Tremors of an Earthquake to Come?

Matthew 21:1-11, the Processional Gospel appointed for Palm Sunday, is a very familiar story.  It is the account of the triumphal entry of Jesus into Jerusalem.  The story is unusual in that it is found in all the Synoptics as well as the gospel of John, albeit John locates it differently chronologically.  In this story, context is everything.  According to the Synoptic gospels, Jesus has foretold his suffering and death no less than three times prior to this event.  Clearly, Jesus knows what awaits him in Jerusalem.  The crowds also have their expectation; they are longing for a Messiah, and clearly see Jesus as the one who will fill that role.  We know how this ends, but for now our focus as preachers must be on this event itself.  How do these hosannas sound to us?

(The following questions are not meant to be exhaustive. They are best used in concert with other fine sets of exegetical questions which provide other lenses for the reader.  These questions are meant to get at the way the Word functions in the text.  For more on this method and on Law and Gospel preaching in particular, see my brief guide to Law and Gospel preaching, Afflicting the Comfortable, Comforting the Afflicted, available from wipfandstock.com or amazon.)

1.  How does the Word function in the text?  The context helps us answer this question.  Jesus has foretold his suffering and death.  The people are crying out "Hosanna", which means, "Save us!  Deliver us!"  Given these two pieces of context, we can see that the Word, in this case the actions of Jesus herein described, is functioning as Gospel.  The narrative is proclaiming that Jesus is indeed the Savior, the One who comes to deliver us, and the One who comes even into the presence of his enemies, knowing that this ride is a ride that will end at Golgotha.  The cry of the people is also evidence of the Law: they are suffering under oppression; they are crying out for deliverance.  Jesus comes to save them from that oppression.

2.  How is the Word not functioning in the text?  The Law is not present in any overt way, only in the context as noted above.  The Law is the Word exposing our need for a Savior.  Though the people clearly long for a Savior, the Word is not functioning here to expose that need.

3.  With whom are you identifying in the text?  We are the crowds, the ones shouting "Save us! Deliver us!"  We long to be delivered from all our enemies, from any pestilence, from suffering of any kind.  "Make all of our troubles go away," we cry.  It is the cry of all of humanity, as St. Paul says, "For while we are still in this tent, we groan under our burden." (II Cor. 5:4a)

4.  What, if any, call to obedience is there in this text?  The call to follow Jesus will come later in the Passion. At this juncture the Word is not functioning in this way.  If we wish to pursue this, the 2nd reading appointed for this Sunday is a great place to start, as Paul exhorts us, "Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus..." (Phil 4:5)

5.  What Law/Gospel couplet is suggested by this text?  We could imagine many couplets coming out of this scene:  oppressed/freed; despairing/hopeful; dying/being raised up.

6.  Exegetical work:  There are a number of terms in this story that we gain a deepened understanding of when we see them in their original language.  The word praus, translated "humble", (vs. 5) comes to us directly from the Septuagint version of Zechariah 9:9.  What that term actually means is debated by scholars.  Mark Allan Powell looks back at the use of this term in the Beatitudes ("Blessed are the praus", 5:5) and argues that "praus does not refer to 'the humble' in such instances but to 'the humiliated.""  "The praus are ones who have not been given their share of the earth." (God With Us, p. 126)  Powell goes on:  "Drawing on the 'suffering servant' theme of Isaiah, Matthew presents Jesus as one who seeks to proclaim justice to those who have been deprived of it and who, accordingly, comes to be deprived of it himself." (Ibid., p. 137)  Douglas Hare goes another direction:  "Matthew, however, is here following the Septuagint, which chose to describe the king as gentle rather than humble. The quotation thus reinforces the claim of 11:29, 'I am gentle and humble in heart.'" (Interpretation series, Matthew, p. 238)  Another word worth looking at more closely is the word translated 'turmoil' in verse 10.  The Greek verb is seio, which in 27:51 and 28:4 is translated as quake and shake, as in an earthquake.  Matthew's account of the resurrection of Christ includes a seismos (earthquake) in 27:54 and 28:2, and so it is perhaps worth noting that the early tremors of that event have begun here.  Finally, the Greek word 'hosanna' which is left untranslated, comes from the Septuagint translation of Psalm 118:25.  Literally, that verse means, "Ah, now, we beseech you, O Lord, save us!  Ah, now, we beseech you, O Lord, grant us success."  This is what the people were crying as Jesus was led into  Jerusalem.  Psalm 118:26 is what follows: "Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord."  It is also worth noting that Psalm 118:22 says, "The stone which  the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone."  Could it be that the people had that in mind that day as well?

Blessings on your proclamation!