SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 6/3/2023 9:36 AM
My Worship Time Focus: PT-1 “The
Epitome of Praise”
Bible Reading & Meditation Reference: Matthew
21:8-9
Message of the verses: “8 And most of the
multitude spread their garments in the road, and others were cutting branches
from the trees, and spreading them in the road. 9 And the multitudes going
before Him, and those who followed after were crying out, saying, "Hosanna
to the Son of David; BLESSED IS HE WHO COMES IN THE NAME OF THE LORD; Hosanna
in the highest!’”
In an earlier SD I mentioned that there are
different time lines as to what day of the week all of this happened. John MacArthur has stated earlier in his
commentary that he believes that Psalm Sunday actually took place on Monday so
I will go with that because, like I said before I am not truly convinced what
the actual time line of what is called “Passion Week” really is. So we see that
as Jesus began to ride into the city that most of the multitude spread their
garments in the road. I want to look now
at 2 Kings 9:13 “Then they hurried and each man took his garment and placed it
under him on the bare steps, and blew the trumpet, saying, "Jehu is king!’” This shows that something similar happened in
the Old Testament times and so this could be conceived that this was an ancient
custom for citizens to throw their garments in the road, for their monarch to
ride over symbolizing their respect for him and their submission to his
authority. MacArthur writes “It was as
if to say, ‘We place ourselves at your feet, even to walk over if necessary.’
As
people were putting their clothes in Jesus’ path we also see that others were
cutting branches from the trees, and spreading them in the road. Let us now look at John 12:13 to see what
kind of branches they were using: “took
the 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.’” “Palm branches are
symbolic of salvation and joy and picturing the magnificent tribute that the ‘great
multitude, which no one could count, from every nation and all the tribes and
peoples and tongues’ on day will present ‘before the throne and before the
Lamb, clothed in white robes and palm branches…in teir hands’ (Rev. 7:9). There was great excitement and ecstasy as the
multitude proclaimed praise to the Messiah, to the Rabbi from Galilee who
taught with such authority and who had healed their diseases and even raised
the dead” (MacArthur’s commentary).
As
mentioned it is not really known how many people who were completely
surrounding the Lord at this time as He rode into Jerusalem, perhaps as many as
7,000. There were some multitudes going
before Him, and those who followed after Him.
I want to look now at John 11:57 “Now the chief priests and the
Pharisees had given orders that if anyone knew where He was, he was to report
it, so that they might seize Him.”
Perhaps these people did not hear this issued or perhaps they did not
care about it. I suppose that many of
them had the wrong idea of the truth that first their Messiah had to die for
their sins, but they wanted their Messiah to get them out from under the strong
hand of Rome. What was happening here
was in the direct plan of God, and Jesus was in complete control of it, and as
mentioned in an earlier SD Jesus was fulfilling prophecy when, a few days
earlier, he had arrogantly declared to fellow members of the Sanhedrin: You know nothing at all, nor do you take into
account that it is expedient for you that one man should die for the people,
and that the whole nation should not perish”
John went on to explain, Caiaphas did not say that “on his own
initiative; but being high priest that year, he prophesied that Jesus was going
to die for the nation” (John 11:49-51).
6/3/2023 10:06 AM
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