Reading
Matthew 12:1-8
12 At that time Jesus went through the grainfields on the Sabbath. His disciples were hungry and began to pick some heads of grain and eat them. 2 When the Pharisees saw this, they said to him, “Look! Your disciples are doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath.”
3 He answered, “Haven’t you read what David did when he and his companions were hungry? 4 He entered the house of God, and he and his companions ate the consecrated bread—which was not lawful for them to do, but only for the priests. 5 Or haven’t you read in the Law that the priests on Sabbath duty in the temple desecrate the Sabbath and yet are innocent? 6 I tell you that something greater than the temple is here. 7 If you had known what these words mean, ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice,’ you would not have condemned the innocent. 8 For the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath.”
Comment
Jesus had promised a sweet yoke and a light load for those who would follow him; the exact opposite of the attitude of the Pharisees reported by this Gospel passage. The disciples try to satisfy their hunger by gathering the ears that fell on the ground during the harvest, an action permitted according to the book of Deuteronomy (Dt 23:25); the book of Leviticus, furthermore, commanded: "When you reap the harvest of your land, do not reap to the very edges of your field or gather the gleanings of your harvest. Leave them for the poor and for the foreigner residing among you" (Lv 23:22; 19:9).
This Old Testament precept expresses God's mercy, which is the basis of the law and determines its meaning. In front of the doctors of the Scriptures, who use them in a partial and tendentious way, Jesus responds with the Scriptures themselves, citing an episode taken from the first book of Samuel (1 Sam 21:1-6) in which David fleeing from Saul takes refuge with his companions in the temple and is fed by the high priest Achimelech with the loaves of the presence, twelve loaves offered to the Lord every Saturday, which only the priests could eat (Ex 25:30; Lv 24:5-9).
Jesus then mentions the Levites, who even on the Sabbath day, carried out their work in the temple, replacing the loaves of the presence and doubling the sacrifices (Lv 24:8; Num 28:9-10). The Pharisees show that they want to apply to others a rigor of judgment which they do not show towards the royal and priestly caste.
If the priests can violate the law, for the Sabbath service, even Jesus, who is greater than the temple (v. 6) can violate the Sabbath. Jesus also recalls the invitation of the Scriptures to the exercise of compassion (Hos 6:6), giving it precedence over sacrifice (v. 7). Greater than the temple are, in fact, even those poor beloveds by the Lord, towards whom he wants the mercy of his people to be directed.
Proclaiming himself "Lord of the Sabbath" Jesus affirms his divinity, as the Son of God incarnate, superior to the presence of God in the cult building. He calls us to participate in his eternal priesthood (Heb 1:4) to dispense the infinite mercy of God, as a perfect and pleasing sacrifice.
Prayer
O Lord, you give the birds of the air a refuge near your house; grant us to be satisfied by your grace and to live in the shelter of your mercy. Amen.
- Rev. Dr. Luca Vona
