For most Christian churches we have now entered “Passion Week” and it starts off with the Triumphal Entry of Christ into Jerusalem. We have now entered the climactic portion of the Life of Christ. It is in this last week we have the disciples under intense teaching from our Lord as he prepares to leave them. It really began the day before passion week with Jesus’ visit to Mary, Martha and Lazarus’ home in the small town of Bethany where Jesus was served dinner by Martha and Mary used anointed Him with pure nard (John 12:1-3).
Our Lord’s triumphal entry into Jerusalem the following day would be the official beginning of passion week. It included among many other things, a second cleansing of the Temple and the anointing of Jesus by Mary. There was also His final teaching with His disciples and the institution of the Lord’s Supper. And it all culminated in his arrest, trial, and crucifixion.
The gospel writers understood the importance of this week and spend a disproportionate of their time recounting the events. Matthew devotes one-fourth of his Gospel to it (chap. 21-28). Mark uses one-third (11-16). Luke gives one-fifth (19:28-24) and John gives half of his Gospel (12-21). Taken together of the 89 chapters in the Gospels, 29 1/2 or exactly 1/3 recount what happened between the triumphal entry and Jesus’ resurrection.
Jesus entered Jerusalem in detailed and exact fulfillment of Zechariah 9:9 (Matthew 21:4-9, Mark 11:7-10; Luke 19:35-38; John 12:12-15). many who had experienced His ministry saw this as an opportunity to crown Him as King. He was entering the Kingly city of Israel, now was the time. He had rejected it on a previous occasion (John 6:15), but possibly now He would accept such an offer. Laying down their cloaks (Matthew 21:8, and waving their palm branches, symbols of victory, the people were shouting Hosanna! “Hosanna” in the Hebrew means “Please save” or “Save now” (cf. Ps. 118:25). It came to be a shout of praise. Quoting Psalm 118:26, they ascribed messianic titles to Him; ” “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel!”
But He rode in on a donkey, as the king of peace not the victor’s white war horse, carrying a sword and a crown on his head, a sign of a victorious warrior king. He fulfilled Zechariah 9:9 as the king of peace. This not what they were looking for and it would not be long before many of the same crowd in the courtyard of Pontius Pilate would cry out
CRUCIFY HIM (Mark 15:13-14; Luke 23:21; John 19:6).
There were great many in Jerusalem at this time for the Passover. It has been estimated that as many as 2 million had come from all over for this important Jewish feast. So questions arose as to what had taken place and who was this man they wished to crown king. The answer is heartbreaking;
Matthew 21:11 (ESV) 11 And the crowds said, “This is the prophet Jesus, from Nazareth of Galilee.”
That was the best they could do! Obviously, they had not really paid attention to what they had just been shouting or the scripture they had been quoting. The Lord Jesus Christ, the one who had over a period of three years demonstrated messianic credentials was no reduced to just a “prophet.”
Many of those who were there for the Passover were Galileans (where much of the ministry of Christ happened) who like those in Jerusalem had heard the claims of Christ demonstrated in works (John 10:25; 14:11). His claims and His works were Messianic in nature and they heard and saw. They knew who He claimed to be but they didn’t believe in Him. They were like those if Isaiah’s day;
Isaiah 6:9-10 (ESV) 9 And he said, “Go, and say to this people: “‘Keep on hearing, but do not understand; keep on seeing, but do not perceive.’ 10 Make the heart of this people dull, and their ears heavy, and blind their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their hearts, and turn and be healed.”
They heard Jesus’ message. They saw His miracles They recognized His claims of Messiah and Deity. But it never got passed, but for a few, the intellect and religious fervor. They never saw Him as Savior and Lord. They knew but didn’t believe. Therefore they never really knew Him.
That day, He truly announced Himself as king, the King of Peace. A ppeace that comes through the reconciliation of the Cross. But the crowd was looking for something else, a political king. In the triumph of His entry into Jerusalem, there was also the tragedy of unbelief.
-Michael Holtzinger
Some Helpful resources:
And The Angels Were Silent: Walking With Christ Toward the Cross (Chronicles of the Cross) By Mac Lucado
From the Grave: A 40-Day Lent Devotional by: A W Tozer