I don't know why I was there, really. I just got caught up in it. It was pretty amazing though.
I'd been to Bethphage, and was walking back towards the city when I saw them. Most of them weren't anything to look at, but there was one of them who had something about him; I don't know if it was the way he stood, or something in his face, but there was that sort of intensity to him - do you know what I mean? Anyway, a couple of them came up to them, leading a colt. It was a bit skittish, nervous; you could tell it had never been ridden before. Maybe they'd just bought it, but I don't know why - none of them looked like they'd much experience of animals. Then they put some of their cloaks on it, and the man sat on the colt; immediately it seemed to settle down, as if it was the most natural thing in the world for this man to sit on it. And then the shouts starting going up: "Hosanna! Save us!"
Suddenly it was like I was in the middle of a procession. There were quite a few people there, and they started putting cloaks down in front of the colt, and cutting branches in the fields to put on the road, and all the while were all of the shouts: "Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!" I just got swept along. You couldn't help joining in - it was so joyful, so special. And then I realised something else: what this man was doing, he was saying that he was royalty! There he was, riding on something no-one else had ever ridden - well, that's a royal prerogative; there he was, being acclaimed by the crowd - some of them were even shouting something about restoring the Kingdom of David. And there he was, riding up to the gate of Jerusalem, a King come to take his throne.
Afterwards I got speaking to one of the crowd that'd come with him - a guy named Bartimaeus. He said he'd been with them since Jericho, and he had this amazing story - he was pretty much in rags, and said he had been blind and a beggar when this man, Jesus had passed by and healed him - and he was going to keep following him wherever he went. I have to say I was shocked; you don't get many miracles like that, and I'm not certain I believed him. But there must be something about Jesus, if people are prepared to follow him like that.
But now, it's almost like the whole thing was a dream. I suppose I'll hear more about him soon enough - you cant make an entrance like that and just fade into the background.....
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