Bible Text: Matthew 21:1-11, Isaiah 50:4-9 | Preacher: Rev. Jenn Geddes
Late April and May are known as migratory season for most birders. It is the time of year when many of the song birds, warblers in particular, start migrating north for the summer. As many of you know I’m a bit of an amateur birder. I’m actually terrible at it. I’m no good at identifying the bird calls and almost as bad at identifying by sight. While I love the birds that arrive, I wish that we had a migration similar to that of March of the Penguins. Large majestic birds, travelling together, slowly, now there is a bird I could identify. In the movie by the same name the narrator, Morgan Freeman, says, “There is a mysterious ritual that dates back thousands of years. No living creature has survived it except the penguin. And every year, they embark on a nearly impossible journey to find a mate. For twenty days and twenty nights the emperor penguin will march to a place so extreme it supports no other life. In the harshest place on Earth love finds a way. And they will march just as they have done for centuries, ever since the emperor penguin decided to stay, to live and love in the harshest place on Earth.” In some ways with the Trumpeter Swans in the winter, we do have a migration akin to the Emperor Penguins, I know. Every once in a while a bird will be blown off course. Just recently the Comox Valley was home to a red-flanked blue tail, a bird that was only recorded one other time in Canada. Every once in a while a migration, something that has happened for centuries, is interrupted by a significant event. Every once in a while a migration is joined by a bird from a similar genus but of a different species. We joke that in every flock of American Widgeons there is at least one Eurasian widgeon that has tagged a long…it’s a birder joke. What we tend to forget is that birds and beasts aren’t the only ones who have migrated year after year, for centuries. There are many faiths that encourage at least one pilgrimage in a believer’s life. The pilgrimage to Jerusalem for the Passover festival was no different, except when it is interrupted.
If there is a defining moment within Judaism it is, of course, the story of the Exodus. In Exodus 23:14-19 it states clearly that three times a year the people should hold festivals to God. The first festival being Pesach or Passover, the next being Shavuot, which is the festival at which the church’s Pentecost story took place, and Sukkot, the feast of in-gathering which marks the end of the harvest season. These festivals took place in Jerusalem and therefore it was incumbent on all who could to make a pilgrimage for the festivals- a migration of sorts. Our Gospel reading takes place during this pilgrimage to Jerusalem for the Passover. Likely as Jesus and his disciples approached Jerusalem more and more people would have been joining them, not necessarily to follow Jesus but rather to migrate toward Jerusalem for the festival. In the previous chapter in Matthew, Jesus predicted that the final destination of Jerusalem on this pilgrimage would be a final destination for him on this earth. He predicts this while in Jericho, which was only 15 miles away in distance but involved an arduous uphill hike for nearly all of that 15 miles, rising about 300 feet in altitude. But because it approached the festival of the Passover, there would have been many who made that journey at the time.
Everyone would have stopped at the town of Bethpage on the Mount of Olives which was about two and a half miles long, east of Jerusalem. I have been told by friends who have travelled to the Holy lands that the panoramic view of Jerusalem across the Kidron Valley is magnificent. While the view would have been vastly different, the temple in Jerusalem would have been quite the sight to see on the horizon. Like a group of travellers who crest a hill to see their final destination come into view, Jesus and his disciples must have been in awe at the scene. This is what they had been waiting for. Yet, Jesus calls upon them to get a donkey- hardly the type of animal that a conquering king would ride into town on.
Matthew explains that the reason for this is to reflect what was said through the prophet. In this instance the prophet which Matthew is referring to is Zechariah 9:9 which mentions that the coming king will be just, have salvation and be humble. Matthew cleverly edits this prophecy to only highlight the humility of the king. Now the prophet Zechariah preached in Jerusalem during the reign of King Darius which was when the temple was being rebuilt; so most of his prophecies concern Jerusalem getting its act together, so that it could be a place of worship again. By the time Jesus comes along the rebuilt temple has been around for nearly 500 years. People have been migrating to it to celebrate this festival for that long in harsh conditions, and yet they were still waiting for God to help them “get their act together.”
Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem is a familiar one. This humble conquering king parades in on a donkey or colt triumphantly as the people shout Hosanna, which in Hebrew is the word for help! But it is used often idiomatically as an expression of praise. It is actually hard for me to believe that these pilgrims would have recognized anything kingly or conquering about Jesus. He’s riding a donkey, he’s plainly dressed and he was meek, not militaristic as the prophets had all said the Messiah would be. So, in many ways I am surprised that these people would shout anything to him, as he would have looked like the rest of them. But that is perhaps part of this triumphant mystery, and plays into the most important message of Christ. The kingdom of God is nothing like what we picture or experience here on earth.
The Gospel of Matthew scholar David Turner writes, “Throughout his ministry, his teaching and example had exalted humility and downplayed pride. The “triumphal” entry epitomizes the upside-down values of the Kingdom. Jesus radically shifted the world’s paradigm of greatness, showing greatness to be found in humble service, not arrogant rule.” While Jesus brought this idea of a humble leader to reality it was not a new concept to the Jews in Jerusalem.
Isaiah’s passage is the third in a four part series called “Suffering servant songs”. Depending on your context and religious point of view this suffering servant represents Israel, Isaiah or Jesus. While it is all debatable and good to engage in Scripture this way, having this passage read with that of the entry into Jerusalem reminds us what is waiting for Jesus. While Palm Sunday is referred to as the triumphal entry, it is really the tragic entry for Jesus, for he is setting himself up to be the one, as Isaiah says, who will give his back and be struck, who will endure insult and spitting. This migration has a very different end. But it is also this migration of the crowds and Jesus on a donkey that allows us to migrate with him to the cross.
In this service we transition from the rejoicing and waving palms to the deeply difficult passion of Christ. We know what’s coming- which in many ways allows us to know also what comes after. We know that we are about to hear of betrayal, denial, beatings, and death. But we also know that the true triumphant story awaits us on Easter morning. Jesus will not only make the pilgrimage to Jerusalem but will be seated at the right hand of his Father, our God. We are the pilgrims in the crowd- making our way home. We join the migration, the march, to the cross, and in this harsh story love finds a way. Amen