14th Sunday in O.T.

14th Sunday in Ordinary Time (year A)

(Mt 11:25–30)

Matthew 11:27 All things have been handed over to me by my Father; no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.

Matthew 11:28 Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.

What did the Father delight in? It pleased him to give everything to the Son. The Son may communicate his knowledge of the Father to whomever he wishes, for he is the sole Mediator through whom we may come to the Father. In other words, the divine omnipotence of the Father, Lord of creation, is transferred to Jesus. In this way, a sort of identification is created between the Father and the Son, who, by virtue of this transfer, interpenetrate one another.

The Father and the Son know one another through their communion in the divine nature and through eternal generation. The transfer of powers from the Father to the Son is not a mere legal authorisation to act in the Father’s name and on his behalf, as if Jesus were some sort of legal representative of the Father. When we speak of God, no distinction can be made between the Father’s own attributes and the Father himself, for those attributes of the Father are the Father himself. For this reason, the power of the Father given to the Son is in reality the Father himself giving himself to the Son, and it is precisely this mutual interpenetration that makes the two one, whilst maintaining the respective distinction of their own roles, so that the Father is not the Son, nor is the Son the Father. The identity between the two lies in their common and unique divine nature. This is why the Father lives in the Son and the Son in the Father; this is why the revelation of the Son is the very revelation of the Father, and the work of Jesus is the work of the Father, so that Jesus becomes the historical face of the Father, the historical locus of his manifestation.

Since no one else, apart from the Son, knows the Father, no one else can reveal him to us. The revelation that the Father brings about in the Son is a gift of love, reserved solely for those who are able to receive it. It is not the wise who can know the Father, for the Father is known within a relationship of gratuitousness, in a love that is both received and given. If this is lacking, it is impossible to experience God.

‘Come to me…’. This calls upon human will. God’s gift is for everyone, and we are invited to come. But God’s gift is not for those who are sated, who are well-off, who live in the abundance and wealth of this world’s possessions. They are not invited. To them, Jesus Christ is of no use; he serves no purpose. They have everything; they have no need of Christ. On the other hand, all those who are weary and burdened do need Christ. They are weary from the hard labour of living life, of making it through to the end of the day. They are weary from the grave difficulties they encounter day after day on their journey. These difficulties are both material and spiritual. Oppression, on the other hand, is an additional burden placed upon the shoulders of those who are already weary. It is as if a person who is already carrying an unbearable weight were to have yet another, even heavier one added to it. To these people, who have no prospects for the future, Jesus says to come to Him.

“And I will give you rest.” This rest recalls the rest of the seventh day, the Sabbath, which is the fulfilment of creation. Man remains forever unfulfilled because he is unable to fulfil love, to fulfil the law. If you go to Jesus, Jesus gives you rest, fulfilment. The fulfilment of man is God. This is the rest. Rest, moreover, is synonymous with the Promised Land; exile ends, the Exodus ends: at last you arrive home. So, in response to all the efforts of the Law that point the way to life, Jesus gives you life, gives you a home, gives you rest. And there man rests because there he is at home; that is, he becomes a son, not through his own efforts, but by going to Jesus and accepting his rest.

When our humanity returns to its true nature, it is freed from the bondage of sin, from the oppression of evil, from the gruelling toil of disobedience. It enters into the refreshment bestowed by the Lord’s friendship, which is the fullness of joy. Jesus’ refreshment is the gift of true freedom. Falsehood oppresses; the truth sets us free. Jesus’ refreshment is the gift of adopted sonship, of the Father’s House rediscovered. This is the refreshment of Jesus Christ: man’s return to the Father’s House and the gift of his ancient, lost dignity.

Argentino Quintavalle, author of the books

- Revelation – an exegetical commentary

- The Apostle Paul and the Judaizers – Law or Gospel?

Jesus Christ, True God and True Man in the Trinitarian Mystery

The Prophetic Discourse of Jesus (Matthew 24–25)

All Generations Will Call Me Blessed

Catholics and Protestants Compared – In Defence of the Faith

The Church and Israel According to St Paul – Romans 9–11

(Available on Amazon)

160 Last modified on Monday, 29 June 2026 13:00

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Argentino Quintavalle

Argentino Quintavalle è studioso biblico ed esperto in Protestantesimo e Giudaismo. Autore del libro “Apocalisse - commento esegetico” (disponibile su Amazon) e specializzato in catechesi per protestanti che desiderano tornare nella Chiesa Cattolica.

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That denarius clearly represents eternal life, a gift that God reserves for all. Indeed those who are considered the "last", if they accept, become the "first", whereas the "first" can risk becoming the "last" [Pope Benedict]

Quel denaro rappresenta la vita eterna, dono che Dio riserva a tutti. Anzi, proprio quelli che sono considerati "ultimi", se lo accettano, diventano "primi", mentre i "primi" possono rischiare di finire "ultimi" [Papa Benedetto]

The sower is Jesus. With this image, we can see that he presents himself as one who does not impose himself, but rather offers himself. He does not attract us by conquering us, but by donating himself: he casts seeds. With patience and generosity, he spreads his Word, which is not a cage or a trap, but a seed which can bear fruit (Pope Francis)

Il seminatore è Gesù. Notiamo che, con questa immagine, Egli si presenta come uno che non si impone, ma si propone; non ci attira conquistandoci, ma donandosi: butta il seme. Egli sparge con pazienza e generosità la sua Parola, che non è una gabbia o una trappola, ma un seme che può portare frutto (Papa Francesco)

The Church desires to give thanks to the Most Holy Trinity for the "mystery of woman" and for every woman - for that which constitutes the eternal measure of her feminine dignity, for the "great works of God", which throughout human history have been accomplished in and through her (Mulieris Dignitatem n.31)

La Chiesa desidera ringraziare la Santissima Trinità per il «mistero della donna», e, per ogni donna - per ciò che costituisce l'eterna misura della sua dignità femminile, per le «grandi opere di Dio» che nella storia delle generazioni umane si sono compiute in lei e per mezzo di lei (Mulieris Dignitatem n.31)

Simon, a Pharisee and rich 'notable' of the city, holds a banquet in his house in honour of Jesus. Unexpectedly from the back of the room enters a guest who was neither invited nor expected […] (Pope Benedict)

Simone, fariseo e ricco “notabile” della città, tiene in casa sua un banchetto in onore di Gesù. Inaspettatamente dal fondo della sala entra un’ospite non invitata né prevista […] (Papa Benedetto)

God excludes no one […] God does not let himself be conditioned by our human prejudices (Pope Benedict)

Dio non esclude nessuno […] Dio non si lascia condizionare dai nostri pregiudizi (Papa Benedetto)

«The Russian mystics of the first centuries of the Church gave advice to their disciples, the young monks: in the moment of spiritual turmoil take refuge under the mantle of the holy Mother of God». Then «the West took this advice and made the first Marian antiphon “Sub tuum Praesidium”: under your cloak, in your custody, O Mother, we are sure there» (Pope Francis)

The Gospel of Matthew written in Hebrew or Aramaic is no longer extant, but in the Greek Gospel that we possess we still continue to hear, in a certain way, the persuasive voice of the publican Matthew, who, having become an Apostle, continues to proclaim God's saving mercy to us. And let us listen to St Matthew's message, meditating upon it ever anew also to learn to stand up and follow Jesus with determination (Pope Benedict)

Non abbiamo più il Vangelo scritto da Matteo in ebraico o in aramaico, ma nel Vangelo greco che abbiamo continuiamo a udire ancora, in qualche modo, la voce persuasiva del pubblicano Matteo che, diventato Apostolo, séguita ad annunciarci la salvatrice misericordia di Dio e ascoltiamo questo messaggio di san Matteo, meditiamolo sempre di nuovo per imparare anche noi ad alzarci e a seguire Gesù con decisione (Papa Benedetto)

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