In three dramatic scenes, the actions of Jesus speak louder than words. The long-awaited King has come to claim His kingdom. Irony set the stage at His entrance to the capital. When He suddenly appeared in His temple He was met with robbery. Now, in the last of these highly symbolic scenes of action, Jesus demonstrates the most eccentric of all His miracles. In the strokes of an acted prophetic parable, the anger of the Son—the Lord’s Anointed—is kindled but a little. More than some emotional exhibition we are to see that the Christ “came to his own, and his own people did not receive him.” We are to understand that this was highly offensive to His Majesty.

Jesus is the Messiah—meek and mighty, humble and holy. Deliberately and dramatically, He has presented Himself to Jerusalem, Israel’s headquarters for spiritual and political leadership. Now, He moves to the center. His actions boldly demand notice. His movements and manners are very symbolic, revealing His person and place. The scene of Jesus cleansing the temple is richly significant to the whole drama of His coming from heaven. In a stunning demonstration, Jesus fulfills and foreshadows prophecies that feature His most telling claims. Jesus is the LORD, suddenly come to His temple. And what He finds is a den of robbers—robbing Christ of the glory that belongs to Him.

The fullness of time had come. Jesus now presents Himself publicly as the long-awaited King to the capital city, Jerusalem. It is the first formal presentation of Jesus as the Christ. The whole scene is deliberately dramatic and intentionally ironic. Oxford defines irony as “a condition of affairs or events of a character opposite to what was, or might naturally be, expected.” Irony often prepares the observer for a contradictory outcome of events. This is precisely what is presented in this remarkable scene. Jesus’ sovereign majesty cloaked in deep humility, the crowds’ exuberant acclaim of Him, and both the city’s reaction and the crowds’ response are all highly ironic. The careful observer will stand in awe of this prophetic procession of the Prince of Peace entering His capital “city of peace” in a sort of acted parable. All serves to stress Jerusalem’s question, “Who is this?” The very nature of Christ and His kingship are being revealed. Tradition labels the scene “triumphal”—context suggests “ironic.”

Peter missed it. James and John missed it. There is no place for pride or proud merit in the kingdom. No one will have eternal life and kingdom rewards but by mercy through Christ and Him crucified. With masterful subtlety, this passage presents a moving climax to what has gone before and brilliantly prepares the path for what lies ahead. The self-important are blind to their need and the needs of others—they fail to see the majesty of Christ and feel His mercy. Self-seeking is contrary to the King who champions compassion. Here Jesus puts His deep humility on display. We see Him serving the last, not being served. He exercises His great power for mercy. Even here paradox is pictured. Indeed, the first will be last, the rich can be poor, and the blind may see better than all of Israel. Here the blind clamoring of the disciples for first place is silenced by the seeing cry of blind men for mercy alone.

It is about redefining greatness. It does place an emphasis on service. It most certainly stresses Christ’s cross for both propitiation and pattern. But this passage unveils still more. It reveals more of Christ and consequently we are more exposed. With penetrating paradox irony saturates the scene. Misunderstanding marks the most enlightened. Desires are disclosed. Emotions run high. And in this moment the demonstration of a more extreme contrast of character is scarcely possible. It depicts the enigma of the first and last. It explains the means of grace. Here, the King speaks of His redemption crown and His crucifixion throne. Pride is unmasked to show its dreadful ugliness as Christ displays His humble beauty.

The kingdom of heaven is like a scandalous situation. That is the point of the parable. The impossibility of salvation with man immediately before (19:26) and the cross of Christ immediately after (20:17-19) couches this parable in a profound context. Jesus is illustrating the principle given in response to Peter: God is debtor to none. But here, He goes still further. God is gracious to whom He wills. Mercy, not merit is our only plea. Jesus shows that the self-righteous (“the first”) are outraged by grace. Grace is outrageous to those who work hard and sacrifice and suffer to receive a payoff. Yet, the outrage of “the first” is best seen in connection with “the last.” This story brings out the unfairness of God’s grace. It is a parable designed to offend the proud and self-sufficient. It foretells the offense of Christ and the scandal of the cross. It explains why the offer of the kingdom is offensive—even outrageous.

If earthly riches profit nothing at death, then is there profit in sacrificing them? Can a person secure a heavenly reward by earthly renunciation? On behalf of the disciples, Peter responds to Jesus’ dealings with the rich young man. He boldly asserts that they have done what he would not. But more than this, he inquires about their reward. What is the payoff for leaving everything to follow Jesus? Though Jesus responds gently, the question remains unsettling. At best it exposes Peter’s uncertainty and seems to model misunderstanding. It sounds mercenary. Jesus’ answer both confirms that an immeasurable blessing is promised to those who follow Him and cautions against all deluded forms of self-seeking along with all notions of merit. No one serves their Creator, Lord, and Redeemer simply in order to obtain a reward. Yes, it is costly to follow Jesus. Yet, eternal life is the gift of God at the cost of Christ. His gift is ridiculously disproportionate to our loss. Not to mention that whatever we sacrifice for Christ is but a stewardship—even our life is not our own. God owes us nothing. He is a debtor to none.

The way of the kingdom is not paved by earthly success or status, riches or religion, money or morality. Here, Jesus turns popular belief on its head. The kingdom belongs to such as are—in this world—pitied, not envied (19:14; also 1 Corinthians 15:19). And this is ultimately linked with what one treasures. Personal hope and assurance of belonging to the kingdom has more to do with what one treasures in life and in death, now and then. It has to do with who or what one serves as God. One’s gain at death correlates with one’s God in life. So, what this passage exalts is the most stunning of all that it reveals.