1740 | Matthew 20:24
24 When the ten heard about this , they were in dig nant t with the two broth ers . 25 Jesus called them to gether and said , “ You know that the rul ers of the Gen tiles lord it over them , and their high officials exercise authority over them . 26 Not so with you . In stead , who ever wants to be come great among you must be your ser vant , u 27 and whoever wants to be first must be your slave — 28 just as the Son of Man v did not come to be served , but to serve , w and to give his life as a ran som x for many .”
Two Blind Men Receive Sight
20:29-34pp — Mk 10:46-52 ; Lk 18:35-43
29 As Jesus and his dis ci ples were leav ing Jer i cho , a large crowd fol lowed him . 30 Two blind men were sit ting by the road side , and when they heard that Jesus was go ing by , they shouted , “ Lord , Son of Da vid , y have mercy on us !”
31 The crowd re buked them and told them to be quiet , but they shouted all the louder ,
“ Lord , Son of Da vid , have mercy on us !” 32 Jesus stopped and called them . “ What do you want me to do for you ?” he asked . 33 “ Lord ,” they an swered , “ we want our sight .” 34 Jesus had com pas sion on them and touched their eyes . Im me di ately they re ceived their sight and followed him .
20:24 t Lk 22:24 , 25
20:26 u Mt 23:11 ; Mk 9:35
20:28 v Mt 8:20 w Lk 22:27 ; Jn 13:13-16 ;
2Co 8:9 ; Php 2:7 x Isa 53:10 ; Mt 26:28 ;
1Ti 2:6 ; Titus 2:14 ; Heb 9:28 ; 1Pe 1:18 , 19
20:30 y Mt 9:27
21:1 z Mt 24:3 ; 26:30 ; Mk 14:26 ; Lk 19:37 ; 21:37 ; 22:39 ; Jn 8:1 ; Ac 1:12
21:5 a Isa 62:11 ; Zec 9:9
21:8 b 2Ki 9:13
Jesus Comes to Jerusalem as King
21:1-9pp — Mk 11:1-10 ; Lk 19:29-38 21:4-9pp — Jn 12:12-15
21 As they ap proached Je ru sa lem and came to Beth phage on the Mount of Ol ives , z Jesus
sent two disciples , 2 say ing to them , “ Go to the vil lage ahead of you , and at once you will find a don key tied there , with her colt by her . Un tie them and bring them to me . 3 If any one says any thing to you , say that the Lord needs them , and he will send them right away .”
4 This took place to ful fill what was spo ken through the prophet :
5 “ Say to Daughter Zion , ‘ See , your king comes to you , gentle and riding on a donkey , and on a colt , the foal of a donkey .’ ” a a
6 The dis ci ples went and did as Jesus had in structed them . 7 They brought the don key and the colt and placed their cloaks on them for Jesus to sit on . 8 A very large crowd spread their cloaks b on the road , while oth ers cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road . 9 The crowds that went ahead of him and those that fol lowed shouted ,
a 5 Zech . 9:9
20:24 indignant . The response of the other ten disciples , not because they are more virtuous , but because they would just as much like to hold such supposed places of honor . 20:25 – 27 Jesus ’ reign , however , is an upsidedown kingdom . Self-serving rule characterizes pagan kingdoms , but God ’ s people should exemplify “ servant ” — even “ slave ” — leadership . To follow Christ means to die to self . 20:28 Jesus ’ own mission was self-giving , not self-serving , as he came to die for the sins of humanity . ransom . The price paid to secure a slave ’ s freedom . At the Passover ( Exod 11 – 13 ) a ransom was paid to rescue the firstborn Israelites . for many . Probably alludes to Isa 53:12 . for . Greek anti is a comparatively rare preposition that means “ in the place of ” or “ in exchange for .” This succinctly articulates the doctrine of the representative , substitutionary , atoning death of Jesus . 20:29 – 34 Matthew mentions two blind men , but Mark mentions only one blind man : Bartimaeus ( Mark 10:46 ). But see note on Matt 8:28 – 34 . This is the last miracle of healing Jesus performs during his earthly life . It closely resembles 9:27 – 31 . 20:29 Jericho . Near the Jordan River , east of Jerusalem , just slightly removed from the site of the OT town with the same name . From there Jesus and his disciples would make their ascent to the holy city as the last leg of the journey begun in 19:1 . 20:30,31 Lord , Son of David . See note on 15:22 . 20:33 we want our sight . The kind of “ mercy ” ( v . 31 ) the blind men desire is now specified . Many might have asked just for money ( cf . Acts 3:3 ). Matthew does not normally state explicitly that “ Jesus had compassion ” ( v . 34 ) for a sick person ’ s malady ; perhaps these men were in very dire need .
21:1 — 22:46 The so-called Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem ( 21:1 – 11 ) takes Jesus to the political , economic , and religious heart of first-century Judaism : the temple , where his protest ( 21:12 – 13 ), just like his subsequent curse on the fig tree ( 21:18 – 22 ), symbolizes the building ’ s coming destruction . The temple authorities naturally ask Jesus by what authority he can cause such a disruption in its precincts ( 21:23 – 27 ). Although he does not answer directly , the subsequent triad of parables presents God ’ s indictment on Israel ’ s current leaders ( 21:28 – 32 ), followed by their sentence ( 21:33 – 46 ) and execution ( 22:1 – 14 ). Jesus then avoids a series of questions designed to trap him ( 22:15 – 40 ), after which he poses a question that his audience cannot answer ( 22:41 – 46 ).
21:1 – 11 To show he is the Messiah , Jesus deliberately fulfills the direct , predictive prophecy of Zech 9:9 by commandeering a donkey to ride as he enters the holy city . 21:1 Bethphage . A small village close to Bethany on the slopes of the Mount of Olives east / southeast of Jerusalem by perhaps less than a mile . 21:2 – 3 Jesus ’ instructions could reflect his special insight into people ’ s thoughts or be a prearranged signal with a friend to avoid premature attention to his behavior . 21:5 gentle and riding on a donkey , and on a colt , the foal of a donkey . Some have thought that Matthew misread the parallelism of the prophecy and therefore invented an absurd scene in which Jesus straddles two animals ( v . 7 ). But verses 2 and 7 say there were two animals . A previously unridden “ colt ” ( Mark 11:2 ) would not be ridden easily without its mother present , making Matthew think of the prophecy of Zech 9:9 . 21:7 cloaks . Were draped on both animals , but Jesus probably sat only on the colt . 21:8 – 11 The entire scene recalls the welcoming of Israelite kings in earlier days , especially with the strewing of palm branches ( John 12:13 ). The accolades come from Ps 118:25 – 26 . Hosanna . Means “ God , save [ us ].” But those