As Jesus came near Bethphage and Bethany, towns near the hill called the Mount of Olives, he sent out two of his followers. He said, “Go to the town you can see there. When you enter it, you will find a colt tied there, which no one has ever ridden. Untie it and bring it here to me. If anyone asks you why you are untying it, say that the Master needs it.”
The two followers went into town and found the colt just as Jesus had told them. As they were untying it, its owners came out and asked the followers, “Why are you untying our colt?”
The followers answered, “The Master needs it.” So they brought it to Jesus, threw their coats on the colt’s back, and put Jesus on it. As Jesus rode toward Jerusalem, others spread their coats on the road before him.
As he was coming close to Jerusalem, on the way down the Mount of Olives, the whole crowd of followers began joyfully shouting praise to God for all the miracles they had seen. They said,
“God bless the king who comes in the name of the Lord!
There is peace in heaven and glory to God!”
Some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to Jesus, “Teacher, tell your followers not to say these things.”
But Jesus answered, “I tell you, if my followers didn’t say these things, then the stones would cry out.”
As Jesus came near Jerusalem, he saw the city and cried for it, saying, “I wish you knew today what would bring you peace. But now it is hidden from you. The time is coming when your enemies will build a wall around you and will hold you in on all sides. They will destroy you and all your people, and not one stone will be left on another. All this will happen because you did not recognize the time when God came to save you.”
Jesus went into the Temple and began to throw out the people who were selling things there. He said, “It is written in the Scriptures, ‘My Temple will be a house for prayer.’ But you have changed it into a ‘hideout for robbers’!”
Jesus taught in the Temple every day. The leading priests, the experts on the law, and some of the leaders of the people wanted to kill Jesus. But they did not know how they could do it, because all the people were listening closely to him.
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