For who will say, “What have you done?” or who will resist your judgment?
Who will accuse you for the destruction of nations that you made?
 Or who will come before you to plead as an advocate for the unrighteous?
For neither is there any god besides you, whose care is for all people, to whom you should prove that you have not judged unjustly; nor can any king or monarch confront you about those whom you have punished.
You are righteous and you rule all things righteously, deeming it alien to your power to condemn anyone who does not deserve to be punished.
For your strength is the source of righteousness, and your sovereignty over all causes you to spare all.
For you show your strength when people doubt the completeness of your power, and you rebuke any insolence among those who know it.
 Although you are sovereign in strength, you judge with mildness, and with great forbearance you govern us; for you have power to act whenever you choose.
Through such works you have taught your people that the righteous must be kind, and you have filled your children with good hope, because you give repentance for sins.
Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but that very Spirit intercedes with sighs too deep for words. And God, who searches the heart, knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.
Who will accuse you for the destruction of nations that you made?
 Or who will come before you to plead as an advocate for the unrighteous?
For neither is there any god besides you, whose care is for all people, to whom you should prove that you have not judged unjustly; nor can any king or monarch confront you about those whom you have punished.
You are righteous and you rule all things righteously, deeming it alien to your power to condemn anyone who does not deserve to be punished.
For your strength is the source of righteousness, and your sovereignty over all causes you to spare all.
For you show your strength when people doubt the completeness of your power, and you rebuke any insolence among those who know it.
 Although you are sovereign in strength, you judge with mildness, and with great forbearance you govern us; for you have power to act whenever you choose.
Through such works you have taught your people that the righteous must be kind, and you have filled your children with good hope, because you give repentance for sins.
Second reading Romans 8:26-27
Jesus put before them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to someone who sowed good seed in his field; but while everybody was asleep, an enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and then went away. So when the plants came up and bore grain, then the weeds appeared as well. And the slaves of the householder came and said to him, ‘Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? Where, then, did these weeds come from?’ He answered, ‘An enemy has done this.’ The slaves said to him, ‘Then do you want us to go and gather them?’ But he replied, ‘No; for in gathering the weeds you would uproot the wheat along with them. Let both of them grow together until the harvest; and at harvest time I will tell the reapers, Collect the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my barn.'”
He put before them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that someone took and sowed in his field; it is the smallest of all the seeds, but when it has grown it is the greatest of shrubs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches.” He told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed in with three measures of flour until all of it was leavened.” Jesus told the crowds all these things in parables; without a parable he told them nothing. This was to fulfill what had been spoken through the prophet: “I will open my mouth to speak in parables; I will proclaim what has been hidden from the foundation of the world.” Then he left the crowds and went into the house. And his disciples approached him, saying, “Explain to us the parable of the weeds of the field.” He answered, “The one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man; the field is the world, and the good seed are the children of the kingdom; the weeds ar the children of the evil one, and the enemy who sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are angels. Just as the 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 kingdom all causes of sin and all evildoers, and they will throw them into the furnace of fire, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Let anyone with ears listen!
Reflection
He put before them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that someone took and sowed in his field; it is the smallest of all the seeds, but when it has grown it is the greatest of shrubs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches.” He told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed in with three measures of flour until all of it was leavened.” Jesus told the crowds all these things in parables; without a parable he told them nothing. This was to fulfill what had been spoken through the prophet: “I will open my mouth to speak in parables; I will proclaim what has been hidden from the foundation of the world.” Then he left the crowds and went into the house. And his disciples approached him, saying, “Explain to us the parable of the weeds of the field.” He answered, “The one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man; the field is the world, and the good seed are the children of the kingdom; the weeds ar the children of the evil one, and the enemy who sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are angels. Just as the 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 kingdom all causes of sin and all evildoers, and they will throw them into the furnace of fire, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Let anyone with ears listen!
Reflection
By Jose Paulo Gonzales
The Gospel for today gives us three parables that describe the Kingdom of God. The Kingdom of God has been laid out in different stories to characterize it faithfully, but in our Catechism classes, we learn that the Kingdom of God is the reign of God.
Parables pertaining to the Kingdom of God typically present us with ranges of behavior, some we should veer away from, but one we should emulate.
In the first parable in today’s Gospel, the wheat can be likened to the good, and the weeds, the evil.
In the second parable, the good have been likened to a mustard seed which, while at first is unnoticeable, can grow up to be the most magnificent of trees—being of such great function with its size and sturdiness.
The third parable likens the good to the leaven in the bread, which, although sporadic and separately spread at first, can still permeate the whole and transform the bread, making it rise.
Today’s Gospel gives us insightful takes on how we could be as children of God. As wheat, we are planted in the world with the weed. We have read in the Bible how we should not conform to the pattern of the world (Romans 12:2), but to be in it to spread the Word (Mark 16:15), to be the salt that does not lose its taste (Matthew 5:13), and the light that shines good deeds to others for the Father’s glory (Matthew 5:14-16), not only ours. We could start as small as the mustard seed, or as sporadic as the leaven in the bread, but if we grow, develop some more, and pursue, we could still deliver what God has called us to do.
While we are planted with the weed and grow with the weed, we may suffer for a while in doing good, but we should not tire of doing good, for in the proper time, we will reap a harvest if we do not give up (Galatians 6:9). While we have small achievements and blessings from the Lord to celebrate here on earth, the culmination of our reaping is at the appointed time of harvest—the end of days.
The Gospel for today gives us three parables that describe the Kingdom of God. The Kingdom of God has been laid out in different stories to characterize it faithfully, but in our Catechism classes, we learn that the Kingdom of God is the reign of God.
Parables pertaining to the Kingdom of God typically present us with ranges of behavior, some we should veer away from, but one we should emulate.
In the first parable in today’s Gospel, the wheat can be likened to the good, and the weeds, the evil.
In the second parable, the good have been likened to a mustard seed which, while at first is unnoticeable, can grow up to be the most magnificent of trees—being of such great function with its size and sturdiness.
The third parable likens the good to the leaven in the bread, which, although sporadic and separately spread at first, can still permeate the whole and transform the bread, making it rise.
Today’s Gospel gives us insightful takes on how we could be as children of God. As wheat, we are planted in the world with the weed. We have read in the Bible how we should not conform to the pattern of the world (Romans 12:2), but to be in it to spread the Word (Mark 16:15), to be the salt that does not lose its taste (Matthew 5:13), and the light that shines good deeds to others for the Father’s glory (Matthew 5:14-16), not only ours. We could start as small as the mustard seed, or as sporadic as the leaven in the bread, but if we grow, develop some more, and pursue, we could still deliver what God has called us to do.
While we are planted with the weed and grow with the weed, we may suffer for a while in doing good, but we should not tire of doing good, for in the proper time, we will reap a harvest if we do not give up (Galatians 6:9). While we have small achievements and blessings from the Lord to celebrate here on earth, the culmination of our reaping is at the appointed time of harvest—the end of days.
Prayer
Lord, thank You for giving us Your parables so we could understand Your Kingdom better. As the wheat, please help us become quality harvest. As the mustard seed, please help us so that even if we start small, we still achieve the good You called us to do.
Please help us in our daily walk in life so we become more and more like Jesus, the perfect example of faith and good works.
May we radiate You forever even with our humble works, in Jesus’ most holy Name, Amen.
Lord, thank You for giving us Your parables so we could understand Your Kingdom better. As the wheat, please help us become quality harvest. As the mustard seed, please help us so that even if we start small, we still achieve the good You called us to do.
Please help us in our daily walk in life so we become more and more like Jesus, the perfect example of faith and good works.
May we radiate You forever even with our humble works, in Jesus’ most holy Name, Amen.
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