Daily Mass Readings – Sunday, 22 November 2026

11 For thus saith the Lord God: Behold I myself will seek my sheep, and will visit them.

12 As the shepherd visiteth his flock in the day when he shall be in the midst of his sheep that were scattered, so will I visit my sheep, and will deliver them out of all the places where they have been scattered in the cloudy and dark day.

15 I will feed my sheep: and I will cause them to lie down, saith the Lord God.

16 I will seek that which was lost: and that which was driven away, I will bring again: and I will bind up that which was broken, and I will strengthen that which was weak, and that which was fat and strong I will preserve: and I will feed them in judgment.

17 And as for you, O my flocks, thus saith the Lord God: Behold I judge between cattle and cattle, of rams and of he goats.

R. (1) The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.

1 The Lord ruleth me: and I shall want nothing.

2a He hath set me in a place of pasture.

R. The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.

2b He hath brought me up, on the water of refreshment.

3 He hath converted my soul. He hath led me on the paths of justice, for his own name’s sake.

R. The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.

5 Thou hast prepared a table before me against them that afflict me. Thou hast anointed my head with oil; and my chalice which inebriateth me, how goodly is it!

R. The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.

6 And thy mercy will follow me all the days of my life. And that I may dwell in the house of the Lord unto length of days.

R. The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.

20 But now Christ is risen from the dead, the firstfruits of them that sleep:

21 For by a man came death, and by a man the resurrection of the dead.

22 And as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all shall be made alive.

23 But every one in his own order: the firstfruits Christ, then they that are of Christ, who have believed in his coming.

24 Afterwards the end, when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God and the Father, when he shall have brought to nought all principality, and power, and virtue.

25 For he must reign, until he hath put all his enemies under his feet.

26 And the enemy death shall be destroyed last: For he hath put all things under his feet. And whereas he saith,

28 And when all things shall be subdued unto him, then the Son also himself shall be subject unto him that put all things under him, that God may be all in all.

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

9, 10 Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Blessed is the kingdom of our father David that is to come!

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

31 And when the Son of man shall come in his majesty, and all the angels with him, then shall he sit upon the seat of his majesty.

32 And all nations shall be gathered together before him, and he shall separate them one from another, as the shepherd separateth the sheep from the goats:

33 And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on his left.

34 Then shall the king say to them that shall be on his right hand: Come, ye blessed of my Father, possess you the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.

35 For I was hungry, and you gave me to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave me to drink; I was a stranger, and you took me in:

36 Naked, and you covered me: sick, and you visited me: I was in prison, and you came to me.

37 Then shall the just answer him, saying: Lord, when did we see thee hungry, and fed thee; thirsty, and gave thee drink?

38 And when did we see thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and covered thee?

39 Or when did we see thee sick or in prison, and came to thee?

40 And the king answering, shall say to them: Amen I say to you, as long as you did it to one of these my least brethren, you did it to me.

41 Then he shall say to them also that shall be on his left hand: Depart from me, you cursed, into everlasting fire which was prepared for the devil and his angels.

42 For I was hungry, and you gave me not to eat: I was thirsty, and you gave me not to drink.

43 I was a stranger, and you took me not in: naked, and you covered me not: sick and in prison, and you did not visit me.

44 Then they also shall answer him, saying: Lord, when did we see thee hungry, or thirsty, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister to thee?

45 Then he shall answer them, saying: Amen I say to you, as long as you did it not to one of these least, neither did you do it to me.

46 And these shall go into everlasting punishment: but the just, into life everlasting.

The God who promises to seek his scattered sheep does not remain distant from their hunger, wounds, weakness, or loneliness. He gathers, feeds, heals, and leads them along the paths of justice. The risen Christ is this shepherd, and his kingdom is already revealed in the way his people care for those who are most vulnerable.

Jesus makes the final judgment remarkably concrete. He identifies himself with the hungry, the thirsty, the stranger, the naked, the sick, and the imprisoned. Love of him takes shape in attention to people whose needs might otherwise be overlooked. We may wonder, like those in the Gospel, when we ever saw the Lord in such a person; Christ assures us that every merciful act offered to “the least” reaches him. Because Christ has risen, death will not have the final word, and his reign will bring all things under God. Our daily choices therefore carry eternal weight. The Shepherd who will judge us is the same Lord who patiently seeks us, and he teaches us to recognize his presence by becoming instruments of his care.

Lord Jesus, risen Shepherd and King, seek us when we wander and heal what is wounded in us. Give us eyes to recognize you in those who hunger, thirst, suffer illness, endure loneliness, or are forgotten and confined. Free us from indifference and from the excuses that keep us from offering practical mercy. Teach us to serve without seeking recognition, trusting that every gift given to the least of your brothers and sisters is received by you. Keep our hearts faithful as we await the fullness of your kingdom, where death is destroyed and God is all in all. Amen.