Second Sunday of Advent Year A, Responsorial Psalm and Gospel
Responsorial Psalm – Psalms 72:1-2, 7-8, 12-13, 17
R. (cf. 7) Justice shall flourish in his time, and fullness of peace for ever.
Second Sunday of Advent Year A Responsorial Psalm
1 O God, with your judgment endow the king,
and with your justice, the king’s son;
2 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.
7 Justice shall flower in his days,
and profound peace, till the moon be no more.
8 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.
12 For he shall rescue the poor when he cries out,
and the afflicted when he has no one to help him.
13 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.
17 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.
Second Sunday of Advent Year A, Gospel
Gospel – Matthew 3:1-12
1 John the Baptist appeared, preaching in the desert of Judea2 and saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!”
3 It was of him that the prophet Isaiah had spoken when he said: A voice of one crying out in the desert, Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight his paths.
4 John wore clothing made of camel’s hair and had a leather belt around his waist. His food was locusts and wild honey.
5 At that time Jerusalem, all Judea, and the whole region around the Jordan
were going out to him
6 and were being baptized by him in the Jordan River as they acknowledged their sins.
7 When he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath?
8 Produce good fruit as evidence of your repentance.
9 And do not presume to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I tell you, God can raise up children to Abraham from these stones.
10 Even now the ax lies at the root of the trees. Therefore every tree that does not bear good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.
11 I am baptizing you with water, for repentance, but the one who is coming after me is mightier than I. I am not worthy to carry his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.
12 His winnowing fan is in his hand. He will clear his threshing floor and gather his wheat into his barn, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.”