# Matthew 21 📖: The Triumphal Entry [[📚 Explore the Bible Books]] [[-Matthew Overview]] | [[Matthew 20]] | [[Matthew 22]] > [!info] Table of Contents > [[#📜 Scripture Text (NET)]] > [[#🤔 Interesting Facts / Historical and Cultural Insights]] > [[#🧠 Chapter Summary]] > [[#✝️ Christ in This Chapter]] > [[#🔎 Key Observations / 🛟 Life Application]] > [[#💬 Discussion Questions]] > [[#✍️ Key Verses to Remember]] > [[#🔗 Related Passages]] > [[#🙏 Devotional Reflection]] > [[#📂 Internal Notes]] ## 📜 Scripture Text (NET) (The NET Bible: New English Translation. Biblical Studies Press, 2005) ### The Triumphal Entry [[Mark 11]] [[Luke 19]] [[John 12]] **Principle**: When God tells you something, it will happen. [[#Verse 01]] Now when they approached Jerusalem and came to Bethphage, at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two disciples,  [[#Verse 02]] telling them, “Go to the village ahead of you. Right away you will find a donkey tied there, and a colt with her. Untie them and bring them to me. [[#Verse 03]] If anyone says anything to you, you are to say, ‘The Lord needs them,’ and he will send them at once.”  [[#Verse 04]] This took place to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet: [[#Verse 05]] “**_Tell the people of Zion,_** ‘**_Look, your king is coming to you,_** **_unassuming and seated on a donkey,_** **_and on a colt, the foal of a donkey_**.’” [[Zechariah 09]] [[#Verse 06]] So the disciples went and did as Jesus had instructed them.  [[#Verse 07]] They brought the donkey and the colt and placed their cloaks on them, and he sat on them.  [[#Verse 08]] A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road. Others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road.  [[#Verse 09]] The crowds that went ahead of him and those following kept shouting, “_Hosanna_ to the Son of David! **_Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!_** _Hosanna_ in the highest!”  [[Psalm 118]] [[#Verse 10]] As he entered Jerusalem the whole city was thrown into an uproar, saying, “Who is this?”  [[#Verse 11]] And the crowds were saying, “This is the prophet Jesus, from Nazareth in Galilee.” ### Cleansing the Temple [[Mark 11]] [[Luke 19]] **Principle**: Keep Holy Things Holy [[#Verse 12]] Then Jesus entered the temple area and drove out all those who were selling and buying in the temple courts, and turned over the tables of the money changers and the chairs of those selling doves.  [[#Verse 13]] And he said to them, “It is written, ‘**_My house will be called a house of prayer,_**’ but you are turning it into **_a den_** **_of robbers_**!” [[Isaiah 56]] [[Jeremiah 07]] [[#Verse 14]] The blind and lame came to him in the temple courts, and he healed them.  [[#Verse 15]] But when the chief priests and the experts in the law saw the wonderful things he did and heard the children crying out in the temple courts,“Hosanna to the Son of David,” they became indignant  [[#Verse 16]] and said to him, “Do you hear what they are saying?” Jesus said to them, “Yes. Have you never read, ‘**_Out of the mouths of children and nursing infants you have prepared praise for yourself_**’?”  [[#Verse 17]] And leaving them, he went out of the city to Bethany and spent the night there. ### The Withered Fig Tree **Principle**: Picture of Jerusalem [[#Verse 18]] Now early in the morning, as he returned to the city, he was hungry.  [[#Verse 19]] After noticing a fig tree by the road he went to it, but found nothing on it except leaves. He said to it, “Never again will there be fruit from you!” And the fig tree withered at once.  [[#Verse 20]] When the disciples saw it they were amazed, saying, “How did the fig tree wither so quickly?”  [[#Verse 21]] Jesus answered them, “I tell you the truth, if you have faith and do not doubt, not only will you do what was done to the fig tree, but even if you say to this mountain, ‘Be lifted up and thrown into the sea,’ it will happen.  [[#Verse 22]] And whatever you ask in prayer, if you believe, you will receive.” ### The Authority of Jesus **Principle**: Challenging Jesus Reveals Your Heart [[#Verse 23]] Now after Jesus entered the temple courts, the chief priests and elders of the people came up to him as he was teaching and said, “By what authorityare you doing these things, and who gave you this authority?”  [[#Verse 24]] Jesus answered them, “I will also ask you one question. If you answer me then I will also tell you by what authority I do these things.  [[#Verse 25]] Where did John’s baptism come from? From heaven or from people?” They discussed this among themselves, saying, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will say, ‘Then why did you not believe him?’  [[#Verse 26]] But if we say, ‘From people,’ we fear the crowd, for they all consider John to be a prophet.”  [[#Verse 27]] So they answered Jesus, “We don’t know.”Then he said to them, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I am doing these things. ### The Parable of the Two Sons **Principle**: Words don’t matter. Actions do. [[#Verse 28]] “What do you think? A man had two sons. He went to the first and said, ‘Son, go and work in the vineyard today.’  [[#Verse 29]] The boy answered, ‘I will not.’ But later he had a change of heart and went.  [[#Verse 30]] The father went to the other son and said the same thing. This boy answered, ‘I will, sir,’ but did not go.  [[#Verse 31]] Which of the two did his father’s will?” They said, “The first.” Jesus said to them, “I tell you the truth, tax collectors and prostitutes will go ahead of you into the kingdom of God!  [[#Verse 32]] For John came to you in the way of righteousness, and you did not believe him. But the tax collectors and prostitutes did believe. Although you saw this, you did not later change your minds and believe him. ### The Parable of the Tenants **Principle**: Jesus Comes to make wrong things right. [[#Verse 33]] “Listen to another parable: There was a landowner who planted a vineyard. He put a fence around it, dug a pit for its winepress, and built a watchtower. Then he leased it to tenant farmers and went on a journey.  [[#Verse 33]] When the harvest time was near, he sent his slaves to the tenants to collect his portion of the crop.  [[#Verse 35]] But the tenants seized his slaves, beat one, killed another, and stoned another.  [[#Verse 36]] Again he sent other slaves, more than the first, and they treated them the same way.  [[#Verse 37]] Finally he sent his son to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’  [[#Verse 38]] But when the tenants saw the son, they said to themselves, ‘This is the heir. Come, let’s kill him and get his inheritance!’  [[#Verse 39]] So they seized him, threw him out of the vineyard, and killed him.  [[#Verse 40]] Now when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those tenants?”  [[#Verse 41]] They said to him, “He will utterly destroy those evil men! Then he will lease the vineyard to other tenants who will give him his portion at the harvest.” [[#Verse 42]] Jesus said to them, “Have you never read in the scriptures: ‘**_The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone. This is from the Lord, and it is marvelous in our eyes_**’? [[Psalm 118|Psalm 118:22-23]] [[#Verse 43]] For this reason I tell you that the kingdom of God will be taken from you and given to a people who will produce its fruit.  [[#Verse 44]] The one who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces, and the one on whom it falls will be crushed.” [[#Verse 45]] When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard his parables, they realized that he was speaking about them.  [[#Verse 46]] They wanted to arrest him, but they were afraid of the crowds, because the crowds regarded him as a prophet. # ==📖 Verse-by-Verse Commentary== ##### Verse 01 - Bethphage- house of unripe figs. ##### Verse 02 - There is no indication as to whether or not this was a miracle or if Jesus had made arrangements beforehand. ##### Verse 03 ##### Verse 04 ##### Verse 05 - Messianic Prophecy that the King would come in peace and authority. ##### Verse 06 ##### Verse 07 - The donkey is not mentioned in the other gospels, only the colt. This is an important detail for someone who is detail-oriented. Someone from that time would naturally have wondered how they could have kept the colt calm. The only way would have been if its mother was close by. - During this time, a King riding a colt into a city held great significance. The way the king entered a city spoke a lot about what he intended to do. If he rode in on a horse, it was a symbol of domination and war. Riding a donkey was a symbol of peace. ##### Verse 08 - Cut branches- Not necessarily palm branches. Not sure where this came from. However, if it were palm branches, this would be highly significant. During the Maccabean revolts, the palm branches were waved as a symbol of victory. Palm branches had also become a national symbol for Israel. Therefore, waving palm branches would have symbolized both victory and pride in their country. In essence, they were saying that Jesus would bring them victory and restore their nation's pride. ##### Verse 09 - "Hosanna"- means "Save Us." ##### Verse 10 ##### Verse 11 - They wanted to know who this was because He was now acting as a King, as the Messiah. ##### Verse 12 - It is possible that this happened twice. John seems to indicate this was earlier in His ministry. Therefore, the easier explanation was that it was two separate occasions. It does not have to be, though. John never claimed his gospel was in chronological order. - Why was Jesus so upset? - 1- They were gouging the people who needed to buy sacrifices. They would charge prices higher than necessary. - 2- They were doing this in the court of the Gentiles, thus preventing the Gentiles from being able to come and worship. ##### Verse 13 ##### Verse 14 - This is huge because, according to Leviticus, those with deformities could not enter the house of God. Jesus is healing them so they can come worship like everyone else. ##### Verse 15 - The chief priests are so upset because they realize this is not just a normal celebration. They are praising Jesus and hailing Him as their Savior. They think He will save them from Rome. Jesus has something more spectacular planned. ##### Verse 16 ##### Verse 17 ##### Verse 18 - Jesus wasn’t petty and mad at the tree. This is an example of the city of Jerusalem. It looked holy, but there was no fruit. ##### Verse 19 ##### Verse 20 ##### Verse 21 ##### Verse 22 ##### Verse 23 ##### Verse 24 ##### Verse 25 ##### Verse 26 ##### Verse 27 ##### Verse 28 ##### Verse 29 ##### Verse 30 ##### Verse 31 ##### Verse 32 ##### Verse 33 ##### Verse 34 ##### Verse 35 ##### Verse 36 ##### Verse 37 ##### Verse 38 ##### Verse 39 ##### Verse 40 ##### Verse 41 ##### Verse 42 ##### Verse 43 ##### Verse 44 ##### Verse 45 ##### Verse 46 ## 🤔 Interesting Facts / Historical and Cultural Insights 1. Bethphage (21:1) was a village on the Mount of Olives near Bethany, and its name means "house of unripe figs." 2. Matthew mentions both a donkey and her colt (21:2, 7), matching the wording of Zechariah 9:9. 3. Spreading cloaks on the road (21:8) honored a new king, as when Jehu was proclaimed king (2 Kings 9:13). 4. "Hosanna" comes from a Hebrew expression meaning "save now" or "please save" (Psalm 118:25). 5. Psalm 118 was sung at Passover as part of the Hallel psalms (Psalms 113 to 118). 6. Jerusalem's population swelled greatly during Passover, as pilgrims came from across the Roman world. 7. Money changers (21:12) exchanged foreign coins for Tyrian shekels, the coins accepted for the temple tax. 8. Jesus quotes Isaiah 56:7 and Jeremiah 7:11 together when He clears the temple (21:13). 9. Fig trees often put out small early fruit along with their leaves, so a tree in full leaf with no fruit promised what it did not deliver (21:19). 10. The parable of the tenants (21:33-41) builds on Isaiah 5:1-7, where Israel is the Lord's vineyard. ## 🧠 Chapter Summary > [!note] 🌱 Still growing. This section is on its way. ## ✝️ Christ in This Chapter Christ is the humble King who comes riding on a donkey (21:5; Zechariah 9:9) and the rejected stone who became the cornerstone (21:42). He cleanses the temple and receives the praise of children (21:12-16). ## 🔎 Key Observations / 🛟 Life Application > [!note] 🌱 Still growing. This section is on its way. ## 💬 Discussion Questions 1. The crowds shouted "Hosanna" but many expected a political deliverer (21:9-11). What kind of King do people want Jesus to be today? 2. Jesus drove out the buyers and sellers and called the temple a house of prayer (21:12-13). What needs to be cleared out so your life can be a place of prayer? 3. The son who first refused but later obeyed did his father's will (21:28-31). Why are actions more revealing than words? ## ✍️ Key Verses to Remember - 📖 verse 5: Your King comes to you, gentle and riding on a donkey. - 📖 verse 9: The crowds cry Hosanna to the Son of David, who comes in the name of the Lord. - 📖 verse 13: God's house is to be a house of prayer, but they made it a den of robbers. - 📖 verse 22: Whatever you ask in prayer with faith, you will receive. - 📖 verse 42: The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone. ## 🔗 Related Passages - 🔗 [[Zechariah 09#Verse 09.|Zechariah 9:9]] and [[Isaiah 62#Verse 11.|Isaiah 62:11]] - Your King comes, humble and riding on a donkey. - 🔗 [[Psalm 118#Verse 25.|Psalm 118:25-26]] - Hosanna! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord. - 🔗 [[Malachi 03#Verse 01.|Malachi 3:1-3]] - The Lord will suddenly come to His temple. - 🔗 [[Isaiah 56#Verse 07.|Isaiah 56:7]] and [[Jeremiah 07#Verse 11.|Jeremiah 7:11]] - A house of prayer turned into a den of robbers. - 🔗 [[Psalm 08#Verse 02.|Psalm 8:2]] - Praise from the lips of children and infants. - 🔗 [[Jeremiah 08#Verse 13.|Jeremiah 8:13]] and [[Luke 13#Verse 06.|Luke 13:6-9]] - The fruitless fig tree. - 🔗 [[Isaiah 05#Verse 01.|Isaiah 5:1-7]] - The song of the Lord's vineyard. - 🔗 [[Psalm 118#Verse 22.|Psalm 118:22-23]] and [[Acts 04#Verse 11.|Acts 4:11]] - The rejected stone becomes the cornerstone. - 🔗 [[Daniel 02#Verse 34.|Daniel 2:34-35, 44]] - The stone that crushes the kingdoms. ## 🙏 Devotional Reflection 📝 SOAP: [[Matthew 21 - SOAP|Proper Service]] ## 📂 Internal Notes