Mark11

Jesus enters Jerusalem triumphantly on a colt, acclaimed by the crowds with shouts of "Hosanna." He then cleanses the temple, overturning tables and rebuking those who made it a "den of thieves." Later, he curses a barren fig tree, which withers, and teaches his disciples about the power of faith and the importance of forgiveness. Finally, he silences the chief priests and elders who question his authority by posing a question they cannot answer.

The Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem

1
When they drew near to Jerusalem, to Bethsphage and Bethany, at the Mount of Olives, he sent two of his disciples, ​
2
and said to them, “Go your way into the village that is opposite you. Immediately as you enter into it, you will find a young donkey tied, on which no one has sat. Untie him, and bring him. ​
3
If anyone asks you, ‘Why are you doing this?’ say, ‘The Lord needs him;’ and immediately he will send him back here.” ​
4
They went away, and found a young donkey tied at the door outside in the open street, and they untied him.
5
Some of those who stood there asked them, “What are you doing, untying the young donkey?”
6
They said to them just as Yeshua had said, and they let them go.
7
They brought the young donkey to Yeshua, and threw their garments on it, and Yeshua sat on it.
8
Many spread their garments on the way, and others were cutting down branches from the trees, and spreading them on the road.
9
Those who went in front, and those who followed, cried out, “Hoshia'na! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! ​
10
Blessed is the kingdom of our father David that is coming in the name of the Lord! Hoshia'na in the highest!”
11
Yeshua entered into the temple in Jerusalem. When he had looked around at everything, it being now evening, he went out to Bethany with the twelve. ​

The Cursing of the Fig Tree

12
The next day, when they had come out from Bethany, he was hungry.
13
Seeing a fig tree afar off having leaves, he came to see if perhaps he might find anything on it. When he came to it, he found nothing but leaves, for it was not the season for figs. ​
14
Yeshua told it, “May no one ever eat fruit from you again!” and his disciples heard it.

Jesus Cleanses the Temple

15
They came to Jerusalem, and Yeshua entered into the temple, and began to throw out those who sold and those who bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the money changers, and the seats of those who sold the doves. ​
16
He would not allow anyone to carry a container through the temple.
17
He taught, saying to them, “Isn’t it written, ‘My house will be called a house of prayer for all the nations?’ But you have made it a den of robbers!” ​
18
The chief priests and the scribes heard it, and sought how they might destroy him. For they feared him, because all the multitude was astonished at his teaching. ​
19
When evening came, he went out of the city.

The Lesson on Faith and Forgiveness

20
As they passed by in the morning, they saw the fig tree withered away from the roots.
21
Peter, remembering, said to him, “Rabbi, look! The fig tree which you cursed has withered away.”
22
Yeshua answered them, “Have faith in God. ​
23
For most certainly I tell you, whoever may tell this mountain, ‘Be taken up and cast into the sea,’ and doesn’t doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says is happening; he shall have whatever he says. ​
24
Therefore I tell you, all things whatever you pray and ask for, believe that you have received them, and you shall have them.
25
Whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone; so that your Father, who is in heaven, may also forgive you your transgressions. ​
26
But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your transgressions.”

The Authority of Jesus Questioned

27
They came again to Jerusalem, and as he was walking in the temple, the chief priests, and the scribes, and the elders came to him,
28
and they began saying to him, “By what authority do you do these things? Or who gave you this authority to do these things?” ​
29
Yeshua said to them, “I will ask you one question. Answer me, and I will tell you by what authority I do these things.
30
The immersion of Yochanan—was it from heaven, or from men? Answer me.” ​
31
They reasoned with themselves, saying, “If we should say, ‘From heaven;’ he will say, ‘Why then did you not believe him?’
32
If we should say, ‘From men’”—they feared the people, for all held Yochanan to really be a prophet.
33
They answered Yeshua, “We don’t know.” Yeshua said to them, “Neither do I tell you by what authority I do these things.”

Study Notes for Mark 11

Verse 1

This event occurs on what is traditionally known as Palm Sunday, beginning the final week of Jesus’ earthly ministry. Bethphage and Bethany were small villages near Jerusalem, located on the eastern slope of the Mount of Olives.

Verse 2

Jesus’ specific instructions regarding the colt (especially that it had never been ridden) underscore his divine foreknowledge and control, symbolizing his sanctity and fulfilling the messianic prophecy of Zechariah 9:9.

Verse 3

The phrase 'the Lord hath need of him' functions as a divine command, immediately securing the cooperation of the animal’s owners and reinforcing Jesus’ sovereign authority.

Verse 9

The crowds recognized Jesus as the messianic King. 'Hosanna' (meaning 'Save, please!') became a liturgical shout of praise, paired with the greeting 'Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord' (Psalm 118:26).

Verse 11

Jesus does not immediately act, but observes the temple activity. Mark emphasizes that Jesus surveys the scene before returning to Bethany, highlighting the deliberate nature of his later judgment and cleansing.

Verse 13

Fig trees normally produced early fruit (taqsh) before the main harvest. The tree’s leaves signaled the expectation of fruit; finding none, Jesus pronounces a symbolic judgment. The fig tree often represents unfaithful Israel, which had the outward appearance ('leaves') of piety but lacked the spiritual 'fruit' (righteousness).

Verse 15

This act was a prophetic protest against the commercialization and corruption of worship. The marketplace was located in the Court of the Gentiles, impeding non-Jews from accessing the designated area for prayer.

Verse 17

Jesus quotes Isaiah 56:7 ('house of prayer for all nations') and Jeremiah 7:11 ('den of thieves'). He asserts that the temple’s purpose was to facilitate universal prayer, not to serve as a hub for financial exploitation and unjust gain.

Verse 18

The cleansing of the Temple constituted a direct challenge to the authority and revenue of the chief priests and Sadducees, solidifying their decision to seek Jesus' destruction.

Verse 22

Jesus pivots the focus from the miracle itself (the withered tree) to the source of the power: complete and unwavering reliance on God.

Verse 23

'This mountain' is hyperbole, meaning any seemingly insurmountable obstacle. The promise is conditional on belief that is absolute, without doubt in the heart.

Verse 25

Jesus links powerful faith directly to the necessity of interpersonal forgiveness. Unforgiveness acts as a barrier to effective prayer and hinders the believer's reception of God’s forgiveness.

Verse 28

The religious leaders demand to know the source of Jesus’ authority to perform the acts of a king and prophet (the Triumphal Entry and the Temple cleansing).

Verse 30

By asking about John the Baptist, Jesus forces his opponents into an impossible dilemma, exposing their unwillingness to acknowledge divine truth for fear of public opinion.

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