If we take away anything from John 12:12-19, let it be Christ’s final attempt to turn hearts to believe on Him and heed God the Father. John does not linger at this scene as do Matthew and Luke. However, recall the words of Christ from Matthew 23:37, “Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, the way a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were unwilling.”
To the human eye, Christ entering Jerusalem was a dangerous task. The chief priests and Pharisees desired to arrest and kill him. During this very public spectacle, they could have caused a great stir by arresting Christ with great pomp.
It is quite likely that the multitude did not see Christ as Messiah. They regarded Him as their king, and they desired that He be a conquering king. Christ on a donkey signified His coming in peace. John points out that, though the disciples knew the prophets, they did not connect this particular Messianic prophecy (Zechariah 9:9) until after Christ’s resurrection.
The branches of palm trees are more likely to have been bundles of palm branches tied together with a young sprig as twine. This scene reminds us of the Feast of Booths, which is where the people shake bundles of palm branches on each day of the festival. However, we are not in the Feast of Booths. We are at the beginning of Passover week.
The impromptu celebration is rooted in several Old Testament passages.
2 Kings 9:13: Then they hurried and each man took his garment and placed it under him on the bare steps, and blew the trumpet, saying, “Jehu is king!”
Psalm 118:25-26: O LORD, do save, we beseech You; O LORD, we beseech You, do send prosperity! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the LORD; We have blessed you from the house of the LORD. [“Hosanna” which the multitude cries out is a rendering from the Hebrew expression in Psalm 118:25, “Save now, I beseech thee” — הושיעה נא, pronounced “hoshiah nna”]
Psalm 96:12: Let the field exult, and all that is in it. Then all the trees of the forest will sing for joy.
Psalm 106:1,47: Praise the LORD! Oh give thanks to the LORD, for He is good; For His lovingkindness is everlasting. Save us, O LORD our God, And gather us from among the nations, To give thanks to Your holy name And glory in Your praise.
Many people were gathered in Jerusalem because of the Passover. No doubt, some of those who gathered by the way were caught up in a frenzy. Others, though, proclaimed the praises of the Lord. It was indeed a day when, “But Jesus answered, ‘I tell you, if these become silent, the stones will cry out!’” Luke 19:40 If the people were silent, even the stones and trees would have cried out. Instead, the people did rejoice and symbolized the forest singing for joy when their bundles of branches being shaken.
In verse 19, however, not everyone was rejoicing. The Pharisees were continuing to conspire against Christ. Meanwhile, Christ’s triumphal entry signified His final attempt to bring people to belief. Though the Pharisees would not turn to Him in belief, He was yet calling unto them. Though they were about to condemn Him to the cruel cross, He was still giving them an opportunity to turn from their unbelief and sin.
While the palm branches represented the people’s praising God, the triumphal entry by Christ represented His undying love and compassion even for those who intended to do Him harm.
John Lightfoot’s commentary on John 12:23 is quite striking. The phrase “Son of Man” originated from the book of Daniel. The more prophets spoke, the Jewish people adopted a belief in a coming golden age “when life would be sweet and they would be masters of the world.” However, such a small nation of people could only accomplish such a large feat with divine intervention. Thus, for them, the Messiah represented ushering in the long-awaited golden age with divine favor and intervention acting as wind in their sails.
The perception of the Son of Man was one of putting their enemies under their feet, ruling over the rulers of the world, liberating them from Roman rule, and securing permanent peace. Notice the violence necessary to accomplish peace. All these characteristics we do see in the Messiah, however, they are all spiritual and heavenly, and not tangible on earth. On earth, everything the people desired required physical and tangible violence to obtain. The peace they desired to obtain required conquering and overcoming nations, which necessarily involved violence. However, Christ came in peace.
This understanding helps us see more clearly what may have gone through the minds of the multitude laying down their garments, waving bundles of palm branches, and shouting, “Hosanna! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel!” Jump ahead to John 12:34, and we can see more clearly what the multitude was thinking. This King of Israel would maintain His presence among them in a physically permanent kingdom. The prophecy was true, but not as a tangible kingdom.
How often do we look to God for tangible benefits here on earth? But Christ calls us to invest in a heavenly kingdom, not an earthly kingdom. We miss God’s heart if we focus on the tangible.
1 John 2:17: The world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God lives forever.
Our desires must instead be obedience to God in righteousness, which we manifest here and now in the tangible. Our reward is heavenly, not earthly. Because we are wired for instant gratification, we desire a tangible reward, but Christ only promises a heavenly reward.
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