Tuesday, August 4

²⁰Then the mother of the sons of Zebedee came to him with her sons, and kneeling down she asked him for a favor. ²¹He said to her, “What do you want?” She replied, “Permit these two sons of mine to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your kingdom.” ²²Jesus answered, “You don’t know what you are asking! Are you able to drink the cup I am about to drink?” They said to him, “We are able.” ²³He told them, “You will drink my cup, but to sit at my right and at my left is not mine to give. Rather, it is for those for whom it has been prepared by my Father.”

²⁴Now when the other 10 heard this, they were angry with the two brothers. ²⁵But Jesus called them and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and those in high positions use their authority over them. ²⁶It must not be this way among you! Instead whoever wants to be great among you must be your servant, ²⁷and whoever wants to be first among you must be your slave— ²⁸just as the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

²⁹As they were leaving Jericho, a large crowd followed them. ³⁰Two blind men were sitting by the road. When they heard that Jesus was passing by, they shouted, “Have mercy on us, Lord, Son of David!” ³¹The crowd scolded them to get them to be quiet. But they shouted even more loudly, “Lord, have mercy on us, Son of David!” ³²Jesus stopped, called them, and said, “What do you want me to do for you?” ³³They said to him, “Lord, let our eyes be opened.” ³⁴Moved with compassion, Jesus touched their eyes. Immediately they received their sight and followed him.

¹Now when they approached Jerusalem and came to Bethphage, at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two disciples, ²telling them, “Go to the village ahead of you. Right away you will find a donkey tied there, and a colt with her. Untie them and bring them to me. ³If anyone says anything to you, you are to say, ‘The Lord needs them,’ and he will send them at once.” ⁴This took place to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet:

⁵“Tell the people of Zion, ‘Look, your king is coming to you, unassuming and seated on a donkey, and on a colt, the foal of a donkey.’”

⁶So the disciples went and did as Jesus had instructed them. ⁷They brought the donkey and the colt and placed their cloaks on them, and he sat on them. ⁸A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road. Others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. ⁹The crowds that went ahead of him and those following kept shouting, “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!” ¹⁰As he entered Jerusalem the whole city was thrown into an uproar, saying, “Who is this?” ¹¹And the crowds were saying, “This is the prophet Jesus, from Nazareth in Galilee.”