“Say to the Daughter of Zion, ‘See, your king comes to you, gentle and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.’” (verse 5)
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There is such remarkable tenderness in this statement, so personally applied. “Daughter of Zion” is a personification of the people of Jerusalem, indeed all God’s people. But because it’s stated in the singular, I’m drawn right into this personal encounter. “Your king comes to you.” I think of royal processions I’ve witnessed, standing with the masses along the roadside – there was everything of pomp and majesty and occasion about it all. But nothing at all personal. The “royal” (in my experience, the Queen) had no idea who I was, nor that I was present, nor did she care (though I don’t hold this against her!).
But here it’s entirely different – this is personal. “Your king comes to you.” This is the ongoing mode of my Saviour’s approach. This is the continuing stance of my Lord’s reign. He comes to me. Remarkably, I am in his sights. Indeed, I am the reason he came.Not me alone, of course, but me personally. Paul knew this reality, seeing Jesus’ coming as being fully personal to himself: “the Son of God who loved me and delivered himself up for me” (Gal 2:20). In a quote attributed to Augustine, the same point is made: “If you were the only person on earth, Christ would have still suffered and died for you.” And CS Lewis, in his science fiction classic Perelandra, puts it this way: “When He died in the Wounded World He died not for men, but for each man. If each man had been the only man made, He would have done no less.”
Not only does he come personally, he comes gently, with full humility. The donkey was traditionally a royal mount (nothing shabby) but didn’t communicate military might as did the war horse. Rather, the donkey communicated peace. Shalom, personally applied. That’s how Jesus comes.
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O Lord Jesus, you who are the King of Kings, you who have all power and all might, truly you have come to me in peace, bringing salvation, delivering yourself up for me, pouring out shalom, establishing your kingly rule.
You come to me personally. Thank you.
Gratefully, I receive your presence fresh this day. Joyfully, I add my voice to the rising chorus. Hosanna. Blessed is he who comes. Hosanna in the highest.
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Reflect: The crowds spread cloaks and branches in the road, welcoming the Lord. What steps will you take? How will you actively welcome his presence with you today?
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Photo by Random Institute on Unsplash