Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is he, humble and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey. I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim and the war horse from Jerusalem; and the battle bow shall be cut off, and he shall speak peace to the nations; his rule shall be from sea to sea, and from the River to the ends of the earth. As for you also, because of the blood of my covenant with you, I will set your prisoners free from the waterless pit. Return to your stronghold, O prisoners of hope; today I declare that I will restore to you double. Zech. 9:9-12
They will make war on the Lamb, and the Lamb will conquer them, for he is Lord of lords and King of kings, and those with him are called and chosen and faithful. Revelation 17:14
Lord Jesus, I’ll exhaust the wonder of this passage as soon as I drink Niagara Falls dry, as soon as I memorize the names of every star you’ve hung in the sky, as soon as I finish climbing all the Alps in Switzerland, Italy, Germany, and France. The prophet Zechariah rejoiced in the implications of your coming, covenant, cross and kingdom. May we do the same, may we do the same.
On this Palm Sunday morning, I’m overwhelmed with your humility, your sovereignty, and your generosity. What other king could conquer warhorses and warriors by riding the foal of a donkey? What other king could break the battle bow and the backbone of all warfare by the brokenness of the cross? What other king could ever replace all politics of tyranny and power with a dominion and reign of peace, everywhere and forever? Only you, Lord Jesus, only you.
What other king would offer his life and death for the redemption and restoration of rebels, fools, and idolaters like us? What other king could possibly make prisoners of sin, death, and “waterless pits” into prisoners of hope? Only you, Lord Jesus, only you. There is no other such king.
Who is the King of Glory? It is you, Lord Jesus, and only you. Who is the King of Grace? It is you, Lord Jesus, and only you. Who is the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords? It is you, Lord Jesus, and only you.
I join my brothers and sisters today in rejoicing greatly, for you have come to us righteous and victorious. Our hosannas are filled with the sobering and gladdening news of the whole of Holy Week. Lead us each day this week into a transforming gaze of your cross, a fresh inundation of your grace and a more intense longing for your kingdom.
May your cross and your crown continue to free us from all other imprisonments so that we may live as prisoners of hope and agents of redemption, until the Day you return to finish making all things new. May that Day be soon. May that blessed Day be real soon. So very Amen we pray, in your peerless and priceless name.
