In a vision I, Daniel, saw during the night,
the four winds of heaven stirred up the great sea,
from which emerged four immense beasts,
each different from the others.
The first was like a lion, but with eagle's wings.
While I watched, the wings were plucked;
it was raised from the ground to stand on two feet
like a man, and given a human mind.
The second was like a bear; it was raised up on one side,
and among the teeth in its mouth were three tusks.
It was given the order, "Up, devour much flesh."
After this I looked and saw another beast, like a leopard;
on its back were four wings like those of a bird,
and it had four heads.
To this beast dominion was given.
After this, in the visions of the night I saw the fourth beast,
different from all the others,
terrifying, horrible, and of extraordinary strength;
it had great iron teeth with which it devoured and crushed,
and what was left it trampled with its feet.
I was considering the ten horns it had,
when suddenly another, a little horn, sprang out of their midst,
and three of the previous horns were torn away to make room for it.
This horn had eyes like a man,
and a mouth that spoke arrogantly.
As I watched,
Thrones were set up
and the Ancient One took His throne.
His clothing was snow bright,
and the hair on His head as white as wool;
His throne was flames of fire,
with wheels of burning fire.
A surging stream of fire
flowed out from where he sat;
Thousands upon thousands were ministering to Him,
and myriads upon myriads attended Him.
The court was convened, and the books were opened.
I watched, then, from the first of the arrogant words
which the horn spoke, until the beast was slain
and its body thrown into the fire to be burnt up.
The other beasts, which also lost their dominion,
were granted a prolongation of life for a time and a season.
As the visions during the night continued, I saw
One like a son of man coming,
on the clouds of heaven;
When He reached the Ancient One
and was presented before Him,
He received dominion, glory, and kingship;
nations and peoples of every language serve Him.
His dominion is an everlasting dominion
that shall not be taken away,
His kingship shall not be destroyed.
Responsorial Psalm DN 3:75, 76, 77, 78, 79, 80, 81 R. Give glory and eternal praise to Him!
"Mountains and hills, bless the Lord;
praise and exalt Him above all forever." R. Give glory and eternal praise to Him!
"Everything growing from the earth, bless the Lord;
praise and exalt Him above all forever. R. Give glory and eternal praise to him!
"You springs, bless the Lord;
praise and exalt Him above all forever." R. Give glory and eternal praise to him!
"Seas and rivers, bless the Lord;
praise and exalt Him above all forever." R. Give glory and eternal praise to Him!
"You dolphins and all water creatures, bless the Lord;
praise and exalt Him above all forever." R. Give glory and eternal praise to Him!
"All you birds of the air, bless the Lord;
praise and exalt Him above all forever." R. Give glory and eternal praise to Him!
"All you beasts, wild and tame, bless the Lord;
praise and exalt Him above all forever." R. Give glory and eternal praise to Him!
Jesus told His disciples a parable. "Consider the fig tree and all the other trees. When their buds burst open, you see for yourselves and know that summer is now near; in the same way, when you see these things happening, know that the Kingdom of God is near. Amen, I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things have taken place. Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will not pass away."
Verbum Domini
For the glory of God, His Majesty in Heaven. Our Eternal Lord and Father.
I, Daniel, found my spirit anguished within its covering of flesh,
and I was terrified by the visions of my mind.
I approached one of those present
and asked him what all this meant in truth;
in answer, he made known to me the meaning of the things:
"These four great beasts stand for four kingdoms
which shall arise on the earth.
But the holy ones of the Most High shall receive the kingship,
to possess it forever and ever."
But I wished to make certain about the fourth beast,
so very terrible and different from the others,
devouring and crushing with its iron teeth and bronze claws,
and trampling with its feet what was left;
about the ten horns on its head, and the other one that sprang up,
before which three horns fell;
about the horn with the eyes and the mouth that spoke arrogantly,
which appeared greater than its fellows.
For, as I watched, that horn made war against the holy ones
and was victorious until the Ancient One arrived;
judgment was pronounced in favor of the holy ones of the Most High,
and the time came when the holy ones possessed the kingdom.
He answered me thus:
"The fourth beast shall be a fourth kingdom on earth
different from all the others;
It shall devour the whole earth,
beat it down, and crush it.
The ten horns shall be ten kings
rising out of that kingdom;
another shall rise up after them,
Different from those before him,
who shall lay low three kings.
He shall speak against the Most High
and oppress the holy ones of the Most High,
thinking to change the feast days and the law.
They shall be handed over to him
for a year, two years, and a half-year.
But when the court is convened,
and his power is taken away
by final and absolute destruction,
Then the kingship and dominion and majesty
of all the kingdoms under the heavens
shall be given to the holy people of the Most High,
Whose Kingdom shall be everlasting:
all dominions shall serve and obey Him."
R. Give glory and eternal praise to Him.
"You sons of men, bless the Lord;
praise and exalt Him above all forever." R. Give glory and eternal praise to Him.
"O Israel, bless the Lord;
praise and exalt Him above all forever." R. Give glory and eternal praise to Him.
"Priests of the Lord, bless the Lord;
praise and exalt Him above all forever." R. Give glory and eternal praise to Him.
"Servants of the Lord, bless the Lord;
praise and exalt Him above all forever." R. Give glory and eternal praise to Him.
"Spirits and souls of the just, bless the Lord;
praise and exalt Him above all forever." R. Give glory and eternal praise to Him.
"Holy men of humble heart, bless the Lord;
praise and exalt Him above all forever." R. Give glory and eternal praise to Him.
Jesus said to His disciples:
"Beware that your hearts do not become drowsy
from carousing and drunkenness
and the anxieties of daily life,
and that day catch you by surprise like a trap.
For that day will assault everyone
who lives on the face of the earth.
Be vigilant at all times
and pray that you have the strength
to escape the tribulations that are imminent
and to stand before the Son of Man."
IS 63:16B-17, 19B; 64:2-7
You, LORD, are our father,
our redeemer You are named forever.
Why do You let us wander, O LORD, from Your ways,
and harden our hearts so that we fear You not?
Return for the sake of Your servants,
the tribes of Your heritage.
Oh, that You would rend the heavens and come down,
with the mountains quaking before You,
while You wrought awesome deeds we could not hope for,
such as they had not heard of from of old.
No ear has ever heard, no eye ever seen, any God but You
doing such deeds for those who wait for him.
Would that You might meet us doing right,
that we were mindful of You in our ways!
Behold, You are angry, and we are sinful;
all of us have become like unclean people,
all our good deeds are like polluted rags;
we have all withered like leaves,
and our guilt carries us away like the wind.
There is none who calls upon Your Name,
who rouses himself to cling to You;
for you have hidden Your face from us
and have delivered us up to our guilt.
Yet, O LORD, You are our father;
we are the clay and You the potter:
we are all the work of Your hands.
R. (4) Lord, make us turn to You; let us see Your face and we shall be saved.
O Shepherd of Israel, hearken,
from Your throne upon the cherubim, shine forth.
Rouse Your power,
and come to save us. R. Lord, make us turn to you; let us see your face and we shall be saved.
Once again, O LORD of hosts,
look down from heaven, and see;
take care of this vine,
and protect what Your right hand has planted
the son of man whom You Yourself made strong. R. Lord, make us turn to You; let us see Your face and we shall be saved.
May Your help be with the man of Your right hand,
with the son of man whom You Yourself made strong.
Then we will no more withdraw from You;
give us new life, and we will call upon Your Name. R. Lord, make us turn to You; let us see Your face and we shall be saved.
Brothers and sisters:
Grace to you and peace from God our Father
and the Lord Jesus Christ.
I give thanks to my God always on your account
for the grace of God bestowed on you in Christ Jesus,
that in him you were enriched in every way,
with all discourse and all knowledge,
as the testimony to Christ was confirmed among you,
so that you are not lacking in any spiritual gift
as you wait for the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ.
He will keep you firm to the end,
irreproachable on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.
God is faithful,
and by Him you were called to fellowship with His Son,
Jesus Christ our Lord.
Jesus said to His disciples:
"Be watchful! Be alert!
You do not know when the time will come.
It is like a man traveling abroad.
He leaves home and places his servants in charge,
each with his own work,
and orders the gatekeeper to be on the watch.
Watch, therefore;
you do not know when the Lord of the house is coming,
whether in the evening, or at midnight,
or at cockcrow, or in the morning.
May he not come suddenly and find you sleeping.
What I say to you, I say to all: 'Watch!'"
This is what Isaiah, son of Amoz,
saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem.
In days to come,
The mountain of the LORD's house
shall be established as the highest mountain
and raised above the hills.
All nations shall stream toward it;
many peoples shall come and say:
"Come, let us climb the LORD's mountain,
to the house of the God of Jacob,
That He may instruct us in His ways,
and we may walk in His paths."
For from Zion shall go forth instruction,
and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.
He shall judge between the nations,
and impose terms on many peoples.
They shall beat their swords into plowshares
and their spears into pruning hooks;
One nation shall not raise the sword against another,
nor shall they train for war again.
O house of Jacob, come,
let us walk in the light of the LORD!
R. Let us go rejoicing to the house of the Lord.
I rejoiced because they said to me,
"We will go up to the house of the LORD."
And now we have set foot
within your gates, O Jerusalem. R. Let us go rejoicing to the house of the Lord.
Jerusalem, built as a city
with compact unity.
To it the tribes go up,
the tribes of the LORD. R. Let us go rejoicing to the house of the Lord.
According to the decree for Israel,
to give thanks to the Name of the LORD.
In it are set up judgment seats,
seats for the house of David. R. Let us go rejoicing to the house of the Lord.
Pray for the peace of Jerusalem!
May those who love you prosper!
May peace be within your walls,
prosperity in your buildings. R. Let us go rejoicing to the house of the Lord.
Because of my relatives and friends
I will say, "Peace be within you!"
Because of the house of the LORD, our God,
I will pray for your good. R. Let us go rejoicing to the house of the Lord.
When Jesus entered Capernaum, a centurion approached Him and appealed to Him, saying, "Lord, my servant is lying at home paralyzed, suffering dreadfully." He said to him, "I will come and cure him." The centurion said in reply, "Lord, I am not worthy to have You enter under my roof; only say the word and my servant will be healed. For I too am a man subject to authority, with soldiers subject to me. And I say to one, 'Go,' and he goes; and to another, 'Come here,' and he comes; and to my slave, 'Do this,' and he does it." When Jesus heard this, He was amazed and said to those following Him, "Amen, I say to you, in no one in Israel have I found such faith. I say to you, many will come from the east and the west, and will recline with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob at the banquet in the Kingdom of heaven."
On that day,
A Shoot shall sprout from the stump of Jesse,
and from his roots a Bud shall blossom.
The Spirit of the LORD shall rest upon Him:
a Spirit of wisdom and of understanding,
A Spirit of counsel and of strength,
a Spirit of knowledge and of fear of the LORD,
and His delight shall be the fear of the LORD.
Not by appearance shall He judge,
nor by hearsay shall He decide,
But He shall judge the poor with justice,
and decide aright for the land's afflicted.
He shall strike the ruthless with the rod of His mouth,
and with the breath of His lips He shall slay the wicked.
Justice shall be the band around His waist,
and faithfulness a belt upon His hips.
Then the wolf shall be a guest of the lamb,
and the leopard shall lie down with the kid;
The calf and the young lion shall browse together,
with a little child to guide them.
The cow and the bear shall be neighbors,
together their young shall rest;
the lion shall eat hay like the ox.
The baby shall play by the cobra's den,
and the child lay his hand on the adder's lair.
There shall be no harm or ruin on all My holy mountain;
for the earth shall be filled with knowledge of the LORD,
as water covers the sea.
On that day,
The root of Jesse,
set up as a signal for the nations,
The Gentiles shall seek out,
for His dwelling shall be glorious.
R. (see 7) Justice shall flourish in His time, and fullness of peace for ever.
O God, with Your judgment endow the king,
and with Your justice, the king's son;
He shall govern Your people with justice
and Your afflicted ones with judgment. R. Justice shall flourish in His time, and fullness of peace for ever.
Justice shall flower in His days,
and profound peace, till the moon be no more.
May He rule from sea to sea,
and from the River to the ends of the earth. R. Justice shall flourish in His time, and fullness of peace for ever.
He shall rescue the poor when he cries out,
and the afflicted when he has no one to help him.
He shall have pity for the lowly and the poor;
the lives of the poor He shall save.
R. Justice shall flourish in His time, and fullness of peace for ever.
May His Name be blessed forever;
as long as the sun His Name shall remain.
In Him shall all the tribes of the earth be blessed;
all the nations shall proclaim his happiness. R. Justice shall flourish in His time, and fullness of peace for ever.
Alleluia
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Behold, our Lord shall come with power;
He will enlighten the eyes of His servants. R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Jesus rejoiced in the Holy Spirit and said, "I give You praise, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, for although You have hidden these things from the wise and the learned You have revealed them to the childlike. Yes, Father, such has been Your gracious will. All things have been handed over to Me by My Father. No one knows who the Son is except the Father, and who the Father is except the Son and anyone to whom the Son wishes to reveal him."
Turning to the disciples in private He said, "Blessed are the eyes that see what you see. For I say to you, many prophets and kings desired to see what you see, but did not see it, and to hear what you hear, but did not hear it."
