John 12:12

On the morrow a great multitude that had come to the feast, when they heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem, took branches from palm trees, and went forth to meet him, and cried out, Hosanna: Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel.

THE TRIUMPHAL ENTRY

Hendriksen noted: the triumphal entry is in all four Gospels declaring that "Although the accounts differ, they do not conflict in any way."[10] For comments on the primary features of this event, see my Commentary on Matthew, Matthew 12.

Went forth to meet him ... The two sources of the great throng of people were: (1) the crowd following from Bethany, and (2) the great crowd who, hearing that Jesus was coming into Jerusalem, went forth from the Holy City to meet him.

Branches of palm trees ... This was a customary greeting of popular heroes; and the prevalence of many palm trees facilitated this type of demonstration.

Hosanna... has the meaning of "O Jehovah, save now!" It had not, at that time, developed into a mere "hurrah!" but had overtones of deep religious feeling. The Old Testament has this:

Save now, we beseech thee, O Jehovah: O Jehovah, we beseech thee, send now prosperity. Blessed is he that cometh in the name of Jehovah (Psalms 118:25,26).

According to Westcott, this Psalm was written as the dedication Psalm for the second temple,[11] making the quotation both appropriate and significant.

The King of Israel ... The popular recognition of Jesus, even in this outpouring of demonstration, fell far short of any true appreciation of Jesus' actual mission and purpose. It would appear to be certain that Jesus permitted such an outpouring, along with this reference to "the King of Israel," in order to bring about the confrontation with the hierarchy. The Pharisees, having already decided not to kill Jesus during the Passover (Matthew 26:1-5), would be overruled in their strategy of delay; and such a thing as this triumphal entry was exactly calculated to spur them into a change of strategy.

[10] William Hendriksen. Exposition of the Gospel according to John (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Book House, 1961), II, p. 184.

[11] Brooks Foss Westcott, The Gospel according to St. John (Grand Rapids, Michigan: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1971), p. 179.