Jesus rides on a donkey into Jerusalem
28 When Jesus had said all this, he went on in front of them. He was going towards Jerusalem. 29 He was getting near to two villages called Bethphage and Bethany, on the Mount of Olives. Then Jesus sent two of his disciples to go further. 30 He told them, ‘Go into the village that is in front of you. When you arrive there, you will find a young donkey that someone has tied there. Nobody has yet ridden on it. Undo the rope and bring the donkey here to me. 31 Someone may ask you, “Why are you taking the donkey?” Then say to them, “The Master needs it.” ’
19:29Bethphage and Bethany were on the east side of the Mount of Olives, near to Jerusalem.
32 The two disciples went into the village. They saw everything there that Jesus had told them about. 33 While they were taking the young donkey, some men spoke to them. The donkey belonged to them. They asked the disciples, ‘Why are you taking the donkey?’
34 The disciples replied, ‘The Master needs it.’
35 They brought the donkey to Jesus. They put their coats on its back. Then they helped Jesus to sit on it. 36 While he was riding along, the people were putting their coats down on the road in front of him.
37 Jesus came to the place where the road goes down the Mount of Olives. The whole crowd of his disciples were very happy. They began to praise God with loud voices. They thanked him for all the great things that they had seen. 38 They said:
‘May the Lord God bless the king who comes with his authority!
May everything be well in heaven!
We praise our great God above!’
39 Some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to Jesus, ‘Teacher, stop your disciples from saying these things.’
40 Jesus replied, ‘Let me tell you this. If these people were quiet, the stones of the city would shout out instead!’
Jesus weeps for Jerusalem and its people
41 When Jesus got near to Jerusalem, he looked at the city. He cried because he felt very sorry for the people in it. 42 He said, ‘You needed to know what would really help you. Then you could have lived in peace. But now you are unable to understand properly. 43 As a result, days of trouble will come to you. Your enemies will build a wall around the city. They will shut you in completely and they will not let you leave. 44 So your enemies will knock you down. They will completely destroy your city and all the people who live in it. They will not leave even one stone on top of another stone. You did not understand that God had come to save you at this time. That is why these bad things will happen to you.’
