Luke 19:28-40

Leader Guide

Participant Guide

Lesson Focus

There will always be those who seek to silence those who proclaim the good news concerning Jesus Christ. Jesus will not let his message go silent.

Lesson Outcomes

Through this lesson, students should:

1. Understand that the message concerning Jesus will always have someone to proclaim it.

2. Understand that, like Jesus, we should not be afraid of those who might seek to silence us.

3. Be encouraged to proclaim the good news about Jesus through word and deed.

Catching Up on the Story

Jesus has been making his way to Jerusalem for what will be his final time. It is near the time of the Passover, and many pilgrims are making their way to Jerusalem with him. As he has been doing all along, he teaches and converses with those who are following him. When he arrives in Jericho, Jesus invites himself over to Zacchaeus’ house. While he is there, he tells the guests of the dinner and his disciples a parable about another king.

A nobleman went off to have his kingship legitimated in a distant land, even though some in his country didn’t want him to be their king. Before he leaves, he gives ten of his servants a pound of some coinage (about 3 month’s wages) to invest while he is away. When the king returns, he finds that one servant has received a tenfold return on his investment. Another has only received a fivefold return, while another hid his pound in the dirt to keep it safe.

The master gives the first two servants charge over cities in proportion to their return, while the servant who hid his money has his money taken away and given to the one who has ten. Meanwhile, those who didn’t want the master as their king are ordered to be slaughtered in front of him.

As Jesus approaches Jerusalem, it is clear that he comes as King, not as someone who anticipates his kingship. Moreover, it is clear that some will resist his kingship and the kingdom he brings.

The Donkey 

After this parable was told, Jesus and his followers continued on their trip toward Jerusalem. They soon arrived near Bethany and Bethpage (about 2 miles east of Jerusalem), and Jesus gave some of his disciples instructions concerning a colt that he would use to make his entrance into the city. 

The colt they seek has never been ridden. For special or sacred purposes, animals that had never been used for another purpose would be used (Craddock, 226). A special animal is needed for a special event. Jesus knows this event will be a watershed moment in his journey toward the cross. 

Additionally, remember that Jesus had not been in the practice of riding a colt anywhere he went. He traveled by foot. His entrance into Jerusalem on a colt would have signaled to his disciples and anyone observing that something special was happening.

Jesus knows exactly where the colt is and what its owner will say when the disciples ask for it. This is likely due to Jesus’ foreknowledge of the situation and not the fact that he had previously made arrangements. Remember, since chapter 9, Jesus has been making his way toward Jerusalem. If anyone asks why the colt is needed, Jesus tells his followers to simply respond, “The Lord needs it.” Here, Jesus’ claim as “Lord” supersedes anyone else’s claim to ownership (Green, 685).

We do not know if the two disciples were among the twelve or part of the large crowd that had been following Jesus around, but they arrived in the village and found things just as Jesus had said. They approached the colt, and before they turned to leave, they were confronted by its owners. Just as Jesus said, they were asked why they were taking the colt, and just as Jesus said, their response worked and allowed them to take the colt.

After the disciples retrieve the colt, they return to Jesus. Luke tells us that they proceed to put their cloaks on the colt’s back as a makeshift saddle for Jesus and then place Jesus on the colt. 

Notice who is carrying out the action in this part of the story. To this point, Jesus instructed his followers on what to do, but now they take the initiative. 

Jesus has led them to the colt; they place him on it. In doing so, the disciples recognize the importance of the event. They recognize the symbolism latent in someone as powerful (albeit a power they don’t yet fully understand) as Jesus riding a colt into Jerusalem, the center of the Jewish universe, the very dwelling place of God.

The scene echoes Zechariah 9:9, “Rejoice greatly, O daughter Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter Jerusalem! Lo, your king comes to you; triumphant and victorious is he, humble and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.”

Here, Israel’s triumphant and victorious yet humble king enters Jerusalem. To be sure, the disciples believe that something significant is happening. They believe they are entering Jerusalem with the one for whom Israel had been waiting. By allowing them to place him on the colt, Jesus affirms what they are thinking. He is entering Jerusalem as Israel’s king.

The Entry

There’s only about a mile left in their journey toward Jerusalem. As they make this last leg, Jesus’ disciples and those journeying with him begin to lay their cloaks down before the colt, preparing a way for Jesus. After they had gained the summit of the Mount of Olives, about a half mile from the city, and began to journey down toward the city, those with Jesus began to shout and sing.

The song they sing (verse 38) is a portion of Psalm 118, which was originally used in Israel as a hymn of the royal entry into the city during the annual ritual of re-enthronement for the king (Green, 686). 

In Israel, the king was the one who had been anointed by God, the one who ensured that all was right and that justice and righteousness were ever-present. 

The disciples now proclaim that Jesus is this king and that they long for him to bring the peace of heaven down to earth. 

Not everyone will share the disciples’ enthusiasm, for it is not those who come out to meet Jesus who sing this song but those who have been following him all the way.

The final encounter in the passage comes from some Pharisees who were in the crowd with Jesus. It is not clear that these Pharisees were antagonistic to Jesus. They are, to say the least, a little unnerved by the ruckus that the crowd is making. 

Keep in mind that the Pharisees wanted to bring about reform and in some cases revolution, through rigorous devotion to the Torah. Their resistance to Jesus is because his reform program did not align with theirs. 

If the symbolism of Jesus riding into town on a colt with such a great and joyful procession was not lost on the disciples, it surely would not have been lost on those who sought to benefit from keeping the status quo.

Jesus responds, “I tell you, if these were silent, the stones would shout out.” What Jesus seems to be saying here is that something must be said and done. 

The disciples and those following that day are simply expressing the truth about who Jesus is and what he’s come to do. The truth must be told, and that truth will be proclaimed, even if the rest of God’s non-human creation must proclaim it. There is no opposition to this witness about the soon-to-be crucified king Jesus (and resurrected Jesus, but we must not get ahead of ourselves) that will work. What Jesus is about to do is of such great importance to all of creation that it must and will be proclaimed.

So What…?

There is a lot of fear within the church about the church’s slow death in America. We hear about declining membership across all major denominations all the time. We also hear about people’s actions, perhaps even the government, that threaten our religious liberties. The fear is genuine, and so too may be the danger. America is not now what it once was, a country made up of predominately Christian people.

While we should not treat matters of this kind lightly, we also should not fear. There have been, and there always will be, those who seek to silence the message concerning our crucified king. 

Jesus knows that as he approaches Jerusalem, those seeking to silence him will win the day. His death is imminent. Even as he rides into Jerusalem as king, he is not afraid. 

Why? Because Christ and his kingdom, his church even, will not fail. The message about Jesus Christ will be proclaimed. If not by those who seek to follow him, by the rocks themselves, who are God’s beloved creation, too.

But note that even though Jesus enters Jerusalem as king, confident and unafraid, he does so as the humble and suffering servant of creation. 

Jesus does not start a political campaign to stop the oppression of his people by the Romans. 

He does not call people to arms to protect their freedom in him. He does not take to the city square to speak harshly about those who mistreat him and his followers. 

Instead, he rides on a donkey, in contrast to the Roman Emperor, who rode on a strong horse. He weeps, washes the feet of his followers, and prays. Finally, he allows himself to be arrested, tried, and executed.

The reality is that the church’s proclamation about and belief in a king who willingly offers himself up as a sacrifice for all of creation is countercultural. It runs against the grain of what we would call progress, and it demands a different life orientation for those who seek to follow this crucified king.

It’s countercultural because Jesus’ power, as Paul confesses, is made perfect in weakness. That Jesus allows himself to be placed on a donkey’s colt should not confuse us. Jesus came to Jerusalem as king, but not as one who would take his throne through power. 

Jesus is enthroned through his death. If we want to follow this king, we must also seek to live our lives in this power-made-perfect-through-weakness kind of way. 

It means that we routinely lay down our lives for the sake of others. When we are hurt, we don’t hurt back. We embrace the ones who hurt us. When we love, we don’t love so we might be loved back. We love because the other is a child of God. When we work, we work not just to feed our family. We work to give out of the great abundance God has blessed us.

The disciples may not yet fully know that the king they are ushering into Jerusalem will rub so hard against the grain of culture that he will be killed. But we know it and are now called to proclaim this message, too! Along with the disciples, we must loudly sing,

Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord! (v. 38)

We know that this is not just any king but a king who sacrifices himself for us so that we might 

have life. 

He is a king who brings salvation even to those who killed him. 

He is a king who has come and is coming again to bring the peace of heaven down to earth. 

The world will know about this king; we are called to proclaim and live the message. If we don’t, word will still get out: the rocks will shout it. May we, like the disciples, loudly proclaim the message of the one who comes in the name of the Lord! And may we do so without fear!

Discussion Questions

Read the text aloud. Then, read the text to yourself quietly.  Read it slowly, as if you were very unfamiliar with the story.

1. Jesus has been walking everywhere he went up to this point in the story. Why does he now seek out a colt to ride? What significance might there be in seeking a colt that had never been ridden?

2. Jesus initiates the episode by instructing the disciples to fetch the colt. After the disciples fetch the colt, they place him on it. Why is it significant that they place him on the colt?

3. Think back to John the Baptist. His job was to “Prepare the way of the Lord” (Luke 3:4-6). What do the crowds do that might prepare Jesus’ way? Are the disciples and the crowds aware that this type of journey toward Jerusalem is significant? Why is this type of entry significant?

4. As the group nears Jerusalem, they begin to praise God joyfully, as seen in verse 38. The words they sing are partially from Psalm 118, an enthronement Psalm sung as a king’s enthronement in Israel was celebrated yearly. Why might they sing this song here and now?

5. There are some Pharisees with Jesus. They tell him to quiet his followers. Why might they do that? What might be the danger associated with Jesus entering Jerusalem this way?

6. Jesus responds by saying that if the crowd doesn’t announce his arrival, the stones will. What does this mean?

7. It seems like we face many who would like to silence our message about Jesus. Even if those who would like to silence us were successful, do we have cause to fear that the world will be left without someone to proclaim the good news?

8. Using Jesus’ life as an example, how should we respond to those who might seek to silence us?

9. What does it look like to proclaim the good news about Jesus, the crucified king in word or deed?

Works Cited

Fred B. Craddock, Luke: Interpretation: A Bible Commentary for Teaching and 

Preaching (Louisville, Ky: Westminster John Knox Press, 1990).

Joel Green, The Gospel of Luke, New International Commentary on the New 

Testament (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1997).