The Strange King of Israel

During this Holy Week I invite you to follow with me as I follow St. John's telling of the events that led to our Lord Jesus' death upon Calvary's cross.

The raising of Lazarus from the dead was sign that moved the crowds to cry out "Save us! You are sent as the envoy of the LORD God Himself. You have His blessings upon you. You are the anointed King of Israel. Save us!" (John 12:9-19)

By the way, the word 'Hosanna' is a Hebrew word that means, "Save us!" From what? Surely from the taxation, lack of work, difficult economic times, restrictive laws, imprisonment and other harsh rules imposed by the Romans who had taken control of Israel nearly a hundred years before. The Jews clung to the prophecies. A king would arise under the blessings of the LORD God Himself. He would be anointed to save them and restore the kingdom. Now here was Jesus with the obvious power and blessing of the LORD. He had raised the dead, healed the sick, calmed storms on the Sea of Galilee and fed thousands with a few loaves of bread and some fish. He had to be the Messiah! "Save us!" they cried.

And to confirm that he understood himself to be that Messiah, Jesus rode into Jerusalem on the back of a donkey amidst the accolades and cries of the crowds.

Why a donkey? To fulfill the prophecy of Zechariah 9:9—

"Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is he, humble and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey."

Such a king would bring peace. Zechariah wrote that the chariots of war and their horses would be cut off from Jerusalem under this king. He would bring peace all the way from the Euphrates river to the great Mediterranean sea and on down to Egypt. The kingdom Solomon ruled would be restored (1 Kings 4:21). The Romans were to be driven out at long last. Israel was to become a free nation once again. Praise the LORD! His blessings surely rested upon Jesus of Nazareth. He was the anointed Messiah-King!

Zechariah went on to say that the LORD Himself would come to fight against the nations that conquered and pillaged Jerusalem. On the day of battle His feet would stand on the Mount of Olives. On that day the LORD would be king over all the earth (Zechariah 14:1-9).

The masses were gathered in Jerusalem to celebrate the Passover, the great festival that commemorated Israel's ancient deliverance from the tyranny of Egypt those many centuries earlier. It would be natural to expect that the Messiah-King, blessed by the LORD God, would now bring the same kind of political freedom. The King of Israel and yes, the King of the world, had finally come. Hurrah! Hurrah! Hurrah!

But it was not to be. John writes,

"His disciples did not understand these things at first, but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things had been written about him and had been done to him" (John 12:16).

". . . when Jesus was glorified." That was the critical factor. What was this glory? What would God the Father do to honor and magnify Jesus? What act would clothe Him with splendor, majesty and eternal renown? What deed would make His name be remembered and praised through all the ages?

His death upon the cross!

The prophet Isaiah foretold this glory as he wrote about the Suffering Servant whose very soul would be an offering for guilt. The prophet continues,

"Out of the anguish of his soul he shall see and be satisfied; by his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant, make many to be accounted righteous, and he shall bear their iniquities" (Isaiah 53:11). 

 We still expect our political leaders, our generals, warriors, presidents and kings to save us, but they cannot rescue us from the gathering storm of God's judgment upon our sinful rebellion. They cannot save us from the death of our bodies and the death of our souls in hell. Only Jesus can do that. So we humbly follow Him this week as He patiently and firmly makes His way to the cross to accomplish what only He can do.