Thursday of the 12th week of Ordinary Time

8Jehoiachin was eighteen years old when he had begun to reign, and he reigned for three months in Jerusalem. The name of his mother was Nehushta, the daughter of Elnathan, from Jerusalem. 9And he did evil before the Lord, in accord with all that his father had done. 10At that time, the servants of Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, ascended against Jerusalem. And the city was encircled with fortifications. 11And Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, went to the city, with his servants, so that he might fight against it. 12And Jehoiachin, the king of Judah, went out to the king of Babylon, he, and his mother, and his servants, and his leaders, and his eunuchs. And the king of Babylon received him, in the eighth year of his reign. 13And he took from there all the treasures of the house of the Lord, and the treasures of the house of the king. And he cut up all the gold vessels which Solomon, the king of Israel, had made for the temple of the Lord, in accord with the word of the Lord. 14And he carried away all of Jerusalem, and all the leaders, and all the strong men of the army, ten thousand, into captivity, with every artisan and craftsman. And no one was left behind, except the poor among the people of the land. 15Also, he carried away Jehoiachin into Babylon, and the mother of the king, and the wives of the king, and his eunuchs. And he led into captivity the judges of the land, from Jerusalem to Babylon, 16and all the robust men, seven thousand, and the artisans and craftsman, one thousand: all who were strong men and fit for war. And the king of Babylon led them away as captives, into Babylon. 17And he appointed Mattaniah, his uncle, in his place. And he imposed the name Zedekiah upon him.

1A Psalm of Asaph. O God, the Gentiles have entered into your inheritance; they have polluted your holy temple. They have set Jerusalem as a place to tend fruit trees.

2They have placed the dead bodies of your servants as food for the birds of the sky, the flesh of your saints for the beasts of the earth.

3They have poured out their blood like water all around Jerusalem, and there was no one who would bury them.

4We have become a disgrace to our neighbors, an object of ridicule and mockery to those who are around us.

5How long, O Lord? Will you be angry until the end? Will your zeal be kindled like a fire?

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8Do not remember our iniquities of the past. May your mercies quickly intercept us, for we have become exceedingly poor.

9Help us, O God, our Savior. And free us, Lord, for the glory of your name. And forgive us our sins for the sake of your name.

21Not all who say to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter into the kingdom of heaven. But whoever does the will of my Father, who is in heaven, the same shall enter into the kingdom of heaven. 22Many will say to me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and perform many powerful deeds in your name?’ 23And then will I disclose to them: ‘I have never known you. Depart from me, you workers of iniquity.’ 24Therefore, everyone who hears these words of mine and does them shall be compared to a wise man, who built his house upon the rock. 25And the rains descended, and the floods rose up, and the winds blew, and rushed upon that house, but it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock. 26And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them shall be like a foolish man, who built his house upon the sand. 27And the rains descended, and the floods rose up, and the winds blew, and rushed upon that house, and it did fall, and great was its ruin.” 28And it happened, when Jesus had completed these words, that the crowds were astonished at his doctrine. 29For he was teaching them as one who has authority, and not like their scribes and Pharisees.