Scripture Study for

Sirach insists that the justice of God is an established fact. He also states that  God knows no favorites, neither the privileged nor the dispossessed. By making this statement he indirectly shows that, if there is any partiality, it is ours and not  God’s. According to covenant theology, we are all responsible for each other. The well-off are obliged to address the needs of those who suffer misfortune. This is a matter of justice, not charity. As a covenant partner, God will intervene on behalf of the poor when other covenant partners disregard their responsibilities. Sirach assures these forlorn people that their entreaties will not go unheeded. 

Paul is aware that his days are numbered. His death is imminent. He faces it with the calm resignation that springs from deep faith. He states that he is being poured out like sacrificial blood. He also views his death as a departure like that of sailors weighing anchor or soldiers breaking camp. Like them, Paul has completed a demanding tour of service and is now preparing to return home. Finally,  employing imagery from athletic competition, he claims that he has competed well; he has finished the race. He is confident that just as God previously rescued him from peril, so God will rescue him again. 

The story of the Pharisee and the tax collector is an example of divine reversal.  The Pharisee is a model of religious observance. His practices of piety exceed the requirements of the law. The tax collector, despised because he is part of the economic system put in place by the occupying Romans, asks God for mercy. He stands at a distance, not raising his eyes to heaven. The tax collector prays that his sins be expiated, and his prayer is answered. The Pharisee asks for nothing,  and he receives nothing. The men’s lives may have been the reverse of each other, but the judgment of Jesus exposes the real reversal.