Mark Chapter 11

Have you ever wondered why the people gave Jesus a triumphal entry as He entered into Jerusalem? How did they know that they should wave tree branches and shout, “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!”

The answer lies in scriptures that they had been taught, handed down from generation to generation. Some 500 years prior, a prophet named Zechariah told them exactly how the Christ would arrive. Here was Jesus, the one who had done so many miracles in their midst, doing just exactly what the scriptures had said their Messiah would do.

Zechariah 9:9-10 Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is he, humble and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey. I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim and the war horse from Jerusalem; and the battle bow shall be cut off, and he shall speak peace to the nations; his rule shall be from sea to sea, and from the River to the ends of the earth.

However, they did not see Jesus rescuing them from “Ephraim and the war horse of Jerusalem” as they expected. That part of the prophecy would be fulfilled later. Jesus came into Jerusalem humbly, not on a war horse. And so when the religious leaders wanted to crucify Jesus, it did not take much for the crowds in Jerusalem to flip and cry out that they too wanted Him crucified.

Let's Reflect

1. What would you expect a colt of a donkey to behave like when it had never been ridden before?

2. Mark did not write that they waved palm branches, what two things did he say the people used to show praise and honor to their Messiah?

3. I find humor in the account of Jesus pronouncing a curse on the fig tree. Some think He did it just to use it as a teaching moment. Which He did, use it as a teaching moment, the next day. But I think Jesus was hungry and a tree that should have been full of figs, because it had full leaves on it, was a nuisance to Him. We know that He is the creator of this earth, so why are we puzzled that He would also put a curse on a tree that wasn’t producing? When Peter noticed the withered fig tree the next day, what lesson did Jesus teach them about His power?

4. Just prior to the lesson from the fig tree, Jesus demonstrated His authority in the temple. What did He call those who were using the temple as a marketplace?

5. Jesus’ authority was called into question. What 3 groups of people questioned Him?

6. Jesus said He would answer their question if they answered His first. Why did those who questioned Jesus not admit to the truth that John the Baptist acted upon the authority of heaven? Why did they put John in prison?