); Isaiah 49:13-23 (God comforts the suffering); Matthew 18:1-14 (Become like a child) (New Catholic Bible)
Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)
Psalm 148[a]
Song of the Universe
1 [b]Alleluia.
Praise the Lord from the heavens;
offer praise to him in the heights!
2 Praise him, all his angels;
offer praise to him, all his hosts![c]
3 Praise him, sun and moon;
offer praise to him, all you shining stars!
4 Praise him, you highest heavens,[d]
and you waters above the heavens.
5 Let them praise the name[e] of the Lord,
for it was at his command that they were created.
6 He established them in place forever and ever;
he issued a law that will never pass away.[f]
7 [g]Praise the Lord from the earth,
you sea monsters and ocean depths,
8 fire and hail, snow and clouds,
storm winds that carry out his word,[h]
9 all mountains and hills,
all fruit trees and cedars,
10 wild animals and all cattle,
creeping creatures and flying birds,[i]
11 kings of the earth and all nations,
princes and all rulers on the earth,
12 young men and women,
the elderly, as well as children.[j]
13 [k]Let them all praise the name of the Lord,
for his name alone is exalted;
his majesty is above the earth and the heavens.[l]
14 He has raised high a horn[m] for his people,
to the glory of all his saints,
for the people of Israel who are close to him.
Alleluia.
13 Sing for joy, O heavens, and rejoice, O earth;
break forth into song, O mountains.
For the Lord has comforted his people,
and he will show mercy to his afflicted ones.
14 But Zion cried out, “The Lord has forsaken me;
my Lord has forgotten me.”
15 Can a woman forget the infant at her breast;
or feel no compassion for the child of her womb?
Even should she forget,
I will never forget you.
16 Behold, I have inscribed your name
on the palms of my hands;
your walls are continually before my eyes.
17 Those who rebuild you do so far more swiftly
than those who destroyed you.
18 Lift up your eyes and look around you;
they are all gathering to come to you.
As I live, says the Lord,
you will put all of them on like jewels;
you will adorn yourself with them like a bride.
19 You had lived in a desolate wasteland,
amid devastated ruins.
Now the land is too tiny for its inhabitants,
while those who destroyed you will be far away.
20 The children born during your bereavement
will say in your hearing,
“This place is too cramped for me;
make room for me to live in.”
21 Then you will say to yourself,
“Who bore these children for me?
I was bereaved and barren,
I was exiled and repudiated;
who has reared them?
I was left all alone;
where then have these come from?”
22 Thus says the Lord God:
Behold, I will beckon to the nations
and raise my signal to the peoples.
Then they will bring your sons in their arms,
and they will carry your daughters on their shoulders.
23 Kings will be your foster-fathers,
and their princesses will serve as your nursing mothers.
They will bow down to you
with their faces to the ground
and lick the dust from your feet.
Then you will know that I am the Lord;
those who hope in me will not be disappointed.
Instructions to the Disciples: The Charter of the Community[a]
Chapter 18
Become Like Little Children.[b] 1 At that time, the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” 2 Then Jesus beckoned a child to come to him, placed it in their midst, 3 and said, “Amen, I say to you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. 4 Whoever humbles himself and becomes like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.
Woe to the World because of Scandals.[c] 5 “And whoever receives one such child in my name receives me. 6 But if anyone causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a millstone fastened around his neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea. 7 Woe to the world because of scandals. Such things are bound to occur, but woe to the one through whom they come.
8 [d]“If your hand or your foot is an occasion of sin for you, cut it off and throw it away. It is preferable for you to enter into life maimed or crippled than to have two hands or two feet and be cast into the eternal fire. 9 And if your eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. It is preferable for you to enter into life with one eye than to have two eyes and be cast into the fires of Gehenna.
10 “Take care that you do not despise one of these little ones, for I tell you that their angels in heaven gaze continually on the face of my heavenly Father. [ 11 For the Son of Man has come to save what was lost.][e]
12 The Parable of the Lost Sheep.[f]“Tell me your opinion. If a man owns a hundred sheep and one of them wanders away, will he not leave the other ninety-nine on the hillside and go off in search of the one who went astray? 13 And if he finds it, amen, I say to you, he is more filled with joy over it than over the ninety-nine who did not wander off. 14 In the same way, it is not the will of your Father in heaven that a single one of these little ones should be lost.
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