Thy Strong Word — Luke 18:35-19:48: Jesus’ Entry into Jerusalem (2024)

Jesus’ journey to Jerusalem unfolds with powerful events and teachings. He encounters Zacchaeus, a wealthy tax collector, leading to Zacchaeus’ repentance and salvation. Jesus tells the Parable of the Ten Minas, emphasizing faithful stewardship. His Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem fulfills prophecy, met with royal acclaim. Jesus weeps over the city’s spiritual blindness and drives out merchants from the temple, declaring it a house of prayer.

The Rev. Matthew Tooman, pastor of the dual parish of Immanuel Lutheran Church in Wahpeton, ND and First English Lutheran Church in Fairmount, ND, joins the Rev. Dr. Phil Booe to study Luke 18:35-19:48.

Luke 18:35-19:48

Jesus Heals a Blind Beggar

³⁵As he drew near to Jericho,a blind man was sitting by the roadside begging.³⁶And hearing a crowd going by, he inquired what this meant.³⁷They told him,“Jesus of Nazareth is passing by.”³⁸And he cried out, “Jesus,Son of David, have mercy on me!”³⁹And those who were in frontrebuked him, telling him to be silent. But he cried out all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!”⁴⁰And Jesus stopped and commanded him to be brought to him. And when he came near, he asked him,⁴¹“What do you want me to do for you?”He said, “Lord, let me recover my sight.”⁴²And Jesus said to him,“Recover your sight;your faith hasmade you well.”⁴³And immediately he recovered his sight and followed him,glorifying God. Andall the people, when they saw it, gave praise to God.

Jesus and Zacchaeus

19He entered Jericho and was passing through.²And behold, there was a man named Zacchaeus. He was a chief tax collector and was rich.³Andhe was seeking to see who Jesus was, but on account of the crowd he could not, because he was small in stature.⁴So he ran on ahead and climbed up intoa sycamore tree to see him, for he was about to pass that way.⁵And when Jesus came to the place, he looked up and said to him,“Zacchaeus, hurry and come down, forI must stay at your house today.”⁶So he hurried and came down andreceived him joyfully.⁷And when they saw it, they allgrumbled, “He has gone in to be the guest of a man who is a sinner.”⁸And Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, “Behold, Lord, the half of my goodsI give to the poor. And if I havedefrauded anyone of anything, I restore itfourfold.”⁹And Jesus said to him,“Today salvation has come to this house, sincehe also is a son of Abraham.¹⁰Forthe Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.”

The Parable of the Ten Minas

¹¹As they heard these things, he proceeded to tell a parable, because he was near to Jerusalem, and becausethey supposed that the kingdom of God was to appear immediately.¹²He said therefore,“A nobleman went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom and then return.¹³Callingten of his servants,^[a]he gave them ten minas,^[b]and said to them, ‘Engage in businessuntil I come.’¹⁴Buthis citizens hated him and sent a delegation after him, saying, ‘We do not want this man to reign over us.’¹⁵When he returned, having received the kingdom, he ordered these servants to whom he had given the money to be called to him, that he might know what they had gained by doing business.¹⁶The first came before him, saying, ‘Lord, your mina has made ten minas more.’¹⁷And he said to him, ‘Well done, good servant!^[c]Because you have beenfaithful in a very little,you shall have authority over ten cities.’¹⁸And the second came, saying, ‘Lord, your mina has made five minas.’¹⁹And he said to him, ‘And you are to be over five cities.’²⁰Then another came, saying, ‘Lord, here is your mina, which I kept laid away ina handkerchief;²¹for I was afraid of you, because you area severe man. You takewhat you did not deposit, and reap what you did not sow.’²²He said to him,‘I will condemn you with your own words,you wicked servant! You knew that I wasa severe man, taking what I did not deposit and reaping what I did not sow?²³Why then did you not put my money in the bank, and at my coming I might have collected it with interest?’²⁴And he said to those who stood by, ‘Take the mina from him, and give it to the one who has the ten minas.’²⁵And they said to him, ‘Lord, he has ten minas!’²⁶‘I tell you thatto everyone who has, more will be given, but from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away.²⁷Butas for these enemies of mine, who did not want me to reign over them, bring them here andslaughter them before me.’”

The Triumphal Entry

²⁸And when he had said these things,he went on ahead,going up to Jerusalem.²⁹When he drew near to Bethphage andBethany, atthe mount that is called Olivet, he senttwo of the disciples,³⁰saying,“Go into the village in front of you, where on entering you will find a colt tied,on which no one has ever yet sat. Untie it and bring it here.³¹If anyone asks you, ‘Why are you untying it?’ you shall say this: ‘The Lord has need of it.’”³²So those who were sent went away and found itjust as he had told them.³³And as they were untying the colt, its owners said to them, “Why are you untying the colt?”³⁴And they said, “The Lord has need of it.”³⁵And they brought it to Jesus, and throwing their cloaks on the colt, they set Jesus on it.³⁶And as he rode along, theyspread their cloaks on the road.³⁷As he was drawing near—already on the way down the Mount of Olives—the whole multitude of his disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voicefor all the mighty works that they had seen,³⁸saying,“Blessed isthe King who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven andglory in the highest!”³⁹And some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, rebuke your disciples.”⁴⁰He answered,“I tell you, if these were silent,the very stones would cry out.”

Jesus Weeps over Jerusalem

⁴¹And when he drew near and saw the city,he wept over it,⁴²saying,“Would that you, even you, had known on this day the things that make for peace! But nowthey are hidden from your eyes.⁴³Forthe days will come upon you, when your enemieswill set up a barricade around you andsurround you and hem you in on every side⁴⁴and tear you down to the ground, you and your children within you. Andthey will not leave one stone upon another in you, because you did not knowthe time of yourvisitation.”

Jesus Cleanses the Temple

⁴⁵And he entered the temple and began to drive out those who sold,⁴⁶saying to them,“It is written,‘My house shall be a house of prayer,’ butyou have made it a den of robbers.”

⁴⁷And he was teaching daily in the temple.The chief priests and the scribes and the principal men of the people were seeking to destroy him,⁴⁸but they did not find anything they could do, for all the people were hanging on his words.

Footnotes

Luke 19:13Orbondservants; also verse15
Luke 19:13Aminawas about three months’ wages for a laborer
Luke 19:17Orbondservant; also verse22