Riding on a donkey

Matthew 21:4-5 - This took place to fulfill the words of the prophet: Tell the daughter of Zion, "Look! Your king is coming to you, humble, and mounted on a donkey, the foal of a donkey."

Question: Was Jesus so weird that he would ride on a donkey and a foal at the same time? Who does that? It would be incredibly awkward. ... Okay, now that I'm done laughing, let me explain what is going on. Jesus may give strange instructions and teachings, but he is not going to try to ride two animals of differing heights at once. He is not a stunt man or a clown. Matthew is quoting the prophet Zechariah, which is written in Hebrew. In fact, it's Hebrew poetry. Matthew either didn't know or ignored one prominent fact about Hebrews and their poetry: they loved repeating themselves! Sometimes it's a repeat of the idea with different words; sometimes it's a repeat with an extension of the idea. For example, Psalm 5:3 -

O Lord, in the morning you hear my prayer,
In the morning, I plead my case to you.

It's the same idea using different words. No, Jesus did not ride two animals at once. The idea Zechariah was getting at was that Jesus wasn't even riding a donkey, but rather the foal of a donkey! Humble.

Biblical Hebrew lesson part 2: the daughter of Zion is a poetic expression for Jerusalem. So Jesus is riding into Jerusalem on a colt. But why? Yes, to fulfill the words of the prophet, but why ride? Why not walk? Because Matthew is describing a parody of a Roman triumph. A triumph was a Roman way of honoring soldiers after a victory. there would be a huge parade, the commander of the victorious army would ride into Rome wearing a crown of laurel leaves amid much pomp and circumstance. It was both a great honor for the general and a celebration of Roman might. As you may have guessed, it is the precursor to our own victory parades.

So, Jesus is staging a parody of a Roman triumph with himself as king. This was a subversive act; one that would have made the Pharisee leaders extremely nervous. As nervous as it would make 45 today. Jesus is proclaiming that he, not Caesar, is the rightful king, one that is humble rather than proud and arrogant. One that will serve the people rather than money, fame, or power. It was a protest of the injustices Israel suffered at the hands of the Roman emperor. It was sedition.