The readings of this day speak of the glory of His divine presence, which the church always proclaims in her worship, care and teaching, and which souls proclaim in their repentance and thirst for Him.

Solomon’s proverbs begin with the declaration that the glory of His presence is always waiting for us to diligently seek it.

“I love those who love me, And those who seek me diligently will find me. Riches and honor are with me, Enduring riches and righteousness.

My fruit is better than gold, yes, than fine gold,” (Proverbs 8)

 

The book of Isaiah emphasizes the overflow of the Spirit and the richness of fruits for the thirsty who are never separated from the streams of water.

“Fear not, O Jacob My servant; And you, Jeshurun, whom I have chosen.

For I will pour water on him who is thirsty, And floods on the dry ground; I will pour My Spirit on your descendants, And My blessing on your offspring;

They will spring up among the grass Like willows by the watercourses.” (Isaiah 44)

The book of Job explains how God speaks to people to reveal Himself to them and lead them to repentance.

“For God may speak in one way, or in another, Yet man does not perceive it.

In a dream, in a vision of the night, When deep sleep falls upon men, While slumbering on their beds,

Then He opens the ears of men, And seals their instruction. In order to turn man from his deed, And conceal pride from man, He keeps back his soul from the Pit,” (Job 33)

 

He also shows the glory of His presence to the penitents.”He shall pray to God, and He will delight in him, He shall

see His face with joy, For He restores to man His righteousness.

Then he looks at men and says, ‘I have sinned, and perverted what was right, And it did not profit me.’

He will redeem his soul from going down to the Pit, And his life shall see the light. “Behold, God works all these things, Twice, in fact, three times with a man,

To bring back his soul from the Pit, That he may be enlightened with the light of life.” (Job 33)

And the Matins Psalm paints a picture of true repentance.

“My clothing was sackcloth; I humbled myself with fasting; And my prayer would return to my own heart.” (Psalms 35)

 

In the Matins gospel, the multitudes bear witness to the Lord Jesus with the richness and sweetness of His word.”So all bore witness to Him, and marveled at the gracious words

which proceeded out of His mouth. And they said, “Is this not Joseph’s son?” (Luke 4)

But He also warns against resisting His words and refusing His presence, so the Lord leaves the place.

“and rose up and thrust Him out of the city; and they led Him to the brow of the hill on which their city was built, that they might throw Him down over the cliff.Then passing through the midst of them, He went His way.” (Luke 4)

 

Pauline Epistle shows the beauty, power and glory of His presence in the repentance of the simple and unbelievers and their testimony of the sincerity of faith.

“But if all prophesy, and an unbeliever or an uninformed person comes in, he is convinced by all, he is convicted by all. And thus the secrets of his heart are revealed; and so, falling down on his face,

he will worship God and report that God is truly among you. (1 Corinthians 14)

 

Catholic Epistle, on the other hand, warns against deceiving ourselves and losing our sense of self-truth.

“But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.

For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was.”

(James 1)

Praxis reveals the power of the glory of His presence before the magic of the world and the works of the devil and the impact of this on the return of many to the Lord Jesus.

” Now God worked unusual miracles by the hands of Paul, so that even handkerchiefs or aprons were brought from his body to the sick, and the diseases left them and the evil spirits went out of them.

And the evil spirit answered and said, “Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are you?”

Then the man in whom the evil spirit was leaped on them, overpowered them, and prevailed against them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded. and fear fell on them all, and the name of the Lord Jesus was magnified.

And many who had believed came confessing and telling their deeds.” (Acts 19)

In the psalm of the liturgy, the soul expresses its intense thirst for the source of the water of life.

“As the deer pants for the water brooks, So pants my soul for You, O God.” (Psalms 42)

The Gospel of the liturgy concludes with the Father’s declaration to St. Peter of the divinity of the Son and the son of God’s declaration of His salvation sufferings, that is, the connection of the divine revelation with the cross.

“He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” Peter answered and said, “The Christ of God.”

saying, “The Son of Man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised the third day.”

(Luke 9)

The summary of the readings

VWe need to be diligent in requesting His presence.

The Proverbs of Solomon

God gives from the overflow of His spirit and His riches to the thirsty who long for Him. The book of Isaiah

God speaks in different ways, announcing His presence to draw everyone to repentance.The Book of Job

Sackcloth and fasting express the breaking of repentance.The Matins psalm

The glory and sweetness of His divine presence and the word of His grace. The Matins gospel

The glory of His presence in the church rebukes unbelievers. Pauline Epistle

We lose our sense of ourselves and of His presence in our lives when we do not live by His word. Catholic Epistle

The power and glory of His presence in front of the magic of the world and the forces of darkness.Praxis

The soul’s intense thirst for the water of life.The liturgy psalm

The fullness of the revelation of the son of God in His death and resurrection. The Gospel of the liturgy.