Gentleness in Action

Setting and Overview
The end of Matthew 20 concludes the two chapters covering Jesus and disciples traveling from Galilee to Jerusalem, with Matthew 21 beginning with the triumphal entry. The stories that comprise that section, from the healing of the two blind men to the healings in the temple courts provide a vivid picture of Jesus’ earthly ministry, and a model of the gentleness and humility that Christians today are called to emulate.

Exposition
As Jesus and the disciples likely leave ancient Jericho and enter into modern Jericho (Luke 18:35, Mark 10:46), two blind men call out to Jesus, using strikingly similar language to the earlier account in Matthew 9:27-31. The proclamation by the blind men of Jesus’ messianic identity (Isaiah 35:5-6) stands in stark contrast to the priests and experts in the law. Despite the attempts by the crowd to silenced the two men, they are persistent and succeed in getting Jesus’ attention. When Jesus sees their need, he is moved with compassion (Matthew 9:36, 14:14, 15:32) and grants them sight. Unlike the previous incident where he instructs them to remain silent, the time for his public revelation is at hand, and so the men instead follow him.
Soon after, Jesus and the disciples come near to Jerusalem, and Jesus takes deliberate steps to publicly accept recognition as the Messiah. Not only does he tell his disciples to identify him as Lord to third parties, but the context is their securing a donkey on which he will ride into Jerusalem. This act would be recognized by the crowd not only as the actions of the Messiah (Zechariah 9:9-10) but also of a king announcing peace. The disciples follow his instructions, and as he rides in, further acknowledgements are made by the crowd. These include acknowledging him as king by spreading their cloaks on the ground (II Kings 9:3), cutting palm branches from the tree to celebrate a national victory (John 12:13), and quoting from the Hallel (Psalm 118:25-26.) The agitation of the local population sets them apart from the crowd and anticipates their opposition later in the week.
After first surveying the temple courts and then leaving for Bethany for the night, the next day (Mark 11:12-15) Jesus enters the temple courts and drove out those buying and selling and exchanging money. Although these practices were inappropriate in the temple court, an interference to reverent worship, and likely involved taking advantage of people, none of those are the focus of the scriptures that Jesus references as his reason. He first quotes Isaiah 56:7, where there is a picture of the temple being a place for all nations to come to worship the true God, and then quotes Jeremiah 7:11, where the people are warned because they are trusting the temple to save them although they are using it as a tool for their wickedness. Because these activities were happening in the Court of the Gentiles, they were a particular nuisance to foreigners – the exact opposite of the intent if Isaiah 56:4-7. In addition, because the temple had become a tool for personal and political gain, it represented an exchange of the spiritual intent of the temple for a secular one.
Jesus actions, despite their force, are not a deterrent for the blind and lame to come to him for healing, and the healing that follows in 21:14 is not only the last in Matthew, but also very significant. After having cleansed the temple, he now is removing the physical obstacle that prevented these individuals from full access to the temple (Leviticus 21:18-19.) In doing so, he is again demonstrating something that he revealed by healing the leper in Matthew 8: he is greater than the temple because he can make clean in a way that the temple could not. So, he not only has authority over the temple, but he is greater than the temple (Matthew 12:6, John 2:19-22.) After these healing miracles, the children shout out in a similar way to how the adults did as Jesus’ entered Jerusalem. The priests and experts are upset by this, but Jesus responds by quoting Psalm 8:2, not only giving scriptural basis for the appropriateness of sincere praise coming from humble origins with limited understanding of what they are saying, but also identifying himself with God.

Examination and Application
In Matthew 11:28-30, Jesus describes his heart as gentle and lowly, attributes that are then commanded of all believers repeatedly in Scripture. While some would view those attributes as only being true at times, others would more fully embrace a worldly version of both. Neither is accurate. Jesus is gently and lowly in his very heart, meaning that he perfectly demonstrated them throughout his life. At the same time, a true understanding of both words does not indicate weakness, avoidance of conflict, or passivity. Instead, Jesus perfectly modeled compassion in action, strength and power exercised in complete control to achieve his purpose. While this is an impossible standard for us to reach, it nonetheless is the model that we must keep in mind as we seek to live out such commands for us throughout Scripture (Ephesians 4:-3, Titus 3:2, II Timothy 2:24-25, Galatians 6:1.) In doing so, we also are more prepared to proclaim a Jesus who can demonstrate his power and authority in such a vivid way, and yet still draw those in need to himself.