June 14, 2015

Reading

The Book of the Prophet Ezekiel      17: 22-24

17:22	Thus says the Lord God: “I myself will take from the kernel of the exalted cedar, and I will establish it. I will tear off a tender twig from the top of its branches, and I will plant it on a mountain, lofty and exalted.
17:23	On the sublime mountains of Israel, I will plant it. And it shall spring forth in buds and bear fruit, and it shall be a great cedar. And all the birds will live under it, and every bird will make its nest under the shadow of its branches.
17:24	And all the trees of the regions will know that I, the Lord, have brought low the sublime tree, and have exalted the lowly tree, and have dried up the green tree, and have caused the dry tree to flourish. I, the Lord, have spoken and acted.”

Second Reading

The Second Letter of of Saint Paul to the Corinthians    5: 6-10

5:6	Therefore, we are ever confident, knowing that, while we are in the body, we are on a pilgrimage in the Lord.
5:7	For we walk by means of faith, and not by sight.
5:8	So we are confident, and we have the good will to be on a pilgrimage in the body, so as to be present to the Lord.
5:9	And thus we struggle, whether absent or present, to please him.
5:10	For it is necessary for us to be manifested before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive the proper things of the body, according to his behavior, whether it was good or evil.

Gospel

The Holy Gospel According to Mark     4: 26-34

4:26	And he said: “The kingdom of God is like this: it is as if a man were to cast seed on the land.
4:27	And he sleeps and he arises, night and day. And the seed germinates and grows, though he does not know it.
4:28	For the earth bears fruit readily: first the plant, then the ear, next the full grain in the ear.
4:29	And when the fruit has been produced, immediately he sends out the sickle, because the harvest has arrived.”
4:30	And he said: “To what should we compare the kingdom of God? Or to what parable should we compare it?
4:31	It is like a grain of mustard seed which, when it has been sown in the earth, is less than all the seeds which are in the earth.
4:32	And when it is sown, it grows up and becomes greater than all the plants, and it produces great branches, so much so that the birds of the air are able to live under its shadow.”
4:33	And with many such parables he spoke the word to them, as much as they were able to hear.
4:34	But he did not speak to them without a parable. Yet separately, he explained all things to his disciples.