Today's readings demonstrate so clearly that the same word of God that ultimately calls our spirits to rejoice first causes our flesh to recoil. All of today's readings implicitly demonstrate this.
In today's first reading, we have Elijah anointing Elisha. This anointing never could have happened if the word of God had not first convinced Elijah to repent. Previous to this, on Mount Carmel, Elijah had called down fire from heaven to consume a sacrifice, to prove to the false prophets that the God of Israel is God alone.