Matthew 21:1-11
New American Standard Bible
The Triumphal Entry
21 (A)When they had approached Jerusalem and had come to Bethphage, at (B)the Mount of Olives, Jesus then sent two disciples, 2 saying to them, “Go into the village opposite you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied there and a colt with it. Untie them and bring them to Me. 3 And if anyone says anything to you, you shall say, ‘The Lord needs them,’ and he will send them on immediately.” 4 Now (C)this [a]took place so that what was spoken through [b]the prophet would be fulfilled:
5 “(D)Say to the daughter of Zion,
‘Behold your King is coming to you,
Humble, and mounted on a donkey,
Even on a colt, the foal of a donkey.’”
6 The disciples went and did just as Jesus had instructed them, 7 and brought the donkey and the colt, and laid their cloaks on them; and He sat on [c]the cloaks. 8 Most of the crowd (E)spread their cloaks on the road, and others were cutting branches from the trees and spreading them on the road. 9 Now the crowds going ahead of Him, and those who followed, were shouting,
“[d]Hosanna to the (F)Son of David;
(G)Blessed is the One who comes in the name of the Lord;
[e]Hosanna (H)in the highest!”
10 When He had entered Jerusalem, all the city was stirred, saying, “Who is this?” 11 And the crowds were saying, “This is (I)Jesus the prophet, from (J)Nazareth in Galilee.”
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- Matthew 21:4 Lit has happened
- Matthew 21:4 I.e., Zechariah
- Matthew 21:7 Lit them
- Matthew 21:9 Aramaic for Save, we pray
- Matthew 21:9 Aramaic for Save, we pray
Matthew 21:1-11
New English Translation
The Triumphal Entry
21 Now[a] when they approached Jerusalem and came to Bethphage,[b] at the Mount of Olives,[c] Jesus sent two disciples, 2 telling them, “Go to the village ahead of you.[d] Right away you will find a donkey tied there, and a colt with her. Untie them and bring them to me. 3 If anyone says anything to you, you are to say, ‘The Lord needs them,’[e] and he will send them at once.” 4 This[f] took place to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet:[g]
5 “Tell the people of Zion,[h]
‘Look, your king is coming to you,
unassuming and seated on a donkey,
and on a colt, the foal of a donkey.’”[i]
6 So[j] the disciples went and did as Jesus had instructed them. 7 They brought the donkey and the colt and placed their cloaks[k] on them, and he sat on them. 8 A[l] very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road. Others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. 9 The crowds that went ahead of him and those following kept shouting,[m] “Hosanna[n] to the Son of David! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord![o] Hosanna in the highest!” 10 As he entered Jerusalem the whole city was thrown into an uproar,[p] saying, “Who is this?” 11 And the crowds were saying, “This is the prophet Jesus, from Nazareth in Galilee.”
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- Matthew 21:1 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “now” to indicate the transition to a new topic.
- Matthew 21:1 sn The exact location of the village of Bethphage is not known. Most put it on the southeast side of the Mount of Olives and northwest of Bethany, about 1.5 miles (3 km) east of Jerusalem.
- Matthew 21:1 sn “Mountain” in English generally denotes a higher elevation than it often does in reference to places in Palestine. The Mount of Olives is really a ridge running north to south about 3 kilometers (1.8 miles) long, east of Jerusalem across the Kidron Valley. Its central elevation is about 30 meters (100 ft) higher than Jerusalem. It was named for the large number of olive trees which grew on it.
- Matthew 21:2 tn Grk “the village lying before you” (BDAG 530 s.v. κατέναντι 2.b).
- Matthew 21:3 sn The custom called angaria allowed the impressment of animals for service to a significant figure.
- Matthew 21:4 tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.
- Matthew 21:4 tn Grk “what was spoken by the prophet, saying.” The present participle λέγοντος (legontos) is redundant and has not been translated.
- Matthew 21:5 tn Grk “Tell the daughter of Zion” (the phrase “daughter of Zion” is an idiom for the inhabitants of Jerusalem: “people of Zion”). The idiom “daughter of Zion” has been translated as “people of Zion” because the original idiom, while firmly embedded in the Christian tradition, is not understandable to most modern English readers.
- Matthew 21:5 tn Grk “the foal of an animal under the yoke,” i.e., a hard-working animal. This is a quotation from Zech 9:9.
- Matthew 21:6 tn Here δέ (de) has been translated as “so” to indicate the implied result of Jesus’ instructions in vv. 2-3.
- Matthew 21:7 tn Grk “garments”; but this refers in context to their outer cloaks. The action is like 2 Kgs 9:13.
- Matthew 21:8 tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.
- Matthew 21:9 tn Grk “were shouting, saying.” The participle λέγοντας (legontas) is redundant here in contemporary English and has not been translated.
- Matthew 21:9 tn The expression ῾Ωσαννά (hōsanna, literally in Hebrew, “O Lord, save”) in the quotation from Ps 118:25-26 was probably by this time a familiar liturgical expression of praise, on the order of “Hail to the king,” although both the underlying Aramaic and Hebrew expressions meant “O Lord, save us.” In words familiar to every Jew, the author is indicating that at this point every messianic expectation is now at the point of realization. It is clear from the words of the psalm shouted by the crowd that Jesus is being proclaimed as messianic king. See E. Lohse, TDNT 9:682-84.sn Hosanna is an Aramaic expression that literally means, “help, I pray,” or “save, I pray.” By Jesus’ time it had become a strictly liturgical formula of praise, however, and was used as an exclamation of praise to God.
- Matthew 21:9 sn A quotation from Ps 118:25-26.
- Matthew 21:10 tn Grk “was shaken.” The translation “thrown into an uproar” is given by L&N 25.233.
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