AS THEY APPROACHED Jerusalem and came to Bethphage on the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two disciples, 2saying to them, “Go to the village ahead of you, and at once you will find a donkey tied there, with her colt by her. Untie them and bring them to me. 3If anyone says anything to you, tell him that the Lord needs them, and he will send them right away.”
4This took place to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet:
5“Say to the Daughter of Zion,
‘See, your king comes to you,
gentle and riding on a donkey,
on a colt, the foal of a donkey.’ ”
6The disciples went and did as Jesus had instructed them. 7They brought the donkey and the colt, placed their cloaks on them, and Jesus sat on them. 8A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, while others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. 9The crowds that went ahead of him and those that followed shouted,
“Hosanna to the Son of David!”
“Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!”
“Hosanna in the highest!”
10When Jesus entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred and asked, “Who is this?”
11The crowds answered, “This is Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth in Galilee.”
12Jesus entered the temple area and drove out all who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves. 13“It is written,” he said to them, “ ‘My house will be called a house of prayer,’ but you are making it a ‘den of robbers.’ ”
14The blind and the lame came to him at the temple, and he healed them. 15But when the chief priests and the teachers of the law saw the wonderful things he did and the children shouting in the temple area, “Hosanna to the Son of David,” they were indignant.
16“Do you hear what these children are saying?” they asked him.
“Yes,” replied Jesus, “have you never read,
“ ‘From the lips of children and infants
you have ordained praise’?”
17And he left them and went out of the city to Bethany, where he spent the night.
18Early in the morning, as he was on his way back to the city, he was hungry. 19Seeing a fig tree by the road, he went up to it but found nothing on it except leaves. Then he said to it, “May you never bear fruit again!” Immediately the tree withered.
20When the disciples saw this, they were amazed. “How did the fig tree wither so quickly?” they asked.
21Jesus replied, “I tell you the truth, if you have faith and do not doubt, not only can you do what was done to the fig tree, but also you can say to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and it will be done. 22If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer.”
23Jesus entered the temple courts, and, while he was teaching, the chief priests and the elders of the people came to him. “By what authority are you doing these things?” they asked. “And who gave you this authority?”
24Jesus replied, “I will also ask you one question. If you answer me, I will tell you by what authority I am doing these things. 25John’s baptism—where did it come from? Was it from heaven, or from men?”
They discussed it among themselves and said, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will ask, ‘Then why didn’t you believe him?’ 26But if we say, ‘From men’—we are afraid of the people, for they all hold that John was a prophet.”
27So they answered Jesus, “We don’t know.”
Then he said, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I am doing these things.
28“What do you think? There was a man who had two sons. He went to the first and said, ‘Son, go and work today in the vineyard.’
29“ ‘I will not,’ he answered, but later he changed his mind and went.
30“Then the father went to the other son and said the same thing. He answered, ‘I will, sir,’ but he did not go.
31“Which of the two did what his father wanted?”
“The first,” they answered.
Jesus said to them, “I tell you the truth, the tax collectors and the prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God ahead of you. 32For John came to you to show you the way of righteousness, and you did not believe him, but the tax collectors and the prostitutes did. And even after you saw this, you did not repent and believe him.
33“Listen to another parable: There was a landowner who planted a vineyard. He put a wall around it, dug a winepress in it and built a watchtower. Then he rented the vineyard to some farmers and went away on a journey. 34When the harvest time approached, he sent his servants to the tenants to collect his fruit.
35“The tenants seized his servants; they beat one, killed another, and stoned a third. 36Then he sent other servants to them, more than the first time, and the tenants treated them the same way. 37Last of all, he sent his son to them. ‘They will respect my son,’ he said.
38“But when the tenants saw the son, they said to each other, ‘This is the heir. Come, let’s kill him and take his inheritance.’ 39So they took him and threw him out of the vineyard and killed him.
40“Therefore, when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those tenants?”
41“He will bring those wretches to a wretched end,” they replied, “and he will rent the vineyard to other tenants, who will give him his share of the crop at harvest time.”
42Jesus said to them, “Have you never read in the Scriptures:
“ ‘The stone the builders rejected
has become the capstone;
the Lord has done this,
and it is marvelous in our eyes’?
43“Therefore I tell you that the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people who will produce its fruit. 44He who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces, but he on whom it falls will be crushed.”
45When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard Jesus’ parables, they knew he was talking about them. 46They looked for a way to arrest him, but they were afraid of the crowd because the people held that he was a prophet.
Original Meaning
THE CRESCENDO OF Jesus’ messianic ministry occurs as he enters Jerusalem, the city of the great King (Ps. 48:1–2), the center of Israel’s spiritual life and messianic hope.1 The circuitous route from Galilee through Perea and Judea had given Jesus extended time with his disciples, primarily prescribing for them the characteristics they will display as his new community, his church. Galilee had been privileged to be the primary location of the display of his messianic identity and mission, but Jerusalem becomes the scene of the final revelation. In one climactic week Jesus concludes the primary purpose of his earthly mission—the redemption of humanity.
While the description of Jesus’ earthly mission to this point took twenty chapters, Matthew now devotes eight chapters, nearly 30 percent of his Gospel, to this one holy week (see Bridging Contexts). These final chapters can be broken down into further subtopics. In the first days of Jesus’ arrival in the city, he asserts his authority over Jerusalem, revealed in the events of his climactic (triumphal) entry (20:1–11), his temple actions (21:12–17), and his cursing the fig tree (21:18–22), in the series of debates with the religious leaders in the temple (21:23–22:46), and in the woes that he pronounces on the teachers of the law and the Pharisees (23:1–39).
Jesus then gives his final extended discourse to his disciples about the events of his return in power and glory and how his followers are to conduct themselves until his return (chs. 24–25). The events of his final Passover and institution of the Lord’s Supper, his arrest, trial, crucifixion and burial are recorded in one running narrative (chs. 26–27), and then the final chapter details Jesus’ resurrection and Great Commission to his disciples (ch. 28).
The extensive treatment of these final days is testimony to the immense significance of Jesus Messiah’s redemptive ministry to his people Israel, and beyond to all the nations.
The Climactic Entry into Jerusalem: Jesus’ Authority As Messiah (21:1–11)
THE LAST RECORDED stop on the journey from Galilee through Perea and Judea to Jerusalem was in Jericho (20:29). The road from Jericho to Jerusalem was about fifteen miles, ascending three thousand feet through dry desert. It took some six to eight hours of uphill walking, so Jesus and his disciples are eager to make it to their destination before nightfall, for the road was infamous for highway robberies (cf. Luke 10:30–35). As the road neared Jerusalem it approached the back (east) side of the Mount of Olives, passing through Bethany, the place where Jesus stayed during his final week (Matt. 21:17; cf. John 12:1–10), about two miles southeast of Jerusalem (John 11:18). The road continued over the Mount of Olives, down through the Kidron Valley, and into Jerusalem.
Rising 2,660 feet above sea level, the Mount of Olives (21:1) lies to the east of Jerusalem, directly overlooking the temple area. It is a flattened, rounded ridge with four identifiable summits. The name derived from the olive groves that covered it in ancient times. The traditional site of the Garden of Gethsemane lies near the foot of the Mount of Olives, on the western slope above the Kidron Valley.
According to the traditional accounting of the final week, Jesus and the traveling band of disciples arrive in Bethany on Friday afternoon and celebrate the Sabbath there, beginning at sundown on Friday evening through Saturday at sundown. A celebration with many of his closest followers in the Jerusalem area may have taken place on Saturday evening in Bethany, at which time Mary anointed Jesus’ feet (see comments on 26:6–13; cf. John 12:1–8).2 On Sunday morning Jesus directs the disciples to make preparations for his entry to Jerusalem.
Preparations for the entry (21:1–7). Near Bethany is the town of Bethphage (21:1), which Matthew tells us is the place from which Jesus directs his entrance to Jerusalem. The town is today called el-Azariyeh, named in honor of Lazarus, who was raised in this proximity (John 11:1, 17–18). The traditional site is on the southeast slope of the Mount of Olives, less than a mile east of Jerusalem. The name Bethphage (Heb. bet pagey) means “house of the early fig.”3
Jesus sends two disciples into Bethphage, where they are to obtain the donkey and colt for Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem. They are to untie them and bring them to Jesus, and if anyone questions their actions they are to say, “The Lord needs them” (21:3).The term “Lord” (kyrios) can designate one’s earthly master or one’s deity. It is used to refer to the master of the slave in 10:24, but also to God as the Lord of the harvest (9:38), Lord of the vineyard (20:8), Lord of heaven and earth (11:20, 25), and often of Jesus as the Messiah (Acts 10:36). It is difficult to say what either the disciples or anyone else would have understood kyrios to mean in this context, but Jesus plainly intends it to refer to himself as the one who sovereignly superintends these events. At this climactic time of his earthly ministry, Jesus reveals himself with increasing clarity.4
Jesus intentionally declares his identity to the nation. The circumstances of his entry will produce a variety of reactions among the people. At the Passover season, messianic excitement tended to run high. With pilgrims crowding into Jerusalem not only from the various regions within Palestine but also from the Diaspora, hope for the appearance of Messiah was ready to be ignited. The recent raising of Lazarus stimulated renewed interest in Jesus—both the crowd’s hope in him as a miraculous liberator and the religious leaders’ opposition to him as a threat to the national security (John 11:45–53; 12:9–11, 17–19).
Jesus’ descent from the Mount of Olives into Jerusalem evokes images of Zechariah’s prophecy of the Lord’s fighting against the nations with his feet on the Mount of Olives and liberating Jerusalem (Zech. 14:3–21). Further excitement is stimulated by Jesus’ riding on a colt, fulfilling Zechariah’s prophecy of the messianic king who comes to liberate his people (Zech. 9:9–13; cf. Matt. 21:4–5). This is no mere coincidence. The acclaim of the crowds comes from their own expectations of what they want Jesus to be. But for Jesus it is a self-disclosure to Israel, which will seal the fate of his people but will also be a testimony to his disciples once they reflect on these events with eyes of faith after his crucifixion and resurrection.5
The fulfillment phrase, “this took place to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet” (21:4), is most likely Matthew’s comment that Jesus’ entrance into Jerusalem on a colt fulfills the prophecy of Zechariah 9:9: “Your king comes to you, gentle and riding on a donkey” (21:5). The time has now come for Jesus to declare openly that he is the righteous Davidic Messiah. There may be also an allusion to Genesis 49:12, where Jacob prophesies of the kingly descendant of Judah:
He will tether his donkey to a vine, his colt to the choicest branch;
he will wash his garments in wine, his robes in the blood of grapes.
Jacob’s prophecy occurs in the context of a promise to Judah of a permanent kingly line in his descendants, whose rule will include the obedience of the nations.
The Zechariah prophecy indicates the nature of Jesus’ arrival: He comes as the righteous one who offers salvation, not as a conquering military leader. He comes with reconciliation, as did rulers who sometimes rode a donkey in times of peace (Judg. 5:10; 1 Kings 1:33). Through this event, Jesus delineates that he is not coming to bring military conquest.
Zechariah’s prophecy specifies in synonymous parallelism that a young colt, the unbroken foal of a donkey, is the animal on which the peace-bringing king of Israel will enter Jerusalem. Of the four Gospels, Matthew alone mentions two animals, and he further says that as the disciples bring the two animals and lay their garments on them, “Jesus sat on them” (Matt. 21:7). Matthew’s meticulous attention to the Old Testament prophecies does not allow him to ignore the parallelism of Zechariah’s prophecy by suggesting that Jesus rides both animals. Rather, Matthew’s account adds a touch of historical reminiscence: An unbroken young colt is best controlled by having its mother ride alongside to calm it in the midst of the tumult.6
The disciples place their outer cloaks (cf. 5:40) on both animals, but Jesus sits on the cloaks placed on the foal. There is no mistaking that he proceeds into Jerusalem as the anticipated king, the messianic Son of David. But his entry is triumphant in a paradoxical sense, because his victory will come by way of being nailed to a cross.7
Jesus’ climactic entry to Jerusalem (21:8–11). The events for which Jesus has prepared the disciples now begin to unfold. As he descends from the Mount of Olives to enter the city, “a very large crowd” gathers to acknowledge his arrival in Jerusalem. Some in the crowd throw garments8 in Jesus’ path, symbolizing their submission to him as king (21:8).9 Others cut palm fronds (cf. John 12:13) from the trees and spread them on the road before Jesus (Matt. 21:8). Palms symbolized Jewish nationalism and victory, such as when Judas Maccabeus and his followers recovered Jerusalem and the temple desecrated by Antiochus (2 Macc. 10:7; cf. 1 Macc. 13:51). Many coins at the time of Jesus contain palms, expressive of nationalism generally, both Jewish and Roman.
Matthew refers to “the crowds that went ahead of him and those that followed him.” John’s Gospel helps us understand the picture. Crowds come out from Jerusalem to greet Jesus, apparently those pilgrims in Jerusalem for the Passover who have heard of Jesus’ miraculous feat of healing Lazarus and who are caught up in the messianic expectation (John 12:12). They meet Jesus en route and turn around to form an advance processional, while those who are accompanying Jesus from Bethany, including his disciples, follow behind.
This large crowd is a mixed sort. Luke tells us that there is a multitude of Jesus’ own disciples (Luke 19:37), which includes the Twelve and the larger group of his followers. Among the larger group are most likely the women disciples who followed Jesus from Galilee (Matt. 27:55–56), but also the contingent of believers in the Jerusalem region—among them Lazarus, Martha, and Mary and others who believed when Jesus raised Lazarus (cf. John 12:1–3). Within the crowd are also those who are not Jesus’ disciples but who are part of the typical crowds that followed Jesus throughout his ministry. They follow with their own particular expectations, here thinking perhaps that Jesus has come to liberate Jerusalem and the people of Israel from Roman oppression. Others are there most likely out of curiosity and are caught up in the excitement. Luke further reveals that the crowd also has some religious leaders, such as the usual Pharisee contingent that opposes Jesus’ claim to authority and are keeping watch on him (Luke 19:39).
The crowds shout out “Hosanna,” which is the transliteration of the Hebrew expression that means “O save” (cf. 2 Sam. 14:4; 2 Kings 6:26). This draws the crowd to make a connection to the Hallel (Ps. 113–118) that was sung during the Passover season, especially expressing the messianic hopes of Israel as voiced in Psalm 118:19–29 (cf. esp. 118:25: “O Lord, save us”). They further cry out to Jesus as “Son of David” (21:9). Linked with Hosanna, the title “Son of David” is unmistakably messianic. The crowd acknowledges what Jesus has already stated in his fulfillment of Zechariah 9:9: He is the Davidic Messiah (see comments on 1:1), on whom they call to save them out of their oppression.
As the advancing crowd enters the city, “the whole city was stirred and asked, ‘Who is this?’ ” This reminds the reader of the reaction of Jerusalem when the Magi came seeking the One born the king of the Jews—“all Jerusalem” was “disturbed” (2:3). Now as Jesus enters Jerusalem, “the whole city” is “stirred.” The expression “the whole city” indicates that the religious establishment is once again paranoid of this One whom they believe may attempt to usurp their power, and they want an explanation of who Jesus intends to present himself to be.
The crowds answer generally, “This is Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth in Galilee.” That answer indicates the mixed nature of those attending Jesus’ entrance. Some in the crowd call him a prophet, which many in his ministry saw him to be (16:14; 21:46). This does not seem to imply that they understand him to be the eschatological Prophet of Moses’ prophecy (Deut. 18:15–18),10 but rather the prophet who has been creating such a stir in Galilee, whose hometown was Nazareth. Others who have called out “Hosanna” seem to expect Jesus to bring liberation, as had the kings of ancient Israel and the Maccabees of more recent times.
But Jesus has undertaken a different kind of “triumphal entry” from what many among the crowd expected. Jesus will triumph over the enemy of sin, bringing salvation to his people through his righteous sacrifice on the cross that looms ahead. Many in the crowd can only think of physical and military liberation. They cry “Hosanna” now, but soon will see that Jesus is not bringing the freedom they desire and will ultimately cry out, “Crucify him” (27:22). Although the crowd gives great acclaim, Jesus knows why they are really welcoming him. He knows their nationalistic ambitions and fickleness; thus, Luke tells us that Jesus weeps over the city (Luke 19:42–44).
The Temple Actions: Jesus’ Pronouncement on the Temple Establishment (21:12–17)
MATTHEW CONDENSES SOME of the narrative of Jesus’ activities during Holy Week, which is the case with his narrative here of the chronology of the temple activities. A comparison of the other Gospels indicates a fuller sequence of events. After his climactic entry to Jerusalem, Jesus goes to the temple precinct area and surveys the activities being conducted (Mark 11:11). Later that day (i.e., Sunday afternoon), he returns to Bethany with the Twelve (11:11), where they spend the night. Early on Monday morning Jesus and the disciples return to Jerusalem, but on the way he symbolically curses the fig tree (11:12–14). After entering the city, Jesus proceeds to the temple. At this point Matthew picks up the narrative.
John and the Synoptics on Jesus’ Actions in the Temple. John’s Gospel has a narrative of a similar activity in the temple at the beginning of Jesus’ ministry (John 2:13–17). Many scholars contend that John has placed this action of Jesus at the beginning for thematic purposes, while the Synoptic Gospels narrate the actual historical chronology.11 We have seen that it is not unusual for the Gospel writers to arrange material thematically,12 so this may account for the two different versions. Few today hold to two similar but chronologically different temple activities, one at the beginning of Jesus’ ministry and the other at the end. These scholars wonder how the religious leaders would have let Jesus get away with this activity twice.
We may not have certainty on this issue, but there is much to commend the view that Jesus did go twice to the temple with a message to Israel and its leadership.13 At the beginning of his ministry, Jesus made a declaration of the nature of his messianic ministry by the temple activity recorded in John, which was a warning to Israel. That this was not overlooked by the religious leaders is revealed in a statement by Jesus during the first temple incident that was later used against him falsely in his trial (John 2:19; see Matt. 26:61; Mark 14:58; cf. Acts 6:14).
When Jesus arrives in Jerusalem at the end of his ministry, it is obvious that the religious establishment has not led the people of Israel to repentance in the light of the arrival of the kingdom of heaven. Thus, Jesus’ temple activity at the conclusion of his ministry is now a symbolic act of judgment. At the first incident they were caught by surprise, while at the second the crowds are so aligned with Jesus that the temple authorities dare not act against him in public and prevent his temple activity. But now the religious leadership cannot overlook the obvious revolutionary nature of Jesus’ rejection of their authority, so they attempt to entrap him in debate with the hope that he will be denounced (21:23–27; 22:15–46). Failing that, they plot to arrest and kill him (21:46; 26:3–5) in order to avoid the threat to themselves from both the populace and from the Roman governing body.14
Jesus’ action in the temple (21:12). At the southern end of Temple Mount, Jesus enters the temple through the Huldah Gate. He then climbs another series of steps to enter the royal stoa, a long hall with four rows of forty thick columns each. Within the stoa is a market where commercial activity enables pilgrims from throughout the Diaspora to participate in temple activities. Here they exchange their varied currency for temple currency, the Tyrian shekel, which is then used to pay the required temple tax (17:24–27; cf. Ex. 30:11–16) and purchase animals and other products for their sacrifices.15
Jesus immediately begins to drive out all who are both buying and selling and overturns the tables of the moneychangers and the benches of those selling doves (21:12). Both the moneychangers and those buying and selling are making this simply a commercial operation, and the temptation for abuse is real, since surplus tax was consigned to the temple fund (m. Šeqal. 2:5). Doves were the sacrifice made by the poor (who could not afford animal sacrifices) and by those making a variety of types of personal offerings (cf. Lev. 5:7; 12:6; 15:14, 29). Temple commerce was at times notorious for exploiting the disadvantaged (m. Ker. 1:7). Jesus’ actions, of course, will not permanently halt these activities. In fact, his crucifixion will serve as a strong deterrent to any others who may want to act in a similar manner.
One might think that Jesus would be stopped immediately by the temple authorities, but he was noted to be a prophet by even the most distant of observers (21:11). As a spokesman for God, many prophets performed acts that were pronouncements of judgment, even in the temple precincts (cf. Jeremiah smashing the clay pot; Jer. 19). The whirl of popularity surrounding Jesus makes the religious leaders fearful of the crowds. But as with Jeremiah, once the crowds are swayed away from Jesus, he will be arrested.
A den of robbers (21:13). Jesus extends his authoritative pronouncement of judgment against the temple personnel, since they have misused the temple for commercial activity instead of its intended spiritual activity. He declares, “It is written, ‘My house will be called a house of prayer,’ but you are making it a ‘den of robbers.’ ” The religious leaders are treating the temple as robbers do their dens—a place of refuge for both accumulating illicitly gained wealth and for plotting future illegal activities. The term “robber” (lestes) is not the word for a common thief but for one who is an insurrectionist, such as Barabbas and the two revolutionaries between whom Jesus will be crucified.16 This may be a subtle use of the term to indicate that the temple authorities are making it a nationalistic stronghold,17 or more subtly, a place where they are insurrectionists against God’s intended plan for the temple.
Matthew leaves out the phrase about the temple being a house of prayer “for all the nations” (cf. Mark 11:17), but the rebuke is implicit, since it is the outer court of the Gentiles that Jesus clears. His contemporaries are preventing Gentiles from using this one place set aside for them to pray by turning it into a den of robbers. They are robbing God of the means by which his blessing extends to all the nations.18 The temple’s primary purpose is being lost in a frenzy of religious activity. The temple leadership stands condemned.
Jesus’ action here has often been called a “cleansing” of the temple, implying that Jesus is attempting to purify the temple from corrupt practices and restore it to proper usage as God intended. While corrupt practices are certainly being rebuked, Jesus goes beyond cleansing to enact intentionally a symbolic act of judgment against the religious leadership of Israel.19 This is also a dramatic statement on Jesus’ authority over the purposes of the temple sacrificial practices, which will be fulfilled with his impending crucifixion, as is so dramatically announced by God in the tearing of the veil at his death (27:51).20
Healings and praise (21:14–16). Matthew alone mentions the healings that Jesus performs in the temple after his disruption of the commercial practices and the ensuing confrontation with the chief priests and the scribes. The blind and lame were restricted from full access to temple activities to symbolize the purity that was expected to be displayed in those approaching God (cf. Lev. 21:18–19). As Jesus heals the blind and the lame, he shows his authority to create purity in all those desiring to worship God, demonstrating that as the One who is greater than the temple (12:6), he fulfills the Old Testament prescriptions for cleansing that the temple practices required to come into the presence of God.21
Jesus’ healing activities prompt the children in the temple to mimic the chant, “Hosanna to the Son of David,” which they heard earlier from the crowd during Jesus’ dramatic entry to Jerusalem (21:9, 15). Jesus’ actions in the temple in pronouncing judgment and healing the blind and lame should have caused the religious authorities to acknowledge his authority as the Messiah, the Son of David whom the children innocently and unknowingly identify.22 Instead, they become “indignant” at Jesus’ challenge to their authority. The word “indignant” (aganakteo) is the same term used of the ten disciples’ reaction to the sons of Zebedee and their mother’s attempt to use kinship privileges to obtain places of privilege in Jesus’ kingdom (20:24).
The religious leaders recognize Jesus as a threat to their positions of religious prominence. Jesus acknowledges the honor so unknowingly bestowed on him by the children and links it to Psalm 8:2, chiding the religious leaders for something they should have known if they truly knew the biblical witness. The psalmist applies the praise of children to God, but here the children are ascribing the praise to Jesus as the Son of David. Jesus thus admits his messiahship in receiving the blessing/praise and goes beyond what even the children know by personally receiving what was applicable in the psalm only to God (21:16).23
Return to Bethany (21:17). After the dramatic events of this Monday of Holy Week, Jesus leaves the religious leaders, most likely with their mouths hanging over and their fury beginning to boil. He will return to the city and the temple the next day to engage them in extended debate, but for now he returns to Bethany (see comments on 21:1). Jerusalem was packed with pilgrims during the Passover season, and many found shelter outside the city. Most likely Jesus stays at the home of Lazarus, whom he raised from the dead, and of his sisters, Mary and Martha (Luke 10:38–42; John 11:1–44).
Cursing the Fig Tree: Jesus’ Judgment of the Nation (21:18–22)
MATTHEW TOPICALLY DISCUSSES together both the cursing of the fig tree and the disciples’ reaction to seeing it withered,24 whereas Mark gives the more probable chronological order. The tree was cursed on Monday morning on the way into the city to enact the judgment on the temple leadership. The disciples return to Bethany on Monday night (Mark 11:19), and on Tuesday morning they react to the withering on the way back to Jerusalem (cf. 11:12–14, 20–26).
Jesus and the disciples, traveling from Bethany to Jerusalem, pass through the little village of Bethphage (see comments on 21:1). The appearance of leaves on a fig tree in this region was a promise of the sweet early fig. But the tree is unproductive, with no figs at all. This becomes an appropriate object for Jesus to use to indicate Israel’s spiritual condition (cf. Hos. 9:10, where Israel is compared to a fruitful fig tree), providing a striking lesson for the disciples.25 Just as the fig tree’s fruitfulness was a sign of its health, so fruitfulness was a sign of Israel’s faithfulness to the covenantal standards. Now that Israel, especially represented by its religious leadership, has perverted the temple practices and has not repented at the appearance of Jesus Messiah proclaiming the arrival of the kingdom of heaven, Israel is being judged by God.
The disciples are amazed that the fig tree can wither so quickly, simply at the word of Jesus, but he tells them that they also can do such a thing, and even more (21:20–21). Jesus’ cursing the fig tree is not a fit of temper but a symbolic act, demonstrating that God’s creatures must produce that for which they were created—to carry out God’s will, which means entering into a discipleship relationship with him and then demonstrating fruit from that relationship in a life of faith empowered by prayer.26
Using the handy object of the Mount of Olives or perhaps even the Temple Mount across the Kidron Valley, Jesus says that one with faith can throw the mountain into the sea (21:21). Then, similar to an earlier saying (17:20–21), Jesus declares, “If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer.” The point here is not the disciples’ amount of faith to do great things but rather their trust in accomplishing God’s will in God’s power. If God directs them to move a mountain, God will supply the power for it to be accomplished. They simply must be obedient and say yes to his will.
Controversies in the Temple Court over Jesus’ Authority (21:23–27)
MOST LIKELY ON Tuesday morning of Holy Week, Jesus goes to the temple. While he is teaching the people there, the religious leaders, the subjects of Jesus’ enacted symbolic judgment the previous day in the temple, confront him about his authority to do these things. Jesus gives three extended parables that reveal God’s judgment on these leaders for not fulfilling their responsibility in getting the people to respond to his invitation to the kingdom of God (21:28–22:14). After that is a series of four interactions as the religious leaders attempt to entrap him, but he turns the tables to reveal his true identity as the Son of God (22:15–22:46). Jesus closes this section by pronouncing his climactic woes on these leaders (23:1–39).
The debates probably take place in one of the open-air porches surrounding the Court of the Gentiles. Jesus is confronted by “the chief priests and the elders of the people.” The chief priests were high-ranking members of the priestly line who joined the high priest in giving oversight to the temple activities, treasury, and priestly orders. The “elders” (cf. also 26:3, 47; 27:1) were members of the Sanhedrin, the ruling body. They were representatives from the Sadducees and Pharisees (cf. 26:57; Mark 14:53).
Since Jesus had the previous day symbolically judged the religious leaders publicly, shaming them before the crowds over whom they exercised religious authority, they respond by asking, “By what authority are you doing these things?”27 The reference to the authority to do “these things” most likely refers to Jesus’ disrupting the commercial activities of the temple on the day before (21:12–13), but they are probably also questioning his authority to heal (21:14–16) and to teach in the temple (21:23). Jesus is, after all, neither an official priestly nor scribal authority according to their sectarian standards.
Instead of cowering before their challenge, Jesus replies, “I will also ask you one question. If you answer me, I will tell you by what authority I am doing these things.” He now engages the religious leaders in a series of rabbinic-type debates that follow a typical pattern: a hostile question, followed by a counter-question, admission, and final rejoinder.28
Jesus’ question is: “John’s baptism—where did it come from? Was it from heaven, or from men?” Do they think John the Baptist had divine or human authority to carry out his ministry of calling all Israel to repentance in the light of the soon-coming arrival of the Messiah? By shifting the questioning back to the religious leaders, Jesus lays a logical trap (21:25b–26). They cannot alienate the people by saying that John’s highly popular prophetic ministry was not from God. They fear that the people may turn against them and cause an uprising (21:26), which would jeopardize the Roman support of their leadership.
But neither can they endorse the very prophet who had condemned them for not repenting (cf. 3:7–10). The implication that Jesus demands them to admit is that John’s authority as a true prophet was derived from God, and John had pointed to Jesus as the Messiah (cf. 3:11–17; 11:1–6; John 1:19, 26–27). If they respond that John’s authority came from God, that would validate Jesus’ authority to say and do what he wishes, even in the temple, which would be a clear answer their question. If these religious leaders will not endorse the prophet from God who pointed to Jesus, they surely will not endorse him as the Messiah, whose most recent actions have demonstrated that he has come to judge their leadership in Israel.
These religious leaders recognize the dilemma Jesus has put them in, so they refuse to answer. That refusal shows their dishonesty, and they must accept their culpability. Therefore Jesus feels no obligation to answer their question about his authority, since he has forced them to accept their own responsibility for how they have responded to him. They are spiritually dishonest by not acknowledging the truth they know and have hardened their hearts against God’s revelation. This is the unforgivable sin that the Pharisees committed earlier (12:30–32).
Parables of Condemnation Directed Toward the Religious Leadership of Israel (21:28–46)
NOW THE INITIATIVE passes to Jesus as he presses the Jewish leaders with three parables (21:28–22:14). In each one it is evident that God is displeased with the officialdom of Israel. Each parable deals with their dishonesty and failure as leaders of the people.
The parable of the two sons: The religious leadership did not heed John the Baptist (21:28–32). The first parable is about two sons who were asked to work in their father’s vineyard. This parable presses Jesus’ point that the religious leaders have not rightly recognized John the Baptist’s divinely endowed prophetic ministry. Grapes were one of the most important crops in ancient Israel and became one of the most important metaphors to describe Israel as the “vine” or “vineyard” of God (e.g., Jer. 2:21; Hos. 10:1). This parable and the next (21:33–46; cf. 20:1–16) bring to mind the religious leaders, who have been called to serve God by serving the nation of Israel. In the parable, one son initially refuses to go, but then does go. The other initially agrees to go, but then refuses.
Jesus presses the Pharisees and Sadducees with the question, “Which of the two did what his father wanted?” They reply with the obvious answer—the one that obeyed. By pressing them to give that answer, Jesus compels them to accept their responsibility as religious leaders of Israel. The son that originally refused but then obeyed is like those in Israel who were disobedient to the law, such as the tax collectors and prostitutes. But when John arrived with the message of true righteousness through the announcement of the arrival of the kingdom of God, they obeyed God’s call through John and were repentant. By contrast, the religious leaders are like the son who agreed but did nothing. They were externally obedient to the law, but when God sent his messenger, John the Baptist, they did not obey God’s message through him.
Sinners who repent will obey God and by it show their repentance. It does not matter if they once turned their backs on God. God wants obedience. The Jewish leaders are hypocritical in that they talk but do not live up to their talk. In the final analysis, it is the fruit of our lives that proves whether or not we are submissive to God’s message through his messengers.
The parable of the wicked tenants: God takes away the kingdom from Israel (21:33–46). Jesus continues the vineyard metaphor of the previous parable. Clearly alluding to Isaiah 5:1–7, he intensifies his rebuke of the religious leadership by pronouncing God’s judgment: The kingdom will be taken away from Israel and given to another people.29
Jesus reveals his firsthand knowledge of viticulture, because his description of the preparation of a vineyard for production conforms to the practices known from other sources from that time period. Stone walls were built around vineyards to protect them from thieves and wild animals, and some larger vineyards had watchtowers built for added security. It was common to have large farming estates in Palestine, which were owned either by foreigners or wealthy Jews and rented out to poor Jewish farmers. A wealthy landowner might employ a farmer or rent out his vineyard to tenants if he had other preoccupations.30
The peaceful scene of vineyards rented out to tenants turns ugly. With the arrival of harvest time, the landowner sends his servants to the tenants to collect the portion of the fruit that belongs to him. However, the unthinkable occurs: “The tenants seized his servants; they beat one, killed another, and stoned a third.” Many absentee landowners were notorious for their harsh treatment of their tenants. Here, the scene is reversed, and the landowner’s servants are abused when they come to collect a portion of the harvest. The landowner continues to send servants to collect what is rightfully his, but each is treated the same way (22:36). The treatment of these “servants” calls to mind the same fate that befell God’s prophets throughout Old Testament history (e.g., 1 Kings 18:4; Jer. 20:1–2). Jesus will soon hold the teachers of the law and Pharisees culpable for the ill fate of the prophets and wise men sent to Israel (cf. Matt. 23:34).
Finally, the landowner sends his own son to make a collection, saying, “They will respect my son.” This is an unmistakable allusion to God the Father’s sending his Son, Jesus (cf. 10:40–41; cf. 3:17; 11:27; 15:24; 17:5), which is further evidence of Jesus’ self-consciousness of his identity as God’s unique Son (cf. 3:17; 11:27). Through this parable Jesus is making a public assertion of his divine Sonship to the religious leadership and the crowds.31
The story turns unthinkably ugly when the tenants say, “ ‘This is the heir. Come, let’s kill him and take his inheritance.’ So they took him and threw him out of the vineyard and killed him.” The religious leaders have not acknowledged Jesus publicly as God’s Son, nor have they publicly condemned Jesus out of fear of the crowds (cf. 21:45–46). But Jesus foretells what they will do to him secretly and blindly. They will condemn him for being a messianic pretender and have him killed by the Gentiles, thinking that will enable them to retain their claim to religious authority in Israel. Jesus has been telling his disciples of his crucifixion at the hands of the religious leaders for several months (16:21; 17:23; 20:18), and now he tells the rulers themselves in parabolic form.
But the Jewish leaders cannot get away with their duplicity. Jesus concludes the parable by foretelling their demise. He places their self-condemnation in their own mouth by asking these religious leaders what the vineyard owner will do to those wicked tenants when he comes (21:40). They reply with the only just thing that should be done: “He will bring those wretches to a wretched end . . . and he will rent the vineyard to other tenants, who will give him his share of the crop at harvest time.” This is fitting self-condemnation, which Jesus makes explicit as he foretells their judgment and rejection (21:42–44).
The crowds at Jesus’ entrance to Jerusalem had sung out a portion of the last Hallel psalm, “O Lord, save us,” a quotation of Psalm 118:25–26 (cf. Matt. 21:9). Now Jesus draws on Psalm 118:22 to point to his rejection and future vindication: “The stone the builders rejected has become the capstone” (Matt. 21:42). God gives prominence to his suffering servant like a “capstone” (lit., “head of the corner”), either the stone that held two rows of stones together in a corner (“cornerstone”) or the wedge-shaped stone placed at the pinnacle of an arch that locked together the ascending stones. The suffering of the Son will be turned into the position of ultimate prominence and importance.
Jesus climaxes his indictment of the religious leadership with a stinging pronouncement: “Therefore I tell you that the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people who will produce its fruit.” This gives Jesus’ unambiguous conclusion to the preceding parable. The leaders are not fulfilling the obligations to God for which they are responsible, neither in their own lives nor in leading the nation of Israel. They have not repented at the arrival of the kingdom of God; rather, they are rejecting the very Son who announced its arrival. This is a statement to them personally of the judgment they will receive, which had been enacted to the disciples symbolically in the cursing of the fig tree for not bearing fruit (21:18–21).
The privileged role of the religious leaders in caring for God’s “vineyard” is now being taken away. But this is also a hint that Israel’s privileged role in the establishment of God’s kingdom will be taken away and given to another people. “People” is the singular ethnos, which prepares for the time when the church, a nation of gathered people, will include both Jew and Gentile in the outworking of God’s kingdom in the present age. All who become individual disciples out of the plural “nations” (28:19; ethne) will be brought together as one new “nation.” Peter later also uses the singular ethnos in the context of the “stone” passage to refer to the church (1 Peter 2:9). This will not abolish the promises made to Israel nationally (cf. Rom. 11:25–33), but it does point to the transition of leadership and prominence that will be given to the church in God’s program for the present age.
The kingdom of God will produce its fruit in this new nation of Jesus’ disciples, which points ahead to the work of the Holy Spirit in the establishment of the new covenant. The reign of God’s powerful presence is demonstrated in regenerated people through lives distinguished by the fruit of righteousness (Matt. 5:20) and good works (Col. 1:5–10), the fruit of Spirit-produced transformation of character (Gal. 5:21–24), and the fruit of new generations of disciples (Matt. 28:18–20; cf. John 15:16) that will bear witness to the reality of the kingdom on earth.
All of this could have been fruit produced in Israel, but instead it is taken away from them. Jesus continues to press the theme of judgment by saying, “He who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces, but he on whom it falls will be crushed.” While different words for stone are used here than in 21:42, the meaning appears to be connected. The two parts of the stone imagery are somewhat enigmatic, but the emphasis on judgment is clear. The first half speaks of the personal culpability of individuals who stumble or fall into sin by not rightly recognizing the identity of Jesus. This probably draws on the imagery of Isaiah 8:13–15:
The LORD Almighty is the one you are to regard as holy,
he is the one you are to fear,
he is the one you are to dread,
and he will be a sanctuary;
but for both houses of Israel he will be
a stone that causes men to stumble
and a rock that makes them fall.
And for the people of Jerusalem he will be
a trap and a snare.
Many of them will stumble;
they will fall and be broken,
they will be snared and captured.
The second half of 21:44 emphasizes the absolute judgment that will fall on those who stumble over Jesus, probably drawing on the well-known stone imagery in Daniel 2:34–35, 44–45. Jesus returns to the stone motif to issue a warning to Israel and her leadership. Not only will the privileged position and role in the outworking of the kingdom of God be taken away, but judgment also will come on those rejecting the Son. Those who stumble over the stone and try to destroy it, such as the religious leaders, will be destroyed. At the end Jesus will come as judge and fall on those who have rejected him (cf. chs. 24–25). “This despised stone (v. 42) is not only chosen by God and promoted to the premier place, it is also dangerous.”32
The confrontation between Jesus and the religious leaders (now specifying “the chief priests and the Pharisees,” 21:45) comes to a head. They cannot miss the point that Jesus is indicting them with his words of judgment. They understand the radical nature of what Jesus has pronounced and try to arrest him. He could stir up the crowds in such a way that all of their institutional power could be threatened. But their earlier fear of arousing the wrath of the people because of the prophet John the Baptist also prevents them from arresting Jesus, whom the crowds also perceive to be a prophet (cf. 21:45; cf. v. 11). At least for the time being, the enthusiasm of the crowd deters them from plotting his arrest. But what they fear to do in public, they plot to undertake in secrecy. In the end they themselves will persuade the crowd to ask for Jesus’ death (cf. 27:20).
Bridging Contexts
AS JESUS ENTERS Jerusalem for his final week, everything about his person and mission comes to a climactic focus for the culmination of his earthly assignment. Everything he taught and every miracle and tender act of kindness he has performed now find their ultimate meaning in the deeds of this final week. He announces the arrival of the kingdom of heaven, and then demonstrates its good news of salvation from sin with preaching the gospel and its power with miracles of healing and exorcism of demons. This final week culminates his kingdom mission by establishing the new covenant in his blood (26:26–29). With his sacrifice on the cross, the actual atonement for humanity’s sin is accomplished, which becomes the basis for the creation of a new humanity with the arrival of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost.
Holy Week. This week has rightly been called “Holy Week” throughout much of church history, a phrase that was used at least in the fourth century by Athanasius, bishop of Alexandria, and Epiphanius, bishop of Constantia. In some traditions this week is called “Passion Week” (“passion” comes from the Latin passio, “suffering”). The Latin translations of the New Testament adopted the term passio to point to the Gospel narratives of Jesus’ suffering and the attending events.
The pre-Nicene church concentrated its attention by celebrating one great feast, the Last Supper or the Christian Passover, on the night between Saturday and Easter Sunday morning. But by the late fourth century the church began separating the various events and commemorating them on the days of the week on which they occurred. Originally only Friday and Saturday were observed as holy days; later Wednesday was added as the day on which Judas plotted to betray Jesus. The commemoration of the full Holy Week then commenced with Palm Sunday to mark Jesus’ dramatic entry to Jerusalem; Maundy Thursday marked Judas’s betrayal and the institution of the Eucharist; the suffering, death, and burial of Jesus were commemorated on Good Friday; and his resurrection was celebrated on Easter Sunday.
Matthew, like all of the evangelists, gives special attention to Jesus’ final week. The most basic message about Jesus given by the apostles concentrated on his death, burial, and resurrection, as we can see from the preaching accounts of the early church.33 This basic message is the kerygma (Gk. term meaning “preaching”), which became the standardized message to unbelievers but also to believers. Therefore, as we embark on the study of the final eight chapters of Matthew’s Gospel, we enter into Holy Week.
Pictures of Jesus as prophet, priest, and king. Matthew presents the activities of this final week to clarify the way that Jesus fulfills the various prophesied roles of the anticipated Messiah. One of the distinctive features of first-century Judaism that separated the various sects and made it difficult for them to understand Jesus’ fulfillment of the Old Testament prophecies is their tendency to focus on one strand of messianic prediction, sometimes to the exclusion of others. For example, many focused on prophecies of a kingly conqueror who would arise to sit on David’s throne (e.g., 2 Sam. 7:11–16). Others focused on prophecies of a great prophet like Moses, who would give the authoritative interpretation of God’s law (Deut. 18:15–18). Still others looked at priestly passages and expected a mysterious figure like Melchizedek to have a messianic function (Gen. 14:18–20; Ps. 110:4).34
However, we do find evidence that at least some in Israel held these three prophetic strands in tension. A trilogy of messianic proof texts in a single document from the Qumran community speaks first of an eschatological prophet like Moses (Deut. 5:28–29; 18:18–19), then of a departing kingly star and an arising kingly scepter from Israel who will crush their enemies (Num. 24:15–17), and finally of a priestly figure like Levi, whom Moses blessed (Deut. 33:8–11).35 However, this probably indicates that the Qumran community expected more than one messiah. Note this famous phrase in the Rule of the Community: “until the prophet comes, and the Messiahs of Israel and of Aaron.”36 Nowhere do we find a consistent understanding that all three offices of prophet, priest and king would be fulfilled in one person.
At various times in Jesus’ ministry he revealed how he fulfilled those strands, but in the passion narrative we begin to see most clearly how he fulfills all three in his messianic mission. Matthew helps us to see that as the true Messiah, the Son of David, Jesus fulfills the full Old Testament prophesied hope and expectation of the Jews by performing the eschatological functions of prophet, priest, and king. In fact, all the Gospel writers present Jesus as God’s Messiah in his threefold role as teacher, sin-bearer, and ruler (i.e., prophet, priest, and king).
Prophet. Many within Israel looked to the prophets, who spoke for God and declared God’s will for his people, both in their present time and for the future. They looked for the Messiah to be the voice of God, the greatest prophet, who would fulfill Moses’ prophecy of the eschatological Prophet (Deut. 18:15–18). Jesus’ arrival in Jerusalem prompts people in the crowd to herald him as the prophet from Nazareth in Galilee (Matt. 21:11), which probably indicates that they understand him to be another voice like that of John the Baptist. However, as some had earlier begun to see,37 Jesus was indeed that great Prophet to whom Moses had pointed, who revealed and explained the Father to his people (John 1:18; 6:14; 7:40).
Priest. The priestly line of the Old Testament represented Israel before God to seek his forgiveness of sin. The Qumran community illustrates those within first-century Judaism who expected a priestly Messiah, as is especially seen in the phrase “the anointed one of Aaron” (e.g., 1QS 9:11). Jesus’ activities in the temple and his declaration of judgment on those who perverted its function announce that he is the actualization of the priestly hopes. The unfolding activities of Passion Week, culminating in his cries from the cross and the tearing of the curtain veil, proclaim that he has fulfilled those hopes. According to the book of Hebrews, Jesus continues to intercede for his followers daily, demonstrating that true purity is a matter of the heart and that purity and righteousness work from the inside out (Heb. 7:24–25).
King. The patriarch Jacob prophesied of a kingly Messiah who would come from the tribe of Judah and reign as king: “The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet, until he comes to whom it belongs” (Gen. 49:10). This theme is expanded in classic messianic passages where David’s line comprises a dynasty from which the Anointed One will arise to vanquish God’s enemies and rule his people on an eternal throne in Jerusalem (2 Sam. 7:16; cf. Ps. 2:6; 110). But the distinctive strain of these prophecies is that this Anointed One extends the rule of God, not the rule of humans.
Jesus’ dramatic entry to Jerusalem brings those strains together. He is the divine-human king who fulfills the Davidic prophecies of a future king but who also establishes the kingdom of heaven in a spiritual way that will allow him to reign in his followers’ hearts throughout this age (Eph. 3:17). Moreover, as the human representative, Jesus fulfills the intended goal for humanity that was created to rule this world for God (cf. Gen. 1:26–28; Ps. 8:3–8). Matthew emphasizes the kingly aspects of Jesus’ messianic identity as he narrates the final week of Jesus’ mission, although he often presents these details tragically—as Jesus is accused of treason for claiming the title of king of the Jews (27:11–14) and as the crowds mock his kingship (e.g., 27:29).
Since the Old Testament messianic roles of prophet, priest, and king were primarily understood in Judaism to be fulfilled by separate individuals, if one person fulfilled all three offices, he would have to be an extraordinary person, more than anyone could conceive. And that is precisely how the Gospel writers present him,38 and it is a special focus of Matthew’s clarification of Jesus’ messianic identity and mission. All three offices coalesce in the one person of Jesus Messiah, but the way that he fulfills these offices confounds the people of Israel.
• He enters Jerusalem as the King, not to establish the monarchy but to bring peace between God and humanity, and among humans, through his own death.
• He clears the temple, not simply to restore the institutional and ethical integrity of the priestly order but to announce that he is the Priest who will offer the final sacrifice that will make open and permanent the access of all humans to God.
• He pronounces judgment on Israel like the prophets of old, not simply to restore order but to function as the Prophet who has fulfilled the Old Testament to enable his nation of disciples to live kingdom-empowered lives as his witnesses during this age.
Therefore, our discipleship to Jesus must understand him to be more than a warrior for God, more than a minister for God, and more than a spokesman for God. J. I. Packer catches the essence of this as he declares of Jesus as king, priest, and prophet:
It is his glory, given him by the Father, to be in this way the all-sufficient Savior. We who believe are called to understand this and to show ourselves his people by obeying him as our king, trusting him as our priest, and learning from him as our prophet and teacher. To center on Jesus Christ in this way is the hallmark of authentic Christianity.39
Jesus is the Messiah who fulfills all of the hopes for humanity and offers an entirely new way of living.
Jesus, Israel, and the mission of the new people of God. Throughout the Old Testament the concept of God’s kingdom includes the reign of God over the universe (1 Chron. 29:11–12; Ps. 103:19) and the coming kingdom when God’s glory will be manifest on the earth (Isa. 24:23). The prophets continue that theme and emphasize that while God is King, both of Israel (Ex. 15:18; Num. 23:21; Deut. 33:5; Isa. 43:15) and of all the earth (2 Kings 19:15; Ps. 29:10; 99:1–4; Isa. 6:5; Jer. 46:18), he will become King and rule in a tangible way over his people (Isa. 24:23; 33:22; 52:7; Zeph. 3:15; Zech. 14:9ff.). This leads many to the conclusion that “while God is the King, he must also become King, i.e., he must manifest his kingship in the world of human beings and nations.”40 Therefore, God’s kingdom includes both his activity of his reign and the realm of his reign.
The people of Israel were God’s chosen children, through whom he covenanted to establish his kingdom on the earth. They were not to be the sole heirs of the kingdom, but rather they were to be the center of God’s witness of his reality. This has been described as God’s centripetal mission to the world, as the people would come to Israel to hear and witness God’s revelation of his purposes for humanity.41 The final eschatological hope revealed in the prophets is still centripetal, where God’s purposes for all humanity are realized as they come to Jerusalem. This is classically pictured by Isaiah in Isaiah 2:2–3 (cf. also Mic. 4:1–2):
In the last days
the mountain of the LORD’s temple will be established
as chief among the mountains;
it will be raised above the hills,
and all nations will stream to it.
Many peoples will come and say,
“Come, let us go up to the mountain of the LORD,
to the house of the God of Jacob.
He will teach us his ways,
so that we may walk in his paths.”
The law will go out from Zion,
the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.
Jesus came to Israel announcing that the kingdom of heaven had arrived. Israel continued as God’s chosen recipients of the kingdom mission and witness. To and through Israel he ministered throughout his earthly life, expecting Israel to repent and receive his kingdom offer so that the centripetal concept would continue as Gentiles streamed to Zion to worship on the holy mountain.
But the events of the Holy Week bring to a critical juncture Jesus’ relationship to Israel and the role they will play during this age. The events also clarify further the relationship and role for the disciples that Jesus was gathering around him. Throughout Matthew’s narrative we have seen an uneasy tension between Jesus’ compassion for the people of Israel (e.g., 9:35–38), yet the continual opposition to him by Israel’s leadership (e.g., 12:24). We have also seen a puzzling tension between Jesus’ commitment only to go to Israel (e.g., 10:5–6; 15:24), yet a tender responsiveness to the faith of Gentiles (8:10; 15:28). We have seen an emphasis on the present fulfillment of the covenantal promises of the kingly Davidic line (1:17; 2:2–6), yet an emphasis on the future fulfillment of the covenantal promises of the universal Abrahamic line (8:11–12). These tensions now prepare for some critical changes in both the mission, and the missionaries, of God’s kingdom program. The narrative of these final chapters begins to clarify the process that led to these changes.42
1. Jesus came as a Jew to the Jewish people to fulfill the salvation-historical promises to Israel (10:5–6; 15:24). It was not his intention to undertake his ministry with the evident purpose of starting a new movement either within or outside of Israel.
2. Although Jesus’ ministry was particularistic in its attention to Israel, it responded to the faith of Gentiles and held promise of a future universalistic outreach.
3. Israel as a whole, including both the leaders and the people, rejected Jesus and his message about the kingdom (12:25–32, 38–39; 13:10–17; 27:25).
4. A substantial group did respond in faith, however. Those who responded positively to his offer of the kingdom became his disciples. Discipleship entailed unreserved commitment to him, which meant that a new disciple entered the kingdom of God in the presence of the person of Jesus (5:2–16, 20).
5. Jesus declares in the events of the temple, the cursing of the fig tree, and the parables directed to the religious leaders who question his authority that the kingdom of God is being taken away from Israel (21:43).
6. The recipients of his messianic salvation become his new nation of witness to the reality of the kingdom (21:43).
7. The mission now becomes centrifugal instead of centripetal. This means that instead of the Gentiles coming to Israel to hear God’s message, Jesus’ disciples are to go to all the nations with the gospel of the kingdom of heaven to make more disciples (28:18–20).43
8. The twelve apostles will sit on twelve thrones “judging” the twelve tribes of Israel (19:28). This indicates ruling, which speaks to the future existence of Israel in God’s purposes.
The role of carrying out God’s purposes through the kingdom of God has been taken away from the nation of Israel in the present age, and Jesus’ disciples currently enjoy both the blessings of the kingdom of God and the responsibility of the role of carrying the message of the gospel of the kingdom (21:43; 28:18–20). But Israel is still kept in view as receiving in the future the fulfillment of the promises of the kingdom (10:23; 23:37–39; cf. Rom. 11:25–32; 15:7–13; Rev. 7:1–8).44 Jesus’ disciples represent the fulfillment in part of the promises to Israel, and they now perform the role that Israel performed, but they do not replace Israel or become Israel.
Contemporary Significance
MY EARLIEST MEMORY of the Easter season is as a child visiting a rather large church. All of us little children were given palm fronds, and we then lined up and walked down the aisle of the church with the choir singing at the top of their lungs. We stood on either side of the aisle, with our palm fronds extending out and above us, forming a canopy. This seemed to me like a very fun way to do church! Then I was absolutely stunned, because down the aisle came a man in a long robe riding a donkey! Riding a donkey into church! That is a good memory. It was a happy procession of children and choir and a man on a donkey, almost like a celebration. It seemed like everyone loved Jesus on that Palm Sunday.
But memories of childhood aren’t all exactly correct. Several years ago someone gave me a story of a Sunday school teacher who decided to ask her little preschool class what they remembered about Easter. The first little fellow suggested that Easter was when all the family came to the house and they ate a big turkey and watched football. The teacher thought that perhaps he was thinking of Thanksgiving, not Easter, so she let a little girl answer. She seemed to think that Easter was the day when you come down the stairs in the morning and saw all the beautiful presents under the tree.
At this point the teacher was really feeling discouraged. But after explaining that the little girl was probably thinking of Christmas, she called on a little boy with his hand tentatively raised in the air. The teacher’s spirits immediately perked up as the boy said that Easter was the time when Jesus was crucified on a cross and buried. Finally, she felt that she had at least gotten through to one child. Then the little boy added, “And then he came out of the grave, and if he sees his shadow we have six more weeks of winter!”
Well, when I was a little boy, I thought Palm Sunday seemed to say that everyone loved Jesus. Now that Jesus arrived on a donkey, everything is going to turn out all right. But like the little boy who confused Easter with Groundhog Day, I got only about half the story right.
Palm Sunday does speak of celebration, but we have already seen that people were celebrating for a variety of reasons, not all of which reflect Jesus’ purposes for entering Jerusalem. Lots of people did shout for joy because they loved Jesus, but not all them really cared for him above their own dreams. In just a few days many of the same ones shouted with anger to have Jesus crucified. Because of Jesus’ redemptive sacrifice, things will turn out right for his disciples. But for the people of Israel a different future now commences, and for many of them it spells doom.
Walking with Jesus through the Holy Week. The magnitude of the Holy Week events for the future of humanity must be understood correctly. We must understand what Jesus intended in the Holy Week so that our own expectations and dreams are kept in line with his. Thus, many years ago, I began a practice of what I call “walking with Jesus through the Holy Week.” I try to visualize what Jesus was doing every day of that week, starting from the celebration with his disciples on the Saturday evening prior to Palm Sunday, all the way to the resurrection on Easter Sunday. I try to imagine what Jesus was doing at each hour of each day—was he enjoying the last fellowship with his disciples, or was he alone preparing for the experience of the cross? I try to put myself in his place to feel what he was feeling—was it poignant joy when Mary anointed his feet, or painful rejection as Peter and the other disciples denied him? What was he feeling as Judas betrayed him?
I also try to imagine his incredible suffering as he endured the horrors of his crucifixion and separation from God, yet I try also to imagine the incredible joy as he experienced the resurrection with his victory over sin accomplished. As I walk with Jesus through these various events, I have an incredibly wide range of experiences, from feelings of tenderness and intimacy with him, to my own anger at what others did to him, to utter amazement over the profound experience of the God-Man on the cross and out of the empty tomb.
Each year I read through a different account of the Holy Week from one of the Gospels. Mark gives the quickest chronological overview, but each Gospel records significant issues and perspectives that complement each other for a full understanding of the week’s events. After a couple of years of doing this, I began memorizing each of the events so that no matter what I was doing—from preparing a sermon for Easter, or joining my daughters for an afternoon surf session, or pulling weeds in the garden—I could reflect on what Jesus was doing at that very hour. This week has become the most powerful week of my year.
I also started taking along others with me as I walked with Jesus through the Holy Week. As a youth pastor taking groups of students on Easter mission trips or ski outings, I would teach on Jesus’ activities throughout the week to correspond with the individual events. I began also to ask the students to memorize the outline of the events. Later, as a professor I began challenging students to memorize these events, and then I’d give an examination to encourage them to do so! Thus, when Easter vacation came along, no matter where they were or what they were doing, they would be able to walk with Jesus through Holy Week. Literally thousands of students have done this over the years. The response I get from people who have done this is almost always that they have profited immensely from this simple discipline of focusing on Jesus and trying to plumb the depths of the historical, personal, and theological ramifications of his final week on earth. Many of these students have likewise used this in their own ministries and families to help others participate with Jesus in the most important events of human history.
To encourage you to do so, and also perhaps to use with your own people, I’ve reduplicated the basic events that correspond to our calendar and hours of the day. This kind of discipline has been practiced by Christians throughout history to commemorate, celebrate, commiserate, and contemplate these events with Jesus and to enter into a profound understanding of what Jesus accomplished for us. It can be done alone, with groups, or even as a family’s worship time.45
Walking with Jesus Through the Holy (Passion) Week A Harmony of the Events of Jesus’ Final Week46 (cf. Matt. 21–28; Mark 11–16; Luke 19–24; John 12–21) | |
Modern Calendar Days | Event of the Holy Week |
• Arrival in Bethany (John 12:1) | |
Saturday | • Evening celebration, Mary anoints Jesus (John 12:2–8; cf. Matt. 26:6–13) |
Sunday | • Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem (Matt. 21:1–11; Mark 11:1–10; John 12:12–18) • Jesus surveys the temple area (Mark 11:11) • Return to Bethany (Matt. 21:17; Mark 11:11) |
Monday | • Cursing the fig tree on the way to Jerusalem (Matt. 21:18–22; cf. Mark 11:12–14) • Clearing the temple (Matt. 21:12–13; Mark 11:15–17) • Miracles and challenges in the temple (Matt. 21:14–16; Mark 1:18) • Return to Bethany (Mark 11:19) |
Tuesday | • Reaction to cursing the fig tree on the way back to Jerusalem (Matt. 21:20–22; Mark 11:20–21) • Debates with religious leaders in Jerusalem and teaching in the temple (Matt. 21:23–23:39; Mark 11:27–12:44) • Eschatological Discourse on the Mount of Olives on the return to Bethany (Matt. 24:1–25:46; Mark 13:1–37) |
• “Silent Wednesday”—Jesus and disciples remain in Bethany for last time of fellowship • Judas returns alone to Jerusalem to make arrangements for the betrayal (Matt. 26:14–16; Mark 14:10–11) | |
Thursday | • Preparations for Passover (Matt. 26:17–19; Mark 14:12–16) After sundown: • Passover meal and Last Supper (Matt. 26:20–35; Mark 14:17–26) • Upper Room discourses (John 13–17) • Prayers in the Garden of Gethsemane (Matt. 26:36–46; Mark 14:32–42) |
Friday | Sometime perhaps after midnight: • Betrayal and arrest (Matt. 26:47–56; Mark 14:43–52) • Jewish trial—Jesus appears in three phases in front of: —Annas (John 18:13–24) —Caiaphas and partial Sanhedrin (Matt. 26:57–75; Mark 14:53–65) —Sanhedrin fully assembled (perhaps after sunrise) (Matt. 27:1–2; Mark 15:1) • Roman trial—Jesus appears in three phases before: —Pilate (Matt. 27:2–14; Mark 15:2–5) —Herod Antipas (Luke 23:6–12) —Pilate (Matt. 27:15–26; Mark 15:6–15) • Crucifixion (approx. 9:00 A.M. to 3:00 P.M.) (Matt. 27:27–66; Mark 15:16–39) |
Sunday | • Resurrection witnesses (Matt. 28:1–8; Mark 16:1–8; Luke 24:1–12) • Resurrection appearances (Matt. 28:9–20; Luke 24:13–53; John 20–21) |
The impact of Holy Week on our lives. The practice of walking with Jesus through the Holy Week achieves at least five important functions in my life. (1) It solidifies the historical foundation of my Christian worldview. As I mull these events, I recognize that my faith is build on the rock-solid events that Jesus performed in history—why he was arrested, why the Jewish leaders rejected him, why the Romans executed him, and why even his own followers were so frightened and perplexed. When I reach resurrection Sunday having followed Jesus through the events of this week, my faith is not wishful thinking; rather, it is founded on the facts of history revealed in God’s Word. The empty tomb is the convincing fact that my faith in a risen Savior is real (1 Cor. 15:12–34).
(2) I also understand the disciples more clearly. I understand why they were frightened and cowered as a group behind closed doors to save their own necks because of their perplexity at seeing their miracle-working Master led away and crucified. But I also understand how their experience of seeing Jesus raised from the dead transformed them into courageous and bold leaders who risked everything to tell the world of this good news. They serve as an example of what my own life can be when I am gripped by the events of Holy Week.
(3) I am held under the conviction of my responsibilities as Jesus’ disciple. The second point thrusts on me my responsibility as I watch the reaction of the people and leaders of Israel. They had the greatest privilege of humanity in their calling to be God’s chosen people and to experience their relationship with him in person. Yet their own personal agendas and hard-heartedness rejected Jesus and his message, and they have now been cut off from both their privileges and responsibilities. Those who have responded now belong to the new nation of Jesus’ disciples (21:43).
There is an underlying principle for us here as well. We too can be so set on our own agenda that we harden our hearts against what Jesus wants to accomplish through us. He is patient, but if those who are in positions of responsibility drop the ball, he will give the privileges and responsibilities to those who can be trusted. We must be trusted to live lives and do ministry according to God’s criteria that Jesus unfolded in his earthly ministry and that will be developed in the rest of the New Testament. If not, God will, I suspect, find people to live according to kingdom principles and carry out the work of the kingdom in the way he wants it done.
(4) My experience of these events impels me to more sincere worship. I comprehend the tragedy of the temple. One of Israel’s greatest failures was to understand the fundamental significance of the temple. This failure was not just conducting sacrifices in the wrong way, or profiteering from the poor, or personal corruption among the priesthood, although all of these were included. Jesus’ critique was that “the mechanics of the temple ritual were allowed to obscure the point of authentic communion with God.”47 As Jesus pronounces judgment on Israel in the temple incident and in the cursing of the fig tree, I must look to my own life. How much of what I do is simply religious ritual and self-serving hypocrisy? And how much of what I do in the everyday routines of life is lived in the conscious presence of my God and Savior, Jesus Christ?
When we do the latter, our lives are one continual act of worship. Understanding God’s purposes and will means allowing him to be the God of my life in all that I say and do. And when I do so—whether I am in the market or in meditation, on the freeway or facing my classroom, walking the neighbor’s dog or waking up with my bride at my side—I live a worshipful life that gives adoration, praise, and glory to Jesus just simply by being alive.
(5) I am drawn into a more intimate relationship with Jesus after having walked with him through all of the events of this week. I have entered into the fellowship that he experienced with his closest followers that fateful week—the adrenaline rush of the entry into Jerusalem and clearing the temple, the tenderness of the final moments of silent Wednesday and the Upper Room supper, the heartbreak of seeing them turn away from him in his hour of greatest need and then even deny him. I have followed Jesus into the Garden, where, in utter anguish, he prays for a different path but then resolutely accepts the Father’s will of going to the cross. I have drawn as close as I dare to witness his physical pain of scourging and crucifixion and have tried as feebly as I can to comprehend the abandonment he experiences from God. And I have, as Paul says, experienced being raised with him from the dead as I reconsider and reclaim my own salvation experience (cf. Rom. 6:1–14).
Our walk with Jesus through Holy Week is a time that best enables us to comprehend him as our divine-human Savior and Lord and to live in a right relationship with him today.