Palm Sunday, 2020

Palm Sunday

Matthew 21:1-11

The Sunday before Easter is Palm Sunday, when the crowds welcomed Jesus waving branches and shouting “Hosanna.” The “Palm” in “Palm Sunday” refers to the tree branches that the crowds used to make a path for Jesus. His arrival—often called the Triumphal Entry—fulfilled a prophecy by the Old Testament prophet Zechariah about the Messiah’s appearance in Jerusalem. While this is a triumphal entry, it is Jesus’ first step toward His death.

Matthew 21:4 tells us: '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, and on a colt, the foal of a beast of burden.' *The prophecy is cited from Zechariah 9:9 and Isaiah 62:11.

Jesus had become somewhat of a celebrity among people who had heard of the miraculous raising of Lazarus from the dead, and they wanted to see Him and treat Him like a king. But Jesus wasn’t arriving to be their king on account of Lazarus; the story of Lazarus would have had the religious leaders in even more of an uproar and determined to put an end to His life, which He knew . . .  Jesus’ glory would be greater than that of a local king." -Excerpted from When Is Palm Sunday?