What Really Happened on the First Palm Sunday by Rob Kerby

Jesus on a colt

Why did Jesus ride a colt? To fulfill the well-known prophecies, says Ron Ritchie writing for the Peninsula Bible Church in California. “The colt was an important symbol of our Lord's overall plan to officially present himself to the nation not only as the Messiah-King, but also as their prophetically promised Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9:6).” He would also fulfill the prophecy of Zechariah 9:9. But keep in mind that while Jesus was preparing to present himself to the nation as the long-awaited King of Israel and Savior of mankind, the chief priests were preparing to take counsel to seize and kill him (John 12:13).

They had been expecting a warrior king on a great white horse, followed by a large army that would overthrow the hated Roman Empire. So you can imagine the confusion on the part of some when they saw that their Messiah riding into Jerusalem on a donkey colt, a lowly but noble beast.