Reading 1, Hb 1:12—2:4
12 Surely you, Yahweh, are from ancient times, my holy God, who never dies! Yahweh, you have appointed him to execute judgement; O Rock, you have set him firm to punish.
13 Your eyes are too pure to rest on evil, you cannot look on at oppression. Why do you look on at those who play the traitor, why say nothing while the wicked swallows someone more upright than himself?
14 Why treat people like fish of the sea, like gliding creatures who have no leader?
15 They haul them all up on their hook, they catch them in their net, they sweep them up in their dragnet and then make merry and rejoice.
16 And so they offer a sacrifice to their net, and burn incense to their dragnet, for by these they get a rich living and live off the fat of the land.
17 Are they to go on emptying their net unceasingly, slaughtering the nations without pity?
1 I shall stand at my post, I shall station myself on my watch-tower, watching to see what he will say to me, what answer he will make to my complaints.
2 Then Yahweh answered me and said, 'Write the vision down, inscribe it on tablets to be easily read.
3 For the vision is for its appointed time, it hastens towards its end and it will not lie; although it may take some time, wait for it, for come it certainly will before too long.
4 'You see, anyone whose heart is not upright will succumb, but the upright will live through faithfulness.'
Gospel, Mt 17:14-20
14 As they were rejoining the crowd a man came up to him and went down on his knees before him.
15 'Lord,' he said, 'take pity on my son: he is demented and in a wretched state; he is always falling into fire and into water.
16 I took him to your disciples and they were unable to cure him.'
17 In reply, Jesus said, 'Faithless and perverse generation! How much longer must I be with you? How much longer must I put up with you? Bring him here to me.'
18 And when Jesus rebuked it the devil came out of the boy, who was cured from that moment.
19 Then the disciples came privately to Jesus. 'Why were we unable to drive it out?' they asked.
20 He answered, 'Because you have so little faith. In truth I tell you, if your faith is the size of a mustard seed you will say to this mountain, "Move from here to there," and it will move; nothing will be impossible for you.'
