August 20, 2014

Reading

The Book of the Prophet Ezekiel    34: 1-11

34:1	And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
34:2	“Son of man, prophesy about the shepherds of Israel. Prophesy, and you shall say to the shepherds: Thus says the Lord God: Woe to the shepherds of Israel who feed themselves! Should not the flocks be fed by the shepherds?
34:3	You consumed the milk, and you covered yourselves with the wool, and you killed what was fattened. But my flock you did not feed.
34:4	What was weak, you have not strengthened, and what was sick, you have not healed. What was broken, you have not bound, and what was cast aside, you have not led back again, and what was lost, you have not sought. Instead, you ruled over them with severity and with power.
34:5	And my sheep were scattered, because there was no shepherd. And they became devoured by all the wild beasts of the field, and they were dispersed.
34:6	My sheep have wandered to every mountain and to every exalted hill. And my flocks have been scattered across the face of the earth. And there was no one who sought them; there was no one, I say, who sought them.
34:7	Because of this, O shepherds, listen to the word of the Lord:
34:8	As I live, says the Lord God, since my flocks have become a prey, and my sheep have been devoured by all the wild beasts of the field, since there was no shepherd, for my shepherds did not seek my flock, but instead the shepherds fed themselves, and they did not feed my flocks:
34:9	because of this, O shepherds, listen to the word of the Lord:
34:10	Thus says the Lord God: Behold, I myself will be over the shepherds. I will require my flock at their hand, and I will cause them to cease, so that they no longer refrain from feeding the flock. Neither will the shepherds feed themselves any more. And I will deliver my flock from their mouth; and it will no longer be food for them.
34:11	For thus says the Lord God: Behold, I myself will seek my sheep, and I myself will visit them.

Gospel

The Holy Gospel According to Matthew   20: 1-16

20:1	“The kingdom of heaven is like the father of a family who went out in early morning to lead workers into his vineyard.
20:2	Then, having made an agreement with the workers for one denarius per day, he sent them into his vineyard.
20:3	And going out about the third hour, he saw others standing idle in the marketplace.
20:4	And he said to them, ‘You may go into my vineyard, too, and what I will give you will be just.’
20:5	So they went forth. But again, he went out about the sixth, and about the ninth hour, and he acted similarly.
20:6	Yet truly, about the eleventh hour, he went out and found others standing, and he said to them, ‘Why have you stood here idle all day?’
20:7	They say to him, ‘Because no one has hired us.’ He said to them, ‘You also may go into my vineyard.’
20:8	And when evening had arrived, the lord of the vineyard said to his manager, ‘Call the workers and pay them their wages, beginning from the last, even to the first.’
20:9	And so, when those who had arrived about the eleventh hour came forward, each received a single denarius.
20:10	Then when the first ones also came forward, they considered that they would receive more. But they, too, received one denarius.
20:11	And upon receiving it, they murmured against the father of the family,
20:12	saying, ‘These last have worked for one hour, and you have made them equal to us, who worked bearing the weight and heat of the day.’
20:13	But responding to one of them, he said: ‘Friend, I caused you no injury. Did you not agree with me to one denarius?
20:14	Take what is yours and go. But it is my will to give to this last, just as to you.
20:15	And is it not lawful for me to do what I will? Or is your eye wicked because I am good?’
20:16	So then, the last shall be first, and the first shall be last. For many are called, but few are chosen.”