Mark 11:1-11 (NRSV)
Read Mark 11:1-11 on biblegateway.com
Verse 11Then he entered Jerusalem and went into the temple; and when he had looked around at everything, as it was already late, he went out to Bethany with the twelve.
"Hosanna!
Verse 10
Hosanna in the highest heaven!"
Devotion
Mark's narration of the Procession with Palms begins our
week. Though charming with children and accompanying
adults in our worship spaces, Jesus' arrival in Jerusalem
in Mark's telling is full of subtle signs. Jesus arrives from
the east, where the Mount of Olives dominates the
horizon, a natural bulwark, which protected Jerusalem.
Power arrived from this direction. Was this a triumphal
entry? Bethany was the location of Jesus' most arresting
miracle, raising Lazarus from the dead. It would be the
site of his anointing by the woman with nard (Mark 14:3-
9), which he framed as a preparation for burial. He rode
an unbroken colt. People shouted "Hosanna" or "Save
now!" as he made his way to the temple, the holiest of
places. Yet, instead of conquering or pronouncing victory,
when Jesus arrived he merely looked around and then
went back to Bethany with his friends. Mark holds us in
suspense. What is Jesus up to?
Prayer
Jesus, as your mother sang before your birth, your life was
about reversals and surprise. What will you teach us this
year? Help us see you anew. Amen.