Daily Scripture:
Matthew 21:14 Blind and lame people came up to him in the Temple, and he healed them. 15 But when the head cohanim and Torah-teachers saw the wonderful things he was doing, and the children crying out in the Temple, “Please deliver us!”[Matthew 21:15 Greek Ôsanna (English “Hosanna”) transliterates Hebrew Hosha na, which means “Please! Save [us]!”] to the Son of David, they were furious. 16 They said to him, “Do you hear what they’re saying?” Yeshua replied, “Of course! Haven’t you ever read,
‘From the mouth of children and infants
you have prepared praise for yourself’?”[Matthew 21:16 Psalm 8:3(2)] (Complete Jewish Bible).
Reflection Questions:
Isaiah wrote of Israel’s hope that God would send a faithful heir of David’s royal line to rule forever (cf. 1 Kings 9:3-5, Isaiah 9:2-7). Zechariah 9:9, which Matthew cited in Matthew 21:4-5, distinguished a king on a donkey, who came in peace, from the war horses of a conqueror. Why did Jesus quote the Greek translation of the Psalms in Jerusalem? This may explain it: “The Hebrew reads ‘strength’ instead of ‘praise.’ Jewish interpreters frequently chose the textual tradition or translation that best communicated their point. The primary language of the Sadducees was probably Greek (the dominant language of their tomb inscriptions).”*
- Jesus rode into Jerusalem in a way that signaled a king’s arrival, but one who came in peace. Why did that make “the chief priests and legal experts” angry? “The aristocratic priests belonged to Jerusalem’s wealthy ruling class…. they probably also have political objections.”** Some Israelites profited from the status quo with Rome; others wanted a king like the general David who led Israel to victories in war. But children celebrated a gentle “Son of David” who said to love your enemies. Do you?
- It’s unlikely that the children who shouted that Jesus was the “Son of David” analyzed the theological fine points that title might or might not imply. When the “proper” religious authorities objected both to the shouting and to what it might imply, Jesus said he valued the children’s joy. We say our journey is “to know, love and serve God.” How can you “know God” by thinking clearly and precisely without losing the ability to “love God” through joyful expressions of praise like the children’s that day at the Temple?
* HarperCollins Christian Publishing. NIV, Cultural Backgrounds Study Bible, eBook: Bringing to Life the Ancient World of Scripture (Kindle Locations 220544-220546). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
** HarperCollins Christian Publishing. NIV, Cultural Backgrounds Study Bible, eBook: Bringing to Life the Ancient World of Scripture (Kindle Locations 220539-220542). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
Wendy Connelly is a wife and mom earning her Masters of Divinity in May 2018. She podcasts on spirituality at TheLiftPodcast.organd serves on the Board of Advisors for Miracle of Innocence, a non-profit dedicated to helping the falsely imprisoned find justice.
My favorite class in seminary was Systematic Theology. I loved studying the doctrines and dogmas, heresies and fancy-pants words like perichoresis and eschatology and Marcionism, tracing their roots and teasing out their implications: why they were embraced, and what precisely was at stake in their denial. I found historic battles over Christologies and creedal clauses illuminating—and often, terribly troubling. People were cast out, tortured and martyred over trifling differences of opinion, minor lapses in orthodoxy. And I wager the devil was in the details. Theology has its place, but all too often, it’s been used in a way that subverts Jesus’ primary teaching: Love. And when this happens, theology begins to resemble the unnecessary midrash of the critical chief priests and legal experts of Jesus’ day.
I’ve yet to meet a young child who cares about the precise timeline of Jesus’ return, who argues over the proper way to be baptized, who can unpretzel the mysteries of the Trinity. But I have seen children lavish extravagant praise to God through their awe over creation’s gifts, their deep concern for the hurting heart, their remarkable ability to forgive and let go—all qualities I could use more of in my own life. “From the mouths of babes and infants you’ve arranged praise for yourself,” says Jesus, quoting the Psalms. Perhaps we ought to worry less about the details of our religion and, with faith like a child’s, focus, instead, on becoming Love.
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Scripture quotations are taken from The Common English Bible ©2011.
Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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