Also, look at it from the Roman point of view.
As the Romans saw it, Passover week celebrated Jewish emancipation from a hostile foreign conqueror (the Egyptians). In essence, the Jews are celebrating freedom from oppression and foreign control while at the same time being oppressed and controlled by the Romans. It was probably a tenderbox atmosphere in Roman-occupied Jerusalem during the Passover, and I imagine the Romans had a zero tolerance policy towards ANY disruptions that could be construed as ârebelliousâ. Certainly Jesusâ scene in the temple with the money changers could have been interpretted that way, and itâs possible that His entry into the City on a donkey could have been seen as a type of âdemonstrationâ as well (since any self respecting Roman king would have entered the city on a warhorse or battle chariot).
I know he doesnât earn a terrible amount of respect from Catholics, but John Dominic Crossan has written several books about this very subject, including âWho Killed Jesus?: Exposing the Roots of Anti-Semitism in the Gospel Story of the Death of Jesusâ, and âThe Last Weekâ. If you can sift through some of his more odd theories, he adds some really interesting historical background and probabilities to the events that led up to Jesusâ death.