Tuesday of the Third Week of Advent

Today's Scripture

Today’s readings continue the Advent theme of the coming of Christ, with a particular focus on His final coming at the end of history. The reading from the Gospel of St. Matthew as well as the first portion of the first reading from the Book of the Prophet Zephaniah both tell of future judgment. We could go in many directions with the rich readings presented to us today, but I especially want to focus on the second half of the first reading from Zephaniah, in light of Jesus’ first coming.

St. Matthew’s Gospel reading for today mentions how “tax collectors and prostitutes are entering the Kingdom of God before” the religious leaders Jesus is addressing (21:31). This can serve as a stern warning to religious leaders who do not recognize their own sinfulness and need of repentance. But it should be a word of comfort to us, we who recognize we are in fact sinners in need of Jesus’ healing. In a way, that’s the message of Zephaniah for today, and it’s the message of Advent.

To the faithful remnant of the divided and scattered people of Israel, Zephaniah exhorts: “On that day you need not be ashamed of all your deeds, your rebellious actions against me” (3:11). We too need not fear though we have sinned, and doubtless will sin again. The prophets of the Old Testament interpret Israel’s misfortune as a response to their sins, but the prophets do not simply envision the misfortunes as punishments from God, nor simply as consequences for their actions. In the grand vision of salvation history, the prophets see the misfortunes as something far greater: as the very means by which God heals His people. God transforms the very misfortunes themselves into Israel’s greatest blessings. The Old Testament depicts the people going astray, even killing their own prophets. And then, in exile, the Old Testament shows the people’s repentance, their heartfelt cries to the Lord, their penance, and their longing to turn back to God. This becomes the theological link to their return from exile.

This is the context for that first Advent in anxious anticipation of Jesus’ coming in Bethlehem at that very first Christmas. This message of the Lord’s consolation even for those who have sinned, this message of divine cleansing, is for all who “take refuge in the name of the Lord” (Zephaniah 3:12). 

 Let us be among those who seek refuge in the Lord’s name. If we seek refuge in God, through prayer and through trust, His name will be even sweeter on our lips at Christmas time, and at the end of our lives. The first step is repentance, and only then can our exile away from God be brought to an end. After we have turned back to God with His grace, we can experience the warmth of His forgiveness and become the “people humble and lowly” (Zephaniah 3:12) that God wants us to be, so that we too can go on pilgrimage to meet our God, born as one of us, humble and lowly amidst the animals in Bethlehem.

- Jeff Morrow