21st Sunday in Ordinary Time
First Reading
Isaiah 22:19–23
Thus says the Lord of Hosts to Shebna, the master of the palace:
I dismiss you from your office,
I remove you from your post,
and the same day I call on my servant
Eliakim son of Hilkiah.
I invest him with your robe,
gird him with your sash,
entrust him with your authority;
and he shall be a father
to the inhabitants of Jerusalem
and to the House of Judah.
I place the key of the House of David
on his shoulder;
should he open, no one shall close,
should he close, no one shall open.
I drive him like a peg
into a firm place;
he will become a throne of glory
for his father’s house.
Responsorial Psalm
Psalm 137(138):1–3,6,8
Lord, your love is eternal; do not forsake the work of your hands.
I thank you, Lord, with all my heart:
you have heard the words of my mouth.
In the presence of the angels I will bless you.
I will adore before your holy temple.
Lord, your love is eternal; do not forsake the work of your hands.
I thank you for your faithfulness and love,
which excel all we ever knew of you.
On the day I called, you answered;
you increased the strength of my soul.
Lord, your love is eternal; do not forsake the work of your hands.
The Lord is high yet he looks on the lowly
and the haughty he knows from afar.
Your love, O Lord, is eternal,
discard not the work of your hands.
Lord, your love is eternal; do not forsake the work of your hands.
Second Reading
Romans 11:33–36
How rich are the depths of God – how deep his wisdom and knowledge – and how impossible to penetrate his motives or understand his methods! Who could ever know the mind of the Lord? Who could ever be his counsellor? Who could ever give him anything or lend him anything? All that exists comes from him; all is by him and for him. To him be glory for ever! Amen.
Gospel Acclamation
Alleluia, alleluia!
You are Peter, the rock on which I will build my Church;
the gates of hell will not hold out against it.
Alleluia!
Gospel
Matthew 16:13–20
When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi he put this question to his disciples, ‘Who do people say the Son of Man is?’ And they said, ‘Some say he is John the Baptist, some Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.’
‘But you,’ he said ‘who do you say I am?’
Then Simon Peter spoke up, ‘You are the Christ,’ he said, ‘the Son of the living God.’
Jesus replied, ‘Simon son of Jonah, you are a happy man! Because it was not flesh and blood that revealed this to you but my Father in heaven. So I now say to you: You are Peter and on this rock I will build my Church. And the gates of the underworld can never hold out against it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven: whatever you bind on earth shall be considered bound in heaven; whatever you loose on earth shall be considered loosed in heaven.’
Then he gave the disciples strict orders not to tell anyone that he was the Christ.
Reflection
The first reading begins with the removal of a powerful official. Shebna occupies an important position in the royal household, but the office is not his personal possession. God dismisses him and calls Eliakim to take his place. Authority is shown to be something entrusted, not seized or owned.
Eliakim receives the robe, sash and key associated with responsibility for the House of David. Yet the most revealing line is not about what he will control. God says that Eliakim “shall be a father” to Jerusalem and Judah. His authority is meant to provide steadiness, protection and care. The key on his shoulder represents genuine power, but that power is ordered towards the good of others.
The image of the peg driven into a firm place suggests reliability. People should be able to depend upon Eliakim because he has been established for service. His authority becomes honourable only when it supports something beyond himself. Shebna is removed; Eliakim is installed; but the Lord remains the one who calls, invests and entrusts.
The psalm places this human authority beneath the enduring faithfulness of God. The Lord is high, yet he looks upon the lowly. His greatness does not make him remote or indifferent. When the psalmist calls, God answers and strengthens his soul.
“Do not forsake the work of your hands” is both a plea and a confession of trust. Human office-holders change, human plans falter and human strength reaches its limits, but God remains faithful to what he has begun. The Catechism describes creation as continually upheld and guided by divine providence rather than abandoned after its beginning (CCC 301–305).
Paul responds to this mystery with wonder. He does not present God as a problem that sufficiently clever people can solve. God’s wisdom and knowledge are deeper than human judgement can penetrate. No one advises him, and no one places him in their debt. Everything comes from him, exists through him and is directed towards him.
This does not make thought or theology pointless. It places them within humility. We can truly know God because he reveals himself, but we cannot reduce him to the size of our understanding. The Catechism teaches that our language about God is real yet always limited, because the Creator surpasses every creature and every human concept (CCC 39–43).
That humility is essential when we reach the Gospel. At Caesarea Philippi, Jesus asks what people are saying about him. The answers are respectful: John the Baptist, Elijah, Jeremiah or another prophet. Yet none of them is sufficient. Public opinion can recognise that Jesus is significant while still failing to recognise who he is.
Jesus then makes the question personal: “But you, who do you say I am?” Peter answers that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God. This confession does not arise from Peter’s natural insight alone. Jesus says that the Father has revealed it to him. Peter speaks truly because grace has enabled him to see beyond the available human opinions.
Only after this confession does Jesus speak about Peter’s role. Peter receives a new name, a foundational responsibility and the keys of the kingdom. The connection with Eliakim is deliberate. As Eliakim receives the key of the House of David, Peter receives the keys of Christ’s kingdom. In both cases, the key represents authority given by another and exercised on behalf of another.
Jesus does not say that Peter will build his own institution. He says, “I will build my Church.” Christ remains the builder, the owner of the keys and the source of the Church’s endurance. Peter’s responsibility is real, but it is never independent of Christ. The Catechism identifies the power of the keys with authority to govern the household of God, particularly through the ministry of binding and loosing (CCC 551–553).
The promise that the gates of the underworld will not prevail is not a guarantee that the Church’s human members will always be impressive or free from failure. Peter himself will misunderstand, protest and deny Christ. The promise rests upon the faithfulness of Jesus, not upon an illusion of human perfection.
The Petrine ministry therefore exists as a service to unity and fidelity. Peter is entrusted with strengthening his brothers and tending Christ’s flock. The Church understands the Bishop of Rome, as Peter’s successor, to possess a particular responsibility for the unity of the bishops and the faithful (CCC 880–882). This authority must always remain accountable to the Christ whom Peter confessed.
The readings do not invite either blind trust in human authority or cynical rejection of it. They ask us to recognise its proper shape. Authority comes from God, remains answerable to him and is given for the care of others. When it becomes self-serving, it betrays its purpose. When it points beyond itself to Christ, it can become a source of stability.
This applies beyond formal Church leadership. Parents, employers, teachers, community leaders and anyone whose decisions affect another person hold some form of entrusted influence. The question is not simply whether we possess authority, but what our use of it reveals. Are we making ourselves central, or helping others stand in a firm place?
Isaiah gives us the key; the psalm gives us confidence in God’s lasting love; Paul gives us humility before divine wisdom; and the Gospel gives us the confession on which Christian life depends. Together they remind us that everything begins and ends in God. The Church belongs to Christ, its authority serves his truth, and its strength rests finally in his faithfulness.
One line to carry today:
Authority becomes faithful when it points beyond itself to Christ.
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