Easter Vigil Mass

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Sunday, 9 April 2023 : Easter Vigil Mass, Easter Sunday of the Resurrection of the Lord (Psalm after Second Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Psalm 15 : 5 and 8, 9-10, 11

O Lord, my inheritance and my cup, my chosen portion – hold secure my lot.

I keep the Lord always before me; for with Him at my right hand, I will never be shaken.

My heart, therefore, exults, my soul rejoices; my body too will rest assured.

For You will not abandon my soul to the grave, nor will You suffer Your Holy One to see decay in the land of the dead.

You will show me the path of life, in Your presence the fullness of joy, at Your right hand happiness forever.

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Sunday, 9 April 2023 : Easter Vigil Mass, Easter Sunday of the Resurrection of the Lord (Second Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Genesis 22 : 1-18

Some time later, God tested Abraham and said to him, “Abraham!” And he answered, “Here I am.” Then God said, “Take your son, your only son, Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains I shall point out to you.”

Abraham rose early next morning and saddled his donkey and took with him two of his young men and his son Isaac. He chopped wood for the burnt offering and set out for the place to which God had directed him. On the third day Abraham looked up and saw the place in the distance, and he said to the young men, “Stay here with the donkey. The boy and I will go over there to worship and then we will come back to you.”

Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and laid it on Isaac his son. He carried in his hand the fire and the knife. As the two of them went on together, Isaac spoke to Abraham, his father, “Father!” And Abraham replied, “Yes, my son?” Isaac said, “The fire and the wood are here, but where is the lamb for the sacrifice?” Abraham replied, “God Himself will provide the lamb for the sacrifice.”

They went on, the two of them together, until they came to the place to which God had directed them. When Abraham had built the altar and set the wood on it, he bound his son Isaac and laid him on the wood placed on the altar. He then stretched out his hand to seize the knife and slay his son. But the Angel of YHVH called to him from heaven, “Abraham! Abraham!”

And he said, “Here I am.” “Do not lay your hand on the boy; do not harm him, for now I know that you fear God, and you have not held back from Me your only son.” Abraham looked around and saw behind him a ram caught by its horns in a bush. He offered it as a burnt offering in place of his son. Abraham named the place ‘The Lord will provide.’ And the saying has lasted to this day.

And the Angel of YHVH called from heaven a second time. “By Myself I have sworn, it is YHVH Who speaks, because you have done this and not held back your son, your only son, I will surely bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will take possession of the land of their enemies. All the nations of the earth will be blessed through your descendants because you have obeyed Me.”

Alternative reading (shorter version)

Genesis 22 : 1-2, 9a, 10-13, 15-18

Some time later, God tested Abraham and said to him, “Abraham!” And he answered, “Here I am.” Then God said, “Take your son, your only son, Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains I shall point out to you.”

They came to the place to which God had directed them. Abraham then stretched out his hand to seize the knife and slay his son. But the Angel of YHVH called to him from heaven, “Abraham! Abraham!”

And he said, “Here I am.” “Do not lay your hand on the boy; do not harm him, for now I know that you fear God, and you have not held back from Me your only son.” Abraham looked around and saw behind him a ram caught by its horns in a bush. He offered it as a burnt offering in place of his son.

And the Angel of YHVH called from heaven a second time. “By Myself I have sworn, it is YHVH Who speaks, because you have done this and not held back your son, your only son, I will surely bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will take possession of the land of their enemies. All the nations of the earth will be blessed through your descendants because you have obeyed Me.”

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Sunday, 9 April 2023 : Easter Vigil Mass, Easter Sunday of the Resurrection of the Lord (Psalm after First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Psalm 103 : 1-2a, 5-6, 10 and 12, 13-14, 24 and 35c

Bless the Lord, my soul! Clothed in majesty and splendour; o Lord, my God, how great You are! You are wrapped in light as with a garment; You stretch out the heavens like a tent.

You set the earth on its foundations, and never will it be shaken. You covered it with the ocean like a garment, and waters spread over the mountains.

You make springs gush forth in valleys winding among mountains and hills.

Birds build their nests close by and sing among the branches of trees. You water the mountains from Your abode and fill the earth with the fruit of Your work. You make grass grow for cattle and plants for man to cultivate, that he may bring forth food from the earth.

How varied o Lord, are Your works! In wisdom You have made them all – the earth full of Your creatures. May sinners vanish from the earth, and may the wicked be no more. Bless the Lord, my soul!

Alternative Psalm

Psalm 32 : 4-5, 6-7, 12-13, 20 and 22

For upright is the Lord’s word and worthy of trust is His work. The Lord loves justice and righteousness; the earth is full of His kindness. The heavens were created by His word, the breath of His mouth formed their starry host. He gathered the waters of the sea into a heap, and stored the deep in cellars.

Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord – the people He has chosen for His inheritance. The Lord looks down from heaven and sees the whole race of mortals.

In hope we wait for the Lord, for He is our help and our shield.

O Lord, let Your love rest upon us, even as our hope rests in You.

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Sunday, 9 April 2023 : Easter Vigil Mass, Easter Sunday of the Resurrection of the Lord (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Genesis 1 : 1 – Genesis 2 : 2

In the beginning, when God began to create the heavens and the earth, the earth had no form and was void; darkness was over the deep and the Spirit of God hovered over the waters.

God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light. God saw that the light was good and He separated the light from the darkness. God called the light ‘Day’ and the darkness ‘Night’. There was evening and there was morning : the first day.

God said, “Let there be a firm ceiling between the waters and let it separate waters from waters.” So God made the ceiling and separated the waters below it from the waters above it. And so it was. God called the firm ceiling ‘Sky’. There was evening and there was morning : the second day.

God said, “Let the waters below the sky be gathered in one place and let dry land appear. And so it was. God called the dry land ‘Earth’, and the waters gathered together he called ‘Seas’. God saw that it was good.

God said, “Let the earth produce vegetation, seed-bearing plants, fruit trees bearing fruit with seed, each according to its kind, upon the earth.” And so it was. The earth produced vegetation : plants bearing seed according to their kind and trees producing fruit which has seed, according to their kind. God saw that it was good. There was evening and there was morning : the third day.

God said, “Let there be lights in the ceiling of the sky to separate day from night and to serve as signs for the seasons, days and years; and let these lights in the sky shine above the earth.” And so it was. God therefore made two great lights, the greater light to govern the day and the smaller light to govern the night; and God made the stars as well. God placed them in the ceiling of the sky to give light on the earth and to separate the light from the darkness. God saw that it was good. There was evening and there was morning : the fourth day.

God said, “Let the water teem with an abundance of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth under the ceiling of the sky.” God created the great monsters of the sea and all living animals, those that teem in the waters, according to their kind, and every winged bird, according to its kind. God saw that it was good. God blessed them saying, “Be fruitful and increase in number, fill the waters of the sea, and let the birds increase on the earth.” There was evening and there was morning : the fifth day.

God said, “Let the earth produce living animals according to their kind : cattle, creatures that move along the ground, wild animals according to their kind. So it was. God created the wild animals according to their kind, and everything that creeps along the ground according to its kind. God saw that it was good.

God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, to Our likeness. Let them rule over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, over the cattle, over the wild animals, and over all creeping things that crawl along the ground.” So God created man in His image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.

God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number, fill the earth and subdue it, rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the sky, over every living creature that moves on the ground.” God said, “I have given you every seed bearing plants which is on the face of all the earth, and every tree that bears fruit with seed. It will be for your food. To every wild animal, to every bird of the sky, to everything that creeps along the ground, to everything that has the breath of life, I give every green plant for food.” So it was.

God saw all that He had made, and it was very good. There was evening and there was morning : the sixth day. That was the way the sky and earth were created and all their vast array. By the seventh day the work God had done was completed, and He rested on the seventh day from all the work He had done.

Alternative reading (shorter version)

Genesis 1 : 1, 26-31a

In the beginning, when God began to create the heavens and the earth.

God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, to Our likeness. Let them rule over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, over the cattle, over the wild animals, and over all creeping things that crawl along the ground.” So God created man in His image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.

God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number, fill the earth and subdue it, rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the sky, over every living creature that moves on the ground.” God said, “I have given you every seed bearing plants which is on the face of all the earth, and every tree that bears fruit with seed. It will be for your food. To every wild animal, to every bird of the sky, to everything that creeps along the ground, to everything that has the breath of life, I give every green plant for food.” So it was.

God saw all that He had made, and it was very good.

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Sunday, 17 April 2022 : Easter Vigil Mass, Easter Sunday of the Lord’s Resurrection (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, after a long period of forty days and the six Sundays of Lent that we have spent before this night, we have finally come to the culmination of all of our preparations for this most important event in all the history of mankind and in the history of our salvation. For this very night we commemorate that time when Christ Our Lord, our Crucified Saviour, rose gloriously from the dead, overcoming sin and death, and therefore barring open the gates of hell, showing the triumphant victory of God and His faithful ones against the forces of evil and darkness, against sin and death.

Tonight as we gather together to celebrate the coming of Easter, we rejoice greatly as we finally see the great Hope and Light that Our Lord Jesus Christ, Our Lord and Saviour had shown us by His glorious Resurrection, that we know that sin no longer has its hold on us, and death no longer has the final say over us. There is life and existence after death, when our physical bodies meet its end in this world, because we shall rise and join our Risen Lord in a new and blissful existence, sharing in the joy of all the Angels and saints in Heaven, to be forever with God and to be in His light and Presence always.

That is why we sing with great joy the Gloria tonight, praising God and singing our joyful heart out, glorifying Our Lord Who has conquered sin and death, and Who has loved us all so much and so dearly that He has done all these things for us, as we look back to our Holy Week journey to remind us of everything that He had done for us. We sing the great Alleluia, the triumphant proclamation of praise and joy, which we have not sung for the entirety of the season of Lent, as we look forward to the true and great joy of seeing God’s light and salvation in our midst, reflecting the joy that the disciples had upon seeing that empty tomb and then later on, seeing the Risen Lord in their midst.

In our many Scripture readings tonight, traditionally numbering seven from the Old Testament, the First to the Seventh Reading, and then two from the New Testament, the Epistle and the Gospel reading, we have heard the long account of God’s plan of salvation for each and every one of us from the beginning of Creation, culminating at the Lord’s Resurrection in our Gospel today where all of God’s plans and promises were accomplished and fulfilled perfectly. Let us look back into those readings to remind ourselves of how beloved we are in God’s eyes that He has done so much for our redemption and liberation from sin and death. We are reminded that He has loved us so much that He gave us His only begotten Son, that through Him we will not perish but have eternal life.

In our first reading today, taken from the Book of Genesis, we heard of the account of the Creation of the universe, the whole world as know it. Through His will and by His words, all of the universe we created, God creating everything that exists and made everything as He desired it to be, all good and perfect as we heard the Lord Himself saying. He made the firmaments, the Heaven and the Earth, and all the living things, from the smallest to the greatest. The Lord then lastly also made us all mankind, the pinnacle of all His creation, as creatures made in His own image and appearance. He gave us the Spirit of life, and made us all good and perfect.

We may wonder why God had created us all in the first place. After all, is God not perfect and has everything? God has no need or any shortage of anything. He has perfect love shared within Himself in the Holy Trinity of Father, Son and Holy Spirit. But the reason why God created us all and everything is indeed that love is not truly full and wholesome unless it is shared with even more people. That is why God created all of us, in order to share His overflowing love with us. We were always destined and meant to live in pure happiness and bliss with God, just as how the Gardens of Eden were described as a blissful and perfect place.

It was by our own failure to resist the temptations to sin, in giving to the desires of our hearts that led us into our downfall. Satan, the great adversary plotted for our destruction and downfall, and he knew well how to tempt us. He tempted Eve and eventually Adam through her to disobey God’s commands by eating the fruits of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, and as a result sin entered by into the hearts of mankind. Ever since then, sin has reigned over us and we have been made defiled and corrupted, and thus we are no longer able to be hiwith God. That was why Adam and Eve were both cast out of Eden.

God created all things good and perfect, and that includes us all as well, brothers and sisters in Christ. But sin enslaved us all, corrupted us and made us all separated from God. Yet, God did not give up on us, and He still loved us all the same. He could have destroyed and annihilated us by the mere power of His will, or to condemn us all to hellfire just as what happened to Satan and all the fallen angels, but He clearly did not do so. He loves us all mankind beyond anything else, as His own most beloved ones, as His beloved children that He has formed and made His own. Because of this, it is natural that God wants to find us and be reconciled with us.

Hence, He promised us His salvation that He would send into our midst, and He made a Covenant with us through Abraham as His effort to rebuild the relationship that has been broken with us, and this Covenant was meant as a reminder of the great love that He has for each and every one of us, that in the end, He did not desire our destruction but instead our reconciliation with Him. That Covenant serves as a reminder of this love that God has for each and every one of us. And most importantly, a Covenant involves both parties that take part in the Covenant, and just as God has reached out to us with love and mercy, then we have to respond to Him as well.

Then, we ought to remember how the Lord blessed and fulfilled His promises to Abraham, and as He has promised to him, he became the father of many nations and many people. These descendants of Abraham, the Israelites, God’s chosen people was led by God to Egypt during the time of great famine, and then blessed them and made them prosper greatly in the land of Egypt which led to them being enslaved by the Egyptians and their Pharaoh. But God again showed His great love and compassion for His people, in sending Moses, whom He called to be His servant, and then through Moses and his brother Aaron, God performed many great miracles and signs, sending ten Great Plagues to persuade and force the Egyptians to let His people go free.

In our third reading today, we heard that iconic moment in the history of God’s people, recounting to us the moment when the Israelites were pursued all the way to the edge of the sea, out of which there was no where else to go. They were at the threshold of escaping and leaving behind the land of their slavery towards freedom, on their way towards the Promised Land at Canaan, promised to them and their ancestors from the days of Abraham. They were all afraid and fearful seeing all of the armies and the chariots of the Pharaoh and the Egyptians, but God was with His people, and He did not just stop those armies and chariots with a great pillar of fire, but He also opened the sea itself before them.

I am sure all of us are familiar with the story of how the Israelites walked through the sea on the dry seabed, and how they were led to the other side through the water, and then the Lord brought the water and the waves down against the Egyptians who tried to pursue after the people of Israel, crushing their armies and chariots, winning a great victory and triumph for the people He had chosen and loved as His own. And this reading is very symbolic for today in particular especially because this night is typically when the catechumens are baptised and therefore welcomed into the Church, and for all of us who have already been baptised, we are reminded of our baptismal promises.

For just as the Israelites were led through the water of the sea, from the land of their slavery into the land of freedom, therefore the catechumens who have committed themselves to the Lord are led through the water of baptism, to leave behind their past enslaved state under sin and death, and be freed by the grace of God to enter into the freedom and true joy that He has called us all to come towards. When we are immersed in the waters of baptism, we leave behind our past lives and are washed clean, becoming a clean slate, beginning a new stage in our lives and existence, transformed into God’s own adopted children, His sons and daughters. And all of us who have been baptised earlier are reminded of this moment when our lives are transformed forever.

And through the other Scripture readings that we have heard today, in the prophets and how they speak of God and His care and love for His people, reminding them of everything that He has done for them, again and again throughout the ages, and all of us are called to refocus our attention on the Lord, keeping in mind that God has been so loving, kind and merciful that He has always been willing to reach out to us, forgiving us and welcoming us back to Him whenever we sinned. The Lord has given us all the means for us to return to Him, because He loves us so much more than He despises our sins. Nonetheless, as mentioned before, because of sin we have been corrupted and made defiled, and we have been separated from God because of this.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, God gave us His only begotten Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ, to be Our Saviour, and through Him all of us have received the assurance of eternal life, all because of everything that happened that time which we celebrate now, the moment when He overcame sin and death, gloriously triumphant through His Resurrection. By His Passion, His suffering and death, Christ has taken upon Himself all of our sins and faults, our mistakes and all the punishments due to those sins. He redeemed us by offering Himself as the perfect and most worthy offering, the only one by which all of us mankind can be absolved from our many, innumerable sins.

While Our Lord endured death and descended into hell after His passing on Good Friday, He did not remain in death forever, showing us all that death has finally been overcome, for the Master of Life and Death Himself has come to liberate all those who have been awaiting Him to see the hope of their salvation. That was why when the Lord rose gloriously in His Resurrection, many eyewitnesses saw the tombs of the righteous were opened and the souls of the deceased righteous went out and were taken by God to their rightful place in the afterlife.

According to Church tradition and teachings, the Lord went down into hell, in what is known as the harrowing of Hell, as God liberated all those who were deemed worthy of salvation and brought them out of their waiting place, and you can just imagine the kind of joy that those souls of the faithful departed must have upon witnessing the light of the Lord coming into their midst, liberating them, much as how the Israelites were led out of their slavery in Egypt into the freedom, and to the Promised Land. And all of us share in this same joy because through baptism, in fact, we have also shared in the death of Christ, dying to our old ways of life, and striving henceforth, to live lives truly worthy of God.

That is why we rejoice this Easter, brothers and sisters in Christ. We rejoice because through Christ, we have received the assurance of true happiness and we are all made His beloved children, called to be His disciples, and through our common baptism, we have been marked as God’s people. We are now members of God’s Church, His One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church, the one united Body of Christ. However, at the same time, we also have to remember and keep in mind that we cannot be idle in the living of our faith.

That is because although today, the Easter Vigil is the pinnacle of our entire liturgical year, remembering and celebrating the single most important event in our entire human history and existence, but we must remember that Easter and our baptism is not the end journey, but only the beginning of the journey towards God. Just as the Israelites in the past have had to travel for an entire forty years, before they actually reached and entered into the Promised Land, and they fell again and again into sin, the same applies to us all as well. If we allow ourselves to be swayed by worldly temptations and our desires, then we can easily fall back into our old sinful path and way of life again.

We have to keep this in mind as we celebrate the most wonderful and joyous festivities happening today this Easter Vigil. That we must not forget our calling in life as Christians. We have to follow the Lord and walk in His path, having seen the hope of His light and salvation, and the empty tomb showing us hope that there is path beyond sin and death. Through Christ, His loving sacrifice on the Cross and most importantly, His resurrection from the dead, He has shown us the path out of darkness and into the light.

God has established a new Covenant with us, and as we all should be aware of, this Covenant requires us to be actively doing our part of this Covenant, and means that we have to be active in contributing to the Church, in living our lives with faith, dedicating ourselves to serve Our Lord in all times and opportunities. We have to walk this path with faith, and realise that there is still a long path forward for us. Let us all be inspirations and good examples for one another, and be good role models and witnesses of Our Lord’s truth and resurrection in our community and world today. Let us all be true Christians in all things, and proclaim the Lord in all opportunities.

May the joy of Our Risen Lord be with us always, and may He empower us all to remain firm in faith, and that we may always ever be committed to Him, no matter what challenges, trials and temptations may be present in our path. May God bless us always, in everything we do, and may all of us have a blessed Easter season and celebration. Alleluia! Our Lord is Risen! Amen!

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Sunday, 17 April 2022 : Easter Vigil Mass, Easter Sunday of the Lord’s Resurrection (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Luke 24 : 1-12

At that time, on the Sabbath the women rested according to the commandment, but the first day of the week, at dawn, the women went to the tomb with the perfumes and ointments they had prepared. Seeing the stone rolled away from the opening of the tomb, they entered, and were amazed to find that the Body of the Lord Jesus was not there.

As they stood there wondering about this, two men in dazzling garments suddenly stood before them. In fright the women bowed to the ground. But the men said, “Why look for the living among the dead? You will not find Him here. He is risen. Remember what He told you in Galilee, that the Son of Man had to be given into the hands of sinners, to be crucified, and to rise on the third day.” And they remembered Jesus’ words.

Returning from the tomb, they told the Eleven and all the others about these things. Among the women, who brought the news, were Mary Magdalene, Joanna, and Mary the mother of James. But however much they insisted, those who heard did not believe the seemingly nonsensical story. Then Peter got up and ran to the tomb. All he saw, when he bent down and looked into the tomb, were the linen cloths, laid by themselves. He went home wondering.

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Sunday, 17 April 2022 : Easter Vigil Mass, Easter Sunday of the Lord’s Resurrection (Psalm after Epistle)

Liturgical Colour : White

Psalm 117 : 1-2, 16ab and 17, 22-23

Alleluia! Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good, His loving kindness endures forever. Let Israel say, “His loving kindness endures forever.”

The right hand of the Lord is lifted high, the right hand of the Lord strikes mightily! I shall not die, but live to proclaim what the Lord has done.

The stone rejected by the builders has become the cornerstone. This was the Lord’s doing and we marvel at it.

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Sunday, 17 April 2022 : Easter Vigil Mass, Easter Sunday of the Lord’s Resurrection (Epistle)

Liturgical Colour : White

Romans 6 : 3-11

Do you not know that in baptism which unites us to Christ we are all baptised and plunged into His death? By this baptism in His death, we were buried with Christ and, as Christ was raised from among the dead by the Glory of the Father, so we begin walking in a new life. If we have been joined to Him by dying a death like His so we shall be by a resurrection like His.

We know that our old self was crucified with Christ, so as to destroy what of us was sin, so that we may no longer serve sin – if we are dead, we are no longer in debt to sin. But if we have died with Christ, we believe we will also live with Him. We know that Christ, once risen from the dead, will not die again and death has no more dominion over Him. For by dying, He is dead to sin once and for all, and now the life that He lives is life with God.

So you, too, must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus.

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Sunday, 17 April 2022 : Easter Vigil Mass, Easter Sunday of the Lord’s Resurrection (Psalm after Seventh Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Psalm 41 : 3, 5bcde and Psalm 42 : 3, 4

My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I go and see the face of God?

Now as I pour out my soul, I remember all this – how I used to lead the faithful in procession to the house of God, amid shouts of joy and thanksgiving, among the feasting throng.

Send forth Your light and Your truth; let them be my guide, let them take me to Your holy mountain, to the place where You reside.

Then will I go to the altar of God, to God, my gladness and delight. I will praise You with the lyre and harp, o God, my God.

Alternative Psalm (If there is Baptism)

Isaiah 12 : 2-3, 4bcd, 5-6

He is the God of my salvation; in Him I trust and am not afraid, YHVH is my strength : Him I will praise, the One Who saved me.

You will draw water with joy from the very fountain of salvation. Then you will say : “Praise to the Lord, break into songs of joy for Him, proclaim His marvellous deeds among the nations and exalt His Name.”

“Sing to the Lord : wonders He has done, let these be known all over the earth. Sing for joy, o people of Zion, for great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel.”

Alternative Psalm (If there is Baptism)

Psalm 50 : 12-13, 14-15, 18-19

Create in me, o God, a pure heart; give me a new and steadfast spirit. Do not cast me out of Your presence nor take Your Holy Spirit from me.

Give me again the joy of Your salvation and sustain me with a willing spirit. Then I will show wrongdoers Your ways and sinners will return to You.

You take no pleasure in sacrifice; were I to give a burnt offering, You would not delight in it.

O God, my sacrifice is a broken spirit; a contrite heart You will not despise.

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Sunday, 17 April 2022 : Easter Vigil Mass, Easter Sunday of the Lord’s Resurrection (Seventh Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Ezekiel 36 : 16-17a, 18-28

The word of YHVH came to me in these terms, “Son of man, when Israel occupied her own land she defiled it by her way of life and her actions. I poured out My fury on them because of the blood they shed in the land and because they defiled it with their filthy idols. Then I scattered them among the nations and dispersed them in other lands. I judged them according to their conduct and their actions.”

“But when they were brought to other nations, My holy Name was profaned because others said of them : ‘The people of YHVH had to be exiled from His land!’ Then I was concerned for My holy Name, profaned by Israel among the nations where she had been dispersed.”

“Now you shall say to the people of Israel : It is not for your sake that I am about to act, but because of My holy Name that you have profaned in the places where you have gone. I will make known the holiness of My great Name, profaned among the nations because of you, and they will know that I am YHVH when I show them My holiness among you.”

“For I will gather you from all the nations and bring you back to your own land. Then I shall pour pure water over you and you shall be made clean – cleansed from the defilement of all your idols. I shall give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you.”

“I shall remove your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. I shall put My Spirit within you and move you to follow My decrees and keep My laws. You will live in the land I gave your ancestors; you shall be My people and I will be your God.”