18 June/Tuesday/11th Week in Ordinary Time,

            1Kgs 21,17-29/Psa 51,3-4.5-6.11.16/Matt 5,43-48

First Reading       1 Kings 21:17-29

The punishment of Ahab and Jezebel foretold

 

After the death of Naboth, the word of the Lord came to Elijah the Tishbite, ‘Up! Go down to meet Ahab king of Israel, in Samaria. You will find him in Naboth’s vineyard; he has gone down to take possession of it. You are to say this to him, “The Lord says this: You have committed murder; now you usurp as well. For this – and the Lord says this – in the place where the dogs licked the blood of Naboth, the dogs will lick your blood too.”’

Ahab said to Elijah, ‘So you have found me out, O my enemy!’ Elijah answered, ‘I have found you out. For your double dealing, and since you have done what is displeasing to the Lord, I will now bring disaster down on you; I will sweep away your descendants, and wipe out every male belonging to the family of Ahab, fettered or free in Israel. I will treat your House as I treated the House of Jeroboam son of Nebat and of Baasha son of Ahijah, for provoking my anger and leading Israel into sin. (Against Jezebel the Lord spoke these words: The dogs will eat Jezebel in the Field of Jezreel.) Those of Ahab’s family who die in the city, the dogs will eat; and those who die in the open country, the birds of the air will eat.’

And indeed there never was anyone like Ahab for double dealing and for doing what is displeasing to the Lord, urged on by Jezebel his wife. He behaved in the most abominable way, adhering to idols, just as the Amorites used to do whom the Lord had dispossessed for the sons of Israel.

When Ahab heard these words, he tore his garments and put sackcloth next his skin and fasted; he slept in the sackcloth; he walked with slow steps. Then the word of the Lord came to Elijah the Tishbite, ‘Have you seen how Ahab has humbled himself before me? Since he has humbled himself before me, I will not bring the disaster in his days; I will bring the disaster down on his House in the days of his son.’

 

Responsorial Psalm      Psalm 50(51):3-6,11,16

 

Have mercy on us, Lord, for we have sinned.

 

Have mercy on me, God, in your kindness.

    In your compassion blot out my offence.

O wash me more and more from my guilt

    and cleanse me from my sin.

 

My offences truly I know them;

    my sin is always before me

Against you, you alone, have I sinned;

    what is evil in your sight I have done.

 

From my sins turn away your face

    and blot out all my guilt.

O rescue me, God, my helper,

    and my tongue shall ring out your goodness.

 

Gospel Acclamation          2 Cor 5:19

 

Alleluia, alleluia!

God in Christ was reconciling the world to himself,

and he has entrusted to us the news that they are reconciled.

Alleluia!

 

Gospel        Matthew 5:43-48

Pray for those who persecute you

 

Jesus said to his disciples: ‘You have learnt how it was said: You must love your neighbour and hate your enemy. But I say this to you: love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you; in this way you will be sons of your Father in heaven, for he causes his sun to rise on bad men as well as good, and his rain to fall on honest and dishonest men alike. For if you love those who love you, what right have you to claim any credit? Even the tax collectors do as much, do they not? And if you save your greetings for your brothers, are you doing anything exceptional? Even the pagans do as much, do they not? You must therefore be perfect just as your heavenly Father is perfect.’

 

Reflection

We ended the reflection on the crime of King Ahab against Naboth of Jezreel on the note that we should not adopt violence in our fight against injustice. The First Reading now confirms our conclusion by saying that we should leave vengeance to God. He is the right judge and the defender of the righteous. Naboth of Jezreel was defenceless before the machinations of Jezebel on behalf of the husband, King Ahaz. Once the owner of the vineyard was murdered and King Ahaz was informed about it, he went to take possession of what was not his own. He did not even think that others of the house of Naboth of Jezreel had the right to inherit the property. How short-sighted selfish people can be in their desire to dispossess others!

The First Reading teaches us that God is there to protect the defenceless or the voiceless. God defends them at his own chosen time. In the story, God sent Elijah to King Ahab to confront him with his guilt. He was also to inform him of the punishment that he has decided for him. He was to face humiliation as God has decided to eliminate all his male descendants. In effect, he was to have no one to continue the dynasty after him. In this way, God was taking away the kingdom from Ahab. Jezebel, the architect of the crime also received her share of punishment. Interestingly, the story talks about the repentance of King Ahab. His repentance resounds in the words of the Responsorial Psalm today as the Psalmist acknowledges knowledge of his guilt and his awareness that his guilt is before God. In the case of Jezebel, nothing is said of her repentance. We can understand this to be an indication of her obstinacy or stubbornness in sin and her refusal to take responsibility for her murderous act.

The reading also shows the merciful character of God as he is ready to forgive repentant King Ahab. The punishment was to be delayed so that he would not suffer personally from it. However, what was said of his descendants was to be carried out, meaning that his descendants were not to inherit the throne. The readiness of God to forgive a person who repents shows that he does not want the death of the sinner. He desires that he/she recognises his/her sin and repent so that he/she may live. God’s love for his creation is at the basis of the invitation of Jesus in the Gospel Reading to pray for our enemies and those who persecute us. It is not easy to do so but we can be certain that our prayers can help the enemy realise the wrong he/she has done and repent. The repentance of the enemy is victory for the righteous and for the kingdom of God. We should be glad that we have contributed in our own small way to the realisation of a just world in which enemies turn into peacemakers and God’s kingdom becomes more visible in everyday life.

17 June/Monday/11th Week in Ordinary Time,

            1Kgs 21,1-16/Psa 5,2-3.5-6.7/Matt 5,38-42

 

First Reading      1 Kings 21:1-16 ·

Ahab covets Naboth's vineyard and Jezebel has him killed

 

Naboth of Jezreel had a vineyard close by the palace of Ahab king of Samaria, and Ahab said to Naboth, ‘Give me your vineyard to be my vegetable garden, since it adjoins my house; I will give you a better vineyard for it or, if you prefer, I will give you its worth in money.’ But Naboth answered Ahab, ‘The Lord forbid that I should give you the inheritance of my ancestors!’

Ahab went home gloomy and out of temper at the words of Naboth of Jezreel, ‘I will not give you the inheritance of my fathers.’ He lay down on his bed and turned his face away and refused to eat. His wife Jezebel came to him. ‘Why are you so dispirited’ she said ‘that you will not eat?’ He said, ‘I have been speaking to Naboth of Jezreel; I said: “Give me your vineyard either for money or, if you prefer, for another vineyard in exchange.” But he said, “I will not give you my vineyard.”’ Then his wife Jezebel said, ‘You make a fine king of Israel, and no mistake! Get up and eat; cheer up, and you will feel better; I will get you the vineyard of Naboth of Jezreel myself.’

So she wrote letters in Ahab’s name and sealed them with his seal, sending them to the elders and nobles who lived where Naboth lived. In the letters she wrote, ‘Proclaim a fast, and put Naboth in the forefront of the people. Confront him with a couple of scoundrels who will accuse him like this, “You have cursed God and the king.” Then take him outside and stone him to death.’

The men of Naboth’s town, the elders and nobles who lived in his town, did what Jezebel ordered, what was written in the letters she had sent them. They proclaimed a fast and put Naboth in the forefront of the people. Then the two scoundrels came and stood in front of him and made their accusation, ‘Naboth has cursed God and the king.’ They led him outside the town and stoned him to death. They then sent word to Jezebel, ‘Naboth has been stoned to death.’ When Jezebel heard that Naboth had been stoned to death, she said to Ahab, ‘Get up! Take possession of the vineyard which Naboth of Jezreel would not give you for money, for Naboth is no longer alive, he is dead.’ When Ahab heard that Naboth was dead, he got up to go down to the vineyard of Naboth of Jezreel and take possession of it.

 

Responsorial Psalm      Psalm 5:2-3,5-7

 

Give heed to my groaning, O Lord.

 

To my words give ear, O Lord,

    give heed to my groaning.

Attend to the sound of my cries,

    my King and my God.

 

You are no God who loves evil;

    no sinner is your guest.

The boastful shall not stand their ground

    before your face.

 

You hate all who do evil;

    you destroy all who lie.

The deceitful and bloodthirsty man

    the Lord detests.

 

Gospel Acclamation   John 14:23

 

Alleluia, alleluia!

If anyone loves me he will keep my word,

and my Father will love him,

and we shall come to him.

Alleluia!

 

Gospel   Matthew 5:38-42

Offer the wicked man no resistance

 

Jesus said to his disciples: ‘You have learnt how it was said: Eye for eye and tooth for tooth. But I say this to you: offer the wicked man no resistance. On the contrary, if anyone hits you on the right cheek, offer him the other as well; if a man takes you to law and would have your tunic, let him have your cloak as well. And if anyone orders you to go one mile, go two miles with him. Give to anyone who asks, and if anyone wants to borrow, do not turn away.’

 

Reflection

The First Reading narrates a story that borders on social justice. There are a number of injustices committed in the story against Naboth of Jezreel by both Ahab and the wife Jezebel. In the first place, Ahab portrayed himself as a king who had the right to lord it over his subjects. He placed his personal interest or happiness over and above those of his subjects. He offered to pay Naboth for the land or compensate him in kind for his vineyard simply because he wanted to have a vegetable garden in a palace in which he did not reside always. Ahab should have known better the priceless character of an ancestral property as clearly stipulated in Lev 25. Even if he knew this, he probably placed his personal interest over and above the law. Giving up an ancestral property would have entailed for Naboth the loss of position not only for himself but also for his entire posterity. In no time, Naboth and his posterity would have been reduced to royal prisoners.

Despite his great anger, Ahab dared no direct action against Naboth of Jezreel. It was the turn of the wife Jezebel to show her wickedness to the extent of murdering Naboth in order to satisfy the husband. She used deceit to achieve her purpose. It is as if she had no conscience and was ready to do all she could to obtain what she wanted. Her injustice was more than that of the husband as it involved the spilling of innocent blood. Unfortunately, when she worked out her plan, she also involved other people, fellow townspeople of Naboth of Jezreel who allowed themselves to be led into evil without using their conscience. They were ready to kill because it was an instruction of the king. They did not ask why Naboth was to die and they did not consider the implications of being partners in evil. The cry of the poor and innocent person reaches to the ears of the Lord as found in the Responsorial Psalm of this day. As a god who does not love evil, he will surely come to the aid of the poor and oppressed.

Even in contemporary society, we still have traces of social injustice that we need to denounce. We find rich and powerful people chasing out poor landowners in order to take possession of their ancestral lands for their selfish gains. Illiterate or uneducated property owners are deceived into giving up their valuable property for peanuts. Multinational companies in the guise of commercial farming deprive peasant farmers of their livelihood. When they do not agree to give up their ancestral inheritance, they are forcefully ejected in the name of national or industrial development. These unjust acts call for reaction from the social class but it must be done in a non-violent way if it is to be Christian.

The Gospel Reading today is a guide for us in our fight against injustice in human society. We should not pay evil for evil and we should not use violence to achieve our aim. We have to learn to adopt the pacific way in which Jesus won our salvation and use non-violent means to attain the desired goal.