Good morning,
The next six weeks we will be studying Jesus’ last week on earth and Passover.
This week, we will look at four perspectives of Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem. They come from Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.
The Triumphal Entry in All Four Gospels
All four of the Gospel accounts record Jesus’ Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem but each one chose to include certain details important to their respective audiences.
LUKE 19:28-44
And when he had thus spoken, he went before, ascending up to Jerusalem.29 And it came to pass, when he was come nigh to Bethphage and Bethany, at the mount called the mount of Olives, he sent two of his disciples,30 Saying, Go ye into the village over against you; in the which at your entering ye shall find a colt tied, whereon yet never man sat: loose him, and bring him hither.31 And if any man ask you, Why do ye loose him? thus shall ye say unto him, Because the Lord hath need of him.32 And they that were sent went their way, and found even as he had said unto them.33 And as they were loosing the colt, the owners thereof said unto them, Why loose ye the colt?34 And they said, The Lord hath need of him.35 And they brought him to Jesus: and they cast their garments upon the colt, and they set Jesus thereon.36 And as he went, they spread their clothes in the way.37 And when he was come nigh, even now at the descent of the mount of Olives, the whole multitude of the disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty works that they had seen;38 Saying, Blessed be the King that cometh in the name of the Lord: peace in heaven, and glory in the highest.39 And some of the Pharisees from among the multitude said unto him, Master, rebuke thy disciples.40 And he answered and said unto them, I tell you that, if these should hold their peace, the stones would immediately cry out.41 And when he was come near, he beheld the city, and wept over it,42 Saying, If thou hadst known, even thou, at least in this thy day, the things which belong unto thy peace! but now they are hid from thine eyes.43 For the days shall come upon thee, that thine enemies shall cast a trench about thee, and compass thee round, and keep thee in on every side,44 And shall lay thee even with the ground, and thy children within thee; and they shall not leave in thee one stone upon another; because thou knewest not the time of thy visitation.
Luke’s account was also written to a non-Jewish audience – specifically one man named Theophilus. While Luke did not directly quote from or reference any Old Testament prophecy, he did record a statement Jesus made which implied Israel’s willful ignorance to the times and events which they were experiencing. Jesus basically said that Israel should have known about these things, but because they were unaware, they would be judged (19:42-44). What Christ was referring to was the prophecy in Daniel 9:24-27 in which the angel told Daniel exactly when the Messiah would arrive in Jerusalem.
In this passage, Luke recorded that the people were proclaiming Jesus as “the King who comes in the Name of the Lord!” Obviously, there were both believers and non-believers in this crowd because even some of the religious leaders were shouting for Jesus to rebuke His disciples for what they were saying. And yet, this was a rare event in which Jesus received public worship and praise from the people and stated that, if they had remained silent, then even the earth would begin crying out in worship.
This brings up another interesting point: the pronouncement of blessing upon Jesus is almost identical here as it was at the beginning of the book when Jesus was born. In Luke 2:13-14 a crowd of heavenly hosts proclaimed, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom He is pleased.” Whereas in Luke 19:38 a crowd of human hosts proclaimed, “Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!”
Tom Stearns, WASI Chaplain, 907 715-4001 chaplain@alaskaseniors.com