What does John 12:12 mean?
Within the last few days, Jesus raised a man to life who had been dead for four days: Lazarus, from a town very close to Jerusalem (John 12:1). In response to this, many of the people of Jerusalem had come to see Lazarus for themselves, and been convinced of Jesus' power (John 12:9). The date is also nearing the Passover, so Jerusalem is overflowing with pilgrims and visitors who are there to observe the feast day. Many of the people coming from outlying territories have already heard and seen Jesus.Prior to these events, Jesus has often told people to avoid proclaiming Him as the Messiah (Matthew 16:20; Mark 8:30; John 6:15). That fits into His frequent mention of God's timeline (John 2:4; 7:6). As described in upcoming verses, however, Jesus will now openly accept the adoration of the people. He will fulfill Messianic prophecy by riding on a donkey's colt (John 12:14–15), and the crowd will shout kingly blessings to Him (John 12:13).
Jesus' earlier instructions for people to be discreet were meant to preserve this moment in time. Daniel 9:25 seems to suggest a specific timeline for the arrival of the Messiah. In short, that interpretation from 444 BC pointed to a moment in 33 AD, quite possibly predicting to the day when Jesus made this triumphal entry.