Mass Readings — Thursday, June 25, 2026

⁸Jehoiachin was eighteen years old when he began to reign, and he reigned in Jerusalem three months. His mother’s name was Nehushta the daughter of Elnathan of Jerusalem. ⁹He did that which was evil in Yahweh’s sight, according to all that his father had done. ¹⁰At that time the servants of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came up to Jerusalem, and the city was besieged. ¹¹Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came to the city while his servants were besieging it, ¹²and Jehoiachin the king of Judah went out to the king of Babylon, he, and his mother, and his servants, and his princes, and his officers; and the king of Babylon captured him in the eighth year of his reign. ¹³He carried out from there all the treasures of Yahweh’s house, and the treasures of the king’s house, and cut in pieces all the vessels of gold, which Solomon king of Israel had made in Yahweh’s temple, as Yahweh had said. ¹⁴He carried away all Jerusalem, and all the princes, and all the mighty men of valor, even ten thousand captives, and all the craftsmen and the smiths. No one remained, except the poorest people of the land. ¹⁵He carried away Jehoiachin to Babylon, with the king’s mother, the king’s wives, his officers, and the chief men of the land. He carried them into captivity from Jerusalem to Babylon. ¹⁶All the men of might, even seven thousand, and the craftsmen and the smiths one thousand, all of them strong and fit for war, even them the king of Babylon brought captive to Babylon. ¹⁷The king of Babylon made Mattaniah, Jehoiachin’s father’s brother, king in his place, and changed his name to Zedekiah.

¹God, the nations have come into your inheritance. They have defiled your holy temple. They have laid Jerusalem in heaps. ²They have given the dead bodies of your servants to be food for the birds of the sky, the flesh of your saints to the animals of the earth. ³Their blood they have shed like water around Jerusalem. There was no one to bury them. ⁴We have become a reproach to our neighbors, a scoffing and derision to those who are around us. ⁵How long, Yahweh? Will you be angry forever? Will your jealousy burn like fire? ⁸Don’t hold the iniquities of our forefathers against us. Let your tender mercies speedily meet us, for we are in desperate need. ⁹Help us, God of our salvation, for the glory of your name. Deliver us, and forgive our sins, for your name’s sake.

²¹Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter into the Kingdom of Heaven; but he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. ²²Many will tell me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, didn’t we prophesy in your name, in your name cast out demons, and in your name do many mighty works?’ ²³Then I will tell them, ‘I never knew you. Depart from me, you who work iniquity.’ ²⁴“Everyone therefore who hears these words of mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man, who built his house on a rock. ²⁵The rain came down, the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat on that house; and it didn’t fall, for it was founded on the rock. ²⁶Everyone who hears these words of mine, and doesn’t do them will be like a foolish man, who built his house on the sand. ²⁷The rain came down, the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat on that house; and it fell—and great was its fall.” ²⁸When Jesus had finished saying these things, the multitudes were astonished at his teaching, ²⁹for he taught them with authority, and not like the scribes.