DAY 151: MAY 2

2 Samuel 23:8-24:25

New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (NRSVCE)

David’s Mighty Men

⁸ These are the names of the warriors whom David had: Josheb-basshebeth a Tahchemonite; he was chief of the Three;^[a] he wielded his spear^[b] against eight hundred whom he killed at one time.
⁹ Next to him among the three warriors was Eleazar son of Dodo son of Ahohi. He was with David when they defied the Philistines who were gathered there for battle. The Israelites withdrew, ¹⁰ but he stood his ground. He struck down the Philistines until his arm grew weary, though his hand clung to the sword. The Lord brought about a great victory that day. Then the people came back to him—but only to strip the dead.
¹¹ Next to him was Shammah son of Agee, the Hararite. The Philistines gathered together at Lehi, where there was a plot of ground full of lentils; and the army fled from the Philistines. ¹² But he took his stand in the middle of the plot, defended it, and killed the Philistines; and the Lord brought about a great victory.
¹³ Towards the beginning of harvest three of the thirty^[c] chiefs went down to join David at the cave of Adullam, while a band of Philistines was encamped in the valley of Rephaim. ¹⁴ David was then in the stronghold; and the garrison of the Philistines was then at Bethlehem. ¹⁵ David said longingly, “O that someone would give me water to drink from the well of Bethlehem that is by the gate!” ¹⁶ Then the three warriors broke through the camp of the Philistines, drew water from the well of Bethlehem that was by the gate, and brought it to David. But he would not drink of it; he poured it out to the Lord, ¹⁷ for he said, “The Lord forbid that I should do this. Can I drink the blood of the men who went at the risk of their lives?” Therefore he would not drink it. The three warriors did these things.
¹⁸ Now Abishai son of Zeruiah, the brother of Joab, was chief of the Thirty.^[d] With his spear he fought against three hundred men and killed them, and won a name beside the Three. ¹⁹ He was the most renowned of the Thirty,^[e] and became their commander; but he did not attain to the Three.
²⁰ Benaiah son of Jehoiada was a valiant warrior^[f] from Kabzeel, a doer of great deeds; he struck down two sons of Ariel^[g] of Moab. He also went down and killed a lion in a pit on a day when snow had fallen. ²¹ And he killed an Egyptian, a handsome man. The Egyptian had a spear in his hand; but Benaiah went against him with a staff, snatched the spear out of the Egyptian’s hand, and killed him with his own spear. ²² Such were the things Benaiah son of Jehoiada did, and won a name beside the three warriors. ²³ He was renowned among the Thirty, but he did not attain to the Three. And David put him in charge of his bodyguard.
²⁴ Among the Thirty were Asahel brother of Joab; Elhanan son of Dodo of Bethlehem; ²⁵ Shammah of Harod; Elika of Harod; ²⁶ Helez the Paltite; Ira son of Ikkesh of Tekoa; ²⁷ Abiezer of Anathoth; Mebunnai the Hushathite; ²⁸ Zalmon the Ahohite; Maharai of Netophah; ²⁹ Heleb son of Baanah of Netophah; Ittai son of Ribai of Gibeah of the Benjaminites; ³⁰ Benaiah of Pirathon; Hiddai of the torrents of Gaash; ³¹ Abi-albon the Arbathite; Azmaveth of Bahurim; ³² Eliahba of Shaalbon; the sons of Jashen: Jonathan ³³ son of^[h] Shammah the Hararite; Ahiam son of Sharar the Hararite; ³⁴ Eliphelet son of Ahasbai of Maacah; Eliam son of Ahithophel the Gilonite; ³⁵ Hezro^[i] of Carmel; Paarai the Arbite; ³⁶ Igal son of Nathan of Zobah; Bani the Gadite; ³⁷ Zelek the Ammonite; Naharai of Beeroth, the armor-bearer of Joab son of Zeruiah; ³⁸ Ira the Ithrite; Gareb the Ithrite; ³⁹ Uriah the Hittite—thirty-seven in all.

David’s Census of Israel and Judah

24 Again the anger of the Lord was kindled against Israel, and he incited David against them, saying, “Go, count the people of Israel and Judah.” ² So the king said to Joab and the commanders of the army,^[j] who were with him, “Go through all the tribes of Israel, from Dan to Beer-sheba, and take a census of the people, so that I may know how many there are.” ³ But Joab said to the king, “May the Lord your God increase the number of the people a hundredfold, while the eyes of my lord the king can still see it! But why does my lord the king want to do this?” ⁴ But the king’s word prevailed against Joab and the commanders of the army. So Joab and the commanders of the army went out from the presence of the king to take a census of the people of Israel. ⁵ They crossed the Jordan, and began from^[k] Aroer and from the city that is in the middle of the valley, toward Gad and on to Jazer. ⁶ Then they came to Gilead, and to Kadesh in the land of the Hittites;^[l] and they came to Dan, and from Dan^[m] they went around to Sidon, ⁷ and came to the fortress of Tyre and to all the cities of the Hivites and Canaanites; and they went out to the Negeb of Judah at Beer-sheba. ⁸ So when they had gone through all the land, they came back to Jerusalem at the end of nine months and twenty days. ⁹ Joab reported to the king the number of those who had been recorded: in Israel there were eight hundred thousand soldiers able to draw the sword, and those of Judah were five hundred thousand.

Judgment on David’s Sin

¹⁰ But afterward, David was stricken to the heart because he had numbered the people. David said to the Lord, “I have sinned greatly in what I have done. But now, O Lord, I pray you, take away the guilt of your servant; for I have done very foolishly.” ¹¹ When David rose in the morning, the word of the Lord came to the prophet Gad, David’s seer, saying,¹² “Go and say to David: Thus says the Lord: Three things I offer^[n] you; choose one of them, and I will do it to you.”¹³ So Gad came to David and told him; he asked him, “Shall three^[o] years of famine come to you on your land? Or will you flee three months before your foes while they pursue you? Or shall there be three days’ pestilence in your land? Now consider, and decide what answer I shall return to the one who sent me.” ¹⁴ Then David said to Gad, “I am in great distress; let us fall into the hand of the Lord, for his mercy is great; but let me not fall into human hands.”
¹⁵ So the Lord sent a pestilence on Israel from that morning until the appointed time; and seventy thousand of the people died, from Dan to Beer-sheba. ¹⁶ But when the angel stretched out his hand toward Jerusalem to destroy it, theLord relented concerning the evil, and said to the angel who was bringing destruction among the people, “It is enough; now stay your hand.” The angel of the Lord was then by the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite. ¹⁷ When David saw the angel who was destroying the people, he said to the Lord, “I alone have sinned, and I alone have done wickedly; but these sheep, what have they done? Let your hand, I pray, be against me and against my father’s house.”

David’s Altar on the Threshing Floor

¹⁸ That day Gad came to David and said to him, “Go up and erect an altar to the Lord on the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite.” ¹⁹ Following Gad’s instructions, David went up, as the Lord had commanded. ²⁰ When Araunah looked down, he saw the king and his servants coming toward him; and Araunah went out and prostrated himself before the king with his face to the ground. ²¹ Araunah said, “Why has my lord the king come to his servant?” David said, “To buy the threshing floor from you in order to build an altar to the Lord, so that the plague may be averted from the people.”²² Then Araunah said to David, “Let my lord the king take and offer up what seems good to him; here are the oxen for the burnt offering, and the threshing sledges and the yokes of the oxen for the wood. ²³ All this, O king, Araunah gives to the king.” And Araunah said to the king, “May the Lord your God respond favorably to you.”
²⁴ But the king said to Araunah, “No, but I will buy them from you for a price; I will not offer burnt offerings to the Lordmy God that cost me nothing.” So David bought the threshing floor and the oxen for fifty shekels of silver. ²⁵ David built there an altar to the Lord, and offered burnt offerings and offerings of well-being. So the Lord answered his supplication for the land, and the plague was averted from Israel.

Psalm 143

Prayer for Deliverance from Enemies

A Psalm of David.

¹ Hear my prayer, O Lord;
    give ear to my supplications in your faithfulness;
    answer me in your righteousness.
² Do not enter into judgment with your servant,
    for no one living is righteous before you.

³ For the enemy has pursued me,
    crushing my life to the ground,
    making me sit in darkness like those long dead.
⁴ Therefore my spirit faints within me;
    my heart within me is appalled.

⁵ I remember the days of old,
    I think about all your deeds,
    I meditate on the works of your hands.
⁶ I stretch out my hands to you;
    my soul thirsts for you like a parched land.Selah

⁷ Answer me quickly, O Lord;
    my spirit fails.
Do not hide your face from me,
    or I shall be like those who go down to the Pit.
⁸ Let me hear of your steadfast love in the morning,
    for in you I put my trust.
Teach me the way I should go,
    for to you I lift up my soul.

⁹ Save me, O Lord, from my enemies;
    I have fled to you for refuge.^[a]
10 Teach me to do your will,
    for you are my God.
Let your good spirit lead me
    on a level path.

¹¹ For your name’s sake, O Lord, preserve my life.
    In your righteousness bring me out of trouble.
¹² In your steadfast love cut off my enemies,
    and destroy all my adversaries,
    for I am your servant.

Mark 16

New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (NRSVCE)

The Resurrection of Jesus

16 When the sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices, so that they might go and anoint him. ² And very early on the first day of the week, when the sun had risen, they went to the tomb. ³ They had been saying to one another, “Who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance to the tomb?”⁴ When they looked up, they saw that the stone, which was very large, had already been rolled back. ⁵ As they entered the tomb, they saw a young man, dressed in a white robe, sitting on the right side; and they were alarmed. ⁶ But he said to them, “Do not be alarmed; you are looking for Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has been raised; he is not here. Look, there is the place they laid him. ⁷ But go, tell his disciples and Peter that he is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see him, just as he told you.” ⁸ So they went out and fled from the tomb, for terror and amazement had seized them; and they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid.^[a]

The Shorter Ending of Mark

[[And all that had been commanded them they told briefly to those around Peter. And afterward Jesus himself sent out through them, from east to west, the sacred and imperishable proclamation of eternal salvation.^[b]]]

The Longer Ending of Mark

Jesus Appears to Mary Magdalene

⁹ [[Now after he rose early on the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, from whom he had cast out seven demons. ¹⁰ She went out and told those who had been with him, while they were mourning and weeping.¹¹ But when they heard that he was alive and had been seen by her, they would not believe it.

Jesus Appears to Two Disciples

¹² After this he appeared in another form to two of them, as they were walking into the country. ¹³ And they went back and told the rest, but they did not believe them.

Jesus Commissions the Disciples

¹⁴ Later he appeared to the eleven themselves as they were sitting at the table; and he upbraided them for their lack of faith and stubbornness, because they had not believed those who saw him after he had risen.^[c] 15 And he said to them, “Go into all the world and proclaim the good news^[d] to the whole creation. ¹⁶ The one who believes and is baptized will be saved; but the one who does not believe will be condemned. ¹⁷ And these signs will accompany those who believe: by using my name they will cast out demons; they will speak in new tongues; ¹⁸ they will pick up snakes in their hands,^[e] and if they drink any deadly thing, it will not hurt them; they will lay their hands on the sick, and they will recover.”

The Ascension of Jesus

¹⁹ So then the Lord Jesus, after he had spoken to them, was taken up into heaven and sat down at the right hand of God. ²⁰ And they went out and proclaimed the good news everywhere, while the Lord worked with them and confirmed the message by the signs that accompanied it.^[f]]]

CATECHISM

The meaning of Christian death

1010 Because of Christ, Christian death has a positive meaning: "For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain."⁵⁷⁶ "The saying is sure: if we have died with him, we will also live with him.⁵⁷⁷ What is essentially new about Christian death is this: through Baptism, the Christian has already "died with Christ" sacramentally, in order to live a new life; and if we die in Christ's grace, physical death completes this "dying with Christ" and so completes our incorporation into him in his redeeming act:

It is better for me to die in (eis) Christ Jesus than to reign over the ends of the earth. Him it is I seek - who died for us. Him it is I desire - who rose for us. I am on the point of giving birth. . . . Let me receive pure light; when I shall have arrived there, then shall I be a man.⁵⁷⁸

1011 In death, God calls man to himself. Therefore the Christian can experience a desire for death like St. Paul's: "My desire is to depart and be with Christ. "⁵⁷⁹ He can transform his own death into an act of obedience and love towards the Father, after the example of Christ:⁵⁸⁰

My earthly desire has been crucified; . . . there is living water in me, water that murmurs and says within me: Come to the Father.⁵⁸¹I want to see God and, in order to see him, I must die.⁵⁸²
I am not dying; I am entering life.⁵⁸³

1012 The Christian vision of death receives privileged expression in the liturgy of the Church:⁵⁸⁴

Lord, for your faithful people life is changed, not ended. When the body of our earthly dwelling lies in death we gain an everlasting dwelling place in heaven.⁵⁸⁵

1013 Death is the end of man's earthly pilgrimage, of the time of grace and mercy which God offers him so as to work out his earthly life in keeping with the divine plan, and to decide his ultimate destiny. When "the single course of our earthly life" is completed,⁵⁸⁶ we shall not return to other earthly lives: "It is appointed for men to die once."⁵⁸⁷ There is no "reincarnation" after death.

1014 The Church encourages us to prepare ourselves for the hour of our death. In the ancient litany of the saints, for instance, she has us pray: "From a sudden and unforeseen death, deliver us, O Lord";⁵⁸⁸ to ask the Mother of God to intercede for us "at the hour of our death" in the Hail Mary; and to entrust ourselves to St. Joseph, the patron of a happy death.

Every action of yours, every thought, should be those of one who expects to die before the day is out. Death would have no great terrors for you if you had a quiet conscience. . . . Then why not keep clear of sin instead of running away from death? If you aren't fit to face death today, it's very unlikely you will be tomorrow. . . .⁵⁸⁹Praised are you, my Lord, for our sister bodily Death,
from whom no living man can escape.
Woe on those who will die in mortal sin!
Blessed are they who will be found
in your most holy will,
for the second death will not harm them.⁵⁹⁰