Your King Dey Come, E Humble

Shout! Rejoice! Your king dey come! Everybody turn dey look for war horse, chariot and armour wey dey shine. And for di road, one man dey come, e siddon on top one young donkey.

Di prophet Zechariah live for di same time with Haggai, about five hundred and twenty years before Jesus. Im grandfather Iddo na one of di priests wey come back from exile for Babylon. Jerusalem don be like shadow of wetin e bin be before. Im wall don break. Dem never finish im temple. No king siddon for David throne; di land na just small corner for inside di big Persian empire. Around am, powerful nations dey come and go. For people like dat, to get dia own king again be like dream from long-long time. And then God give Zechariah one message.

Zechariah chapter nine open with God word against di proud nations and cities wey surround Israel: di strong places of Syria, di rich ports of Tyre and Sidon, di Philistine cities wey dey near di sea. Tyre don pack silver like dust and gold like mud for street, Zechariah talk, but e no go last. God go watch over im own house. And then, suddenly, di prophet turn face Jerusalem with one shout. Rejoice well-well, daughter of Zion; shout, daughter of Jerusalem: look, your King dey come meet you. Dis no be quiet announcement. Na di kind shout wey you go give when di person wey you don dey wait for finally show for top di hill.

But hear which kind king e be. E dey righteous, e dey carry salvation; e humble, e dey ride donkey, young donkey wey be pikin of donkey. Righteous, wey mean say e dey do wetin correct. E dey carry salvation, e dey bring rescue. And e humble. E no dey form. E gentle. E no come on top war horse to make people fear. E come on top young donkey, animal of peace, ordinary animal wey farmers and families dey use every day. Kings for di old world like to show dia power. Dis king dey show im humility. You fit just waka reach am.

Then Zechariah talk wetin dis king go do. God go cut off di chariot from Ephraim and di horse from Jerusalem. Dem go break di bow of war. Wetin e mean be say dem go carry di weapons of war go. And di king go talk peace to di nations. No be only to Israel, but to di nations. Im rule go stretch from sea to sea, from di river reach di ends of di earth. Think am well how dis one dey surprise person. Humble king on top donkey, without army, but im kingdom big pass any empire. Im power no dey for sword, e dey for peace. Zechariah no fit see im face. But e know say e dey come.

Donkey no be joke for king for Israel. When King David choose Solomon to take over from am, e make Solomon ride David own mule go down to di spring of Gihon make dem anoint am, as di book of First Kings tell us. But horses and chariots na di big signs of army power, and di law even warn Israel kings make dem no gather plenty horses. About five hundred years after Zechariah, all di four Gospels describe how Jesus ride young donkey enter Jerusalem, and Matthew and John quote dis exact prophecy.

Dis promise dey Zechariah chapter nine, verse nine and ten. Di king wey go ride donkey enter Jerusalem start im life for stable, dem lay am for manger, no palace at all. So see one question wey you go carry dey go. Wetin e dey tell you about Jesus, say e choose to come humble and gentle, instead of to come with power wey dey make people fear?