A reading from the book of Ecclesiasticus (48:1-4,9-11)
Then the prophet Elijah arose like a fire,
his word flaring like a torch.
It was he who brought famine on them,
in his zeal he made them few in number.
By the word of the Lord he shut up the heavens;
three times also he brought down fire.
How glorious you were in your miracles, Elijah!
Has anyone reason to boast like you? –
taken up in the whirlwind of fire,
in a chariot with fiery horses,
designated in the prophecies in due time
to allay God’s wrath before the fury,
to turn the hearts of fathers towards their children
and to restore the tribes of Jacob.
Blessed those who will see you
and those who have fallen asleep in love –
for we too shall have life.
The book of Ecclesiasticus, the Wisdom of Ben Sira, preserved in the Greek Bible, though originally written in Hebrew, concludes with several chapters of ‘praise of the ancestors’. Among them is the prophet Elijah. It is of special interest that he was ‘taken up in the whirlwind of fire’. The prophet Malachi speaks of the return of Elijah to be a preacher of reconciliation (3:23-24), a text which is clearly in the mind of Ben Sira. The final verse of our passage speaks of the blessed state of those who see Elijah, and those who have ‘fallen asleep in love’. There is a hint here of personal immortality.
Psalm 80 (79) The Hebrew refrain of this psalm has God, the ‘shepherd of Israel’, being asked to bring the people back, and to allow his ‘face’ to shine, so that they may be saved. The refrain of the Hebrew psalm becomes our response.
A reading from the holy gospel according to Matthew (17:10-13)
The disciples put this question to Jesus, ‘Why then do the scribes say that Elijah must come first?’ He replied, ‘Elijah is indeed coming, and he will set everything right again; however, I tell you that Elijah has come already and they did not recognise him, but they did what they liked with him; and the Son of man will suffer similarly at their hands.’ Then the disciples understood that he was speaking of John the Baptist.
These verses of conversation follow Matthew’s account of the transfiguration, in which Moses and Elijah have appeared with Jesus. Jesus confirms what the scribes teach, that Elijah will return ‘to set everything right’, and furthermore asserts that Elijah has already returned in the person of John the Baptist. Both Elijah and John spoke up for the truth, and suffered for it. Jesus goes on to say that he himself, ‘the Son of man’, will suffer in a similar way.
How does the ministry of John reflect that of Elijah?
Both John and Jesus suffer martyrdom for the truth.