Reading 1, Isaiah 30:19-21, 23-26
19 Yes, people of Zion living in Jerusalem, you will weep no more. He will be gracious to you when your cry for help rings out; as soon as he hears it, he will answer you.
20 When the Lord has given you the bread of suffering and the water of distress, he who is your teacher will hide no longer, and you will see your teacher with your own eyes.
21 Your ears will hear these words behind you, 'This is the way, keep to it,' whether you turn to right or left.
23 He will send rain for the seed you sow in the ground, and the bread that the ground provides will be rich and nourishing. That day, your cattle will graze in wide pastures.
24 Oxen and donkeys that work the land will eat for fodder wild sorrel, spread by the shovel-load and fork-load.
25 On every lofty mountain, on every high hill there will be streams and water-courses, on the day of the great slaughter when the strongholds fall.
26 Then moonlight will be bright as sunlight and sunlight itself be seven times brighter -- like the light of seven days in one -- on the day Yahweh dresses his people's wound and heals the scars of the blows they have received.
Responsorial Psalm, Psalms 147:1-2, 3-4, 5-6
2 Yahweh, Builder of Jerusalem! He gathers together the exiles of Israel,
3 healing the broken-hearted and binding up their wounds;
4 he counts out the number of the stars, and gives each one of them a name.
6 Yahweh sustains the poor, and humbles the wicked to the ground.
Gospel, Matthew 9:35--10:1, 6-8
35 Jesus made a tour through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and curing all kinds of disease and all kinds of illness.
36 And when he saw the crowds he felt sorry for them because they were harassed and dejected, like sheep without a shepherd.
37 Then he said to his disciples, 'The harvest is rich but the labourers are few, so ask the Lord of the harvest to send out labourers to his harvest.'
1 He summoned his twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits with power to drive them out and to cure all kinds of disease and all kinds of illness.
6 go instead to the lost sheep of the House of Israel.
7 And as you go, proclaim that the kingdom of Heaven is close at hand.
8 Cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those suffering from virulent skin-diseases, drive out devils. You received without charge, give without charge.