FIRST
READING: Judges
6: 11 - 24
11
And an angel of the Lord came, and sat under an oak, that was in
Ephra, and belonged to Joas the father of the family of Ezri. And
when Gideon his son was threshing and cleansing wheat by the
winepress, to flee from Madian,
12
The angel of the Lord appeared to him, and said: The Lord is with
thee, O most valiant of men.
13
And Gideon said to him: I beseech thee, my lord, if the Lord be with
us, why have these evils fallen upon us? Where are his miracles,
which our fathers have told us of, saying: The Lord brought us Out of
Egypt? but now the Lord hath forsaken us, and delivered us into the
bands of Madian.
14
And the Lord looked upon him, and said: Go in this thy strength, and
then shalt deliver Israel out of the hand of Madian: know that I have
sent thee.
15
He answered and said: I beseech thee, my lord, wherewith shall I
deliver Israel? Behold my family is the meanest in Manasses, and I am
the least in my father's house.
16
And the Lord said to him: I will be with thee: and thou shalt cut off
Madian as one man.
17
And he said: If I have found grace before thee, give me a sign that
it is thou that speakest to me,
18
And depart not hence, till I return to thee, and bring a sacrifice,
and offer it to thee. And he answered: I will wait thy coming.
19
So Gideon went in, and boiled a kid, and made unleavened loaves of a
measure of flour: and putting the flesh in a basket, and the broth of
the flesh into a pot, he carried all under the oak, and presented to
him.
20
And the angel of the Lord said to him: Take the flesh and the
unleavened loaves, and lay them upon that rock, and pour out the
broth thereon. And when he had done so,
21
The angel of the Lord put forth the tip of the rod, which he held in
his hand, and touched the flesh and the unleavened loaves: and there
arose a fire from the rock, and consumed the flesh and the unleavened
loaves: and the angel of the Lord vanished out of his sight.
22
And Gideon seeing that it was the angel of the Lord, said: Alas, my
Lord God: for I have seen the angel of the Lord face to face.
23
And the Lord said to him: Peace be with thee: fear not, thou shalt
not die.
24
And Gideon built there an altar to the Lord, and called it the Lord's
peace, until this present day. And when he was yet in Ephra, which is
of the family of Ezri.
PSALM:
Psalms 85:
9, 11 - 14
9
I will hear what the Lord God will speak in me: for he will speak
peace unto his people: And unto his saints: and unto them that are
converted to the heart.
11
Mercy and truth have met each other: justice and peace have kissed.
12
Truth is sprung out of the earth: and justice hath looked down from
heaven.
13
For the Lord will give goodness: and our earth shall yield her fruit.
14
Justice shall walk before him: and shall set his steps in the way.
GOSPEL:
Matthew 19:
23 - 30
23
Then Jesus said to his disciples: Amen, I say to you, that a rich man
shall hardly enter into the kingdom of heaven.
24
And again I say to you: It is easier for a camel to pass through the
eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of
heaven.
25
And when they had heard this, the disciples wondered very much,
saying: Who then can be saved?
26
And Jesus beholding, said to them: With men this is impossible: but
with God all things are possible.
27
Then Peter answering, said to him: Behold we have left all things,
and have followed thee: what therefore shall we have?
28
And Jesus said to them: Amen, I say to you, that you, who have
followed me, in the regeneration, when the Son of man shall sit on
the seat of his majesty, you also shall sit on twelve seats judging
the twelve tribes of Israel.
29
And every one that hath left house, or brethren, or sisters, or
father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands for my name's sake,
shall receive an hundredfold, and shall possess life everlasting.
30
And many that are first, shall be last: and the last shall be first.
