First Reading

Book of Exodus (Ex 32: 15-24, 30-34)

This people has committed a grave sin in making a god of gold for themselves.

Moses turned and came down the mountain
with the two tablets of the commandments in his hands,
tablets that were written on both sides, front and back;
tablets that were made by God,
having inscriptions on them that were engraved by God himself.
Now, when Joshua heard the noise of the people shouting,
he said to Moses,

“That sounds like a battle in the camp.”

But Moses answered,

“It does not sound like cries of victory,
nor does it sound like cries of defeat;
the sounds that I hear are cries of revelry.”

As he drew near the camp, he saw the calf and the dancing.
With that, Moses’ wrath flared up, so that he threw the tablets down
and broke them on the base of the mountain.
Taking the calf they had made, he fused it in the fire
and then ground it down to powder,
which he scattered on the water and made the children of Israel drink.

Moses asked Aaron,

“What did this people ever do to you
that you should lead them into so grave a sin?”

Aaron replied,

“Let not my lord be angry.
You know well enough how prone the people are to evil.
They said to me,

‘Make us a god to be our leader;
as for the man Moses who brought us out of the land of Egypt,
we do not know what has happened to him.’

So I told them,

‘Let anyone who has gold jewelry take it off.’

They gave it to me, and I threw it into the fire, and this calf came out.”

On the next day Moses said to the people,

“You have committed a grave sin.
I will go up to the LORD, then;
perhaps I may be able to make atonement for your sin.”

So Moses went back to the LORD and said,

“Ah, this people has indeed committed a grave sin
in making a god of gold for themselves!
If you would only forgive their sin!
If you will not, then strike me out of the book that you have written.”

The LORD answered,

“Him only who has sinned against me
will I strike out of my book.
Now, go and lead the people to the place I have told you.
My angel will go before you.
When it is time for me to punish, I will punish them for their sin.”

— The word of the Lord.

Responsorial Psalm

Ps 106: 19-20, 21-22, 23

Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good.

Our fathers made a calf in Horeb
and adored a molten image;
They exchanged their glory
for the image of a grass-eating bullock.

They forgot the God who had saved them,
who had done great deeds in Egypt,
Wondrous deeds in the land of Ham,
terrible things at the Red Sea.

Then he spoke of exterminating them,
but Moses, his chosen one,
Withstood him in the breach
to turn back his destructive wrath.

Gospel

Alleluia, alleluia.

The Father willed to give us birth by the word of truth
that we may be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures.

Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Matthew (Mt 13: 31-35)

It becomes a large bush, and the birds of the sky come and dwell in its branches.

Jesus proposed a parable to the crowds.

“The Kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed
that 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 yeast
that a woman took and mixed with three measures of wheat flour
until 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.

— The Gospel of the Lord.

First Reading

First Book of the Kings (1 Kgs 3: 5, 7-12)

You have asked for understanding.

The LORD appeared to Solomon in a dream at night.
God said,

“Ask something of me and I will give it to you.”

Solomon answered:

“O LORD, my God, you have made me, your servant, king
to succeed my father David;
but I am a mere youth, not knowing at all how to act.
I serve you in the midst of the people whom you have chosen,
a people so vast that it cannot be numbered or counted.
Give your servant, therefore, an understanding heart
to judge your people and to distinguish right from wrong.
For who is able to govern this vast people of yours?”

The LORD was pleased that Solomon made this request.
So God said to him:

“Because you have asked for this —
not for a long life for yourself,
nor for riches,
nor for the life of your enemies,
but for understanding so that you may know what is right —
I do as you requested.
I give you a heart so wise and understanding
that there has never been anyone like you up to now,
and after you there will come no one to equal you.”

— The word of the Lord.

Responsorial Psalm

Ps 119: 57, 72, 76-77, 127-128, 129-130

Lord, I love your commands.

I have said, O LORD, that my part
is to keep your words.
The law of your mouth is to me more precious
than thousands of gold and silver pieces.

Let your kindness comfort me
according to your promise to your servants.
Let your compassion come to me that I may live,
for your law is my delight.

For I love your command
more than gold, however fine.
For in all your precepts I go forward;
every false way I hate.

Wonderful are your decrees;
therefore I observe them.
The revelation of your words sheds light,
giving understanding to the simple.

Second Reading

Letter of Saint Paul to the Romans (Rom 8: 28-30)

He predestined us to be conformed to the image of his Son.

Brothers and sisters:
We know that all things work for good for those who love God,
who are called according to his purpose.
For those he foreknew he also predestined
to be conformed to the image of his Son,
so that he might be the firstborn
among many brothers and sisters.
And those he predestined he also called;
and those he called he also justified;
and those he justified he also glorified.

— The word of the Lord.

Gospel

Alleluia, alleluia.

Blessed are you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth;
for you have revealed to little ones the mysteries of the kingdom.

Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Matthew (Mt 13: 44-52)

He sells all that he has and buys that field.

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 merchant
searching 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 ashore
and 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 righteous
and 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 heaven
is like the head of a household
who brings from his storeroom both the new and the old.”

— The Gospel of the Lord.

Gospel

Alleluia, alleluia.

Blessed are you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth;
for you have revealed to little ones the mysteries of the kingdom.

Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Matthew (Mt 13: 44-46)

He sells all that he has and buys that field.

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 merchant
searching for fine pearls.
When he finds a pearl of great price,
he goes and sells all that he has and buys it.”

— The Gospel of the Lord.

First Reading

Book of Exodus (Ex 24: 3-8)

This is the blood of the covenant that the LORD has made with you.

When Moses came to the people
and related all the words and ordinances of the LORD,
they all answered with one voice,

“We will do everything that the LORD has told us.”

Moses then wrote down all the words of the LORD and,
rising early the next day,
he erected at the foot of the mountain an altar
and twelve pillars for the twelve tribes of Israel.
Then, having sent certain young men of the children of Israel
to offer burnt offerings and sacrifice young bulls
as peace offerings to the LORD,
Moses took half of the blood and put it in large bowls;
the other half he splashed on the altar.
Taking the book of the covenant, he read it aloud to the people,
who answered,

“All that the LORD has said, we will heed and do.”

Then he took the blood and sprinkled it on the people, saying,

“This is the blood of the covenant
that the LORD has made with you
in accordance with all these words of his.”

— The word of the Lord.

Responsorial Psalm

Ps 50: 1b-2, 5-6, 14-15

Offer to God a sacrifice of praise.

God the LORD has spoken and summoned the earth,
from the rising of the sun to its setting.
From Zion, perfect in beauty,
God shines forth.

“Gather my faithful ones before me,
those who have made a covenant with me by sacrifice.”
And the heavens proclaim his justice;
for God himself is the judge.

“Offer to God praise as your sacrifice
and fulfill your vows to the Most High;
Then call upon me in time of distress;
I will rescue you, and you shall glorify me.”

Gospel

Alleluia, alleluia.

Humbly welcome the word that has been planted in you
and is able to save your souls.

Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Matthew (Mt 13: 24-30)

Let them grow together until harvest.

Jesus proposed a parable to the crowds.

“The Kingdom of heaven may be likened to a man
who sowed good seed in his field.
While everyone was asleep his enemy came
and sowed weeds all through the wheat, and then went off.
When the crop grew and bore fruit, the weeds appeared as well.
The slaves of the householder came to him and said,
‘Master, did you not sow good seed in your field?
Where have the weeds come from?’
He answered, ‘An enemy has done this.’
His slaves said to him, ‘Do you want us to go and pull them up?’
He replied, ‘No, if you pull up the weeds
you might uproot the wheat along with them.
Let them grow together until harvest;
then at harvest time I will say to the harvesters,
First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles for burning;
but gather the wheat into my barn.’”

— The Gospel of the Lord.

Gospel

Alleluia, alleluia.

I am the light of the world, says the Lord;
whoever follows me will have the light of life.

Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Luke (Lk 10: 38-42)

Martha, Martha, you are anxious and worried about many things.

Jesus entered a village
where a woman whose name was Martha welcomed him.
She had a sister named Mary
who sat beside the Lord at his feet listening to him speak.
Martha, burdened with much serving, came to him and said,

“Lord, do you not care
that my sister has left me by myself to do the serving?
Tell her to help me.”

The Lord said to her in reply,

“Martha, Martha, you are anxious and worried about many things.
There is need of only one thing.
Mary has chosen the better part
and it will not be taken from her.”

— The Gospel of the Lord.