Zech 9:9 "Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold,
your King is coming to you; he is just and having salvation, lowly and riding
on a donkey, a colt, the foal of a donkey.
Matt 21:2-3 saying to them, "Go into the village opposite you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her. Loose them and bring them to Me. "And if anyone says anything to you, you shall say, `The Lord has need of them,' and immediately he will send them."
- Messiah will enter Jerusalem in great humility, on a donkey (the symbol of humility). The opposite of worldly power and self exaltation.
- Riding a donkey was a sign of the lowly character of Christ, since it was a despised thing to be seen riding on a donkey, put below the horse-rider.
- This was in contrast to the Grecian conqueror, Alexander the Great, in all his pomp and glory.
- Why were they to rejoice greatly and to shout? because "Behold, your King is coming to you"
- Daughter of Zion and daughter of Jerusalem both speak of Jerusalem and the people of God.
- To be "Just" was the first virtue of a good king.
- "Having salvation" speaks of being endowed with salvation (Heb. yesha), this word speaks of liberty, deliverance, prosperity, safety and salvation.
- The colt was an unbroken animal. It describes the ass of a young animal, but still running behind the she-asses made it even younger.
- "al-chamor we'al-'ayir ben-'athonoth" means literally, "on an ass, and on an ass's colt, the son of the wild-asses".
- War-chariots and horses speak of earthly (worldly) power.
- Kings, high priests, judges, and the richest people of ancient and modern times have ridden on donkeys.
- Donkeys were considered beautiful, strong, swift, surefooted and a beast of burden.
- Donkeys carry burdens of greater weight in proportion to their size than any other animal. They bear the burdens that we lay upon them.
- Donkey colts (Heb. Ayir) are also called foals, young donkeys, and colts in
the Bible.
- The Talmud states: "For the ass is not a more peaceful animal than the horse,
but a more vicious one" (Kliefoth), therefore the ass was more of a symbol of
lowliness than of peace.
Shahar - Zech 9:9 - Audio (right click and choose "save target as")