ISAIAH 60:1-6
Arise, shine, Jerusalem, for your light has come,
the glory of the Lord rises upon you.
See, darkness covers the earth
and thick darkness is over the peoples,
but the Lord rises upon you
and his glory appears over you.
Nations will come to your light,
and kings to the brightness of your dawn.
Lift up your eyes and look around;
all assemble and come to you;
your sons come from afar,
and your daughters are carried on the hip.
Then you will look and be radiant,
your heart will throb and swell with joy;
the wealth on the seas will be brought to you,
to you the riches of the nations will come.
Herds of camels will cover your land,
young camels of Midian and Ephah.
And all from Sheba will come,
bearing gold and incense
and proclaiming the praise of the Lord.
Chapters 56-65 of the prophecy of Isaiah form a very complex set. They are probably a collection of oracles and sayings, written upon the return from Exile (around 500 BC). The situation of Israel is difficult. They have returned to the land, but existence is harsh. They have rebuilt the temple, but so modestly that it produces longing and discouragement. At this time, the faith of Israel is subjected to a very hard test, and the eyes of believers are turned to the future. A leap of faith is made in the glorious future of Jerusalem, when the Lord will restore it definitively, in a wonderful poetic language, full of symbols and metaphors, similar to the announcement of the Celestial Jerusalem that we read in Revelation.
In today’s text, the ideas about “Jerusalem as the center of the pilgrimage of all peoples” predominate, to where all nations turn their eyes.
EPHESIANS 3:2-6
Surely you have heard about the administration of God’s grace that was given to me for you, that is, the mystery made known to me by revelation, as I have already written briefly. In reading this, then, you will be able to understand my insight into the mystery of Christ, which was not made known to people in other generations as it has now been revealed by the Spirit to God’s holy apostles and prophets. This mystery is that through the gospel the Gentiles are heirs together with Israel, members together of one body, and sharers together in the promise in Christ Jesus.
We know well the letter to the Ephesians (more of a treatise than a letter), frequently used in the Eucharist. In this specific passage, Paul proclaims his specific vocation as an apostle, the essence of his ministry: he feels that he has been chosen by God to proclaim the Gospel to the Gentiles, to those who are not of the people of Israel. Paul says that this had not been revealed before to Israel, but that it is Jesus who breaks with the past and announces salvation to all peoples.
José Enrique Galarreta, S.J.