Today’s First Reading continues to foreshadow the approach of the Passion of Our Lord within just a few weeks. The lamb is an apt image for describing him and his ministry. Usually a public official responsible for law and order is not quick to consider someone completely harmless, but today the Temple guards shock their bosses by saying they couldn’t find any motive for bringing Our Lord in, despite a direct order to do so. They’re left speechless by the Lamb. As Nicodemus’ comment reveals, the religious authorities are not interested in bringing him in for questioning; little do they know that by accusing Nicodemus being a Galilean, a flippant insult, they are foreshadowing the day when Christ’s disciples will be called Christians and suffer for his name (cf. Acts 5:41, 9:36, 11:26).
As we saw yesterday, the rational obstacle to considering Jesus a prophet or the Messiah was the fact that he came from Galilee. The religious authorities have already made up their mind and have no interest in checking their facts: they’ve judged him as a rebellious Galilean and now they just need some way to bring him in and punish him. Popular opinion for them is a fruit of ignorance, and their guards have been deceived too. For them it is a cut and dry case, but as Jeremiah reminds us in today’s First Reading, they’re actually trying to lead a lamb to the slaughter. Even in the framework of their own worship a lamb was valuable to sacrifice because it was pure and without blemish; soon they’ll see how valuable this Lamb is.
Have you judged Our Lord without giving him a fair trial? We are quick to blame the Lord for many things, but the fair thing to do is to speak with him and see where the true blame lies. Guaranteed is it not the Lamb; it is us. Let’s welcome the Lamb in our hearts and learn purity and innocence.
Readings: Jeremiah 11:18–20; Psalm 7:2–3, 9b–12; John 7:40–53.
