The Lord of the Lame (Palm Sunday)

It's great to worship with you all.

It's Palm Sunday today

and one of the pastors of Trinity Cambridge Church

and it's my great joy

and honor

to serve King Jesus

and preach his word

this morning.

Matthew 21, 1-17.

Let me pray

for the reading and preaching of God's word.

God, you are the God of light and glory.

God, your brilliance exposes all our sins.

But Lord, also strangely,

your light also warmly invites us,

sinners, to come

to be forgiven,

to be received.

So Lord,

reveal yourself this morning to your people.

Exalt your son, Jesus Christ,

that we might behold his majesty

and his meekness

and that in our encounter with him

and in our faith in him

and union with him

might be transformed

from one degree of glory to another

into the likeness of your son, Jesus Christ.

Help us to behold him today.

In Jesus' name we pray.

Amen.

Please stand if you are able

so that we can honor God together

as we read from his word.

Matthew 21, verses 1-17.

Matthew 21:1–17

Now when they drew near to Jerusalem

and came to Bethphage,

to the Mount of Olives,

then Jesus sent two disciples,

saying to them,

go into the village in front of you

and immediately you will find

a donkey tied and a colt with her.

Untie them and bring them to me.

If anyone says anything to you,

you shall say,

the Lord needs them.

And he will send them at once.

This took place to fulfill

what was spoken by the prophet,

saying,

say to the daughter of Zion,

behold, your king is coming to you,

humble and mounted on a donkey,

on a colt,

the foal of a beast of burden.

The disciples went and did

as Jesus had directed them.

They brought the donkey and the colt

and put on them their cloaks,

and he sat on them.

Most of the crowd spread their cloaks

on the road,

and others cut branches from the trees

and spread them on the road.

And the crowds that went before him

and that followed him

were shouting,

Hosanna to the son of David.

Blessed is he who comes

in the name of the Lord.

Hosanna in the highest.

And when he entered Jerusalem,

the whole city was stirred up,

saying,

who is this?

And the crowd said,

this is the prophet Jesus

from Nazareth of Galilee.

And Jesus entered the temple

and drove out all who sold

and bought in the temple.

And he overturned the tables

of the money changers

and the seats of those

who sold pigeons.

He said to them,

it is written,

my house shall be called

a house of prayer,

but you make it a den of robbers.

And the blind and the lame

came to him in the temple

and he healed them.

But when the chief priests

and the scribes saw

the wonderful things that he did

and the children crying out

in the temple,

Hosanna to the son of David,

they were indignant.

And they said to him,

do you hear what these are saying?

And Jesus said to them,

yes.

Have you never read?

Out of the mouth of infants

and nursing babies

you have prepared praise.

And leaving them,

he went out of the city

to Bethany

and lodged there.

This is God's holy

and authoritative word.

You may be seated.

In his defense of Christianity

entitled Pense,

which simply means

thoughts in French,

the 17th century

mathematician and philosopher

Blaise Pascal

wrote this,

I do not admire

the excess of a virtue

as of courage,

except I see

at the same time

the excess

of the opposite virtue

as an Epaminondas

who had extreme courage

and extreme benignity.

For otherwise,

it is not to rise,

it is to fall.

One does not show

his greatness

by being at one extremity,

but rather

by touching both at once

and filling

all the intermediate space.

Pascal uses Epaminondas,

a 4th century B.C.

Greek general

and statesman,

as an example

of a person

who had both

extreme courage

and extreme gentleness

and kindness.

Extreme courage

on the battlefield,

but extreme kindness

and gentleness

in his private life.

A person who only

possesses extreme courage,

Pascal considered

a brute.

a person who only

possesses extreme gentleness,

Pascal considered

a weakling.

Unfortunately,

it is common

for Christians

to see Jesus

as either

of these two extremes.

Some see him

predominantly

in his kindness

and gentleness

and meekness.

This is the

saccharine,

sentimental Jesus,

the gentle Jesus,

meek and mild.

others see Jesus

predominantly

in his majesty

and fiery holiness.

The Revelation 19

Jesus

with eyes

like flames

of fire

and a sharp

double-edged sword

coming out of his mouth

to strike down

the nations.

Of course,

neither side

will openly

acknowledge

that they have

this one-dimensional

view of Jesus,

but if you listen

to the way

they talk

and the way

they deal

with sinners,

you can tell

that they

functionally

have a one-dimensional

Jesus.

Referencing

this Pascal quote

that I just cited,

C.S. Lewis,

Oxford professor

and theologian,

once wrote

in a letter

in 1959,

gentle Jesus,

my elbow.

he's a Christian,

you know,

he can,

yeah.

Gentle Jesus,

my elbow,

the most striking

thing about our Lord

is the union

of great ferocity

with extreme tenderness.

Remember Pascal,

I'll skip the quote

since I read it already,

add to this

that he is also

a supreme

ironist,

dialectician,

and occasionally

humorist,

so go on.

You are on the

right track now,

getting to the real

man behind all

the plaster dolls

that have been

substituted for him.

This is the

appearance in human

form of the God

who made the tiger

and the lamb,

the avalanche

and the rose.

He'll frighten

and puzzle you,

but the real Christ

can be loved

and admired

as the doll

cannot be.

This is the real

Christ that we see

this morning

in our passage.

The two dramatic

scenes as Jesus

enters Jerusalem

and as he cleanses

the temple

show that Jesus

perfectly combines

these two extremes.

Jesus is

the majestic

and yet meek

Messiah

who reigns

over the blind

and the lame.

So we're going to

look at those two

attributes of Christ

in turn.

First, his majesty,

the majesty of the king,

and secondly,

the meekness

of the king.

Let's first talk

about the majesty

of the king.

In a few months,

300,000 to 500,000

people will descend

upon the Charles River

Esplanade

for Independence Day.

Boston is called

the Cradle of Liberty

because of its pivotal role

in the American Revolution,

so it's no surprise

that we attract

one of the largest crowds

for Fourth of July

celebrations

in the country.

The scene is similar

to that Fourth of July

scene in Matthew 21.

Jesus is here

entering Jerusalem

on the week of Passover.

Jerusalem's normal

population around this time

would have been

around 30,000,

but during Passover,

which was the most

celebrated

and eagerly anticipated

festival

that was observed

by all Jews,

the number of people

in Jerusalem

swelled to around

200,000 pilgrims

from all over

the Middle East

in the Mediterranean region

flocking to Jerusalem

to celebrate this Passover.

Jerusalem proper

could not accommodate

all these people,

and so tens of thousands

of people would pitch tents

all around

and camp around the city.

That's why later

in verse 17,

it says that Jesus

went out of the city

of Jerusalem

to Bethany

and lodged there.

There is simply no room

in the city itself.

And remember also

that the Passover,

which the Jews

had been celebrating

for over 1,400 years

by this time,

it was a celebration

of God's deliverance

of Israel,

his people,

from their slavery

in Egypt.

It's pretty much

the Jewish equivalent

of Independence Day,

except that they

weren't independent anymore.

They were occupied

and oppressed

by the Romans,

and they had been waiting

for God to send

another deliverer

like Moses,

another deliverer

like King David

to free them

from this rule.

So imagine if

in the unlikely event

that we,

the United States

of America,

were to be colonized

by another country

in the near future,

and that we continue

to celebrate

Independence Day,

right under the noses

of our occupiers.

Can you see why

that would be subversive?

Why that would make

the Roman rulers

nervous?

Imagine this scene

in the first century

Jerusalem.

A Jewish family

gathers around

the hearth at night,

and they're eating

the Passover meal,

and the kid asks,

Dad, what does

the Passover mean?

Oh, I thought

you would never ask.

Long time ago,

we were oppressed

by these Egyptian rulers.

They were violent

and ruthless.

Sorry, no offense

to our Egyptian brothers here.

You have been saved

by the blood of the Lamb.

Amen.

Yeah.

Not unlike

the Romans today.

Pharaoh even ordered

the newborn Jewish boys

to be killed,

but one survived.

His name was Moses.

And God,

through Moses,

struck Egypt down

with ten plagues

or ten disasters.

And the final one

was when he struck down

all the firstborn

males of Egypt.

But because

of the blood

of the Lamb

upon our doorposts,

the destroyer

passed over us,

spared us,

and in doing that,

God delivered us

out of the hand

of Egypt,

and he can do it again.

He will do it again.

The scriptures prophesy

of a son of David

who will come,

a Messiah,

a king,

who will restore

his kingdom

to all its glory.

So,

this is the Passover.

It's pregnant

with nationalistic,

patriotic fervor.

And this is why

Pontius Pilate,

the Roman governor

of Judea,

is in Jerusalem

during this time

as we find out

later in Matthew 27.

Normally,

he resided in Caesarea,

which is modern-day

Tel Aviv,

but he came to Jerusalem

for the Passover

because he needs

to keep order

in case a riot breaks out.

He needs to maintain control.

That's the mood.

remember this mood

as we enter

into this scene

in verse 1.

Now,

when they drew near

to Jerusalem

and came to Bethphage,

to the Mount of Olives,

then Jesus sent

two disciples.

Each of these three locations

is theologically significant.

I don't have time

to get into them all,

but the political leaders

that are around the world

in our country

often have to be mindful

of the symbolic implications

of their actions,

including where they hold

their rallies,

where they announce

their campaigns,

what song they play

as their campaign

is announced

and they come onto the stage.

Ronald Reagan

launched his general election

campaign in 1980

in front of the Statue of Liberty,

positioning himself

as the keeper

of the flame of liberty.

Barack Obama

announced his candidacy

in Springfield, Illinois,

indicating that he is

from the heartland,

from the land of Lincoln,

and that he too

is a historic figure

like Lincoln.

In a similar way,

Jesus has very deliberately

chosen the Mount of Olives

as the location

from which he will descend

into Jerusalem.

Because it was prophesied

in Zechariah 14, 4-5

that the Messiah,

the promised king

and deliverer

of God's people,

the representative

of Yahweh,

would come to Jerusalem

and stand on Mount of Olives

and that he would fight

the decisive battles

against the enemies of God

and deliver them.

So Mount of Olives

is the beginning point

of Jesus' inaugural parade.

Jesus is not being shy

about his royal status.

Not only that,

Matthew intentionally

builds suspense

by repeated use

of the verb

draw near

in his book.

It says in verse 1

that Jesus and his followers

drew near to Jerusalem

and Matthew

has used that verb

only three times

up to this point

in the gospel

and every single time

is to say

that the kingdom of heaven

is near.

Jesus and his disciples

drawing near to Jerusalem

is bringing the kingdom

of heaven near.

Here is the king

that was promised.

Here is the king

that brings the kingdom

of God

to bear upon this earth.

As Matthew 5.35 said,

Jerusalem is the city

of the great king,

the city of David

and here comes

the son of David

standing atop Mount of Olives

of all places

surveying Jerusalem

and about to enter.

What else can all of this mean?

It's about to go down.

From there,

Jesus sends two of his disciples

on a mission

in verses 2-3

saying to them,

go into the village

in front of you

and immediately you will find

a donkey tied

and a colt with her.

Untie them

and bring them to me.

If anyone says anything to you

you shall say

the Lord needs them

and he will send them

at once.

Jesus here displays

supernatural knowledge

and sovereign control

of his environment

in his instruction

to the disciples

to secure a colt

for him to ride on.

A colt is a young male donkey.

Usually,

people waited

until the donkeys

were fully grown

to ride them

and the significance

of the colt

is that it is

a brand new

unused

unadulterated donkey

that no one else

has ever ridden on.

That point

is made explicit

in the parallel account

of this triumphal entry

in Luke 19.30

which says

that this is a colt

on which no one

has ever yet sat.

Several Old Testament passages

speak of the importance

of bringing an animal

for sacrifice

to God

that has never been worked

and has never worn

a yoke.

Numbers 19,

Deuteronomy 21.

So this colt

represents purity

that is fit for God.

Fit for a king.

I've never owned

a brand new car

ever in my life.

It's not because

used cars are better.

It's because

used cars are cheaper.

Right?

A new car

loses 10%

of its value

as soon as it is

driven off the lot.

10%.

And by the end

of that first year,

even if the car

is in great condition,

it will lose

up to 20%

to 30%

of its value.

And how does that

make sense?

Right?

A one-year-old car,

I've never even

dreamed of

in a one-year-old car

before.

A one-year-old car

is pretty much

brand spanking new.

Like you don't have

to do any major repairs

for years to come.

Right?

That's a great car.

How in the world

is a one-year-old car

lose,

does it lose

30%

of its value?

How can a car

that was literally

just driven off

the lot

that has five miles

on the odometer

lose 10%

of the car's value?

It doesn't make

any sense,

right?

That's why used

cars are good value.

Right?

An article published

in the Journal of Product

and Brand Management

2025

observes

what all of us

intuitively know,

namely that

with any kind

of used product,

there is this

perceived

contamination.

It's no longer

pristine and perfect.

Yes,

the car only has

five miles

on the odometer,

but someone else

put that five miles

on that car.

It's not fully mine.

It's no longer

solely mine.

It's not pure anymore.

Of course,

if I'm getting

a car for myself,

I'm going to get

a good value used car.

Thank you very much.

But if I'm getting

a car

for the king

of kings,

I'm not getting

a used car.

As if

he's no better

than that guy

who rode in that car

earlier on?

Absolutely not.

Brand new,

unused,

pure,

and pristine.

Because the king

of kings

cannot ride

on anything

that's less

than perfect.

So he rides

on the colt

on which no one

else has ever sat.

And an unbroken

colt was usually

introduced into service

in the presence

of its mother,

lest it become

nervous and jumpy.

The mother's presence

would keep the colt

peaceful and calm.

And so that's why

the disciples

instructed to bring

both the mother

and the colt,

the donkey

and the colt.

As they acquire

the donkey

and the colt,

if anyone objects

to this,

them untying

this donkey

that doesn't

belong to them

and bringing

it to Jesus,

they are not

instructed to

apologize profusely

and then beg

for their pardon.

Instead,

they're simply told

to tell the owner,

the Lord needs

them.

The Lord

is an exalted

title often used

throughout the

Gospel of Matthew

to refer to Yahweh,

to God himself.

And the first time

Jesus applied that

title to himself

was in Matthew 7

when he described

himself as the

supreme Lord

and judge of all

creation who will

be sitting in the

judgment seat on

judgment day,

at the end of the

days.

So this is an

extraordinary claim.

The Lord needs

them.

And that is reason

enough.

In the ancient

world, it was

understood that a

king had the

authority and the

right to impress

the property of his

subjects into his

own service.

We have something

similar in our own

context.

We call it eminent

domain, which gives

the government the

power to take private

property and convert it

into public use, as

long as they provide

fair compensation for

it.

If you have any

questions about that,

you can talk to Josh

Granbo.

He told me all about

it last year.

Similarly, Jesus

impresses into his

personal service the

property of one of his

subjects, which he

has every right to do

as the messianic

king.

So the disciples went

and did as they were

instructed, and they

brought the donkey and

the colt.

So this is a command

fulfillment formula in

the Bible.

It's highlighting Jesus

as kingly authority.

And just think about it

for a minute.

Can I get two

volunteers?

Just two volunteers?

Okay.

Shall we?

One more?

Okay.

David.

Can you go to knock

on the third house on

Windsor Street?

And then tell them,

ask them for the key to

the car that's parked

in front.

And if they say

anything about it,

then just tell them

the pastor has need

of it.

Right?

Yeah.

Yeah.

Why aren't you guys

going?

Yeah.

Yeah.

You see, they don't

take me seriously

enough.

You see?

Yeah.

And rightly so.

Imagine what would

happen.

Not only is my

information inaccurate,

I don't even know

where the house,

third house would be.

But no one would

hand over the key

to their car.

And that's why you

guys aren't going.

The reason, of course,

is simple.

I don't have that

kind of authority.

But King Jesus does.

And then in verses

four to five,

Matthew tells us

what the donkey

is four.

This took place

to fulfill what was

spoken by the prophet

saying,

say to the daughter

of Zion,

behold,

your king is coming

to you,

humble and mounted

on a donkey,

on a colt,

the foal of a beast

of burden.

The first phrase,

say to the daughter

of Zion,

echoes Isaiah 61,

11 to 12,

which is a prophecy

of how the Lord

himself will bring

salvation to his

people.

But most of the

citation in verse

five is from

Zechariah 9,

which we read for

our call to worship

this morning.

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.

It's a prophecy

concerning the

messianic king,

and amazingly,

it predicts that

the king will arrive

on a donkey,

on a colt,

the foal of a donkey.

So Jesus is saying,

here I am.

I am the messianic

king who fulfills

this prophecy.

I am the messiah

that you have been

waiting for.

This is the only time

in the gospels

that Jesus ever

rides on anything.

He's always walking

all over the gospels,

always walking

with his disciples.

Moreover,

according to Jewish

oral commentary

on Leviticus

and Deuteronomy,

Jews were specifically

instructed and expected

to arrive in Jerusalem

as pilgrims for Passover

on foot.

So why does Jesus

decide to ride

on a donkey

on this last mile

into Jerusalem?

There is a widespread

misunderstanding

that I try to expose

every Palm Sunday

when I preach,

that riding on a donkey

is a lowly,

humble thing,

something that's reserved

for common farming folk.

But that's not true.

In fact,

riding a donkey

is a sign of royalty.

To give you some examples,

Judges 10, 3-4,

it says that Jair of Gilead,

a judge of Israel

for 22 years,

had 30 sons

who rode 30 donkeys

and controlled

30 towns in Gilead.

Riding a donkey

signifies rulership,

kingship.

Similarly,

in 1 Kings 1,

33-34,

when King David

commands Zadok the priest

and Nathan the prophet

to announce that Solomon

is his chosen heir

to reign after him.

What does he tell him

to do?

He tells him

to take his donkey

and put Solomon on it

and parade him

around the city,

announcing that he is king.

Finally,

there's a letter

that archaeologists

found in the ancient

Near East,

in Mari,

an ancient Sumerian city

around 1760 BC,

where a royal advisor

counsels his king

this way.

Verily,

you are the king

of the Haneans,

but secondly,

you are the king

of the Acadians.

My lord should not

ride a horse.

Let my lord ride

in a chariot

or on a mule,

and he will thereby

honor his royal head.

A military general

seeking to conquer

a city that doesn't

belong to him

gallops in

on a stallion,

but a king

who owns it all

rides in

on a donkey.

No wonder,

it says in verse 10,

that the whole city

was stirred up

by Jesus' entry

into Jerusalem.

He's a talk

of the entire town.

Who is this?

The word stirred

is the same word

used to describe

how the earth

shook in Matthew 27, 51.

The whole city

is agitated,

shaken,

thrown into commotion,

that there's someone

who is claiming

to be the son of David,

the king,

the Messiah,

riding on a donkey

and coming in

to Jerusalem.

And in verse 7,

the disciples

put their cloaks

on the colt

and for Jesus

to sit on,

and in verse 8,

the crowd spread

their cloaks

on the road

and cut branches

from the trees

and laid them

down on the road.

What are they doing?

Spreading garments

on the ground

so that a person

does not have to walk

on the bare earth

is a gesture

of honor

and respect.

It's similar

to our practice

of rolling out

the red carpet

for presidents

and heads of state

that come to visit

on special occasions.

Jesus,

you are too holy,

too worthy

to sit

on the donkey's

bare back.

So here's a cloak.

Jesus,

you're too glorious

and majestic

to set your feet

on this bare earth.

Here,

let me soil

my cloak instead.

Here,

take it.

Let your donkey

trot on it

because that's

how worthy you are.

That's how glorious

you are.

That's the idea.

That's the majesty

of the Messiah.

And imagine

what an awe-inspiring

sight that would have been

to see Jesus

riding down

from Mount of Olives

on a donkey.

Remember,

there are hundreds

of thousands

of pilgrims

in and all

around Jerusalem.

Remember,

there are hundreds

of thousands

of all of them

on foot

all of a sudden

amidst a sea

of people.

You see Jesus

rise above them all.

amidst a sea

of pedestrians,

you see one man

click, click, click, click,

riding in

on a donkey.

And everybody's heads

are turning.

Who is this?

It's glorious.

Jesus is not being demure

about his kingship.

He's putting the entire city

on notice

and inviting everybody

who sees

to draw

the inevitable

and appropriate

conclusion.

That's why the crowd's

acclamation in verse 9

is particularly

fitting.

Hosanna to the son

of David.

Blessed is he who comes

in the name of the Lord.

Hosanna in the highest.

The title

son of David

is the traditional title

given for the Jewish Messiah

who is expected

to be a descendant

of King David.

And throughout his ministry

up to this point,

many times

Jesus has been called

the son of David.

But he has been

very guarded

about his

messianic identity.

Some people call this

the messianic secret

in the gospels.

But at this point

in the narrative,

as he is headed

to the cross

in Jerusalem,

all reticence

has gone out the window.

Now is the time

for the revealing

of the messianic king.

Now is the time

for Jesus' enthronement.

And so the crowds

cry out,

Hosanna,

which is taken

from Psalm 118,

25 to 26.

It's a combination

of two Hebrew words.

One that means

to save

and another one

that means

to please,

please.

So it means together,

please save us.

It says in Psalm 118,

15,

save us,

we pray,

oh Lord.

We are downtrodden

and defeated.

We are poor

and needy.

Save us,

Lord God.

We need you.

King,

come and deliver us.

That's the cry.

The cry

that the Old Testament

saints cried out

to the Lord God

himself.

Now these crowds

are crying out

to Jesus.

it's a significant

claim.

Later on

in verse 15,

the children

in the temple

also cry out

Hosanna to the

son of David

and the chief priests

and the scribes

probably at first

are just laughing

in disbelief.

Look at these

cute,

ignorant children

calling this man

the son of David.

It looks like

their parents,

Messiah fever

got to them also.

Maybe they expect

Jesus to tempt down

this misguided fervor

but Jesus doesn't

do that.

He accepts

their acclamation

as the son of David,

Yahweh's king.

And when they realize

that that's what

Jesus is in fact doing,

he says the chief priests

and the scribes

became indignant

in verse 16.

Do you hear

what these are saying?

I mean,

you can't be

that brazen

and self-important,

can you?

They're saying

that you are

the coming

Davidic king.

They're saying

that you are

the Messiah.

Please,

disabuse the masses

of their ignorance.

Tell them

that they've got

the wrong guy

right now.

But Jesus responds

in verse 16,

yes.

Yes.

I hear what

they're saying.

Yes.

I accept it.

Jesus continues

in verse 16.

Have you never read

out of the mouth

of infants

and nursing babies

you have prepared

praise?

I'll talk more

about this a little later

but Jesus is quoting

from Psalm 8 verse 2

Psalms 8:2

which is about

how infants

and babies

praise God.

and shockingly

again,

Jesus applies

this praise

that is given

to God

to himself.

Yes,

Psalm 8

was about me.

Yes,

it applies

to me.

I am the son

of David

and even more

than that,

I am the son

of God.

So the crowds

are right to cry

out,

Hosanna in the highest

because I am

of the most

high God.

And then after

saying that,

Jesus leaves

the chief priests

and the scribes

to pick up

their jaws

off the floor

and then he

leaves the city.

This is the

majesty

of our king.

Do you think

some Christians

are a little

too devoted?

A little

fanatic

maybe?

Hyperbolic

and overly

lavish?

In their praise

of Jesus,

think again.

No praise

is high enough.

No shout

is loud enough.

No words

are strong enough.

No life

is long enough

to praise

our savior

and no song

is sweet enough

for our savior

and king.

This is the majesty

of our king.

This is why

what Jesus does

in verses 12

to 13

does not

surprise me.

And Jesus

entered the

temple

and drove

out all

who sold

and bought

in the temple

and he

overturned

the tables

of the money

changers

and the seats

of those

who sold

pigeons.

He said to them

it is written

my house

shall be called

a house

of prayer

but you

make it

a den

of robbers.

some people

read this

and think

man

Jesus

seems a little

unhinged

here

a little

bit over

the top

maybe

he's got

some anger

issues

absolutely

not

it's the

only

proper

and righteous

response

for the

son of

God

there's

several

reasons

for this

one

what Jesus

mentions

house

of

prayer

that's

an allusion

to Isaiah

56

when God

spoke

and said

that one

day when

his salvation

comes

to Jerusalem

that foreigners

and Gentiles

will come

and pray

and seek

the Lord

God

in this

house

of prayer

and where

are they

having

all these

commercial

activities

inside the

temple

they're doing

it in the

court of

the Gentiles

a little

bit of

Jewish

ethnic

superiority

here

hey

it's

crowded

busy

during the

Passover

where should

we put

these

money changers

and the

pigeon

sellers

just put

them in

the

court

of

the

Gentiles

and Jesus

says

no

this is

a place

we're

there

to come

and seek

God

my

father

I

would

not

have

them

here

he

calls

it

a

den

of

robbers

that's

an

allusion

to

Jeremiah

7

where

God

accuses

his

own

people

of

worshiping

idols

and

Baals

throughout

the

week

and

then

they

come

to

worship

God

on

the

Sabbath

they

come

to

worship

God

at

the

temple

and

he

says

no

you're

turning

my

temple

into

a

den

of

robbers

so

there's

an

implicit

there's

an

application

here

that

Jesus

is

making

to

you

obey

other

gods

you

serve

other

lords

and

you

disobey

me

throughout

your

life

and

you

come

to

the

temple

like

you

are

my

people

you're

turning

into

a

den

of

robbers

but

centrally

and I

think

the

thing

that

Jesus

is

most

upset

about

here

in

addition

to

all

of

that

the

one

that

Matthew

focuses

on

is

the

presence

of

the

merchants

and

the

money

changers

in

the

temple

the

fact

that

they

exist

in

Jerusalem

during

the

Passover

is

not

at

all

remarkable

pigeons

were

commonly

used

in

sacrificial

offerings

in

worship

and

it

would

have

been

difficult

imagine

if you're

coming

from

far

away

coming

from

Saudi

Arabia

let's

say

you're

trying

to

go

to

Jerusalem

and

that

entire

journey

you're

bringing

along

some

pigeons

!

from

afar

to

say

hey

you

can

buy

the

pigeons

here

because

it's

much

easier

to

transport

money

just

bring

your

money

you

can

buy

the

pigeons

here

and

you

can

offer

them

a

sacrifice

similarly

the

money

changers

were

a

necessary

part

of

the

Jerusalem

life

at

the

time

because

the

Jewish

law

stipulated

that

the

temple

tax

which

was

required

of

every

Jewish

male

20

years

old

or

older

be

paid

quality

but

pilgrims

would

bring

all

kinds

of

coins

from

all

over

the

place

and

so

this

was

also

a

service

that

was

offered

to

the

pilgrims

and

of

course

the

pigeon

sellers

and

the

money

changers

would

make

some

profit

off

of

these

commercial

activities

and

some

people

think

that

they

were

being

extortionists

and

stealing

from

people

in that

sense

and

that's

why

Jesus

calls

them

the

den

of

robbers

I

don't

think

that

because

it

says

Jesus

doesn't

merely

drive

out

the

sellers

it

also

says

that

he

drives

out

those

who

bought

in

the

temple

in

verse

12

he

has

a

problem

with

the

buyers

too

so