Ezekiel 9:1-7; 10:18-22 / Matthew 18:15-20
The Bible is the holy and sacred book of the Church.
Being a holy and sacred book, it would be generally expected to contain holy writings and inspirational passages.
As much as there are holy writings and inspirational messages, the Bible also contains the reality of human dealings.
The most prominent human dealing is obviously the sinfulness of humanity.
And with that comes judgement and punishment.
The 1st reading describes the anger of God and how punishment is dealt against sinners.
That is the vision of the prophet Ezekiel and it is a warning for unrepentant sinners.
But those who are faithful to God and who deplore and disapprove of the filth of sin are saved by being marked with a cross on the forehead.
For those who are saved, they have a mission.
As Jesus says in the gospel, where two or three agree to ask for anything, it will be granted to them.
For us who strive to be faithful to God, let us also pray for the conversion of sinners.
As Christians, praying for the conversion and salvation of sinners is our duty.