Tomorrow is, of course, Palm Sunday. Most Christians will
celebrate this feast with two prominent features: the story of
Jesus' triumphal entry into Jerusalem and the blessing and
waving of palm branches. This raises the questions: Why did
Jesus enter Jerusalem on a donkey? Why not on a horse? Why not
in a chariot? And why did the crowds greet him with branches?
The answers to these questions can be found by exploring the
Jewish roots of the Triumphal Entry, as revealed in the texts of
the Old Testament. Solomon's Rides a Mule into Jerusalem The
answer to the first question is rooted in two texts: 1 Kings 1
and Zechariah 9. In the book of Kings, we learn that Jesus
wasn't the first king to ride triumphantly into Jerusalem. Long
before him, Solomon had done the same, immediately before he was
enthroned as king of Israel: King David said... "Cause my son
Solomon to rid on my own mule, and bring him down to Gihop, and
let Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet there anoint him
king over Israel; then blow the tr