Thus says the Lord God: I will break off a tender shoot from the top of a cedar and plant it. From the highest branches of the lofty cedar I will break off a tender one and plant it on a high and lofty mountain. On the mountain heights of Israel I will plant it, that it may bring forth branches and bear fruit and become a noble cedar…
EZEKIEL 17, 22-24
Thus says the Lord God:
I will break off a tender shoot from the top of a cedar and plant it.
From the highest branches of the lofty cedar I will break off a tender one and plant it on a high and lofty mountain. On the mountain heights of Israel I will plant it, that it may bring forth branches and bear fruit and become a noble cedar.
All birds of every kind will nest in it; they will nest in the shade of its branches. And all the trees of the field shall know that I am the Lord,
I bring down the tall tree and make the low tree tall; I dry up the green tree and make the dry tree flourish. I the Lord have spoken, and I will do it.
We are well acquainted with Ezekiel, the priest/prophet contemporary, like Jeremiah, of the destruction of Jerusalem (586) and the exile to Babylon.
In his writings (drafted by his disciples) there are threats against the covenants of the kings of Israel with the Egyptians, predictions of the destruction of Jerusalem, and also songs of hope like the one we read.
It is about maintaining the Davidic hope, the restoration of the kingdom and its success in the future. All of this is expressed through symbols, the old cedar, the shoot planted by God Himself, its spectacular growth, because it is the work of God Himself.
It is possible to apply all this to the Kingdom of God preached by Jesus, drawing a parallel with the parable of the mustard seed that we will read in the Gospel, but it seems a bit forced; the hope of Israel is a physical, political kingdom, and an exaltation of the people against others. It has little to do with “The Kingdom of God” according to Jesus.
2 CORINTHIANS 5, 6-10
We are always confident, even though we know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord. For we walk by faith, not by sight. Yes, we are of good courage, and we would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord. So whether we are at home or away, we make it our aim to please him. For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil.
During these three Sundays of Ordinary Time we will go through the second letter to the Corinthians. In reality, the three texts do not reflect at all the fundamental theme of the letter, which is very controversial, sometimes even threatening, due to the disturbances that have occurred in the community and (possibly) the opposition to Paul that exists in some sectors.
But the text we read is independent of all that: an exhortation to Christian hope and trust in God, with very beautiful phrases: “away from the Lord, we walk by faith (in God)”. It is the Christian life from the point of view of being “away”, that is, still far from The Homeland.
José Enrique Galarreta