Mark 11:2 - Printer Friendly

ESV: and said to them, “Go into the village in front of you, and immediately as you enter it you will find a colt tied, on which no one has ever sat. Untie it and bring it.

NIV: saying to them, 'Go to the village ahead of you, and just as you enter it, you will find a colt tied there, which no one has ever ridden. Untie it and bring it here.

NASB: and *said to them, 'Go into the village opposite you, and immediately as you enter it you will find a colt tied there, on which no one has ever sat; untie it and bring it here.

CSB: and told them, "Go into the village ahead of you. As soon as you enter it, you will find a colt tied there, on which no one has ever sat. Untie it and bring it.

NLT: Go into that village over there,' he told them. 'As soon as you enter it, you will see a young donkey tied there that no one has ever ridden. Untie it and bring it here.

KJV: And saith unto them, Go your way into the village over against you: and as soon as ye be entered into it, ye shall find a colt tied, whereon never man sat; loose him, and bring him.

NKJV: and He said to them, “Go into the village opposite you; and as soon as you have entered it you will find a colt tied, on which no one has sat. Loose it and bring it.

On the sixth day before the Passover, Jesus and the disciples had reached Bethany on the eastern slope of the Mount of Olives where they ate with Mary, Martha, and Lazarus (John 12:1). When the Jewish religious leaders hear Jesus is with Lazarus again, they resolve to kill them both (John 12:9–11). This is the next day.

We don't know exactly where Jesus and the disciples spend the night, other than on the Mount of Olives (Luke 21:37). Many people had travelled from Galilee to Jerusalem for the Passover, so the Mount may have been crowded. There are only two significant towns in the area: Bethany and Bethphage. Since Jesus and the disciples stop in Bethany (John 12:1), and He and the disciples must travel through Bethphage to get to Jerusalem, it may be that Jesus sends the disciples to Bethphage to get the colt. Matthew 21:2 mentions that Jesus tells the two to find a donkey with a colt, and to bring them both. We don't know how old the colt is; the fact that it has never been ridden before and it is still with its mother indicates it is quite young. The fact that the colt is also tied shows he is at least old enough to wander from his mother.

The fact that the colt has not yet been ridden connects to the idea of sacrifice. In that era, only "unused" animals were used for such sacrifices. Jesus will be riding on an animal which is symbolically "untouched."

Along with Zechariah 9:9, in which God tells Israel "your king is coming to you…humble and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey," this incident may also relate to Genesis 49:10–11. As Jacob is dying, he blesses Judah saying his descendants will forever rule the nation and he will tie his donkey's colt to a vine. This has led some scholars to posit that the foal and his mother are tied to a vine at the village gates.

Mark 11:1–11 records an event included in all four Gospels: that several days before the crucifixion, Jesus enters Jerusalem, welcomed by the people as the Messiah who will free them from Roman rule. Jesus enters on a donkey, fulfilling prophecy and symbolizing the peaceful nature of His first coming. Matthew 21:1–11 ties the triumphal entry to Isaiah 62:11. Luke 19:29–44 records that the Pharisees demand Jesus silence His followers and that Jesus weeps, knowing what happen when the Romans destroy Jerusalem in AD 70. John 12:12–19 goes into more detail about how the disciples don't realize Jesus is fulfilling prophecy (Zechariah 9:9) until after the ascension (Acts 1:6–11).

Jesus and the disciples arrive in Jerusalem a week before the crucifixion, and Jesus begins the last days of His public ministry. They spend their nights on the Mount of Olives and their days in Jerusalem (Luke 21:37). Jesus accepts the accolades designed for a king (Mark 11:1–11), attacks materialistic tradition that keeps people from worshiping God (Mark 11:15–19), gives an object lesson about the fate of fruitless Jerusalem (Mark 11:12–14, 20–25), and reveals the Jewish religious leaders' hypocrisy (Mark 11:27–33). Despite the support of the crowd, Jesus is pushing the leaders toward the crucifixion.

The preceding passages included several miracles and lessons from Jesus. These set the stage for the last, dramatic days of His earthly ministry. In this chapter, Jesus enters Jerusalem to great fanfare and openly confronts local religious leaders for their hypocrisy. Over the next few chapters, Mark will continue to record controversial teachings, leading up to Jesus' arrest and early sham trials, recorded in chapter 14.

The Gospel of Mark emphasizes both Jesus' servanthood and His role as the promised Messiah: the Son of God. This is done through a concise, action-packed style. Mark provides relatively few details, instead focusing on actions and simple statements. This relates to the Gospel's authorship, which is believed to be based on the memories of the apostle Peter. These include many of Jesus' miracles, in contrast to other Gospels which include many more of Jesus' teachings and parables. Mark also makes frequent mention of Jesus' ministry being misunderstood by others.