John 12:13 - Printer Friendly

ESV: So they took branches of palm trees and went out to meet him, crying out, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel!”

NIV: They took palm branches and went out to meet him, shouting, 'Hosanna!' 'Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!' 'Blessed is the king of Israel!'

NASB: they took the branches of the palm trees and went out to meet Him, and began shouting, 'Hosanna! BLESSED IS HE WHO COMES IN THE NAME OF THE Lord, indeed, the King of Israel!'

CSB: they took palm branches and went out to meet him. They kept shouting:"Hosanna!Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord --the King of Israel! "

NLT: took palm branches and went down the road to meet him. They shouted, 'Praise God! Blessings on the one who comes in the name of the Lord! Hail to the King of Israel!'

KJV: Took branches of palm trees, and went forth to meet him, and cried, Hosanna: Blessed is the King of Israel that cometh in the name of the Lord.

NKJV: took branches of palm trees and went out to meet Him, and cried out: “Hosanna! ‘Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!’ The King of Israel!”

Palm branches were ancient symbols of victory. The term hosanna was most famously used in Psalm 118:25–26, and means "save now!" It came to be a figure of speech praising God for deliverance, and it was said in support of a king or victor. So, the people who celebrate Jesus' entry into the city are deliberately applying Old Testament ideas to Him. They are proclaiming Him as the Promised One and the Savior of Israel. Jesus, for His part, will deliberately fulfill certain aspects of Old Testament by riding on the back of a donkey (John 12:14–15).

Daniel 9:25 also speaks of the coming Messiah. That passage implies that after a certain event, there would be a set time ending with the arrival of the Promised One, who would then be "cut off" (Daniel 9:26). Using the prophetic concept of days and years, this predicted 173,880 days. Starting with the decree of Artaxerxes to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem on March 5, 444 BC, Daniel's predicted timeline ends on March 30, AD 33 – the Monday before Passover (John 12:1; 12:12).

Unfortunately, many of the people still misunderstand the nature of Jesus' role. Those who turned away after He fed thousands (John 6:26) were disappointed that He spoke of spiritual issues, instead of political ones. It's likely that most of those cheering for Jesus in this crowd are also expecting Him to come as a conquering king, to oppose the Roman oppressors.

John 12:12–19 describes the triumphal entry: Jesus' celebratory parade into Jerusalem a few days before Passover. To this point, Jesus has been relatively quiet about His mission, even asking people not to proclaim Him. Now, He fulfills prophecy by riding into the city on a donkey, as people shout ''Hosanna'' and throw down coats and palm branches. This affirms the fears of local religious leaders, who worry Jesus' popularity will attract the anger of the Roman Empire. As it turns out, most of these people misunderstand Jesus' mission, thinking His plan is to overthrow the Romans to free Israel. This event is also described in Matthew 21:1–11, Mark 11:1–10, and Luke 19:28–40.

Jesus is treated to an honorary dinner at the home of Lazarus, whom He has recently raised from death. At this dinner, Lazarus' sister, Mary, anoints Jesus with expensive oil. Jesus then enters Jerusalem to great fanfare, stoking fears that His popularity will attract the anger of the Roman Empire. That anger even inspires a murder plot against Lazarus. After being approached by non-Jewish seekers, Jesus offers a final plea for people to understand His ministry. In effect, these are the last public words spoken by Jesus in the gospel of John.

In the prior chapter, Jesus spectacularly raised Lazarus from death in front of a crowd of witnesses. This inspired local religious leaders to commit to having Him killed. Here, after a celebratory dinner where Jesus is anointed with oil, He will fulfill prophecy by riding into Jerusalem on a donkey, celebrated with shouts of ''Hosanna'' and a massive crowd. This leads to a group of curious non-Jews approaching Him. Christ then offers a final plea for belief in Him and His message. After this, His ministry will turn to preparing the disciples for His impending death and resurrection. The next several chapters of the gospel of John are almost entirely made up of his teachings to these men.

The gospel of John was written by the disciple John, decades later than the gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke. The author assumes that a reader is already familiar with the content of these other works. So, John presents a different perspective, with a greater emphasis on meaning. John uses seven miracles—which he calls “signs”—in order to prove that Jesus is, in fact, God incarnate. Some of the most well-known verses in all of the Bible are found here. None is more famous than the one-sentence summary of the gospel found in John 3:16.