Fr Paul reads from the Gospel of Matthew (12: 14-21) in which Jesus, knowing the Pharisees were starting to plot against him, warns the crowd that followed him not make him known to fulfil what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah.
Fr Paul says in this Gospel, Matthew, after stressing the authority of Jesus, fills out the picture of Jesus by a long quotation from the Old Testament. In fact, it is the longest quotation from the Old Testament that Matthew uses. The quotation is from Isaiah and it is about the servant of the Lord. This quotation emphasises three things: 1. The beloved servant is especially close to God as his Son 2. The servant’s mission is a gentle mission of healing; and 3. The mission is not just to Jews, but it will also bring hope to the Gentiles. Fr Paul says, with this in mind, we might ask ourselves during our reflection, ‘How can I be a servant of the Lord, like Jesus?’.
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