What does Luke 19:38 mean?

Jesus is sitting on a donkey colt's back, barely padded by His disciples' cloaks. More cloaks, as well as palm fronds, cover the road. He is going down the west side of the Mount of Olives. Soon He will reach the Kidron Valley and ascend again into Jerusalem. A massive crowd of His disciples surround Him, shouting in celebration (Luke 19:28–37).

Luke keeps the chant short and culturally neutral for his Greek audience. Matthew quotes, "Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!" (Matthew 21:9). Mark's is similar: "Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David! Hosanna in the highest!" (Mark 11:9–10). John has, "Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel!" (John 12:13). Likely, different people are shouting different things, including praising God for the miracles they have seen Jesus perform (Luke 19:37), but the gist is the same: Yahweh's chosen king, in the line of David, is coming to take His rightful throne in Jerusalem.

Many in the crowd are Jesus' disciples. Yet any crowd in Jerusalem will include Pharisees. They are horrified by the spectacle. They have been trying to destroy Jesus since His public ministry began (Mark 3:6). They tell Jesus to control His disciples. He replies, "I tell you, if these were silent, the very stones would cry out" (Luke 19:39–40). What neither the crowd nor the Pharisees understand is that Jesus is not coming to re-establish the earthly kingdom of David. He is continuing His work to establish the kingdom of God. He is going to the cross, not a throne. The stones recognize their Creator-God-King.

The first part of this call is from Psalm 118:26 but specifies that the one who comes in the name of the Lord is the king. Luke likely leaves out the part about David because Theophilus (Luke 1:1–4) needs to remember Jesus is his King, not just the King of the Jews.