Mark 3:20-21

2 Samuel 1:1-4, 11-2, 19, 23-27

Psalm 80:2-3, 5-7

Mark 3:20-21

Jesus came with his disciples into the house.

Again the crowd gathered,

making it impossible for them even to eat.

When his relatives heard of this they set out to seize him,

for they said, “He is out of his mind.”

Opening Prayer: Father, you are always ready to listen to my prayer. You are so patient with me and look tenderly upon me. Help me today as I contemplate your servant, David, and your Son, Jesus. I want to eradicate evil from my life and flourish with the gift of your divine grace.

Encountering the Word of God

1. David’s Reaction to the Death of Saul: The Second Book of Samuel opens with the announcement of King Saul’s death by an Amalekite man. Instead of telling David the truth that Saul committed suicide (1 Samuel 31:4), the Amalekite fabricates a lie and says to David that Saul asked him to kill him before the enemy chariots and horsemen got to him and that he acquiesced to Saul’s request. In response, David rends his garments and commands that the Amalekite be put to death for slaying Saul, the Lord’s anointed. The reading conveniently skips over this and concentrates on David mourning the deaths of Saul and Jonathan.

2. David as a New Adam: The deeper meaning of the story is that David is a New Adam figure. Like Adam, David is both a king and a priest. When David kills the Amalekite, he is acting like a righteous king. First, the Amalekite said that he was the one who killed Saul, the Lord’s anointed, and David exacts justice for this killing. Second, the Amalekites, according to the Law of Moses, were under the ban of destruction and were to be eradicated. And David faithfully carries out this command of Moses. Third, David’s actions were similar to those of Samuel, who killed King Agag the Amalekite when Saul refused to do it. Lastly, by eradicating the evil personified in the Amalekite, David did what Adam should have done to the serpent in the garden. There is a true contrast in the two books of Samuel between the disobedient and unrepentant Saul and the obedient and repentant David. David was not perfect, but when he sinned, he acknowledged it and humbly begged for forgiveness. Saul dies by his own hand, surrounded by his enemies, and abandoned by the Lord. Saul was rejected as king because after defeating the Amalekites he did not carry out the command of Samuel in its fullness.

3. Jesus is misunderstood by his family: The Psalm reflects the situation of Israel. The king has been slain and it seems as if God has abandoned Israel. And yet, despite this situation, Israel prays to God: Rouse your power and come to save us. Israel is called to trust in God, who will raise up David as King of Israel and who will one day send his Son to establish the eternal Kingdom. As Jesus announces and establishes the Kingdom of God throughout Galilee, he meets with opposition from the religious authorities who are now plotting to kill him. As well, the crowds gathered around Jesus at the house in Capernaum made it impossible for him and his disciples to eat. Jesus’ relatives try to take charge and want to seize him. They probably wanted to protect him. Whatever the case may be, it shows that even Jesus’ relatives do not understand who Jesus truly is and what his mission is.

Conversing with Christ: Lord Jesus, your closest relatives, your disciples, and your Apostles, all struggled in different ways to understand who you are and what your mission is. Help me to overcome my own misunderstandings and grow in my faith that you are the Christ and the Son of God, who came to redeem me by dying on the Cross and rising to new life.

Resolution: We can often fall into the temptation to complain about suffering in our lives or think that things should be different than they are. The wrong thing to do in the face of suffering is to complain and accuse God of wrongdoing or not listening to us. The right thing to do is lament to God in prayer and humbly seek strength, patience, and guidance. In fact, many of the Psalms, which are a model of prayer for us, are prayers of lament that begin with a cry for help in a desperate situation and end in the hope that God will act on our behalf. How can I model my prayer on the Psalms of Lament?