Excitement brews with the hiring of a new government official that you voted for. He made promises you couldn’t resist and the public coronation into office was delightful. But then comes the job in all its facets. He begins with warnings and/or termination of employment for some. This official brings excitement and promise, but he also brings seriousness to his job—and rightly so.

Monday of Holy Week takes a sharp turn with the pronouncement of judgements. Jesus entered into Jerusalem accompanied with Israeli public celebration, but now He takes issue with Israel. Mark tells us,

¹²On the following day, when they came from Bethany, he was hungry. ¹³And seeing in the distance a fig tree in leaf, he went to see if he could find anything on it. When he came to it, he found nothing but leaves, for it was not the season for figs. ¹⁴And he said to it, “May no one ever eat fruit from you again.” And his disciples heard it.

¹Bookman, Doug. “Holy Week Timeline (Passion Week): Palm Sunday to Easter Sunday,” Feb. 14, 2024. Accesses March 13, 2024. https://www.christianity.com/wiki/holidays/a-time-line-of-the-passion-week.html.

²Strauss, M. L. Mark. Zondervan Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament Series, edited by C. E. Arnold. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2014.