Psalm 27:7-10
“Lift up your heads, O gates!
And be lifted up, O ancient doors,
that the King of glory may come in.
Who is this King of glory?
The Lord, strong and mighty,
the Lord, mighty in battle!
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| Eastern Gate of Jerusalem |
And be lifted up, O ancient doors,
that the King of glory may come in.
Who is this King of glory?
The Lord, strong and mighty,
the Lord, mighty in battle!
Lift up your
heads, O gates!
And lift them up, O ancient doors,
that the King of glory may come in.
Who is this King of glory?
The Lord of hosts,
he is the King of glory! Selah
And lift them up, O ancient doors,
that the King of glory may come in.
Who is this King of glory?
The Lord of hosts,
he is the King of glory! Selah
Sunday we
celebrated what we call “Palm Sunday” because of Jesus’ “Triumphal Entry” into
Jerusalem a few days before his death on a cross. However, it was a bittersweet
day, for there were two cries that day… the joyful ringing “Hosannas” of the
crowd and the sorrowful weeping of Jesus over the city’s hard-heartedness make
for a bittersweet day. It is filled with meaning.
Let’s take a
look at the teat of Luke 19:28-44 in two sections.
I) The Triumphal Entry (v.28-40)
And when he had said these things,
he
went on ahead, going up to Jerusalem.
When he drew near to Bethphage and Bethany,
at the
mount that is called Olivet,
he
sent two of the disciples, saying,
“Go
into the village in front of you,
where on entering you will
find a colt tied,
on
which no one has ever yet sat. Untie
it and bring it here.
If
anyone asks you, ‘Why are you untying it?’
you
shall say this: ‘The Lord has need of it.’”
So those who were sent went away and found it just as
he had told them.
And as they were untying the colt, its owners said to
them,
“Why are you
untying the colt?”
And they said, “The
Lord has need of it.”
Let me interrupt our reading at
this point to point out that v. 30-31 are a “Beforehand” redux. As we discussed
in a recent post, Jesus was intentional in preparing his followers for what
they would face by telling them in advance. Many times they didn’t understand
until later. In this situation, they found things “just as he had told them.” It
was important that they realize that what was coming was not taking Jesus by
surprise.
And they brought it to Jesus, and throwing their cloaks
on the colt,
they set Jesus on it.
And
as he rode along, they spread their cloaks on the road.
As he was
drawing near—
already on the way down
the Mount of Olives—
the whole
multitude of his disciples
began
to rejoice and praise God
with a loud voice for all the mighty works
that they had seen,
saying,
“Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord!
Peace in
heaven and glory in the highest!”
And some of the Pharisees in
the crowd said to him,
“Teacher,
rebuke your disciples.”
He answered, “I tell
you, if these were silent,
the very
stones would cry out.”
Here are some of my thoughts on this passage...
We can picture the people casting their cloaks on the road (v.36) much
the way we might give the “Red Carpet” treatment welcome to a visiting head of
state… much the way the president is greeted when he gets off Air Force One
when visiting foreign countries. This practice was both a sign of honor (separating him from the filth of the street) and of submission (what I have I lay down before you).
Another observation is that Luke bookends the life of Christ with a
message about “peace” and “glory in the highest”; first from the heavenly host of angels (2:14), and finally from the earthly host of pilgrims (v.38).
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| Stones cast down by the Romans |
It is at this point that Jesus defended his disciples’ offering of
praise on his behalf. The Pharisees would have thought that only God, and possibly
his Messiah, might receive such praise. But Jesus was in fact God the Son and
the Messiah and it was appropriate to offer praise. The "coming one" had come! But what did Jesus mean “the very stones
would cry out”? Perhaps Jesus was referring to the cobblestones, the stones of the city wall, or those of the temple itself. So many time and places in the Bible the people
would mark a visitation by the Lord or an important agreement among men with memorial stones…as a reminder to both
themselves and future generations. What are some of those memorial stones in
our lives? Where have we seen God answer prayer, intercede and deliver us? Are they crying out for us to remember God's love towards us?
This triumphal entry of “the king of glory” is also recorded in Matthew 21:6-11; Mark 11:7-11; and John
12:12-19. Each account adds its own unique details to the picture.
Matthew, in v.4-5 gives
us the fulfillment of prophecy detail as he quotes Zechariah 9:9,
“This took place to fulfill what was spoken by the
prophet, saying,
'Say to the daughter of Zion,
‘Behold, your king is coming to you,
humble, and mounted on a donkey,
on a colt, the foal of a beast of burden.’”
‘Behold, your king is coming to you,
humble, and mounted on a donkey,
on a colt, the foal of a beast of burden.’”
And then in v. 8-9 we learn
that it was “most of the crowd” that spread their cloaks on the road, not just
a few. I addition we read of their use of the word “Hosanna” that would have
meant little to Luke’s Gentile readers.
Most of the crowd spread their cloaks
on the road, and others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road.
And the crowds
that went before him and that followed him were shouting, “Hosanna
to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!
Hosanna in the highest!”
Let’s take a minute to understand what “Hosanna” means. Though it sounds similar, it does not mean “O
Santa”! It is a word we use every year
at this time when we remember Jesus’ entering into Jerusalem. The people used
it as an expression of praise…but why? Originally hosanna was a term of urgent lament in Hebrew prayer that meant,
“Save us Lord!” or “Save now!” as in Psalm 118:25 “Save us, we pray, O Lord!” Over the centuries this desperate
plea morphed into praise by acknowledging that the Lord was the only One who could save! So Hosanna acknowledged
aspects of both personal need and trusting praise. In this case it might
not be far from a triumphant, “He will
save us!”
Mark, in 11:9-10 informs us that this worshipful shouting was
conducted by the crowd the preceded him and those who followed behind.
And those who went before and those who followed were
shouting, "Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! 10Blessed is the coming kingdom
of our father David! Hosanna in the highest!"
And John in 12:16 tells us of the disciples continued lack of understanding.
His disciples did not understand these things at first,
but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things had been
written about him and had been done to him
Putting all the passages
together, we can see that the donkey and its unridden colt were a sign of
humility, the spreading clothes on the ground was a sign of submission dating
back at least to the time of Jehu (2 Kings 9:13). In addition we can see that there
were two crowds. First, there was the crowd following Jesus from Bethany,
filled with amazement at the recent raising of Lazarus from the dead (John 11) which
included the Apostles. Second, there was the crowd of Passover pilgrims that
came out from Jerusalem to meet then as they came with their own stories of
Jesus miracles that they had seen at various times during his ministry.
II) The Tearful Exclamation Jesus Weeps
over Jerusalem (v. 41-44)
And when he drew near and saw
the city,
he wept over
it, saying,
“Would that you,
even you,
had known on this day the things that make for peace!
But now they are hidden from your eyes.
For
the days will come upon you,
when your
enemies will set up a barricade around you
and surround you
and hem you in on every side
and tear you down to the ground,
you and your children within you.
And
they will not leave
one stone upon another in you,
because you
did not know
the time of
your visitation.”
Luke Timothy Johnson writes, “The prophet’s arrival should be God’s visitation for
peace. But because he is not recognized as such, his rejection becomes a
“visitation” of punishment.”
On the way down the Mount of Olives towards Jerusalem, on the road amidst
all the celebration, Jesus stopped and wept loudly over the city. In fact this
was the second time he had lamented over Jerusalem (See Luke 13:31-35). There
is a modern church built on the site of the ruins of a Byzantine church
commemorating Jesus’ tears. In fact the church is shaped like a tear drop and
has jars on the corners of the roof as an allusion to Psalm 56:8 “You put my
tears in a bottle…”
Jesus looked out and he surely saw all that would happen, all that would
die needlessly
because they rejected their Messiah, and he wept. In the midst
of the crowd of disciples rejoicing, Jesus knew what lay ahead and wept, but
not for himself. Nor do I think it was for the building that would be
destroyed. Now when we stand in that spot we see Jerusalem surrounded by cemeteries.
How many times since that day, has the city been destroyed and the population
killed? Too many. Jesus wept as he pronounced the coming judgment. We would do
well to learn that judgment should never be announced without tears. This was more
than a missed opportunity for Jerusalem, for they rejected their redeemer. No
longer was there anyone to stand between them and their enemies. Not 40 years
later the Zealots would revolt against Rome and trigger the destruction of the
city and the death of all within it.
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| Cemetery on Mount of Olives |
In Luke 13:34-35,
Jesus’ first lament over Jerusalem, he said,
O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city
that kills the prophets
and
stones those who are sent to it!
How often would I have gathered your
children together
as a hen gathers her
brood under her wings,
and you were not willing! Behold, your
house is forsaken.
And I tell you, you will not see me until
you say,
‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!’” (See
Psalm 118:26)
Expositor’s Bible Commentary, insightfully notes that, “The story comes
to its climax, not in Jesus' entering Jerusalem, but in his lamenting over the
city.”
In this
lament, Jesus prophesied the destruction of the city. The question is, was he
mourning the future destruction of the temple and all its great buildings? The
answer is that he was mourning the loss of the city (considered as its people,
not its buildings. It is connected to the preceding parable of the ten minas
where the citizens reject the king from ruling over them. They decided to kill
the King’s son instead of heed his message in repentance. They didn’t know the
time of their “visitation.”
The
word “visitation” (episkopes)
found in verse 44 is a strong word. It does not refer to someone coming over and
ringing the bell for some tea and perhaps a scone. This word had two meanings
in the Old Testament as Luke Timothy Johnson writes,
The kairos (“time”) here means specific
season…The “season of visitation” (kairos tēs episkopēs) occurs in Jer.
6:15; 10:15 to mean God’s punishment (see also Deut. 28:25; Isa 24:22). Episkopē can
also refer to God’s intervention to save (as in Gen 50:24-25; Ex 3:16; Isa
10:3; 29:6)… here the term is double edged. The prophet’s arrival should be
God’s visitation for peace. But because he is not recognized as such, his
rejection becomes a “visitation” of punishment.[1]
III) Their Troubling Expectations
The residents of Jerusalem and
the Passover pilgrims that had thronged in to swell the city to the bursting
point would perhaps have voiced their expectations this way if asked:
- “We know what it means to be saved.” But Jesus made it clear that they didn’t understand what it would take to bring them true peace.
- “We know what we need to be saved from” or in other words, “A military-political deliverance is enough.” They had the belief that all their problems were wrapped up in the Roman oppression and that if that changed that everything would be OK. Is it uncommon to think that a change in external circumstances will result in the internal peace and joy we seek? No. We all do it to some degree, but it never works. The change must start in our heart and then spread to our circumstances.
- “The Messiah will drive the wicked Romans out now.” They thought they had the Messiah’s agenda planned out for him. They missed the meaning of the immediately preceding parable (Luke 19:11-27) of the king whose absence was extended.
- “Messiah’s ultimate goal as the Son of David is to restore the nation of Israel.” In this case, their expectations were too small and too nationalistic. Jesus came not merely to restore Israel but to reconcile all to God—Jew and Gentile alike!
IV) Our Timely Education
What can this historical narrative
teach us? Are there lessons which we can learn that will impact our lives
today? Yes. Here are just a few to consider. We should:
- Praise the Lord unashamedly—being grateful and hopeful! We should welcome Jesus’ presence in our lives and churches with at least as much enthusiasm as the crowds did that day.
- Submit to the Lord’s plan instead of trying to call the shots—be humble! Too often we try to tell God what he should and shouldn’t do. Even if we don’t say it out loud we often think his plan leaves much to be desired.
- Trust the Lord even when he doesn’t follow our expectations—be flexible! Life often turns out differently than we want or expect. Are we willing to trust that God’s sovereign love is working through every trial, hardship and disappointment?
- Allow the Lord to show us what we really need—be teachable! Can we like the psalmist ask the Holy Spirit to search us and test us and lead us in the way everlasting? In the Old Testament, Israel was often labeled as “stiff-necked” and we can give them a run for their money in the stubbornness sweepstakes! However, we must become life-long learners at the feet of the Savior.
- Let our heart be broken by what breaks Jesus’ heart—be transformed! The love of Christ should compel us to see everything and everyone differently. Jesus said, “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.” Do we believe him? Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 1:5, “For as we share abundantly in Christ's sufferings, so through Christ we share abundantly in comfort too.”
May this bittersweet week, issue forth in great comfort for you as you
welcome the Messiah, as he really is and not as we would make him to be.
Grace and peace to you!
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