WHEN the time was getting very close for the Lord Jesus to be crucified, He went up to Jerusalem, going among the Jews, whom He knew would take Him and kill Him. He did all this, because He loved us so much, and was going to die for us.
One day when He was at Bethany, Mary came with an alabaster box of very precious ointment, and as Jesus sat at supper, she poured the ointment on His head, and the whole room was filled with the sweet scent.
But Judas, the disciple who was going to betray Jesus, said it was a great waste to pour all that ointment on Jesus, for he said it might have been sold for the poor; but that was because Judas had the moneybag and was a thief.
Then Jesus told them all that Mary had done what she could for Him; that "she had anointed Him for His burial," and that in after years, all over the world, wherever the gospel should be preached, this should be told for a memorial of her!
Many of the Jews were at that supper, partly to see Jesus, and partly to see Lazarus, whom he had just raised from the dead.
When Jesus left Bethany, and drew near to the city, He sent on two of His disciples to find a colt for Him to ride on.
Our Lord knew everything beforehand, and He told them just where the colt was tied, and what they should say to the man to whom the colt belonged.
No one had ever ridden on this colt before, but Jesus, the Lord of Glory, did not have any trouble with it. They put their garments on the colt for a saddle, and so they set out towards Jerusalem.
Then the people ran before Him, casting down their clothes for him to ride over; others cut down branches of the trees, and strewed them along the path, crying out, "Blessed be the King that cometh in the name of the Lord!"
Some of the Jews were very angry, and asked Jesus to stop the disciples. But Jesus told them that "if they were to hold their peace, the very stones would cry out for joy!"