The Triumphal Entry Into Jerusalem
THE TRIUMPHAL ENTRY INTO JERUSALEM
LUKE 19:28-40
We have just read a lot about the kingdom and now we see the king himself, riding into Jerusalem on a colt, fulfilling a prophecy about the Messiah.
The long climb up from Jericho reaches its highest point on the Mount of Olives. It approaches the summit by way of a long uplifted ridge on which the village of Bethany still stands. The mountains of Moab are a pale blue rampart above the Dead Sea, which lies out of sight in its great trench. In the other direction, still screened by the Mount of Olives, lies the Holy City. The modern road skirts the foot of the hill. The ancient road lay right over its summit, no doubt in order to give approaching travelers from that direction the magnificent panorama of Jerusalem which the hilltop offers.
The Lord probably had some arrangement about the ass; he deliberately fulfilled a prophecy of Zechariah when he chose the ass for his triumphal entry into Jerusalem (Zechariah 9:9). It was on an ass that the ancient monarch rode when he came on a mission of peace. A horse was the beast of war. On that momentous day he was offering himself to Jerusalem, not as the Messiah of war, which their carnal expectation desired, but as the Prince of Peace. He wanted no illusions.
He wants no illusions today in the minds of those who serve him. Churchill, in the grim days of 1940, offered nothing but “blood and toil and tears and sweat.” Christ offers more than that—the peace which passes understanding, his presence and his championship; but he would not have those who follow him imagine that they will be favored with material advantage, protected from all ill, exempt from the world’s spite and bitterness.
The cheering multitude saw the coming of One who would perhaps lead them to victory over the occupying power, would form a rallying point for the proletariat against the priesthood and the collaborating aristocracy. Hence the change of mood a week later. The Lord was offering himself as he always does on his terms. So many were accepting him on theirs. And yet, unwittingly in many cases, they uttered truth. Hence his closing words.
Notes 19:29: Bethphage—an outer suburb; Bethany—two miles away. 19:35: a royal honor (2 Kings 9:13). 19:37: the raising of Lazarus (John 11:45) had intensified the interest and excitement.