A King's Entrance: Jesus Returns to Jerusalem

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Unless you are a hermit living in a cave, you know that this past Friday was the royal wedding of William and Katherine. You've probably seen more of it than you want to, if you're like me. But according to the UK Telegraph, an estimated 2 billion people in more than 180 countries around the world were expected to either watch the ceremony or see reports and photographs of the royal wedding. It was covered, in London alone, by 8,500 journalists. In Westminster Abbey there were 1,900 people that were invited to the service. Most of those who attended were the couples' relatives and friends. In addition, there were some 50 members of the royal family, 40 members of foreign royalty, 200 politicians and diplomats, and 80 guests from the prince's charities that he represents. An estimated 1,000 miles of bunting was sold to decorate London. More than a million people lined the streets of London to celebrate the event.

As I watched some of that and saw some of the recap of it, I couldn't help but contrast that event with the entrance of the King of Israel, the King of the universe, into His capital city, Jerusalem, in the event that we call the Triumphal Entry. His royal entrance into the city of Jerusalem established both His credentials as King, as well as what would be the character of His rule as King. And it's this event that I really want us to examine tonight.

Now, first of all, before we look at the passage itself, I just want to give you context, because we really begin the second half of Mark's Gospel this evening. It centers, the second half does, in the events of the Passion Week. Mark spends ten chapters, the first ten chapters, on the three and half years of Jesus' earthly ministry. But he spends the next six chapters on one week in our Lord's life. Clearly, that one week defines the essence of Jesus' ministry, it defines why He came.

Now again, let me give you the larger context. During the last six months of Jesus' ministry, Jesus was in and out of Jerusalem several times for three different feasts. His last trip to Jerusalem, before the one we're studying tonight, had been just about 6 to 8 weeks before. He had come to Bethany, a city very close to Jerusalem, to raise His friend Lazarus from the dead. This was probably around February of 30 A.D.

Bethany, where all this happened, was just over the Mount of Olives from Jerusalem, about 2 miles. Jesus carefully calculated the raising of Lazarus, really the first time, and tonight we'll see the second time in His whole ministry, when Jesus carefully orchestrated an event for maximum impact. That was true of the raising of Lazarus, occurred about six to eight weeks before the Passover, before the Triumphal Entry and next door to Jerusalem, just over the hill. As a result of that, as a result of the raising of Lazarus, the Sanhedrin made a decision that Jesus had to be killed. Look at John 11. In John 11, you see the decision that was made. Verse 46,

... some of them went to the Pharisees and told them the things which Jesus had done. Therefore the chief priests and the Pharisees convened a council, [here's the Sanhedrin, an official session] ... [they] were saying, "What are we doing?" [Look at what's happening.]

And this is when Caiaphas, you remember, makes his prophecy that it's expedient, it's profitable for one man to die instead of the whole nation be destroyed. Verse 53, "So from that day on they planned together to kill Him." That would have been sometime in February, just about 6 to 8 weeks earlier.

Now, after the raising of Lazarus, while this council is convening, sometime in that time period, Jesus leaves Jerusalem and goes just north, to a little town called Ephraim, just a few miles north of Jerusalem where He waits with His disciples. Notice verse 54, "Therefore Jesus no longer continued to walk publicly among the Jews, but went away from there to the country near the wilderness, into a city called Ephraim; and there He stayed with ... [His] disciples." Until the Feast of Passover draws near, and as the Feast of Passover draws near, a couple of things happen. First of all, the Jewish leaders who've already decided they're going to kill Jesus, demanded that anyone who knew where Jesus was, turn Him over to the authorities. Look at verse 57, "Now the chief priests and the Pharisees had given orders that if anyone knew where He was, he was to report it, so that they might seize Him."

The other thing that was happening, because of that, is the people were debating whether Jesus would in fact come for the Feast of Passover. Look at verse 55, "... Passover of the Jews was near, and many went up to Jerusalem out of the country before the Passover to purify themselves." Typically, they would go about a week before Passover for the ritual purification to make sure they could take of the Passover. And as they get to Jerusalem, verse 56, "... they were seeking for Jesus, ... [they] ... were saying to one another as they stood in the temple, 'What do you think; that He will not come to the feast at all?'" 'Do you think He'll come?' 'I don't think He'll come; look at the threat, look at the arrest warrant that's been issued for Him.' No one knew where Jesus was at this point, but He became the chief topic of conversation in all the marketplaces and among all the political pundits of the nation.

When the time comes for Passover, Jesus does decide to attend. But Jesus takes a most unlikely route. He goes north; He's here just north of Jerusalem, and He goes north into Galilee; joins pilgrims coming back down the Jordan rift on the east side of the Jordan, and then comes through Jericho on back to Jerusalem, a very circuitous route, and as He does that, He was highly visible. He taught the crowds; He performed miracles; He even confronted the Pharisees on that trek, on that journey. They traveled down the Jordan rift valley into Perea where they spent the night, you remember?

Several things happened there including the blessing of the children, etc., the rich young ruler. And then they continued after being in the Perea area, which is over here on the east of the Jordan rift, they crossed the Jordan River, the Jordan River runs between the Sea of Galilee and the Dead Sea. They would have crossed over, and they came to Jericho. And, of course, it was in Jericho where Bartimaeus and his blind friend were healed; we studied just a couple of weeks ago. And apparently, Jesus spent the night there in the home of Zaccheus, you remember, who was saved at the same time, probably in the Roman city of Jericho.

Now Jericho as you can see here, is only about 20 miles apart from Jerusalem. And so, Jesus and His disciples, after that night's rest, probably moved then toward Jerusalem. This just gives you a picture of how barren it is between Jericho and Jerusalem. Here is the city of Jericho down here; this is the Judean wilderness, and this is the wadi. You see this dry riverbed that fills up during the rainy season. The road called the Jericho Road; you remember the good Samaritan, the man who fell among thieves? You can see why this was a great hideout for thieves. And so, the road ran right along this rift by the wadi, and you went up from Jericho which was about 800 feet below sea level to Jerusalem, which was some 3,500 feet higher, and so you marched up this road. Here's what it looks like from inside the rift itself. It was an ominous place, a difficult journey, but that's the route they took.

Let me show you one other thing here, while we're looking. Here is the Dead Sea, this is a little different orientation. This is Jerusalem; there is the Dome of the Rock, which will orient you. This is Jerusalem, the Mount of Olives. There's the Judean wilderness that Jesus and His followers would have come up through to get to where they'll be staying. So, that's the route they take.

And when they got close to Jerusalem, when they come up the Judean wilderness, and they come to the back side of the Mount of Olives, Jesus didn't go with the rest of the pilgrims into the city of Jerusalem. Instead, He stopped just over the Mount of Olives, I'll show you in a moment, at Bethany.

It was there that He and His disciples would spend the night throughout the nights of the Passion Week at the home of Mary, and Martha, and guess who - Lazarus, whom He had raised just six to eight weeks earlier. Apparently, Jesus and the twelve stopped at Bethany late Friday afternoon. John 12:1 says that Jesus and His disciples arrived in Bethany six days before the Passover. If you do the math using the Galilean method, which was to start the day at sunrise, then Friday would have been six days before. So apparently, (remember they couldn't travel on the Sabbath day), so apparently, they got to Bethany, they got from Jericho up through the rift, just over the hill from the city of Jerusalem on Friday afternoon, and Jesus and His disciples stopped there. But the rest of the group that Jesus was traveling with, you know this crowd of Galilean pilgrims, undoubtedly hurried on into the city of Jerusalem because they would have been eager to get into the city to get their lodging before the Sabbath began. And Sabbath began at sunset on Friday.

So, get the picture of what happened. As the crowds come pouring into Jerusalem late in the day Friday looking for their places to stay before the sunset begins and before the Sabbath begins, they brought two very important news items.

Item number one, Jesus was definitely coming to the Feast. "We traveled with Him from Galilee; He's just over the hill in Bethany." And that would have been the second part of the news. "He's just there, He stopped at Bethany to stay."

Now what's interesting about how Jesus arranged all of this, the travel restrictions on the Sabbath, remember there was what's called the "Sabbath's day journey"? You couldn't go but so far on the Sabbath. It was less than the two miles from Jerusalem to Bethany, you couldn't travel that distance. So that meant that people in Jerusalem couldn't go to Bethany to see Jesus, and Jesus couldn't enter the city on the Sabbath either. So that meant it was likely Jesus would enter Jerusalem when? Sunday morning. All the pilgrims have arrived. He's coming, He's coming. He's just over the hill, but He's too far away to come on the Sabbath. Likely, He's coming on Sunday morning. Of course, you can imagine the pent-up excitement and anticipation among the people.

Now the next major event then, comes on Sunday as Jesus enters the city of Jerusalem. What is historically been called the Triumphal Entry. Let me read it for you. Look back with me at Mark 11. Mark 11":1. This would have been on Sunday morning.

As they approached Jerusalem, at Bethphage and Bethany, near the Mount of Olives, He sent two of His disciples, and said to them, "Go into the village opposite you, and immediately as you enter it, you will find a colt tied there, on which no one ... has ever sat; untie it and bring it here. If anyone says to you, 'Why are you doing this?' you say, 'The Lord has need of it'; and immediately he will send it back here." They went away and found a colt tied at the door, outside in the street; and they untied it. Some of the bystanders were saying to them, "What are you doing, untying the colt?" They spoke to them just as Jesus had told them, and they gave them permission. They brought the colt to Jesus and put their coats on it; and He sat on it. And many spread their coats in the road, and others spread leafy branches which they had cut from the fields. Those who went in front and those who followed were shouting: "Hosanna! BLESSED IS HE WHO COMES IN THE NAME OF THE LORD; Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David; Hosanna in the highest!"

Jesus entered Jerusalem and came into the temple; and after looking around at everything, He left for Bethany with the twelve, since it was already late.

In this great event, Jesus openly declares Himself to be Israel's Messiah and her rightful King. He takes the veil away, and He makes it crystal clear to the nation who it is He's claiming to be. Now this dramatic event takes place in three great acts.

The first act is this - the King carefully orchestrates His royal entrance. The King carefully orchestrates His royal entrance. It begins with the Lord's orders. Notice verse 1, "As [] they approached Jerusalem, at Bethphage and Bethany, near the Mount of Olives, He sent two of His disciples..."

Now, just to give you some orientation here. This is from the southeast looking into Jerusalem. Here is the city of Jerusalem; this would have been the ancient city. There's the temple mount area, where the temple would have stood, which now, of course, is decorated with the Dome of the Rock and the Al-Aqsa Mosque. And here this hill you see rising before you, and it's bigger than it looks on here, (I'll show you in a moment), is the Mount of Olives. On this side of the Mount of Olives, this circle represents Bethany, that's the ancient city where Jesus and His disciples stayed. And on the way to Jerusalem, they passed near the little town of Bethphage, which means "house of figs". And so, He's going over the Mount of Olives and descending down into the Kidron Valley, which runs here, and to the temple mount and specifically to the temple.

Couple of other pictures just to give you some orientation. This is north now, this arrow pointing here. Here is the hill that is called the Mount of Olives. The Kidron Valley, you read about where the Garden of Gethsemane is, runs here. And there again is the temple mount, just to give you some orientation. This is the rise, it's larger than it looks. On the right is the Mount of Olives. This is now from the south, looking north. So, here's the Mount of Olives, here's the Kidron Valley running up through here, the Garden of Gethsemane is up in this area, and the temple mount where the temple would have stood is up here.

Now, he says, as they approached those two towns, as they got near the crest of the Mount of Olives, He sent two of His disciples, probably Peter and John. They later are the ones who go to arrange for the Passover meal; so probably it's the two of them; we can't be sure. And He "... said to them, 'Go into the village opposite you [probably Jesus was referring to that village of Bethphage, I pointed out on the east side of the Mount of Olives] and immediately as you enter it, you will find a colt tied there, on which no one has ever sat; untie it and bring it here.'"

The Greek word for colt simply refers to a young animal, could be any kind of animal. But in the context, it has to be a donkey, and here's why. This is from Matthew, Matthew 21:2. He says, "'Go into the village opposite you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied there and a colt with her; untie them and bring them to Me.'" So, there were two animals according to Matthew. The mother donkey isn't important to the story, so isn't mentioned in the other two gospels, because it probably was simply brought along to calm its young colt who had never been ridden before.

This is what it would've looked like. This is from Israel. In Israel, donkeys were often used. They provided a smooth ride, and they didn't have the stigma that donkeys have today. And so, take for example Abraham who was a very wealthy man. And yet when Abraham wanted to take his son Isaac in Genesis 22 to go to be sacrificed, he rose early in the morning we read, and saddled his donkey. So, this was common, very easy travel on the hills that made up ancient Israel.

So, Jesus sends two disciples nearby to the village telling them that as soon as they enter it, they're going to find the young donkey with its mother. And they'll both be tied on a public street. And the young donkey will never have been ridden. Why is that important? It's important for two reasons.

One, in the Old Testament it's clear that only animals that had never been used were worthy of special, sacred use. You can read about it in Numbers 19:2; Deuteronomy 21:3; 1 Samuel 6:7. To be for sacred use it had to have never been used before. Also, the Jewish Talmud makes the point that no one else can ever ride the animal of the king. So perhaps both of those ideas are included here in this, "it's never been ridden."

Jesus tells them that when they find this circumstance, they're to walk right up to these two animals that don't belong to them, untie them, and bring them to Jesus. You say, but how did Jesus know this? How did He know about these animals? Well, there are only two options, and commentators go back and forth on them.

Either, He had strategically pre-arranged this with one of His followers, that's remotely possible. Or, it was simply the working of His divine nature, particularly His omniscience. The Spirit allowed Him to exercise His omniscience for this occasion.

What is clear, either way, Jesus is carefully setting up the event that will follow. He is orchestrating, staging, engineering this event for maximum effect. As I said to you, Jesus had never done this until 6 to 8 weeks before with the death of Lazarus. You remember, He heard about Lazarus being sick? And He stayed where He was; waited until he died; got there four days after he was dead; and his body had begun to decay - staged for maximum effect. That was really the first time we see Jesus ever doing anything like that, and it was sort of the last effort to give proof of His Messiahship to the nation. Here, Jesus does it again, and we'll see why as the story continues to unfold.

Notice verse 3, "'If anyone says to you, 'Why are you doing this?' you say, 'The Lord has need of it'; and immediately he will send it back here.'" Now-- who would be most likely to raise a question like that? The owners. Jesus anticipates that that's exactly what's going to happen, and He prepares His disciples. And He says there are two distinct ways that you are to respond to the owners.

Notice what He says, you say first of all, "'The Lord has need of it.'" Almost every commentator agrees that Jesus is here referring to Himself. So, in other words, He's saying they should say something like this, "The Lord Jesus needs it." So, obviously then, one of Jesus' followers lives in the nearby village, owns a donkey and its colt, and in God's providence will have them tied outside of his house, on a public street. And when the owner asks, what the disciples are doing, he will simply hear this statement, "The Lord needs it."

Now, you know as I read that and thought about that this week, I was struck by the fact that there is a powerful reminder in that. That everything we call our own doesn't really belong to us. And the Lord often in His earthly ministry would call on His friends to whom He had given means, to use that means for the advance of His kingdom, and He still does that today. We should be every bit as open as this man with these two animals was when the Lord says, "I need that," to say, "it's yours."

Jesus says, not only should you say, "The Lord has need of it;" but add this, and this is interesting, "'... and immediately he, [that is Jesus, or the Lord] will send it back here.'" "Tell them I need it and assure the owner of the donkey and its colt, that as soon as I'm done with them, I'll return them." Although everything we have rightly belongs to our Lord, at the same time, Jesus here affirms the principle of private ownership.

William Hendriksen, the great Presbyterian commentator, makes the point that this underscores very practically that what we borrow from others we should return. Our Lord did. So, Jesus will use these animals, and when He's done, He'll return them, probably later that evening as they return to Bethany for the night. Those are Jesus' orders. "Go, take care of it."

That brings us then, to the disciples' preparation. Verse 4, "They went away and found a colt tied at the door, outside in the street; and they untied it." The animal was tied at the exterior door of a house on a public street. Now there's a possible allusion here to the prediction about Judah; do you remember? Jesus was said to come from the tribe of Judah, He was to be a lion of the tribe of Judah. Well, it's interesting if you go back to Genesis, to the prophecy made about Judah, Jacob's son, this is what you read in Genesis 49:10, "'The scepter [that is, the right to rule] shall not depart from Judah, [Judah is going to be the king] Nor the ruler's staff from between his feet, Until Shiloh comes ... [another way to translate that, that Hebrew word that's Shiloh here, is until He comes whose right it is. Judah is going to be the ruling tribe until, from Judah, comes the One who has the permanent right to rule] And to him [the Messiah] shall be the obedience of the peoples." That's clearly a Messianic prophecy.

And then, this is added in verse 11. And this may be an allusion to what happens in our account tonight. "'He [that is the Messiah] ties his foal to the vine, and his donkey's colt to the choice vine; He washes his garments in wine, and his robes in the blood of grapes.'" Can't be sure, many of the church father's thought this passage, verse 11 specifically, referred to the Triumphal Entry and where the animals came from.

Look at verse 5, "Some of the bystanders were saying to them, [the two of these] 'What are you doing, untying the colt?'" Specifically, Luke tells us in Luke 19:33, "As they were untying the colt, its owners said to them, 'Why are you untying the colt?'" So, these bystanders apparently, had just gotten back from wherever they were going, or they were about to leave, they had tied their animals in the street, they were talking to friends, and here come these two guys up untying their animals. "What are you doing?" Verse 6, "They spoke to them just as Jesus had told them, and they gave them permission." "The Lord needs them, and He'll return them soon." And they said, "take them."

Now I want you to notice something here. Mark takes six verses to describe how Jesus got the donkey, and only three verses to describe the Triumphal Entry itself. Why? Why do the gospel writers spend so much time dealing with how Jesus got the colt? Because even that points to who He is. He was exercising His omniscience; He was exercising His sovereignty. And more importantly, He was carefully staging, engineering, orchestrating what's about to happen. And that will be especially important when you see the message that comes out of it. He was sending a message, and all of these preparations were absolutely essential to the message.

Now that brings us to the second act. Not only does the King carefully orchestrate His royal entrance, but in verses 7 - 10, the King triumphantly enters His royal city. Look at verse 7, "They brought the colt to Jesus and put their coats on it; and He sat on it." The two disciples returned with the two animals, the mother its colt, and it was clear to them that Jesus intended to ride the colt, that's why they'd sent them. So, they take off their outer cloaks, and they put them on the colt as a kind of saddle, there wouldn't have been a saddle, this donkey had never been ridden, and so they put their cloaks on its back and probably the other 10 disciples, or at least some of them did, as well. And then according to Luke, they helped Jesus get on the animal.

Now it's crucial that you understand that Jesus staged this event. Jesus is intending here to make a very strong point. We know that for two reasons. First of all, this was the only time in Jesus' ministry that there is any record of His ever riding an animal, unless it was in the womb of Mary on the way to Bethlehem. The only time. In addition to that, the Jewish rabbis (and it's recorded for us in the Talmud, which was written a little bit after Christ), demanded that once pilgrims coming to the Feast in Jerusalem could actually see the city of Jerusalem, they were to get off whatever animals they were on, and they were to walk. So, here's Jesus, the only time in His ministry we ever see record of Him riding an animal, and at the very time that the rest of the people are supposed to be walking.

Verse 8, "And many spread their coats in the road, and others spread leafy branches which they had cut from the fields." Matthew adds that most of the crowd spread their coats on the ground. Others cut leafy branches from plants and trees in nearby fields and spread them in the roads. John mentions that some of these were the branches of palms, palm trees. All of this was the ancient version of the red carpet and the way to welcome a king. You go back even to the Old Testament time of Jehu and in 2 Kings 9:13, "... they hurried and each man took his garment and placed it under him on the bare steps, and blew the trumpet, saying, 'Jehu is king!'" This was the red carpet for the king.

Verse 9, "Those who went in front and those who followed were shouting: 'Hosanna! BLESSED IS HE WHO COMES IN THE NAME OF THE LORD ...'" Now there's a huge crowd here. Notice we hear about those who went in front and those who followed. By the way, it's interesting, there was probably a sort of antiphonal thing going on between the two crowds. Psalm 118, which they quote in a moment, we'll see, was often recited antiphonally as the people came up to the city of Jerusalem for the Feast, so one crowd would chant one part, and then another crowd the other part. So perhaps, back and forth, from those in front and those in back you hear this chanting going on.

Who are these people? Who's this crowd? Well, there are four parts of this crowd, four groups.

First of all, there are Jesus' followers from Galilee who'd come to Jerusalem for the Feast, were probably staying primarily in Jerusalem. John 12:12 tells us about them, the large crowd who'd come to the Feast when they heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem. They go out.

The second group were those who had seen Jesus raise Lazarus from the dead. So, this group was probably people who were His followers and traveled with Him, or perhaps some from Jerusalem. Verse 17 of John 12 says, "... the people, who were with Him when He called Lazarus out of the tomb and raised him from the dead ... [they were continuing] ... to testify about Him." They were included in this crowd.

A third group were those who had heard about the raising of Lazarus and wanted to see Jesus. Verse 18 of John 12, "For this reason also the people went and met Him, because they heard that He had performed this sign." And then along with these interested parties, some true disciples, some curious, there were also enemies. Luke tells us that there were some Pharisees in the crowd who immediately seize on what's being said and tell Jesus He ought to rebuke His followers for what they're saying.

Now we can't be certain, but it seems to me that many, if not most, of the people actively involved in putting their coats in the road, or their tree branches in the road, were actually followers of Christ. I don't think that this was the same crowd that welcomed Him as King on Monday and, and then cried out, "Crucify Him!" on Friday. There may have been some in common, but it wasn't exactly the same crowd. Many of these people believed in Him as you'll see as we go through this, even what they say about Him. So, it may preach well, but I'm not sure that that's a valid point to make. It seems clear to me because some of the Pharisees tell Jesus to rebuke His followers, they say, for quoting Psalm 118 about Him.

Notice what the crowd's saying about Jesus, verse 9, "Those who went in front and those who followed were shouting: 'Hosanna! BLESSED IS HE WHO COMES IN THE NAME OF THE LORD...'" "Hosanna" is simply the transliteration of a Hebrew word. Originally it was a prayer. It's even translated that way in Psalm 118:25. "Save us now!" That's what "hosanna" means, "Save us now!" Eventually though, instead of a prayer, it came to be a simple statement of praise: that God is the Savior, and He's the only One who can do it.

Notice the rest of verse 9 is clearly a quote from the Old Testament. It's in all caps, and when you see that in our New American Standard that means it's quoted from the Old Testament. Specifically, it's from Psalm 118:26. It was part (Psalm 118 was), part of a section of the Psalms that were recited at the feasts, and especially at Passover. Verse 26, this statement was describing the individual worshiper coming to Passover. "Blessed is he who comes in the Name of the Lord for the Feast," is the idea.

But clearly, this crowd of Jesus' disciples meant more than simply welcoming Him as a pilgrim to Passover, as we'll see in a moment. But also, they added, verse 10, "Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David; Hosanna in the highest!" They were anticipating that Jesus was the Messiah, and that He would establish the kingdom God had promised David. And they end it, notice verse 10, with "'Hosanna in the highest!'" That means "May our cry for salvation be heard in the highest heaven!"

If you don't think that's what the crowd meant here, let the Pharisees straighten you out. In Luke's account, the Pharisees, after hearing the crowd chant this to Jesus, they say to Jesus, "Teacher, rebuke Your disciples." "They shouldn't be saying this about You." So, this isn't just a simple welcome of a pilgrim to the Feast of Passover. It's clearly more than that, and we'll see it in a moment. Do you know what Jesus said when the Pharisees said, "... rebuke your disciples"? He said, "I tell you, if these [disciples of Mine] become silent, the stones will cry out!" "This has to be said - the universe is tense with the excitement of this moment, and if they don't say it, the stones will cry out!" What an amazing event.

But the question is, why? What was the purpose of the Triumphal Entry? What I want you to see first of all, is that it was not to offer Himself as King and immediately set up His kingdom. That is the classic dispensational view. Jesus was here presenting Himself as the King, and if Israel would accept Him, then stop the program, everything comes to an end, the kingdom begins.

That can't be true. Why? Because He came, as He told us back in 10:45, to do what? He came to offer Himself as a ransom for sins. On His way to Jerusalem, remember? On His way to Jerusalem He had said, "I'm going to go there, and I'm going to die. And that's why I came." So, that isn't why He was doing this.

So, what was this Triumphal Entry all about? Well, it was first of all, to make the unequivocal claim that He was in fact Israel's Messiah. Remember now, Jesus carefully staged this whole event. Because without saying a word, He has here made a loud proclamation that He is Israel's Messiah. There's a passage in the Old Testament that the rabbis all agreed spoke about the coming Messiah. And it predicted this very event. Both Matthew and John mention it. In both cases, they are quoting Zechariah, who more than 400 years before that day had predicted exactly what would happen.

Look at Zechariah 9:9, "Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout in triumph, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you; He is just and endowed with salvation, humble, and mounted on a donkey, even on a colt, the foal of a donkey." Jesus knew exactly who He was, He knew what had been predicted about Him in Zechariah 9:9, and He staged the entire event to make a statement, "this is who I am, and this is why I'm here."

Matthew tells us that some in the crowd added, "'Hosanna to the Son of David!'" That is a clear, (as we saw with Bartimaeus) a clear Messianic expression. The crowd's recognizing Him as Messiah. Both Luke and John tell us that some in the crowd even changed the quotation. In Luke 19:38, "'BLESSED IS [note this, not the one who comes, but blessed is] THE KING WHO COMES IN THE NAME OF THE LORD...'" In John 12, John quotes the crowd as saying, "'Hosanna! BLESSED IS HE WHO COMES IN THE NAME OF THE LORD, even the King of Israel.'" They got it; they understood.

Now, they didn't get it all. It's clear that the disciples didn't understand all of this until much later. John 12:16 says, "These things His disciples did not understand at the first; but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things were written of Him, and that they had done these things to Him." But Jesus, so it wasn't the disciples in charge of this, they weren't structuring this event to make a statement, they didn't even know really fully what was going on. Jesus structured this event to make this statement. So, He was in fact claiming to be Israel's Messiah.

He was also claiming something else. He was claiming to be the perfect fulfillment of the Passover. It's interesting because in all four of the gospels we find that the crowds are quoting a psalm, Psalm 118:26. There's a package of psalms, Psalm 113 to 118 that are called the "Hallel" psalms, or the praise psalms. And they were sung at feasts, particularly at Passover. Psalms 113 to 114 were sung before the Passover meal, Psalm 115 to 118 after the Passover meal. Psalm 118 is absolutely filled with allusions to Messiah.

In fact, turn back to Psalm 118, let me show you this. Psalm 118:19 to 27 really describe a pilgrim coming into the temple courts at the time of Passover.

"Open ... the gates of righteousness; [verse 19] I shall enter through them, I shall give thanks to the LORD. This is the gate of the LORD; the righteous will enter through it. I ... [will] give thanks to You, for You have answered me, ... You have become my salvation. [You'll recognize this verse]

The stone which the builders rejected has become the chief corner stone [This is a reference to Christ. The Jewish leaders, the builders, rejected Him, but He has become the chief cornerstone in God's program of salvation] This is the LORD'S doing; [this is Yahweh's doing, and] it is marvelous in our eyes. [And then in reference to this day of feasting, probably a reference to the Passover specifically] This is the day which the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it. [It's not a pithy little Christian saying for whatever day where you're having trouble. You know? "This is the day the LORD has made; let's rejoice and be glad in it. It's terrible, but this is what we're going to say." That's not it at all. This verse is far more about what God is doing in the redemption of sinners.] Verse 25, O LORD, do save, [O Lord, Hosanna, is what it says in the Hebrew] we beseech You; O LORD, we beseech You, do send prosperity! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the LORD; We have blessed you from the house of the LORD. The LORD is God, and He has given us light; [now watch this, in verse 27] Bind -the festival sacrifice with cords to the horns of the altar.

The only way we can enjoy light and salvation, the only way we can enter into God's presence, is through the sacrifice. Do you see the picture of all of this? Jesus entering the city for Passover and essentially saying, "I am the Passover Lamb, I am the stone that was rejected, and I am the sacrifice that will be offered." That's why in 1 Corinthians 5:7 Paul writes, "Christ our Passover ... has been sacrificed." What an amazing, amazing event. Jesus is making a statement, and by the way, He's going to make another on Monday of the Passion Week. By the Triumphal Entry on Sunday and by the cleansing of the temple on Monday, Jesus was throwing down the gauntlet. Both of those were a clear declaration of His personal authority: "I am the Messiah, I am King, and this is My temple." The leaders are going to have to respond.

There's one more act. It's not in Mark's account, but it's in both Matthew and in Luke. Let's call the third act, the King clearly responds to His royal subjects. He responds in four ways. First of all, He wept. It's a strange thing to do, isn't it? But Luke records it for us in Luke 19:41. "When He approached Jerusalem, He saw the city and wept over it...." Picture the scene now. Jesus has just ridden down the side of the Mount of Olives, being hailed by His followers as Israel's Messiah, as her King. But now as He gets to the base of the Mount of Olives, and He sees the whole city of Jerusalem there before Him, He begins to weep.

In the middle of this jubilation, in the middle of this excitement and these cries of Israel's King! The Son of David! Messiah! He begins to weep uncontrollably. This is how God always responds; this is how Jesus still responds to those who have heard about Him and still reject Him. Listen if you're here tonight, and you have lived your entire life exposed to the gospel, but you have never been willing to turn in repentance and faith to Jesus Christ, this is Jesus' response to you tonight. He weeps over you, having so much, knowing so much, and yet continuing to hold out in your rebellion against Him. He would receive you tonight if you would lay down that rebellion and come to Him. But He weeps. By the way, this should be our heart for people as well.

The second thing He does, in response to all of this, is, He prophesies. He prophesies future judgment. Look at Luke. In the middle of this scene He has something really remarkable to say. Look at Luke 19:42, verse 41, we'll start there.

When He approached Jerusalem, ... [so He's just come down the Mount of Olives and He sees the city there, He wept over it] ... saying, 'If you had known in this day, even you, the things which [would] make for [your] peace! But ... they have been hidden from your eyes. "For the days will come upon you [Jerusalem] when your enemies will throw up a barricade against you, and surround you and hem you in on every side, [By the way, which is exactly what happens in 70 A.D. I wish I had time to read it to you, the account from Josephus, almost verbatim what Jesus is saying is what Josephus writes happened] and they will level you to the ground and your children within you, and they will not leave in you one stone upon another, [why?] because you did not recognize the time of your visitation." [You didn't respond, you rebelled, you didn't acknowledge your King, you wanted your own way.]

The third thing He does is, He enters into the nation's temple. You know, we speak of the Triumphal Entry as Jesus entering the city of Jerusalem, but Jesus' destination was not merely the marketplace in the capital city of Jerusalem, it was the royal palace. And in the case of Israel, a monarchy, a theocracy, the royal palace was nothing other than the temple, because the temple in Israel was Yahweh, the King of Israel's palace. The holy of holies was His throne room; the Ark of the Covenant was His throne. That's where His presence resided.

And so, Jesus came to the royal palace of His Father, dismounted the colt that He had ridden, entered the temple, and He looked around. Look at verse 11. "Jesus entered Jerusalem and came into the temple; and after looking around at everything, He left for Bethany with the twelve, since it was already late." To put this in gangster parlance, Jesus was casing the joint.

He was preparing for and planning what He would do the next day on Monday. He saw all that was going on that should not have been going on, and He comes back Monday, as we will see, with a mission. For the second time in His ministry, He would cleanse the temple. So, He enters the temple, and He looks around, He measures everything and decides exactly what He will do.

He does one more thing, though, which reveals the character of who He is. He healed in the temple. The best three harmonies of the gospel, John Broadus, A.T. Robertson, and, Gundry and Thomas, all believe that Matthew 21:14 - 16 didn't happen on the same day as the cleansing of the temple, but on the day before, on Sunday. At some point after the Triumphal Entry, when Jesus goes into the temple, listen to what He did. Matthew 21:14,

And the blind and the lame came to Him in the temple, and He healed them. But when the chief priests and the scribes saw the wonderful things that He had done, and the children who were shouting in the temple, "Hosanna to the Son of David," they became indignant and said to Him, "Do You hear what these children are saying?" And Jesus said to them, "Yes; have you never read, 'OUT OF THE MOUTH OF INFANTS AND NURSING BABIES YOU HAVE PREPARED PRAISE FOR YOURSELF'?"

"They're saying exactly what ought to be said about Me," Jesus says. In the middle of this amazing day, the blind and the lame come to Jesus, and He heals them. His compassionate healing ministry showed He was a King, but it showed the kind of King He really was. When all these things had happened, He and the twelve returned to Bethany for the night.

Now as we wrap this up, what are the lessons? First of all, let's consider what the Triumphal Entry says about Jesus. Really, it says two things about Jesus. First of all, it says that He, without question, claimed to be Israel's long-promised Messiah and King. He accepted that praise, He orchestrated the events to fulfill Zechariah 9. He made it clear without saying a word, who He really claimed to be and who He was. But it also says that the King will come again.

Zechariah mentions the Mount of Olives in another setting. Go back to Zechariah 14. The Mount of Olives is mentioned only a few times in the Old Testament. One of those has to do with the day when Jesus will return at the Mount of Olives. Look at Zechariah 14:1,

Behold, a day is coming for the LORD when the spoil taken from you will be divided among you. For I will gather all the nations against Jerusalem to battle, and the city will be captured, the houses plundered, the women ravished and half of the city exiled, but the rest of the people will not be cut off from the city. Then the LORD will go forth and fight against those nations, as when He fights on a day of battle. In that day His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, which is in front of Jerusalem on the east; and the Mount of Olives will be split in its middle from east to west by a very large valley, so that half of the mountain will move toward the north and the other half toward the south. [and] You will flee ... Then [ the end of verse 5] the LORD, my God, will come, and all the holy ones with Him!

[Verse 9] And the LORD will be king over all the earth; in that day... [Yahweh] will be the only one, and His name the only one.

He will take the same route that He took in 30 A.D. But then, every knee will bow, and every tongue confess that He is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. He is coming again!

What does the Triumphal Entry say about us? Well, it punctuates our desperate need for the cross. What's the relationship between the Triumphal Entry and our salvation? The Triumphal Entry illustrates the rightful place of Jesus in everyone's life: He is the King. And at the same time, it illustrated all of mankind's sinful rejection of Jesus' authority. Here's how John put it in John 1, "He was in the world ... the world was made through Him ... the world did not know Him. He came to His own [things], and those who were His own did not receive Him." Reminds us why we desperately needed the cross, because apart from grace, we would respond to our rightful King the way most of the Jewish people did.

And that brings me to a second lesson about us from the Triumphal Entry, and that is the responses that you see in this story to Jesus as King are mirrored in our own reactions today. There are some who show animosity to Jesus, just as the Pharisees did. There are others who were simply apathetic; most of Jerusalem just went about its business, did what it did, didn't care. There were those who were filled with curiosity, "wonder what this is all about?" but that's as far as it went, and they went home unchanged and uncommitted. There were others who fell in line because it was popular. There were some there, undoubtedly, on Sunday, cheering for Jesus, who perhaps joined the crowd on Friday cheering for His death. But then there were His true disciples, those who were truly sincere in their worship and praise.

Let me ask you, what is your personal response to Jesus the King? You understand He is King. What you do, or say, or think doesn't change that reality. But do you truly acknowledge Him as your King? Do you truly worship Jesus as King from your heart? Do you submit your will to His commands? Do you really? Do you let what He wants shape your decisions? Have you ever come to accept Jesus as both Savior, the Passover Lamb, and as King? That's what He demands of all who come to Him.

Let's pray together.

Father, thank you for this wonderful record that so clearly shows us who Jesus is and who He claimed to be while He was here. Father, thank you that He is not only the King, but He is our Passover Lamb; that He was the festival sacrifice, bound to the altar; but in His case not bound, but freely offering Himself.

Father, I pray for us here tonight. I pray for the person here who, like those in Jerusalem, have heard all about Jesus; they know all the stories; they know all the passages of Scripture, but they've resisted His authority in their lives. Father, help them tonight to see Jesus weeping over them, even as He wept over the city. And may His heart of love and compassion be the tool You use to draw them to Yourself.

Father, I pray for those of us who are in Christ, help us to freely and willingly, gladly acknowledge Jesus both our Passover Lamb and as our King. And Lord, may that affect the decisions we make, even this week.

We pray in Jesus' name. Amen.