When I read this year's Palm Sunday account from the Gospel of Luke, I was left wanting more. I ask myself what details were included in the other Gospels that were ommitted from Luke, and what would happen if we took ALL the details from every account and did a "mash-up" of them into a single story? Would we get a much richer, fuller story of what it was like to be there on that day? Here is my attempt at that below.
Matthew 21:1-11, Mark 11:1-11, Luke 19:28-40, and John 12:12-19.
The Passover feast was drawing near, and anticipating the festival, many people were traveling up from the countryside to Jerusalem for the required ceremonial purification. Jesus, too, was making his way toward the city. His recent, astonishing miracle of raising Lazarus from the dead in the nearby town of Bethany had created a significant stir. Consequently, as word spread that Jesus himself was coming to Jerusalem, a large crowd, many of whom had come specifically for the Passover feast, grew eager with expectation. Some, particularly those who had witnessed or heard firsthand accounts of the Lazarus miracle, went out from the city carrying palm branches, intending to meet and honor him.
As Jesus and his disciples continued their journey and approached Jerusalem, drawing near to the villages of Bethphage and Bethany situated near the hill called the Mount of Olives, he paused. He called two of his disciples and sent them ahead with specific instructions: “Go into the village directly ahead of you. As soon as you enter it, you will find tied there a donkey, and with her, a young colt on which no one has ever ridden. It will be tied near a doorway, out in the open street. Untie them and bring them here to me.” Anticipating that this action might raise questions, Jesus added, “If anyone asks you, ‘Why are you untying the colt?’ or ‘What are you doing?’, you are to say, ‘The Lord needs it,’ and they will permit you to take it; indeed, they will send it here immediately.”
The two disciples who were sent went ahead into the village and found everything exactly as Jesus had described. They located the young donkey and its mother tied by the door outside in the street. As they proceeded to untie the colt, its owners, who were standing nearby, asked them, “Why are you untying the colt?” The disciples simply gave the answer Jesus had provided: “The Lord needs it.” Hearing this, the owners allowed them to take the animals.
They brought the donkey and the colt back to Jesus. The disciples then placed their own outer cloaks upon the colt, and Jesus mounted it, seating himself upon the garments. (This occurred to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet Zechariah: “Do not be afraid, Daughter Zion; see, your king is coming, seated on a donkey’s colt.” And also: “Say to Daughter Zion, ‘See, your king comes to you, gentle and riding on a donkey, and on a colt, the foal of a donkey.’”) At the time, his disciples did not fully grasp the prophetic significance of these events; however, after Jesus was glorified, they remembered that these things had been written about him and that these things had been done to him.
As Jesus began the descent from the Mount of Olives towards the city, the crowds swelled – a great multitude comprising his disciples, the pilgrims who had traveled with him, and those who had come out from Jerusalem carrying palms. As he drew near and his gaze fell upon the panorama of Jerusalem spread before him, Jesus began to weep aloud over the city. Tears streamed down his face as he lamented, saying, “If you, even you, had only known on this day what would bring you peace—but now it is hidden from your eyes. The days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment against you and encircle you and hem you in on every side. They will dash you to the ground, you and the children within your walls. They will not leave one stone on another, because you did not recognize the time of God’s coming to you.”
Following this poignant moment, the procession continued. The vast crowd, in a spontaneous outpouring of honor, began spreading their cloaks on the road ahead of him. Others cut down leafy branches from the trees in the surrounding fields, while those who had come from the city waved their palm branches enthusiastically, laying them down to carpet his path like that of a welcomed king.
The entire crowd – those walking ahead of him and those following behind – erupted in celebration. They began joyfully and loudly praising God for all the mighty works and miracles they had seen Jesus perform. A chorus of shouts rose from the multitude:
“Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!” “Hosanna to the Son of David!” “Blessed is the king of Israel!” “Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David!” “Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord!” “Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!” “Hosanna in the highest heaven!”
The scene was one of immense public acclamation. However, not everyone shared the crowd’s enthusiasm. Seeing the overtly messianic titles being ascribed to Jesus and the regal honors being paid, some of the Pharisees who were present in the crowd were deeply troubled. They pushed through to Jesus and said, “Teacher, order your disciples to stop!” But Jesus replied to their demand, “I tell you, if they were to keep quiet, the very stones would cry out.” Frustrated by their inability to curb the popular enthusiasm and Jesus's influence, these Pharisees muttered among themselves, “You see that you are gaining nothing! Look, the whole world has run off after him!”
As Jesus made his final approach and entered the city gates of Jerusalem, his arrival caused a significant stir throughout the entire city. The commotion was palpable, and people all over were asking one another, “Who is this?” The crowds who had been part of the procession explained, “This is the prophet Jesus, from Nazareth in Galilee.”
Upon entering Jerusalem, Jesus went directly to the temple complex. He entered the temple courts and took time to look around carefully at everything, observing the activities and the state of his Father's house. However, as the hour was already late and evening was approaching, he concluded his visit for the day. He then left the city and returned with the Twelve to Bethany, where they would spend the night.
