I suppose that at times it is easy for us to envy the "big" people of this world, those who seem to have everything they want, including money and power. If somehow we feel oppressed by the "big" people, envy quickly turns to resentment, even hatred, and we want justice to be done to them.

King Antiochus was one of the big people of his day. The Jews may have envied him, but they certainly did resent him because of his oppression and persecution, and they wanted God to work His justice against him. Today's first reading shows how the mighty are brought low. Learning that his armies had been defeated, Antiochus realized that he was about to die alone and in disgrace.

The truth is that we should never envy those who seem to be the mighty of this world, nor should we ever wish evil upon them. Justice belongs to God alone and we must patiently allow Him to work out His justice in His own way. More positively we ought to realize that God favours the simple and humble people of this world who have learned to depend completely on Him. No matter what our problems may be during life, the turning point for us will come when we totally depend on Him.