Daily Mass Readings – Sunday, 6 February 2028

1 In the year that king Ozias died, I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne high and elevated: and his train filled the temple.

2a Upon it stood the seraphims.

3 And they cried one to another, and said: Holy, holy, holy, the Lord God of hosts, all the earth is full of his glory.

4 And the lintels of the doors were moved at the voice of him that cried, and the house was filled with smoke.

5 And I said: Woe is me, because I have held my peace; because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people that hath unclean lips, and I have seen with my eyes the King the Lord of hosts.

6 And one of the seraphims flew to me, and in his hand was a live coal, which he had taken with the tongs off the altar.

7 And he touched my mouth, and said: Behold this hath touched thy lips, and thy iniquities shall be taken away, and thy sin shall be cleansed.

8 And I heard the voice of the Lord, saying: Whom shall I send? and who shall go for us? And I said: Lo, here am I, send me.

R. (1c) In the sight of the angels I will sing your praises, Lord.

1 I will praise thee, O lord, with my whole heart: for thou hast heard the words of my mouth. I will sing praise to thee in the sight of his angels:

2ab I will worship towards thy holy temple, and I will give glory to thy name.

R. In the sight of the angels I will sing your praises, Lord.

2cd For thy mercy, and for thy truth: for thou hast magnified thy holy name above all.

3 In what day soever I shall call upon thee, hear me: thou shall multiply strength in my soul.

R. In the sight of the angels I will sing your praises, Lord.

4 May all the kings of the earth give glory to thee: for they have heard all the words of thy mouth.

5 And let them sing in the ways of the Lord: for great is the glory of the Lord.

R. In the sight of the angels I will sing your praises, Lord.

7c Your right hand hath saved me.

8 The Lord will repay for me: thy mercy, O Lord, endureth for ever: O despise not the work of thy hands.

R. In the sight of the angels I will sing your praises, Lord.

1 Now I make known unto you, brethren, the gospel which I preached to you, which also you have received, and wherein you stand;

2 By which also you are saved, if you hold fast after what manner I preached unto you, unless you have believed in vain.

3 For I delivered unto you first of all, which I also received: how that Christ died for our sins, according to the scriptures:

4 And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day, according to the scriptures:

5 And that he was seen by Cephas; and after that by the eleven.

6 Then he was seen by more than five hundred brethren at once: of whom many remain until this present, and some are fallen asleep.

7 After that, he was seen by James, then by all the apostles.

8 And last of all, he was seen also by me, as by one born out of due time.

9 For I am the least of the apostles, who am not worthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God.

10 But by the grace of God, I am what I am; and his grace in me hath not been void, but I have laboured more abundantly than all they: yet not I, but the grace of God with me.

11 For whether I, or they, so we preach, and so you have believed.

Or

3 For I delivered unto you first of all, which I also received: how that Christ died for our sins, according to the scriptures:

4 And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day, according to the scriptures:

5 And that he was seen by Cephas; and after that by the eleven.

6 Then he was seen by more than five hundred brethren at once: of whom many remain until this present, and some are fallen asleep.

7 After that, he was seen by James, then by all the apostles.

8 And last of all, he was seen also by me, as by one born out of due time.

11 For whether I, or they, so we preach, and so you have believed.

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

19 Come after me and I will make you fishers of men.

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

1 And it came to pass, that when the multitudes pressed upon him to hear the word of God, he stood by the lake of Genesareth,

2 And saw two ships standing by the lake: but the fishermen were gone out of them, and were washing their nets.

3 And going into one of the ships that was Simon’s, he desired him to draw back a little from the land. And sitting he taught the multitudes out of the ship.

4 Now when he had ceased to speak, he said to Simon: Launch out into the deep, and let down your nets for a draught.

5 And Simon answering said to him: Master, we have labored all the night, and have taken nothing: but at thy word I will let down the net.

6 And when they had done this, they enclosed a very great multitude of fishes, and their net broke.

7 And they beckoned to their partners that were in the other ship, that they should come and help them. And they came, and filled both the ships, so that they were almost sinking.

8 Which when Simon Peter saw, he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying: Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord.

9 For he was wholly astonished, and all that were with him, at the draught of the fishes which they had taken.

10 And so were also James and John the sons of Zebedee, who were Simon’s partners. And Jesus saith to Simon: Fear not: from henceforth thou shalt catch men.

11 And having brought their ships to land, leaving all things, they followed him.

Before the holiness of God, Isaiah recognizes his unclean lips. Peter has a similar experience beside the lake: confronted by the power of Jesus, he falls down and admits that he is a sinful man. Neither man is sent because he is already worthy. God cleanses Isaiah’s lips with a coal from the altar, and Jesus answers Peter’s fear with mercy: “Fear not.” Grace does not deny their weakness; it meets them there and makes them ready to serve.

The same grace stands at the heart of Paul’s witness. Christ died for our sins, was buried, and rose again, and Paul knows that his apostleship is entirely God’s gift: “By the grace of God, I am what I am.” The disciples respond by trusting Christ’s word even after an empty night, launching into the deep and lowering their nets. Their fruitful mission begins with obedience, not self-confidence. When the Lord reveals our need, we need not withdraw in shame. We can receive his mercy, hold fast to the Gospel of the risen Christ, and answer with Isaiah, “Here am I, send me.”

Lord Jesus, your holiness reveals my poverty, yet your mercy does not cast me away. Cleanse what is unworthy in me and strengthen my soul when I am afraid. Give me the humility to trust your word when my efforts seem fruitless, and the courage to launch into the deep at your command. Keep me faithful to the Gospel of your death and resurrection. May I remember that every good work is sustained by your grace, and may my life praise your name before others. When you call, teach me to answer generously: Here I am, send me. Amen.