Daily Gospel

Herod the tetrarch heard of the reputation of Jesusand said to his servants, “This man is John the Baptist.He has been raised from the dead;that is why mighty powers are at work in him.”
Now Herod had arrested John, bound him, and put him in prisonon account of Herodias, the wife of his brother Philip,for John had said to him,“It is not lawful for you to have her.”Although he wanted to kill him, he feared the people,for they regarded him as a prophet.But at a birthday celebration for Herod,the daughter of Herodias performed a dance before the guestsand delighted Herod so muchthat he swore to give her whatever she might ask for.Prompted by her mother, she said,“Give me here on a platter the head of John the Baptist.”The king was distressed,but because of his oaths and the guests who were present,he ordered that it be given, and he had John beheaded in the prison.His head was brought in on a platter and given to the girl,who took it to her mother.His disciples came and took away the corpseand buried him; and they went and told Jesus.

Jesus came to his native place and taught the people in their synagogue.They were astonished and said,“Where did this man get such wisdom and mighty deeds?Is he not the carpenter’s son?Is not his mother named Maryand his brothers James, Joseph, Simon, and Judas?Are not his sisters all with us?Where did this man get all this?”And they took offense at him.But Jesus said to them,“A prophet is not without honor except in his native placeand in his own house.”And he did not work many mighty deeds therebecause of their lack of faith.

Jesus said to the disciples:“The Kingdom of heaven is like a net thrown into the sea,which collects fish of every kind.When it is full they haul it ashoreand sit down to put what is good into buckets.What is bad they throw away.Thus it will be at the end of the age.The angels will go out and separate the wicked from the righteousand throw them into the fiery furnace,where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth.”“Do you understand all these things?”They answered, “Yes.”And he replied,“Then every scribe who has been instructed in the Kingdom of heavenis like the head of a household who brings from his storeroomboth the new and the old.”When Jesus finished these parables, he went away from there.

Many of the Jews had come to Martha and Maryto comfort them about their brother [Lazarus, who had died].When Martha heard that Jesus was coming,she went to meet him;but Mary sat at home.Martha said to Jesus,“Lord, if you had been here,my brother would not have died.But even now I know that whatever you ask of God,God will give you.”Jesus said to her,“Your brother will rise.”Martha said to him,“I know he will rise,in the resurrection on the last day.”Jesus told her,“I am the resurrection and the life;whoever believes in me, even if he dies, will live,and anyone who lives and believes in me will never die.Do you believe this?”She said to him, “Yes, Lord.I have come to believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God,the one who is coming into the world.”

Jesus dismissed the crowds and went into the house.His disciples approached him and said,"Explain to us the parable of the weeds in the field."He said in reply, "He who sows good seed is the Son of Man,the field is the world, the good seed the children of the Kingdom.The weeds are the children of the Evil One,and the enemy who sows them is the Devil.The harvest is the end of the age, and the harvesters are angels.Just as weeds are collected and burned up with fire,so will it be at the end of the age.The Son of Man will send his angels,and they will collect out of his Kingdomall who cause others to sin and all evildoers.They will throw them into the fiery furnace,where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth.Then the righteous will shine like the sunin the Kingdom of their Father.Whoever has ears ought to hear."

Jesus proposed a parable to the crowds.“The Kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seedthat a person took and sowed in a field.It is the smallest of all the seeds,yet when full-grown it is the largest of plants.It becomes a large bush,and the ‘birds of the sky come and dwell in its branches.’”
He spoke to them another parable.“The Kingdom of heaven is like yeastthat a woman took and mixed with three measures of wheat flouruntil the whole batch was leavened.”
All these things Jesus spoke to the crowds in parables.He spoke to them only in parables, to fulfill what had been said through the prophet:
I will open my mouth in parables,I will announce what has lain hidden from the foundation of the world.

Jesus said to his disciples:"The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure buried in a field,which a person finds and hides again,and out of joy goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchantsearching for fine pearls. When he finds a pearl of great price,he goes and sells all that he has and buys it. Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net thrown into the sea,which collects fish of every kind. When it is full they haul it ashoreand sit down to put what is good into buckets. What is bad they throw away. Thus it will be at the end of the age. The angels will go out and separate the wicked from the righteousand throw them into the fiery furnace,where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth."Do you understand all these things?" They answered, "Yes." And he replied,"Then every scribe who has been instructed in the kingdom of heavenis like the head of a householdwho brings from his storeroom both the new and the old." 

The mother of the sons of Zebedee approached Jesus with her sonsand did him homage, wishing to ask him for something.He said to her,"What do you wish?"She answered him,"Command that these two sons of mine sit,one at your right and the other at your left, in your Kingdom."Jesus said in reply,"You do not know what you are asking.Can you drink the chalice that I am going to drink?"They said to him, "We can."He replied,"My chalice you will indeed drink,but to sit at my right and at my left, this is not mine to givebut is for those for whom it has been prepared by my Father."When the ten heard this,they became indignant at the two brothers.But Jesus summoned them and said,"You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them,and the great ones make their authority over them felt.But it shall not be so among you.Rather, whoever wishes to be great among you shall be your servant;whoever wishes to be first among you shall be your slave.Just so, the Son of Man did not come to be servedbut to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many."

Jesus said to his disciples:“Hear the parable of the sower.The seed sown on the path is the one who hears the word of the Kingdomwithout understanding it,and the Evil One comes and steals awaywhat was sown in his heart.The seed sown on rocky groundis the one who hears the word and receives it at once with joy.But he has no root and lasts only for a time.When some tribulation or persecution comes because of the word,he immediately falls away.The seed sown among thorns is the one who hears the word,but then worldly anxiety and the lure of riches choke the wordand it bears no fruit.But the seed sown on rich soilis the one who hears the word and understands it,who indeed bears fruit and yields a hundred or sixty or thirtyfold.”

The disciples approached Jesus and said,“Why do you speak to the crowd in parables?”He said to them in reply,“Because knowledge of the mysteries of the Kingdom of heavenhas been granted to you, but to them it has not been granted.To anyone who has, more will be given and he will grow rich;from anyone who has not, even what he has will be taken away.This is why I speak to them in parables, becausethey look but do not see and hear but do not listen or understand.Isaiah’s prophecy is fulfilled in them, which says:
You shall indeed hear but not understand,you shall indeed look but never see.Gross is the heart of this people,they will hardly hear with their ears,they have closed their eyes,lest they see with their eyesand hear with their earsand understand with their hearts and be convertedand I heal them.
“But blessed are your eyes, because they see,and your ears, because they hear.Amen, I say to you, many prophets and righteous peoplelonged to see what you see but did not see it,and to hear what you hear but did not hear it.”