Palm Sunday celebrates the commemoration of Jesus’ final entry into Jerusalem before His crucifixion. Remembering the day in worship can be traced back to the late third century. [su_quote align=”right” cite=”Johnathan Edwards”]To pretend to describe the excellence, the greatness or the duration of the happiness of heaven by the most artful composition of words would be but to darken and cloud it; to talk of raptures and ecstasies, joy and singing, is but to set forth very low.[/su_quote] Observances included hymns, prayers and Bible readings. Early in Jerusalem people would travel through the holy places in the city as they read Scriptures and sang songs. As the end of the day approached, the people would return home declaring, “Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!”
The “Triumphal Entry” is one of a handful of incidents in the life of Christ that is recorded by all four gospel writers. It is the Sunday that begins Holy Week, remembering Jesus’ entry into the city as prophet, priest and king. By the sixth and seventh centuries palm leaves were added to the celebration. Early in the eighth century, an early morning procession replaced the evening one, and the Roman Catholic Church had institutionalized the celebration of Palm Sunday.
Scriptural passages | Palm Sunday |
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| Matthew 21:1-9 | Mark 11:1-10 | Luke 19:28-39 | John 12:12-18 |
The contrasting events of Holy Week perplex many Bible readers. Was the crowd so fickle that they are praising the name of Jesus on Sunday and yelling, “Crucify him!” days later? While some people may have joined into the exuberance of the crowds, the best explanation sees two separate groups of people dictating the direction of the sentiment. On Palm Sunday, the crowd was driven by faithful Jewish followers praying for redemption from the enslavement of Rome and sincere disciples of the rabbi from Galilee. The crowd that later would yell for Jesus’ execution was driven by Jewish leaders and people the leaders had paid off. The majority of those praising Jesus on Sunday were not present in the crowd later in the week.
Praise Beyond Words
The Gospel writers describe a crowd gathered outside of Jerusalem filled with excitement. Don’t picture they were outside the city gates waiting on Jesus to finally arrive. The Passover was at hand and every faithful Jewish male was required to be at the Temple to celebrate the event (Deuteronomy 16:16 NIV). The paths leading up to Jerusalem were filled with excited Hebrews. The people were not sure whether Jesus would be attending the celebration (John 11:56-57).
Like the Sabbath, the celebration of the Passover stirred a time to remember God’s activities and His promises. It was a renewed and invigorated time of Messianic hope and expected deliverance. The people came to Jerusalem expecting the miraculous intervention from God.
Pharisees and temple soldiers, along with a small Roman presence, lined the way to Jerusalem assuring peace among the people. Some religious leaders were concerned that Jesus’ followers were making so much noise that the Romans might become fearful of a riot or revolt and step in with force (Luke 19:39).
It Was What the People Said
Luke tells us that the whole crowd of disciples began joyfully praising God in extremely loud voices for all of the miracles they had seen (Luke 19:37 NIV). The shouts of the people seemed simple:
Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord! (Luke 19:38)
The Pharisees immediately tried to get Jesus to silence the followers. They understood. This isn’t just a cheer devised by the disciples. The phrase is found in the Hebrew scripture. Listen to the words of Psalm 118:1-29 NIV. While affirming that the loving kindness of the Lord endures forever, a vital truth is declared, “I will give thanks, for you answered me; you have become my salvation” (Psalm 118:21 NIV). The next verse sheds new light:
The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone (Psalm 118:22 NIV).
Peter makes sure that we understand that this verse is speaking about Jesus (1 Peter 2:6-8 NIV). Peter’s words also reference Isaiah 28:16 (also quoted by Paul in Romans 9:33 and Ephesians 2:20) and Isaiah 8:14 (again found in Romans 9:33). Matthew (Matthew 21:42) and Luke (Acts 4:11) quote the Psalm 118 passage.
This phrase finds its use only regarding Israel’s savior. This marvelous work that the Lord is doing launches the day of salvation (Psalm 118:23-24). The day of the long-anticipated salvation from Lord arrived. Many disbelieved the day would ever come. But it will come – indeed, it has come. Hope captured and displayed.
Save us, we pray, O Lord! O Lord, we pray, give us success! (Psalm 118:25 ESV)
Matthew, Mark and John indicate that a word used in the chanting is the Hebrew, Hosanna. The word means “to save, to rescue” and it can denote a “savior.” The word referred to the Messiah as “the Son of David” as its only use.
This reaction of the crowd angered the religious leaders (Matthew 21:15-16 NIV). The scribes and Pharisees displayed jealousy toward Jesus more than anything else. Concern also arose that the Romans would not like to hear Jesus proclaimed as King while the Romans believed that Caesar alone occupied the King’s throne.
Raise Your Hallelujah
As we prepare for the resurrection, we have talked about being raised for such a time as this, about being raised to walk, and about our need for a Sabbath’s rest to prepare for the resurrection. It is also vitally important that we raise our “hallelujahs” because of what the Lord has done. As Jesus said, if we do not do it, even the rocks will cry out (Luke 19:40).
Bethel Music released a praise and worship song in 2019 called “I Raise a Hallelujah.” Since its release, the song earned nominations for Billboard’s top Christian song of the year and the Dove Award for Best Worship and Praise Song of the Year. Listen to a few of the words:
I raise a Hallelujah in the presence of my enemies.
Up from the ashes.
I raise a Hallelujah louder than my unbelief.
Hope will arise.
I raise a Hallelujah in the middle of the mystery.
Death is defeated. The King is alive!
Spend this week raising your hallelujah. You live the resurrection.