Daily Mass Readings for January 22, 2026: Gospel — Mc 3,7-12

⁶ When the men arrived after David returned from striking down the Philistine, the women from all the cities of Israel came out singing and dancing to meet King Saul. They were happy as they played their tambourines and three-stringed instruments. ⁷ The women who were playing the music sang, “Saul has struck down his thousands, but David his tens of thousands!” ⁸ This made Saul very angry. The statement displeased him and he thought, “They have attributed to David tens of thousands, but to me they have attributed only thousands. What does he lack, except the kingdom?” ⁹ So Saul was keeping an eye on David from that day onward. 1 9 :¹ Then Saul told his son Jonathan and all his servants to kill David. But Saul’s son Jonathan liked David very much. ² So Jonathan told David, “My father Saul is trying to kill you. So be careful tomorrow morning. Find a hiding place and stay in seclusion. ³ I will go out and stand beside my father in the field where you are. I will speak to my father about you. When I find out what the problem is, I will let you know.” ⁴ So Jonathan spoke on David’s behalf to his father Saul. He said to him, “The king should not sin against his servant David, for he has not sinned against you. On the contrary, his actions have been very beneficial for you. ⁵ He risked his life when he struck down the Philistine, and the Lord gave all Israel a great victory. When you saw it, you were happy. So why would you sin against innocent blood by putting David to death for no reason?” ⁶ Saul accepted Jonathan’s advice and took an oath, “As surely as the Lord lives, he will not be put to death.” ⁷ Then Jonathan called David and told him all these things. Jonathan brought David to Saul, and he served him as he had done formerly.