A.T. Robertson Commentary Matthew 21

Unto Bethphage (εις Βεθφαγη). An indeclinable Aramaic name here only in O.T. or N.T. (Luke 19:29). It means "house of unripe young figs." It apparently lay on the eastern slope of Olivet or at the foot of the mountain, a little further from Jerusalem than Bethany. Both Mark and Luke speak of Christ's coming "unto Bethphage and Bethany" as if Bethphage was reached first. It is apparently larger than Bethany.

Unto the Mount of Olives (εις το ορος των Ελαιων). Matthew has thus three instances of εις with Jerusalem, Mount of Olives. Mark and Luke use προς with Mount of Olives, the Mount of Olive trees (ελαιων from ελαια, olive tree), the mountain covered with olive trees.

Into the village that is over against you (εις την κωμην την κατεναντ υμων). Another use of εις. If it means "into" as translated, it could be Bethany right across the valley and this is probably the idea.

And a colt with her (κα πωλον μετ' αυτης). The young of any animal. Here to come with the mother and the more readily so.

The Lord (ο κυριος). It is not clear how the word would be understood here by those who heard the message though it is plain that Jesus applies it to himself. The word is from κυρος, power or authority. In the LXX it is common in a variety of uses which appear in the N.T. as master of the slave (Matthew 10:24), of the harvest (9:38), of the vineyard (20:8), of the emperor (Acts 13:27), of God (Matthew 11:20; Matthew 11:25), and often of Jesus as the Messiah (Acts 10:36). Note Mt 8:25. This is the only time in Matthew where the words ο κυριος are applied to Jesus except the doubtful passage in 28:6. A similar usage is shown by Moulton and Milligan's Vocabulary and Deissmann's Light from the Ancient East. Particularly in Egypt it was applied to "the Lord Serapis" and Ptolemy and Cleopatra are called "the lords, the most great gods" (ο κυριο θεο μεγιστο). Even Herod the Great and Herod Agrippa I are addressed as "Lord King." In the west the Roman emperors are not so termed till the time of Domitian. But the Christians boldly claimed the word for Christ as Jesus is here represented as using it with reference to himself. It seems as if already the disciples were calling Jesus "Lord" and that he accepted the appellative and used it as here.

By the prophet (δια του προφητου). The first line is from Isa 62:11, the rest from Zec 9:9. John (John 12:14f.) makes it clear that Jesus did not quote the passage himself. In Matthew it is not so plain, but probably it is his own comment about the incident. It is not Christ's intention to fulfil the prophecy, simply that his conduct did fulfil it.

The daughter of Zion (τη θυγατρ Σιων). Jerusalem as in Isa 22:4 (daughter of my people). So Babylon (Isaiah 47:1), daughter of Tyre for Tyre (Psalms 45:12).

Riding (επιβεβηκως). Perfect active participle of επιβαινω, "having gone upon."

And upon a colt the foal of an ass (κα επ πωλον υιον υποζυγιου). These words give trouble if κα is here taken to mean "and." Fritzsche argues that Jesus rode alternately upon each animal, a possible, but needless interpretation. In the Hebrew it means by common Hebrew parallelism "upon an ass, even upon a colt." That is obviously the meaning here in Matthew. The use of υποζυγιου (a beast of burden, under a yoke) for ass is common in the LXX and in the papyri (Deissmann, Bible Studies p. 161).