THE WEEPING MESSIAH
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41 And when he drew near and saw the city, he wept over it, 42 saying, “Would that you, even you, had known on this day the things that make for peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes. 43 For the days will come upon you, when your enemies will set up a barricade around you and surround you and hem you in on every side 44 and tear you down to the ground, you and your children within you. And they will not leave one stone upon another in you, because you did not know the time of your visitation.”
I. GRIEVING FOR UNBELIEF
A. Luke 19:41 (ESV) — And when he drew near and saw the city, he wept over it…
41 And when he drew near and saw the city, he wept over it,
B. In the Scriptures we find that Jesus wept at least three times.
C. In each case his heart is revealed to us.
D. John 11:35 (ESV) — 35 Jesus wept.
35 Jesus wept.
E. This occurred as Jesus was coming to raise Lazarus up from the grave.
F. (Think of the certainty that Jesus had concerning what he was about to do so that we see that Jesus’ tears were an expression of his hatred of the impact of sin with all of its fruit).
G. Hebrews 5:7 (ESV) — 7 In the days of his flesh, Jesus offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears, to him who was able to save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverence.
7 In the days of his flesh, Jesus offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears, to him who was able to save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverence.
H. This concerns the garden prayer.
I. Here the tears expressed his grief of being cut off from the Father’s presence and fellowship, but being willing to move forward.
J. Our text speaks to the heart of mercy that moves him to express his desire (42 “Would that you, even you, had known on this day the things that make for peace”), but also acknowledge his justice (vs’s 43-44).
K. The word translated wept is the strongest word in the Greek language for weeping. It denotes Jesus’ agonized sobbing over their superficiality, hypocrisy, shallowness, and rejection of Him—and the inevitable divine wrath that would follow. The peace of which the Lord spoke was not political peace with enemies, or social peace in Israel, but peace with God. The things that make for that peace are repentance, faith in Christ, and believing the message of salvation that He had preached throughout His ministry. This day refers not to that Monday, but to the entire time of His presence among them.[1]
L. He grieved over their unbelief.
M. Luke 19:42–44 (ESV) — 42 saying, “Would that you, even you, had known on this day the things that make for peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes. …44 and tear you down to the ground, you and your children within you. And they will not leave one stone upon another in you, because you did not know the time of your visitation.”
N. John 12:40 (ESV) — 40 “He has blinded their eyes and hardened their heart, lest they see with their eyes, and understand with their heart, and turn, and I would heal them.”
O. John 1:10–11 (ESV) — 10 He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him. 11 He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him.
P. He was grieved because of their coming destruction.
Q. Our Lord is full of mercy. He longs to be merciful.
R. Lamentations 3:22 (ESV) — 22 The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end;…31–33 (ESV) — 31 For the Lord will not cast off forever, 32 but, though he cause grief, he will have compassion according to the abundance of his steadfast love; 33 for he does not afflict from his heart or grieve the children of men.
S. Did he not say, “He that hath seen me hath seen the Father”? Here, then, you see the Father himself, even he who said of old, “As I live, saith the Lord God, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but that the wicked turn from his way and live.” The doom must be pronounced, for infinite justice demands it, but mercy laments what she was not permitted to prevent. Tears fall amid the thunders, and though the doom be sealed by obstinate impenitence, yet judgment is evidently strange work to the patient Judge. [2]
II. GRIEVING FOR FUTURE JUDGMENT
A. Luke 19:43 For the days will come upon you, when your enemies will set up a barricade around you and surround you and hem you in on every side 44 and tear you down to the ground, you and your children within you. And they will not leave one stone upon another in you, because you did not know the time of your visitation.”
B. The tears of Jesus were for the people as he rode into Jerusalem, but also for the future judgment on their unbelief in 40 years.
C. Is anything sadder than someone who comes close to touching Jesus but never grabs hold of him by faith? It broke the Savior’s heart, especially because he knew how much they would suffer for rejecting his grace. This added to his sorrow. Jesus did not grieve for their rejection only, but also for the suffering it would bring. [3]
D. Oh the tender heart of Christ, that when it comes to pronouncing the inevitable sentence, “Your house is left unto you desolate,” yet he cannot utter the righteous word without lamentation.[4]
E. Jesus’ words were prophetic for Jerusalem and its people.
F. Roman soldiers under Titus did exactly what Jesus said would happen.
G. A barricade around them, surrounding them and the city, hemming them on every side. The city was torn down and the people died within the city. The stones were broken apart.
H. Now Jesus had come in the name of the Lord, to the praise of all the people: “And when he drew near and saw the city, he wept over it” (Luke 19:41). It seemed like a day of triumph for Jesus, but as he made his ascent to Jerusalem and the holy city came into view, he lifted a loud lament. His soul was grieving, even wailing for the rejection of his people and the judgment they would suffer for their sins.[5]
I. One day they will see and believe.
J. Zechariah 12:10 (ESV) — 10 “And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and pleas for mercy, so that, when they look on me, on him whom they have pierced, they shall mourn for him, as one mourns for an only child, and weep bitterly over him, as one weeps over a firstborn.
K. Brothers and sisters, if we would have others come to Jesus we must be like Jesus in tenderness; we must be meek, lowly, gentle, and sympathetic, and we must be moved to deep emotion at the thought that any should perish. Never let us speak of the doom of the wicked harshly, flippantly, or without holy grief: the loss of heaven and the endurance of hell must always be themes for tears. That men should live without Christ is grief enough; but that they should die without Christ is an overwhelming horror, which should grind our hearts to powder before God and make us fall on our faces and cry, “O God, have mercy upon them, and save them, for thy grace and for thy love’s sake.”[6]
[1] MacArthur, J. (2014). Luke 18–24 (p. 98). Chicago, IL: Moody Publishers.
[2] Spurgeon, C. H. (1880). The Lamentations of Jesus. In The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit Sermons (Vol. 26, pp. 665–666). London: Passmore & Alabaster.
[3] Ryken, P. G. (2009). Luke. (R. D. Phillips, P. G. Ryken, & D. M. Doriani, Eds.) (Vol. 2, p. 341). Phillipsburg, NJ: P&R Publishing.
[4] Spurgeon, C. H. (1880). The Lamentations of Jesus. In The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit Sermons (Vol. 26, p. 665). London: Passmore & Alabaster.
[5] Ryken, P. G. (2009). Luke. (R. D. Phillips, P. G. Ryken, & D. M. Doriani, Eds.) (Vol. 2, p. 340). Phillipsburg, NJ: P&R Publishing.
[6] Spurgeon, C. H. (1880). The Lamentations of Jesus. In The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit Sermons (Vol. 26, pp. 666–667). London: Passmore & Alabaster.