“Like a sheep he was led to the slaughter,
and as a lamb before its shearer is silent,
so he opened not his mouth.
In (his) humiliation justice was denied him.
Who will tell of his posterity?
For his life is taken from the earth.” (Acts 8:32b-33 NABRE)
One of the most astounding aspects of today's passage is it's endurance! Originally, these words were probably penned by a disciple of the prophet Isaiah, (53:7-8) toward the end of the Babylonian exile, about 700 years before we see them quoted here in the book of Acts.
In Acts (8:32-33), Philip, one of Jesus' disciples, was travelling along a road some time after Jesus had left them at the Ascension. At the prompting of the Holy Spirit, he struck up a conversation with an Ethiopian official who happened to be reading Isaiah while travelling. Philip explained the meaning of the passage, proclaimed Jesus to him, and baptised him in some water as they passed by.
And today, we recall the long history of God's Word. We remember how God's relationship with us began long before each of us came to be. And we are amazed and grateful for so great a love that Jesus came among us to share in our humanity and give us a path to eternal life by his suffering, death, and resurrection.
Today, on this third Thursday of the Easter Season, I will wonder at the unfolding of God's plan throughout the history of mankind and the record we have of salvation history.
Saint George, who was willing to pay the supreme price to follow Christ, pray for us.
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