2 Kings 25 : 1-12 / Matthew 8 : 1-4 (2024)
The year 587BC is seared into the minds of the Biblical Jews whenever they recall their nation's history.
That was the year of the Babylonian invasion that resulted in the Exile in Babylon of the Jewish nation.
On top of that, the magnificent Temple that was built by king Solomon, that Temple which was the pride and glory of the nation was utterly demolished, along with the city of Jerusalem.
Stripped of all dignity and status, with no country or land to call their own, and being slaves in the land of their conquerors, the Jewish people began thinking and reflecting.
Why did such disaster and humiliation come upon them? Why didn't God protect them or come to their help?
Upon deeper reflection, they came to realize that in the first place, they had sinned and turned away from the Lord.
This was despite repeated attempts by the prophets to call the nation to repentance and to turn back to the Lord.
Hence it can be said that the one good thing that came out of the Babylonian Exile was that the people turned back to God in repentance and asking for forgiveness.
The history of the Jewish nation serves as a lesson for us especially when we become complacent and begin to take God for granted.
Yet the history of the Jewish nation also affirms the fact that God answers whenever we call to Him, especially in repentance and asking for forgiveness and healing.
It is like what the leper said in today's gospel: Sir, if you want to, you can cure me.
And the reply of Jesus was : Of course I want to! Be cured!