CLEANSING

D: THE VISION OF THE PROPHETS REGARDING JERUSALEM

ALL: Hear the uproar from the city, hear the noise from the temple!

D: The LORD declares,

ABC: “Shout and be glad, O Daughter of Zion.

C: For I am coming, and I will live among you.

A: Many nations will be joined with the LORD on that day
and will become my people.

ABC: Be still before the LORD, all mankind

B: because the LORD has roused himself from his holy dwelling.

A: On that day
ten men from all languages and nations will take firm hold
of one Jew by the hem of his robe and say,
‘Let us go with you, because we have heard that God is with you.’

B: On that day
a fountain of living water will be opened to the house of David
and the inhabitants of Jerusalem
to cleanse them from sin and impurity
to remove the sin of this land in a single day.
And God will pour out a spirit of grace and supplication.

C: On that day
HOLY TO THE LORD will be inscribed on the bells of the horses.
Every pot in Jerusalem and Judah will be holy to the LORD Almighty.

D: And on that day there will no longer be merchants
in the house of the LORD Almighty.

A: On that day
all foreigners who bind themselves to the LORD to serve him,
to love the name of the LORD, and to worship him,

B: all who keep the Sabbath without desecrating it
and who hold fast to my covenant-

A: these I will bring to my holy mountain, to Jerusalem and give them joy
in my house of prayer.

C: Their burnt offerings and sacrifices will be accepted on my altar;

A: for my house will be called a house of prayer for all nations.

D: A house of prayer for all nations.

ALL: On that day
all mankind will come and bow down before the LORD.

B: THE ENTRY INTO JERUSALEM

A: When it was almost time for the Jewish Passover, Jesus and his followers went up to Jerusalem. As they came to Bethphage on the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two disciples, saying to them,

C: “Go to the village ahead of you, and just as you enter it,
you will find a colt tied there, which no one has ever ridden.
Untie it and bring it here.

B: They brought the colt to Jesus and threw their cloaks over it,
and he sat on it. Many people spread their cloaks on the road,
while others spread branches they had cut in the fields.

When he came near the place where the road goes down the Mount of Olives, the whole crowd of disciples began joyfully to praise God in loud voices for all the miracles they had seen, including the raising of Lazarus:

ACD: “Hosanna! “

C: “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!”

D: ”Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David!”

ACD: “Hosanna in the highest!”

B: This took place to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet Zechariah:

A: ”Shout, Daughter of Jerusalem!
Watch, your king comes to you, righteous and having salvation,
gentle and riding on a colt.

D: He will proclaim peace to the nations.
His rule will extend from sea to sea
and from the River to the ends of the earth.

B: Some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to Jesus,

ACD: “Teacher, rebuke your disciples!”

B: Jesus replied,

C: ”I tell you, if they keep quiet, the stones will cry out.”

B: As he approached Jerusalem and saw the city, he wept over it and said,

C: “If you had only known on this day what would bring you peace
– but now it is hidden from your eyes.

A: Reform your ways and your actions,
and you will remain to live in this place.
Do not trust in deceptive words and say,

BD: “This is the temple of the LORD , the temple of the LORD ,
the temple of the LORD !”

A: If you really change your ways and your actions and deal with each other justly, in your hearts not thinking evil of each other, if you do not oppress the alien, the fatherless or the widow, and do not shed innocent blood in this place, and if you do not follow other gods to your own harm, then you will live in this place, in the land given your forefathers for ever and ever.
But it is plain, you are trusting in deceptive words that are worthless.

B: Jesus entered Jerusalem and went to the temple.
He looked around at everything.

A: In the court of the Gentiles Jesus found men selling cattle, sheep and doves, and others sitting at tables exchanging money.

C: For I endure scorn for your sake, and shame covers my face.
I am a stranger to my brothers, an alien to my own mother’s sons;

B: But it was already late, and so he went out to Bethany with the Twelve.

C: Zeal for your house consumes me,
and the insults of those who insult you fall on me.
When I weep and fast, I must endure scorn;
when I put on sackcloth, people make sport of me.
Those who sit at the gate mock me, and I am the song of drunkards.

A: THE CLEANSING OF THE TEMPLE

ALL: Hear the uproar from the city,
hear the noise from the temple!

A: When Jesus returned to Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred and asked,

BCD: “Who is this?”

A: The crowds answered,

BCD: “This is Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth in Galilee.”

B: May those who hope in you not be disgraced because of me, O Lord, the LORD Almighty; may those who seek you not be put to shame because of me, O God of Israel.

A: Jesus returned to the temple courts, where he had found the merchants. Then he made a whip out of cords, and drove out from the temple area all who were buying and selling there, as well as the sheep and cattle;
he scattered the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables.
To those who sold doves he said,

B: “Get these out of here!
How dare you turn my Father’s house into a market!
It is written, ‘My house will be called a house of prayer for all nations’

A: a house of prayer for all nations

B: but you are making it a ‘den of robbers.’”

C: His disciples remembered that it is written:
“Zeal for your house will consume me.”

D: And he would not allow anyone to carry merchandise
through the temple courts.

B: Save me, O God, for the waters have come up to my neck. I sink in the miry depths, where there is no foothold. I am worn out calling for help; my throat is parched. My eyes fail, looking for my God. Those who hate me without reason outnumber the hairs of my head; many are my enemies without cause, those who seek to destroy me. I am in pain and distress; may your salvation, O God, protect me.

C: JESUS TEACHING IN THE TEMPLE

A: While he was in Jerusalem at the Passover Feast,
Jesus was teaching every day at the temple.
The blind and the lame came to him, and he healed them.
Many people saw the miraculous signs he was doing and believed in his name.

D: But when the chief priests and the teachers of the law saw the wonderful things he did and the children shouting in the temple area,

ABD: “Hosanna to the Son of David,” [echo]

D: they were indignant.

A: ”Do you hear what these children are saying?”

C: “Yes,” replied Jesus, “have you never read,
‘From the lips of children and infants you have ordained praise’?
The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.
I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies,
it remains only a single seed.
But if it dies, it produces many seeds.
The man who loves his life will lose it,
while the man who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.

B: ”Now my heart is troubled. Do not hide your face from your servant;
You know how I am scorned, disgraced and shamed;
all my enemies are before you.
Scorn has broken my heart and has left me helpless;
t hey put gall in my food and gave me vinegar for my thirst.

D: But what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour’?
No, it was for this very reason I came to this hour.
Father, glorify your name!

A: I will praise God’s name in song and glorify him with thanksgiving.
This will please the LORD more than an ox,
more than a bull with its horns and hoofs.

D: The poor will see and be glad- those who seek God, may their hearts live!

A: The LORD hears the needy and does not despise his captive people.
Let heaven and earth praise him, the seas and all that move in them,
for God will save Zion and rebuild the cities of Judah.

C: Now is the time for judgment on this world;
now the prince of this world will be driven out.
But when I am lifted up from the earth, I will draw all men to myself.”

D: The chief priests and the teachers of the law heard this
and began looking for a way to kill him,
for they feared him,
because the whole crowd was amazed at his teaching
and hung on his every word.

C: And when evening came, he left them and went out of the city to Bethany,

B: where he spent the night.

composed by Jane and Doug Porter
2350 Clifton Street Halifax Nova Scotia Canada B3K 4V1
902/ 425-0051 dporter@eastlink.ca