View of Modern Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives
The Mount of Olives, or Olivet, is part of an elevated ridge to the east of Jerusalem, known for its groves of olive trees. Sometimes it has been a place of the weeping of kings. David wept upon it as he fled Jerusalem to escape from Absalom (2 Sam. 15:30). Though David was the rightful king of Israel, his sins with Bathsheba had come home to roost, and now he must flee for his life while his own son sought to murder him and take his kingdom.
A thousand years later, the Lord Jesus Christ crossed the Mount of Olives, riding into Jerusalem on a donkey’s colt as a visible sign that the promised King had come (Zech. 9:9). Though cheering crowds greeted Him, when He crested the ridge and saw Jerusalem, He “wept over it” (Luke 19:41), for He knew that once again the people would reject their King. Yet Christ did not suffer rejection because of His own sins, as David did, but for the sins of His people (Isa. 53:8). He gave His blood to fulfill the promises of the new covenant and bring sinners into holy relationship with God (Luke 22:20; Jer. 31:33–34). Jesus wept not for Himself, for He knew that His kingdom would come, but for the sinners who rejected Him, blind as they were, because He knew that God’s sword would fall upon Jerusalem and devastate it (Luke 19:42–44).
To stand upon the Mount of Olives today and look towards Jerusalem is to remember the tears of the King for lost sinners. Have His tears touched our eyes? Our heart? Can we say with Paul that we have strong desires, great sorrow, and fervent prayers for the salvation of the Jewish people (Rom. 9:1; 10:1)—and all nations where people still live in spiritual blindness?
However, the Mount of Olives is not always a place of weeping in the Bible. It also is a place of blessing and rejoicing (Luke 24:49–53; Acts 1:8–12). It was here that Christ’s feet last touched the earth. Here Christ promised the empowerment of the Holy Spirit for the worldwide gospel mission, raised His hands to bless His disciples, and was taken up into the clouds to ascend to heaven. The disciples returned to Jerusalem with great joy, praising and blessing God.
If we too are disciples of Jesus Christ, then the Mount of Olives reminds us that we too have great cause for joy. Our King is seated at the right hand of God in heaven. He blesses us as our exalted Priest, pouring out all the blessings He won for us when He took the curse for our sins. And He is our living Prophet, proclaiming the Word to Jew and Gentile as His Spirit works through His faithful witnesses. Christ will come back just as He left, and therefore our message to the world is not one of despair, but of hope and joy in a victorious King.
