Today's first reading presents us with one of the most moving statements in the Bible of the loving regard God has for us, his human creatures. It is as tender as the tenderest of the passages in the New Testament which tell us of Jesus' love for the sinner and his unfailing concern for us as we move through life. At the same time the reading makes it clear that God cannot break through to the heart of the one who resolutely refuses to accept his love if he or she obstinately persists in an arrogant, misguided assertion of independence.

The passage in one small respect awaits the fullness of revelation in the New Testament where we are assured that God does not punish us for the sins of others, even for the sins of those who are inseperably bound to us by family ties.

The Gospel like the first reading affirms that God does not force a conversion out of totally hardened self satisifed person. The sinner may not be as guilty as he or she seems. The passage consoles us by telling us that no one is beyond redemption, beyond hope of change for the better. Maybe a postponement of a definitve judgement would be good news for us too. We need time. We need time to get things right. Time, however, is one more of God's gifts to us.