD is faithful in all his words
and holy in all his works.
The LORD lifts up all who are falling
and raises up all who are bowed down.
R. The Lord is gracious and merciful.
The LORD is just in all his ways
and holy in all his works.
The LORD is near to all who call upon him,
to all who call upon him in truth.
R. The Lord is gracious and merciful.
Gospel
Jn 5:17-30
Jesus answered the Jews:
“My Father is at work until now, so I am at work.”
For this reason they tried all the more to kill him,
because he not only broke the sabbath
but he also called God his own father, making himself equal to God.
Jesus answered and said to them,
“Amen, amen, I say to you, the Son cannot do anything on his own,
but only what he sees the Father doing;
for what he does, the Son will do also.
For the Father loves the Son
and shows him everything that he himself does,
and he will show him greater works than these,
so that you may be amazed.
For just as the Father raises the dead and gives life,
so also does the Son give life to whomever he wishes.
Nor does the Father judge anyone,
but he has given all judgment to the Son,
so that all may honor the Son just as they honor the Father.
Whoever does not honor the Son
does not honor the Father who sent him.
Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever hears my word
and believes in the one who sent me
has eternal life and will not come to condemnation,
but has passed from death to life.
Amen, amen, I say to you, the hour is coming and is now here
when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God,
and those who hear will live.
For just as the Father has life in himself,
so also he gave to the Son the possession of life in himself.
And he gave him power to exercise judgment,
because he is the Son of Man.
Do not be amazed at this,
because the hour is coming in which all who are in the tombs
will hear his voice and will come out,
those who have done good deeds
to the resurrection of life,
but those who have done wicked deeds
to the resurrection of condemnation.
“I cannot do anything on my own;
I judge as I hear, and my judgment is just,
because I do not seek my own will
but the will of the one who sent me."
Meditation: Isaiah 49:8-15
“Sing out, O heavens, and rejoice, O earth, break forth into song, you mountains. For the Lord comforts his people.” (Isaiah 49:13)
Have you ever noticed how much sadness and self-pity there is in blues music? The singer has unjustly lost his great love, his dreams have led to disappointment, his life is a shambles, he has nothing to look forward to. The music is in a minor key, and the rhythms are mournful, all to reinforce the mood.
Well, God’s people Israel had reason to sing the blues. Their enemies had destroyed their city and their Temple. Those who weren’t killed were dragged into exile far from home. When their captors asked them to sing one of their traditional songs, they protested: “How could we sing a song of the Lord in a foreign land?” (Psalm 137:4).
Yet in the midst of so depressing a situation, the prophet begins to proclaim a message of hope. God is on the move! He is about to liberate prisoners and make a way for the exiles to return to their land.
He reminds the people who God is. He is the One who “leads them and guides them beside springs of water” (Isaiah 49:10). Even though they feel as if God has abandoned and forgotten them, the prophet tells them this cannot be. Even if a mother could forget her baby, God has not, cannot, and will not ever forget his people!
So the people have a choice. They can continue to sing the blues, remembering their shame and how hard their lot is. Or they can place their trust in the God who loves them. They can praise him for who he is and hold on to his promises of restoration. God loves them so much that even the skies and the mountains sing for joy. They can lean into this song and make it their own.
What kind of songs do we sing? How do we tell the story of our salvation? The choice is ours. We don’t have to ignore the real suffering in our lives and in the world, but we can always praise God, no matter
how dark things look at the moment. God loves you, and he will provide a way for you!
“Holy Spirit, teach me to sing your song of joy. Even in the darkest times, revive me with your presence.”
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