Orthodox Devotional — Sunday, April 5, 2026
- Orthodox Devotional — Sunday, April 5, 2026
Orthodox Devotional — Sunday, April 5, 2026
The Entry of Our Lord into Jerusalem · Palm Sunday
Today’s Commemorations
🌿 THE ENTRY OF OUR LORD INTO JERUSALEM — PALM SUNDAY
One of the Twelve Great Feasts of the Orthodox Church
Also commemorated today:
- Martyrs Agathopodes the Deacon and Theodulus the Reader, at Thessalonica (ca. 303)
- Venerable Publius of Egypt (4th c.)
- Saints Theonas, Simeon, and Phorbinus, of Egypt (4th c.)
- Venerable Mark the Anchorite, of Athens (400)
- St. Plato the Confessor, of Studion (814)
- Venerable Theodora of Thessalonica (892)
- Translation of the Relics of St. Job, Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia (1652)
Scripture Readings
Genesis 49:1-2, 8-12 — Jacob’s Prophecy of Judah
The Septuagint text (Orthodox Study Bible)
Now Jacob called his sons and said, “Gather together, that I may tell you what shall befall you in the last days:
“Gather together and hear, you sons of Jacob, And listen to Israel your father.
“Judah, you are he whom your brothers shall praise; Your hand shall be on the neck of your enemies; Your father’s sons shall bow down before you. Judah is a lion’s cub; From being a shoot, my son, you have grown up. He bows down, and slept as a lion and a cub; And who shall rouse him? The scepter shall not depart from Judah, Nor a lawgiver from his loins, Until Shiloh comes; And to Him shall be the expectation of the nations. Binding his colt to a vine, And his donkey’s colt to its branch, He will wash his garments in wine, And his clothes in the blood of grapes. His eyes are gladdened from the wine, And his teeth are whiter than milk.”
Zephaniah 3:14-19 — Rejoicing in Zion
“Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Cry aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem! Be glad and rejoice with your whole heart, O daughter of Jerusalem! The Lord has taken away your iniquities and ransomed you from your enemies. The Lord, the King of Israel, is in your midst; you will no longer see any evil. At that time the Lord shall say to Jerusalem, ’O Zion, be of good courage; do not let your hands grow slack. The Lord your God is with you. The Mighty One shall save you. He shall bring gladness upon you and will renew you with His love. He will delight over you with joy as in a day of feasting. I shall gather together your broken ones. Alas! who has taken up a reproach against her?
“‘Behold, at that time I will act among you for your sake,’ says the Lord. ‘I will save the oppressed and welcome those being rejected. I will make them a praise and renowned throughout the whole earth. And they shall be put to shame in that day when I do well with you, at the time when I shall receive you, for I will make you praised and renowned among all the peoples of the earth when I return your captivity,’ says the Lord.”
Zechariah 9:9-15 — The Coming King
“Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Proclaim it aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your King comes to you; He is righteous and saving; He is gentle and mounted upon a donkey, even a young foal. He will utterly destroy the chariots out of Ephraim and the horse out of Jerusalem. The bow of war shall be utterly destroyed, and there shall be abundance and peace among the nations. He shall rule over the waters as far as the sea and over the rivers to the ends of the earth.
“And by the blood of your covenant, you freed your prisoners from the pit having no water. You prisoners from the congregation, you shall live in the fortress, and for one day of your exile, I will repay to you double. For I have bent you, O Judah, for Myself as a bow; I have filled Ephraim. And I will arouse your sons, O Zion, against the sons of the Greeks, and I will handle you as the sword of a warrior.” And the Lord will be over them, and He shall go forth like a lightning bolt. The Lord Almighty shall sound with the trumpet and shall go forth with the tumult of His threat. The Lord Almighty will shield them, and they shall devour their enemy and overwhelm them with sling-stones.“
Matthew 21:1-11, 15-17 — Palm Sunday: The Messianic King
Now when they drew near Jerusalem, and came to Bethphage, at the Mount of Olives, then Jesus sent two disciples, 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.”
All this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying: “Tell the daughter of Zion, ‘Behold, your King is coming to you, lowly, and sitting on a donkey, a colt, the foal of a donkey.’”
So the disciples went and did as Jesus commanded them. They brought the donkey and the colt, laid their clothes on them, and set Him on them. And a very great multitude spread their clothes on the road; others cut down branches from the trees and spread them on the road. Then the multitudes who went before and those who followed cried out, saying:
“Hosanna to the Son of David!
‘Blessed is He who comes in the name of the LORD!’
Hosanna in the highest!”And when He had come into Jerusalem, all the city was moved, saying, “Who is this?” So the multitudes said, “This is Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth of Galilee.”
[vv. 15-17]
But when the chief priests and scribes saw the wonderful things that He did, and the children crying out in the temple and saying, “Hosanna to the Son of David!” they were indignant and said to Him, “Do You hear what these are saying?”
And Jesus said to them, “Yes. Have you never read, *‘Out of the mouth of babes and nursing infants You have perfected praise’?”*
Then He left them and went out of the city to Bethany, and He lodged there.
Philippians 4:4-9 — Rejoice in the Lord Always
Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice!
Let your gentleness be known to all men. The Lord is at hand.
Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things. The things which you learned and received and heard and saw in me, these do, and the God of peace will be with you.
John 12:1-18 — The Anointing and the Triumph of Palm Sunday
Then, six days before the Passover, Jesus came to Bethany, where Lazarus was who had been dead, whom He had raised from the dead. There they made Him a supper; and Martha served, but Lazarus was one of those who sat at the table with Him. Then Mary took a pound of very costly oil of spikenard, anointed the feet of Jesus, and wiped His feet with her hair. And the house was filled with the fragrance of the oil.
But one of His disciples, Judas Iscariot, Simon’s son, who would betray Him, said, “Why was this fragrant oil not sold for three hundred denarii and given to the poor?” This he said, not that he cared for the poor, but because he was a thief, and had the money box; and he used to take what was put in it.
But Jesus said, “Let her alone; she has kept this for the day of My burial. For the poor you have with you always, but Me you do not have always.”
Now a great many of the Jews knew that He was there; and they came, not for Jesus’ sake only, but that they might also see Lazarus, whom He had raised from the dead. But the chief priests plotted to put Lazarus to death also, because on account of him many of the Jews went away and believed in Jesus.
The next day a great multitude that had come to the feast, when they heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem, took branches of palm trees and went out to meet Him, and cried out:
“Hosanna! ‘Blessed is He who comes in the name of the LORD!’ The King of Israel!”
Then Jesus, when He had found a young donkey, sat on it; as it is written: “Fear not, daughter of Zion; behold, your King is coming, sitting on a donkey’s colt.”
His disciples did not understand these things at first; but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things were written about Him and that they had done these things to Him.
Therefore the people, who were with Him when He called Lazarus out of his tomb and raised him from the dead, bore witness. For this reason the people also met Him, because they heard that He had done this sign.
Orthodox Study Bible Commentary
On the Prophecies Fulfilled Today
Genesis 49:8-12 — “The Holy Spirit prophesies by Jacob concerning the last days… These prophecies relate to Christ in numerous ways: He would rise from the dead (‘who shall rouse Him,’ v. 9), and He would be the Lawgiver (v. 10). For every law of God the Father given to man, including the Mosaic Law, is given in and through Him.”
The image of the colt bound to the vine (v. 11) was seen by the early Fathers as directly prophesying the Palm Sunday entry — Christ’s colt, and His coming as the fulfillment of all the promises to the house of Judah.
On the Triumphal Entry (Matthew 21 / John 12)
21:2 — “Matthew reports a colt as well as a donkey. The Fathers see the two animals as representing the faithful Jews and the Gentiles who are brought together in the Kingdom. At Vespers of Palm Sunday, we sing: ‘Your riding on a foal prefigured how the untamed and uninstructed Gentiles would pass from unbelief to faith.’”
21:8 — “The people who spread their clothes before Jesus did so as paying reverence to a King. It is spiritually interpreted as our need to lay down our flesh, and indeed our very lives, for Christ.”
21:9 — “This cry comes from Psalm 117:25-26, which was associated with messianic expectation. It was recited daily for six days during the Feast of Tabernacles, and seven times on the seventh day as branches were waved. Hosanna means, ‘Save, we pray!’”
21:15-16 — “‘Keep the feast with the children, and holding branches in your hands, sing Hosanna’—so we declare at Vespers of Palm Sunday. Many liturgical hymns of this day emphasize the perfect praise of the children, which unlike that of the adults, was innocent, fitting, unashamed, and from hearts of pure love. We are called to glorify Christ in the same spirit. In contrast, the adults’ praise carried earthly expectations and agendas which, when left unfulfilled, led them to rebel against Jesus just five days later.“
On the Anointing (John 12:3-8)
12:3-8 — “Judas spoke from greed, while the others spoke from the virtue of charity. That Jesus put a thief in charge of the money shows that by every means He attempted to save Judas: He fulfilled Judas’ lust for money; He allowed Judas to exercise apostolic authority; He washed Judas’ feet with the other disciples; and He allowed him to partake at the table of the Mystical Supper. Yet Judas could never overcome his greed.”
On the Two Comings of Christ
From the OSB note on Palm Sunday (Zechariah and the Psalms):
“On Palm Sunday, Jesus enters Jerusalem as a humble servant-King on the foal of a donkey. He willingly and without hesitation, doubt, or fear accepts the extreme humiliation of the Cross. Above His head is written, ‘King of the Jews.’
At His Second Coming, foretold in Old Testament prophecy, Christ will come as the all-conquering King of kings to execute judgment, destroy the forces of evil, and establish an everlasting peace… In the apocalyptic vision of the Apostle John, Christ’s title is: ‘KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS’ (Rev 19:16).
We have a Prophet who is the Truth, a Priest whose eternal offering is accepted by the Father and received by us, and a King who will rule and reign forever over His Kingdom.“
Reflection for Palm Sunday
Today the Church stands at the threshold of Holy Week — the most sacred days of the Christian year. The crowds who welcomed Christ with palms and “Hosanna!” did not fully understand what kind of King had come. They longed for a political deliverer. He came instead as the Lamb who takes away the sin of the world.
Mary of Bethany understood something the disciples did not yet grasp. She anointed Him for burial while the world cheered His arrival. The fragrance of her spikenard filled the entire house — a foreshadowing of the incense that will fill tombs and churches through the ages.
The children praised without agenda. The earth spread its palms. The prophets’ words, spoken centuries before, were fulfilled in a single afternoon procession down the Mount of Olives.
Paul’s word to the Philippians echoes across the centuries into this morning: “Rejoice in the Lord always — again I will say, rejoice.” Not because things are easy. Not because the road ahead is clear. But because the King is at hand.
“Fear not, daughter of Zion; behold, your King is coming.” (Jn 12:15)
Hosanna to the Son of David!
Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!
Hosanna in the highest!
🌿
Source: The Orthodox Study Bible (Thomas Nelson, 2008). Readings from the Orthodox Church in America (OCA) lectionary for April 5, 2026.