Monday December 4, 2023
Theme: “Behold, your King comes”
Text: Matthew 21:5
5. Say to the daughter of Zion, Behold, your king comes to you, full of gentleness, and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the colt of a donkey.
Let's remember:
This royal entrance of Jesus contrasts with his mount. For a King, it would be carried by a glorious and powerful mount. He would have used a mount which manifests deliverance, combat, royalty. Now, the donkey is very weak and not at all fast, but he is docile and gentle. This then is the characteristic impressed by the Lord when he says, “Behold, thy king cometh unto thee, full of meekness, and riding upon an ass.” It is not for nothing that it is mentioned as full of sweetness. Obviously, our King is arriving to bring us his salvation. He is charged with gentleness because violence is not his share. Besides the gentleness, there is also his peaceful nature which is expressed in the symbolism of his mount. We also highlight the modesty but above all the strong symbolism of the poverty and the degradation of the Messiah in this figure of representation. A King who takes a donkey to get around is a poor king. Jesus never pushed us toward the depraving riches of this world. If wealth could come to us, it will come after obtaining salvation and sanctification. Despite his power and glory, Jesus rode on a donkey instead of a horse or chariot. As for the expression the daughter of Zion, it is a Hebraism which symbolizes Jerusalem as a whole. This is what the Living Word version preferred to bring out for a good and better understanding. Today Jerusalem is ourselves, it is also our home, our family, our community, our country. Let us note finally that this royal entry of Jesus represents the only hope, on which the children of God should both build and rely, knowing that Christ is our Redeemer. Behold, Jesus our King comes to restore us. Have a great Monday. Amen
Alain Louz.-