What if the Apostle Matthew was retelling the story of Palm Sunday and the next day’s visit to the Temple? This chapter from the book Yeshua…Reedemer…Savior…Friend tells the story in a modern style. Might this 6 minute read add to your understanding of the days of the Holy Week. Might it lead you to a further study of the events from the Holy Word of God, the Bible. Enjoy and feel free to share.Chapter 36,
(This follow the banquet at Lazarus home and the anointing of Yeshua, Jesus’s feet by Mary.)
Matthew also known as Levi (continued)
On the morning following our banquet, I noticed a definite spry step in Yeshua’s countenance. There was a look of excitement for the day ahead. When I tried to casually ask, he only replied that today would be a party. He saw my look of confusion, but only replied that I would see. It had been a few weeks since I had seen such joy. I waited with anticipation for what was ahead of me.
Shortly thereafter we started out for Jerusalem. I do not know how it started, but the trip became just a gigantic parade. It started out slowly with just Yeshua’s followers from the banquet. Then those that had heard about the resurrection of Lazarus joined in. The celebration just continued to grow.
About halfway there, the fervor from the crowd exploded. Yeshua sent two of his followers into the nearby settlement of homes, and they brought back a colt and its mother. When Yeshua mounted the animal, the chants, “Here Comes Our King” started slowly and echoed out into the crowd. People grabbed palm fronds to wave while continuing to shout, “Blessings on the King who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in Heaven and glory in the highest Heaven. God bless the king of Israel.” Others were overcome by emotion and took off their cloaks to cover the trail. I was not certain whether someone was celebrating Yeshua as the Anointed One or were innocently joining the celebration.
We had gone near the city when the leaders of the Sanhedrin came yelling at everyone, “Stop it! Stop this commotion right away. Yeshua, tell these people to go home. This must stop! They are calling you, their king! If they do not disband, the Roman government will come in to stop this insurrection. Have them stop right now.”
“Even if I could,” replied Yeshua, “I would not. If they kept quiet, the stones along the road would burst into cheers.”
As we rounded the top of the Mount of Olives and looked down on Jerusalem, Yeshua began to weep. Quietly, I heard him say, “How I wish that you, Jerusalem, of all people would understand the way to peace. But now it is too late, and peace is hidden from your eyes. Before long, your enemies will build ramparts against your walls and encircle you and close in on you from every side. They will crush you into the ground and your children with you. Your enemies will not leave a single stone in place because you did not recognize it when Yahweh visited you.”
It was not until later that I recognized the significance of his remarks. He was genuinely sorrowful for those that had not believed him. He was hurting over the future of the nation.
After almost two hours of our celebration, Yeshua arrived at the Temple. He went into the outer courts, looked around, but left. I could tell that his spirit was unsettled; yet no explanation followed. As the afternoon hours started to fade, Yeshua, his other apostles and I returned to Lazarus’s home.
The next morning, we gathered with Yeshua for our morning meal, and he casually mentioned we were going to return to the Temple. Little did I realize the significance of the day.
As we entered the Temple mount and made our way into the Court of the Gentiles, I noticed Yeshua picking up some cord left over from the unpacking of goods to be sold. Something about this seemed familiar.
As He began to use the cords to violently drive out the moneychangers and vendors, Yeshua told them, “The scriptures say, ‘My house should be a place of worship.’ But you have made it a place where robbers hide.” Then I realized this was a repeat of the actions three years earlier. His first cleansing of the Temple was the moment the religious leaders started to oppose him. Now, Yeshua is confronting them again.
This time, the scribes did not let it pass. “What gives you the right to do these things? Who gave you this authority?
Yeshua replied, “I want to ask you a question; who gave John the Baptist the right to baptize? Was it the Lord in Heaven or just a mere man?”
The religious leaders hesitated, knowing that acknowledging John’s divine authority would confirm Yeshua’s claim as Messiah. But denying it risked angering the crowd who revered John as a prophet.
When the scribes said, “We don’t know,” Yeshua saw no obligation to respond. I knew that this was only a minor skirmish in their battle.
Shortly thereafter, the Pharisees devised another plot. If Yeshua spoke out against paying taxes, he could be reported, and the Roman government would seek his arrest. Let the Roman government handle this headache. With that in mind, the Pharisees sent some men pretending to be followers of Yeshua. They came forward with the question, “Tell us, should we pay taxes to the emperor or not?”
Yeshua recognized their cunning scheme. “Show me a coin. Who’s picture and name is on it?”
“The emperors,” they answered.
“Give the emperor what belongs to him. Give Yahweh what belongs to Yahweh.” The men asking the question left defeated.
Before we returned to Bethany, Yeshua wanted to spend a few minutes relaxing. As we sat, we watched person after person come and give their offering for the support of the Temple’s work. We could tell that many foreigners were contributing large gifts. Then Yeshua said, “Watch her.”
I expected a wealthy individual. Instead, she wore a frayed, thin outer cloak, a black veil, and sandals starting to fall apart. We watched as she donated two small coins. With a genuine tenderness in his voice, Yeshua replied, “I tell you this poor woman has put in more than all the others. Everyone else gave what they did not need. But she is extremely poor and gave everything she had.”
As we left, I pondered my own circumstances. Was Yeshua worth all that I had? Was there more I could recklessly commit to the cause? That was a question I wrestled with all night.
Matthew 23:37-39 Luke 13:34-35 Matthew 21:1-12 Mark 11:1-11 Luke 19:28-44
John 12:12-19 Matthew 21-23-27 Mark 11:27-33 Luke 20:1-8 Matthew 22:15-22
Mark 12:13-17 Luke 20:20-26 Mark 12:41-44 Luke 22:1-4
The Journey 