On the next day the large crowd who had come to the feast, when they heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem, took branches of the palm trees and went out to meet Him, and began to shout, "Hosanna! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel."
Jesus, finding a young donkey, sat on it; as it is written, "Fear not daughter of Zion; Behold, your king is coming, seated on a donkey's colt." (John 12:12-15).
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 a colt, the foal of a donkey.
I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim and the horse from Jerusalem; and the bow of war will be cut off. And He will speak peace to the nations; and His dominion will be from sea to sea, and from the River to the ends of the earth (Zechariah 9:9-10).
Jesus was, and still is, the willfully misunderstood King. The timing of Jesus birth and life on this earth was accurately prophesied by Daniel. There were many people, like Anna and Simeon, who studied the Scriptures and knew that the time of the promised Messiah was at hand. When Jesus began to do miracles his disciples began to comprehend who is was. At the raising of Lazarus from the dead many more began to follow him, so much so that the religious and secular leadership of the Jews convened a meeting. They were alarmed. They said, What are we doing? For this man is performing many signs. If we let Him go on like this, all men will believe in Him, and the Romans will come and take away both our place and our nation (John 12:47-48).
The religious and political leaders of Jesus' day valued their jobs, their power and prestige much more than the will of God.
On the other hand, there were the common folks who were taxed to death* and had little to any voice in the day-to-day affairs of their lives. They lived under both Roman rule and the corruption of the religious leaders who colluded with the Romans. By and large, they were poor and angry. They wanted a King who would defeat the Romans. Jesus was not that kind of king and so it would be easy for them to say just days later, Crucify him! crucify him!
The Kingdom of the Messiah is the Kingdom of peace not of war. The destruction of Rome would have been child's play for Jesus. Jesus came to win the war against sin for our salvation.
Jesus did not ride into Jerusalem on a horse, a symbol of war and conquering, he came on a donkey, a symbol of kingship, peace and humility. Thus, Jesus was, and is, the misunderstood king.
Our Father's Love,
Tom
*The people of Jesus' day in Palestine not only paid taxes to the Romans, but also, to the Herods and the Temple tax. Their anger was understandable, but it was one of the factors which prevented them from recognizing the King of kings and Lord of lords.
When Jesus made his triumphal entry into Jerusalem, announcing who he was, he stopped and wept over Jerusalem and prophesied the destruction of the city and the temple because, "you did not recognize the time of your visitation" (This is only recorded in Luke 19:41-44). A willful misunderstanding has its consequences. Prejudice and hate can blind a person to the truth. It must be understood that a person bears the responsibility for his prejudice and hate.
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