John 12:12-36 | Three Pictures of the King
Zechariah 9:9-13
The Coming King of Zion
9 Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion!
Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem!
Behold, your king is coming to you;
righteous and having salvation is he,
humble and mounted on a donkey,
on a colt, the foal of a donkey.
10 I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim
and the war horse from Jerusalem;
and the battle bow shall be cut off,
and he shall speak peace to the nations;
his rule shall be from sea to sea,
and from the River to the ends of the earth.
11 As for you also, because of the blood of my covenant with you,
I will set your prisoners free from the waterless pit.
12 Return to your stronghold, O prisoners of hope;
today I declare that I will restore to you double.
13 For I have bent Judah as my bow;
I have made Ephraim its arrow.
I will stir up your sons, O Zion,
against your sons, O Greece,
and wield you like a warrior’s sword.
John 12:12-36
The Triumphal Entry
12 The next day the large crowd that had come to the feast heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem. 13 So they took branches of palm trees and went out to meet him, crying out, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel!” 14 And Jesus found a young donkey and sat on it, just as it is written,
15 “Fear not, daughter of Zion;
behold, your king is coming,
sitting on a donkey’s colt!”
16 His disciples did not understand these things at first, but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things had been written about him and had been done to him. 17 The crowd that had been with him when he called Lazarus out of the tomb and raised him from the dead continued to bear witness. 18 The reason why the crowd went to meet him was that they heard he had done this sign. 19 So the Pharisees said to one another, “You see that you are gaining nothing. Look, the world has gone after him.”
Some Greeks Seek Jesus
20 Now among those who went up to worship at the feast were some Greeks. 21 So these came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, and asked him, “Sir, we wish to see Jesus.” 22 Philip went and told Andrew; Andrew and Philip went and told Jesus. 23 And Jesus answered them, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. 24 Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. 25 Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. 26 If anyone serves me, he must follow me; and where I am, there will my servant be also. If anyone serves me, the Father will honor him.
The Son of Man Must Be Lifted Up
27 “Now is my soul troubled. And what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour’? But for this purpose I have come to this hour. 28 Father, glorify your name.” Then a voice came from heaven: “I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again.” 29 The crowd that stood there and heard it said that it had thundered. Others said, “An angel has spoken to him.” 30 Jesus answered, “This voice has come for your sake, not mine. 31 Now is the judgment of this world; now will the ruler of this world be cast out. 32 And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.” 33 He said this to show by what kind of death he was going to die. 34 So the crowd answered him, “We have heard from the Law that the Christ remains forever. How can you say that the Son of Man must be lifted up? Who is this Son of Man?” 35 So Jesus said to them, “The light is among you for a little while longer. Walk while you have the light, lest darkness overtake you. The one who walks in the darkness does not know where he is going. 36 While you have the light, believe in the light, that you may become sons of light.”
Introduction
We’re at a pivot point in John’s gospel. For 12 chapters, Jesus, in his public ministry, performed miracles and signs proving he was the long-awaited Messiah. In chapter 12, that public ministry ends as he steps into the role of Messianic King in a new way, setting his face toward Jerusalem and marching toward the cross.
On Palm Sunday, Jesus’s triumphal entry into Jerusalem showed the deliberate steps he took to fulfill the Old Testament prophecies, specifically that of Zechariah’s king. Written about 500 years before Christ, the Israel of that time wasn’t very impressive. Returned from exile in Babylon, their nation, ruined by sin, was a shell of its former self. No king. No temple. No vitality. But God did not give up on them. He kept and restored a remnant of the people. The days looked bleak, but a King was rising on the horizon.
This King would not be like the kings of the world. He would come in a different way, with a different purpose, with a greater power. “Behold, your king is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is he,” Zechariah said. (Zech 9:9). He would be everything Israel and her kings had not been: righteous, compassionate, just, merciful, faithful, loving, true, obedient, and able to truly save his people.
His kingship would be hard to see at first. When Jesus stepped into the role, people were confused. They couldn’t see how he fulfilled the prophecy at all. His life ended with a crown of thorns rather than a crown of glory. He was shamed and derided. Written over his cross was a mocking sign that read “King of the Jews.” Who would believe it? Yet the sign was right. He was the King, not only of the Jews but of the whole world. He is still the king—the king every human heart longs for, even ours today.
In three parts, John 12:12-36 gives us three pictures of the king of King we have in Jesus.
The Humble King (12:12-19)
The Fruitful King (12:20-26)
The Exalted King (12:27-36)
The Humble King (12:12-19)
It was Passover week, and Jesus had just raised Lazarus from the dead. There was a buzz around town, and as Jesus headed from Bethany toward Jerusalem, a large crowd heard he was coming. They took palm branches and welcomed him, crying out, “Hosanna! [which means “Save now!”] Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel!” It was a King’s welcome.
Earlier in John’s gospel, after the feeding of the five thousand, Jesus eluded those who wanted to make him king (6:15), but here he accepted the role.
There is a great irony here, as there is in the rest of the chapter. Here was this great Messianic King who came in the most humble way. It wasn’t what the crowd expected. It’s not what we would have expected either if we were there. But he was exactly the kind of king we long for.
There is an old ache in our hearts for a great king. One fierce with his enemies yet gentle with his own. The bravery and courage of a great warrior but with fatherly affection. Exalted above all but with an open throne room to which we can come with our needs. More glorious than us, of course, yet one of us. We want to do more than behold him. We want to be with him. We want more than his greatness, we want to be inside it. We want protection from all that threatens. We want grandeur, yes, but also humility. We want a lion and a lamb in the same person. The problem is that no king ever lived up to that standard except Jesus. He meets all the requirements. Jesus holds within himself all those excellencies we most desire yet cannot seem to be held in any one person. That old ache for a glorious and all-sufficient king deep inside of us is fully satisfied in him and in him alone. He’s the king we most deeply want, and he’s the king we most wonderfully have.
But when Jesus arrived in Jerusalem that day, and the people went out to welcome him as King, he defied expectations. He brought no pomp and circumstance in himself. He didn’t look like a great warrior who would come and save his people from Roman rule, restore their land, bring back their honor, and renew their nation.
Instead, Jesus did something that was, on the one hand, absolutely surprising and yet, on the other hand, absolutely to be expected. In fulfillment of Zechariah’s prophecy, he found a young donkey, just as it is written, “Fear not, daughter of Zion; behold, your king is coming, sitting on a donkey’s colt!”
Instead of a great warhorse and chariot, Jesus rode into town on a donkey’s colt, a small, humble animal. Not quite King David being sung into the city after a great military victory. Not much like King Arthur pulling the Excalibur sword from the stone. Here is a meek and humble king. When the crowd cheered out, “Save us!” I’m not sure they had this kind of king in mind.
But Jesus knew what he was doing. He was showing the nature of his kingship. He was identifying himself with the king prophecied in Zechariah 9. Instead of bringing war, he was bringing peace. He was the king they longed for, they just didn’t understand what his victory would look like.
Let’s think about it. What if Jesus had come in on a war horse, rounding up an army of millions to take on the Roman oppressors? Maybe he could have led them to a great victory. But if they beat the Romans, what good would that ultimately do? They’d still die sometime, and then what would happen? How would that victory help you? We need a King who can reign and rule for much longer than a lifetime. Jesus was there to solve a much greater problem than the Romans. He was a King leading his people in a different battle, an ancient one, with no higher stakes. And the only way to win was through humility.
This was not something the crowd or Jesus’s disciples understood immediately. John said they only understood it after his resurrection. They must have cocked their head in confusion. Some among the crowd had seen him raise Lazarus from the dead. Some just now wanted a glimpse of this great king who was finally coming into the great city. All their hopes were pinned on Jesus, but they barely understood what they were even hoping for. Jesus would go on to do far more than they could ever ask or think. He came there to defeat death and sin, and the only way to do that was through the weakness of the cross.
Now, the Pharisees were also watching. And what they saw confirmed their greatest fears. Jesus was too big now. All their efforts were for nothing. “Look, the world has gone after him,” they said. Their words were more true than they knew, which leads us to our second point. Jesus is the humble king. He’s also the fruitful king.
The Fruitful King (12:20-26)
The Passover feast brought millions of people to Jerusalem. Most, of course, were Jews, but in verse 20, John tells us that some Greeks were also there. Some wanted to see Jesus. So Philip and Andrew took them to him. We aren’t told what they said, but in verse 23, Jesus answered them, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.”
This is the fourth of nine times Jesus referred to his “hour” in John’s gospel, always in reference to his death. Up until this time, Jesus said his hour had not yet come. For 11 chapters, John prepared us for this moment. The coming of the Greeks was the trigger for the change from not time to time. Why? Well, interestingly, this is the first time in John’s gospel that non-Israelites seek Jesus. The world was coming to him now, just as he was coming to the world. His mission was wider than the boundaries of Israel.
Jesus was king of the Jews, and riding in on a donkey proved that, fulfilling Zechariah 9:9. But Zechariah 9:10 tells us that his reign extends to the ends of the earth. “I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim and the war horse from Jerusalem; and the battle bow shall be cut off, and he shall speak peace to the nations; his rule shall be from sea to sea, and from the River to the ends of the earth.”
Zechariah 9:10 quoted Psalm 72:8, which promised a worldwide reign of Israel’s king. The Messiah is more than the King of the Jews. He is the King of the world. Now, as Jesus welcomes the Greeks, he proclaims that this worldwide salvation has come.
In verse 24, in one of the most profound statements ever spoken, Jesus told how this salvation would come. “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.”
Jesus said this about himself. He came to fall into the earth and die. Why? Because that’s how a fruitful harvest is born. Think about that. It’s a shocking statement. Like the grain, Jesus would die. But how can the King die? The King must live. Long live the King, right?
This is where the gospel starts to defy our thinking. We just don’t expect life to come through death. We don’t expect the world to be saved by a crucified king. But it’s the only way it could happen. There is no salvation without the death of Christ.
Here’s why. Because of our sins, we are under the wrath of God. It’s our fault. Because of our sins, there is no way for us to get back our righteousness. We can’t be sorry enough. We can’t do enough good deeds. Our sin completely cuts us off from God. There is a gap between us and God, and there is no way for us to bridge that gap on our own. That’s the bad news of the gospel.
But here is the good news of the gospel. God bridged the gap. As prophecied in the Scriptures, Jesus came to live the perfect, obedient life that we should have lived but didn’t. Our heavenly King, rather than passing condemnation on his people, stepped off his eternal and sovereign throne to be born of a virgin, live thirty years as a carpenter, and enter into a public ministry to sinners and sufferers of all kinds to inaugurate his kingdom. Then, knowing the only way to bring this story to completion, set his face toward the cross and went steadfastly to it. He was willing to go to the front and die for his people because he loved them. Taking their place, he was condemned as a criminal and beaten and nailed to a Roman cross, where he died for his people’s sins. In his death, he took upon himself the full wrath of God for sin and paid the penalty in total.
To be the fruitful King, he had to first be the crucified King. His triumphal entry was a gateway to a cross where he laid down his life for sinful people. Our King’s victory came through defeat because the only way to save us from the only enemy that can truly kill us is to be killed on our behalf. As the grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, so Jesus fell to the earth and died.
But just as the wheat then grows into a bountiful harvest, so too does Christ. When the Holy Spirit rose Jesus from the grave, he brought with him a host of captives in his train (Ps. 68:18). He led many sons and daughters to glory. He is the fruitful King whose fruit is born out of the grave, through his blood, by his death.
We should never look at a seed the same way again. Even a grain of wheat preaches the gospel!
Now, this is more than just an explanation of how Jesus saves. It is also a message for how we ought to live in light of his gospel. Jesus followed up verse 24 with verses 25 and 26, which say, “Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. If anyone serves me, he must follow me, and where I am, there will my servant be also. If anyone serves me, the Father will honor him.” Jesus went first, and he’s asking us to follow him.
Here’s the irony of life. Only by losing the life we think we really want and handing that over to God will we ever get the life we really, most deeply want. We don’t know what we want. But God does. Following Jesus might feel like a lot of little deaths. But we’re only dying to the things that will kill us so that we can come alive to God.
Following Jesus ensures that we have the one King who can truly save us. Sometimes where he takes us won’t make sense. Sometimes it might feel like darkness covers us. But how can a grain of wheat grow unless it falls into the ground and dies?
If we follow Jesus, we will walk his path. If we serve Jesus, we will be where he is. And if we are where he is, the Father will be there too, and he will honor us. Everything we do in life is to get honor and glory, isn’t it? Isn’t that what motivates everything? Well, where can you get it? Not for a fleeting moment, but forever? Only one place: with the glorious One, with Jesus. The only place of true glory is being with Jesus. So how do we get to be with him? Well, that leads us to the final point. Jesus is the humble king. He is the fruitful king. Finally, he is the exalted king.
The Exalted King (12:27-36)
In Zechariah 9:11, the coming King is prophesied as the one whose blood sets the prisoners free from the waterless pit. No wonder, then, that in John 12:27, Jesus says, “Now is my soul troubled.”
John’s gospel doesn’t include the Gethsemane scene where Jesus asks that the cup be removed from him. This is John’s Gethsemane moment here. His soul is troubled because the time is now at hand. But look at how Jesus responds to his troubled soul. “And what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour’? But for this purpose I have come to this hour.”
Jesus knew this is why he was there. He was born for this. This was his moment. It was the time that all of human history was leading up to. What was he going to do now? Could he turn away? Does the King retreat? Our King doesn’t.
In a wonderful moment when we glimpse the glory of the Trinity, Jesus turned his troubled soul to the Father and, in verse 28, prayed the greatest prayer anyone can ever pray. “Father, glorify your name.” What happened next is amazing. It’s one of only three times we hear the Father’s voice in Jesus’s earthly life. It happened at his baptism, and it happened at his transfiguration. In both, the Father glorified the Son. Here, the Father glorifies himself in response to Jesus’s prayer. “I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again.”
Jesus is in a moment of crisis. The entirety of his life is funneling down to the next few days, where he will endure suffering unlike any human ever did or would again. He had the weight of the world upon his shoulders, and in his desperation, he called out to the Father. His greatest desire is to glorify the Father, and the Father responds with assurance that he will.
Now, this is not the main point of this passage, but let me just say this. The Father will be there with you too. When everything is on the line for you, your prayer needs to be nothing more than “Father, glorify yourself.” Your life is most valuable and worthwhile and exciting and weighty when the glory of God is primary. God can glorify himself in little old you—not to the same effect as in Jesus, of course, but no less truly. You can trust him even when the prospects are dim. In fact, that’s where his glory shines the most clearly.
Now, the crowd that stood there heard the voice but could not make out the words. They knew something supernatural occurred and thought it was an angel. Jesus said it came for their sake. The voice confirmed that Jesus was on a bigger mission than any they had in mind. Jesus said to them, “Now is the judgment of this world; now will the ruler of this world be cast out.” Though Jesus was a humble king, he was also a mighty warrior, even if the world couldn’t see it. Now was the time of the judgment for the world and for sin and for the devil. Jesus was strapping on his armor by humbling himself. He was saving his people by going to his death. He was to be lifted up by going down. The issue is not his strength or his bravery; it is his method. The way to win the war looked like losing it. The way to eternal life for his people was his death upon the cross. Look at verse 32. “And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.” John helps us by saying, “He said this to show by what kind of death he was going to die.” The humble king would be exalted, but the place of exaltation was the cross. The irony of the gospel is amazing. The foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men (1 Cor. 1:25).
Now, I know we are all familiar with the cross, but let me just remind you that the cross was not a pretty thing. It was a method of punishment designed for utmost humiliation, Author Fleming Rutledge said, “Crucifixion was specifically designed to be the ultimate insult to personal dignity, the last word in humiliating and dehumanizing treatment. Degradation was the whole point.” What King would willingly allow himself that?
Jesus would. And he said this is how he will draw all people to himself. Only Jesus could turn the symbol of humiliation into the symbol of glorification. Despite insults, he brought praise. Despite the loss of dignity, he showed forth honor. Through disgrace, he attracted worshipers. In his dehumanization, he gave us back our humanity. In his degradation, he restored our relationship with the God against whom we rebelled. God will have his glory in the cross of Christ, and the world will flock to it and behold the King.
Now, that seems to defy all logic. The crowd couldn’t understand. Look at verse 34. “We have heard from the Law that the Christ remains forever. How can you say that the Son of Man must be lifted up? Who is this Son of Man?”
It didn’t compute with them. No wonder. It’s not at all what anyone would expect. But this is the message from of old. This is the gospel embedded in the fabric of God’s universe. The King would save his people, usher in his Kingdom, and welcome the world inside. He would do it from a cross, not a palace. He would do it through the victory of death. He would do it by dying and rising again, like a seed that bears much fruit.
He would be the exalted King, lifted on a cross for the whole world to behold.
Conclusion
Finally, look at verses 35 and 36. “So Jesus said to them, ‘The light is among you for a little while longer. Walk while you have the light, lest darkness overtake you. The one who walks in the darkness does not know where he is going. While you have the light, believe in the light, that you may become sons of light.’”
Here is the invitation. Step into the light of Christ. Believe in the light that you may become sons of light.
How can you do that? It’s simple, really. Just behold the King. Listen to Jesus’s words and trust his work. Accept the grace of God, who draws you in through the exaltation of his Son on the cross.
The King has come and won the victory over the only enemy that can truly kill you. He’s the King you long for. Though he died, he now lives by the power of his resurrection, and one day he will return to gather his people into his everlasting kingdom of grace and glory.
As a herald of the King, with the authority of the crucified and risen Christ, I invite you into his kingdom. Come and see what the Lord has done. Come with me and worship this great King.
Let’s pray.
