Mateus 21

Mateus 21

Wiersbe has an interesting note asking "What did this demonstration mean to the Romans? Nothing is recorded about the Roman viewpoint, but it is certain that they kept a close watch that day. During the annual Passover feast, it was not uncommon for some of the Jewish nationalists to try to arouse the people; and perhaps they thought this parade was that kind of an event. I imagine that some of the Roman soldiers must have smiled at the "Triumphal Entry," because it was nothing like their own "Roman triumph" celebrations in the city of Rome. Whenever a Roman general was victorious on foreign soil, killing at least 5,000 of the enemy, and gaining new territory, he was given a "Roman triumph" when he returned to the city. It was the Roman equivalent of the American "ticker-tape parade," only with much more splendor. The victor would be permitted to display the trophies he had won and the enemy leaders he had captured. The parade ended at the arena where some of the captives entertained the people by fighting wild beasts. Compared to a "Roman triumph," our Lord's entry into Jerusalem was nothing." (Bible Exposition Commentary) Related Video - Four versions on one video depicting His entry on youtube. The crowds going ahead of (proago - present tense) Him, and those who followed (akoloutheo - present tense), were shouting, “Hosanna (Hosanna) to the Son of David - At this point Jesus is surrounded (going ahead and followed) by a mass of humanity which may have been several hundred thousand people. Followed (akoloutheo) is the verb that often describes Jesus' disciples (following His teaching, His example; e.g., Mk 1:18+, Mk 2:14+, Mt 9:9+), but in this context simply refers to the crowd literally following Him. Shouting (krazo) in the imperfect tense pictures the crowd over and over loudly shouting, almost screaming (used of demons shrieking - Mk 5:5+). The shout of "Hosanna" is sadly ironic because Hosanna means "save now" ("please save"), a plea for deliverance, especially in times of national crisis or during worship, but the Jews were not interested in the kind of salvation Jesus was offering. Jn 12:13+ adds they called Him "the King of Israel" which helps us understand that they in fact did not want spiritual salvation but desired political salvation from Rome. They thought He was coming to inaugurate His Kingdom on earth. John