Why is Palm Sunday the celebration of the Triumphal Entry of Jesus Christ into Jerusalem?
This event occured just a few days before His crucifixion – the very reason that He came to Jerusalem in the first place. Triumphal refers to triumph meaning victory. Jesus was victorious over death and sin. see this: Palm tree – (Heb. tamar), the date-palm characteristic of Palestine. It is described as “flourishing” (Ps. 92:12), tall (Cant. 7:7), “upright” (Jer. 10:5). Its branches are a symbol of victory (Rev. 7:9). “Rising with slender stem 40 or 50, at times even 80, feet aloft, its only branches, the feathery, snow-like, pale-green fronds from 6 to 12 feet long, bending from its top, the palm attracts the eye wherever it is seen.” The whole land of Palestine was called by the Greeks and Romans Phoenicia, i.e., “the land of palms.” Tadmor in the desert was called by the Greeks and Romans Palmyra, i.e., “the city of palms.” The finest specimens of this tree grew at Jericho (Deut. 34:3) and Engedi and along the banks of the Jordan. Branches of the palm tree were carried at the feast
On Palm Sunday Christians celebrate the Triumphal Entry of Jesus Christ into Jerusalem, the week before his death and resurrection. For many Christian churches, Palm Sunday, often referred to as “Passion Sunday,” marks the beginning of Holy Week, which concludes on Easter Sunday. The Bible reveals that when Jesus entered Jerusalem, the crowds greeted him with waving palm branches, and by covering his path with palm branches. Immediately following this great time of celebration in the ministry of Jesus, he begins his journey to the cross. The biblical account of Palm Sunday can be found in Matthew 21:1-11; Mark 11:1-11; Luke 19:28-44; and John 12:12-19.
Jesus had been there many times, as an infant and a young boy, and during his 3-year ministry. The people were looking for someone to deliver them from the oppression of the Roman Empire, of which Judea was a part. Jesus was very popular (until the authorities grabbed him, then all his supporters evaporated), and they hoped he’d be the one to lead them to freedom. They even called him their king. “On the next day much people that were come to the feast, when they heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem, Took branches of palm trees, and went forth to meet him, and cried, Hosanna: Blessed [is] the King of Israel that cometh in the name of the Lord.” John 12:12, 13 Triumphal == triumphant – indicating having won or conquered. Jesus was treated as if he’d conquered Rome already!
