July 18, 2026 · David Farmer
Inspection Time
“And when he drew near and saw the city, he wept over it, saying, “Would that you, even you, had known on this day the things that make for peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes. For the days will come upon you, when your enemies will set up a barricade around you and surround you and hem you in on every side and tear you down to the ground, you and your children within you. And they will not leave one stone upon another in you, because you did not know the time of your visitation.””
Luke 19:41-44 →
## This Exact Day
Near the end of Luke 18, Jesus tells the disciples about His death and resurrection for the third time, but they still don’t get it. As we discussed in a recent devotional called Jesus Maccabee (Luke 19), they were looking for a powerful Messiah, but they were missing the suffering servant He would be during the first visit. He just had another confrontation with the Pharisees on the donkey ride in. They don’t recognize Him either. He wept over Jerusalem possibly thinking, “Why didn’t you keep up with the Scripture closer to be ready?” I’ve heard it preached from prophecies in Daniel (9:24) and Nehemiah (2:1) that Artaxerxes decreed the rebuilding of Jerusalem on March 14, 445 BC. Count forward 173,880 days (7+62=69/69x360=173,880)(Dan 9:24), we discover that Jesus entered Jerusalem on a donkey colt on April 6, 32 AD (based on a 360 day calendar). But you did not recognize this day. Sometimes we hear teachings that some Bible teacher spent hours putting together, and think, “Yeah, but...really? Seems like you went kind of far out with that one buddy.” Yet Jesus seems to be suggesting that with some passages, maybe we should sit down with a calculator and a scratchpad and ancient calendars to dig in beyond the ink on the pages.
## Inspection Time
Jesus tells Jerusalem it will be “surrounded” and “hemmed in”. The words used here for both can be found in the Old Testament
Greek LXX translation in Psalm 22. Jesus’ words on the cross (Mark 15:34) quote this Psalm, and it’s considered to be Messianic prophecy reading like David witnessed the crucifixion and wrote it down. Metaphorically, if the central character there is the Messiah, Jew and Gentile “surround” and “hem Him in”. Psalm 22:12, 16 “...strong bulls of Bashan surround me... For dogs encompass me...evil doers encircle me; they have pierced my hands and feet.” “Visitation” in the Luke verse can also be translated “inspection”. God came down to His chosen people in flesh to visit them; to inspect them.
## Self-Check
Jesus warns Jerusalem, “I will be surrounded. You will be surrounded.” And the central question of the New Testament is, “What shall I do with Jesus?” Our inspection may come in many forms throughout our Christian walk. God visits us in the form of ministries He needs us to do. When He comes to examine our accounts with all the needs that He sent our way, it will boil down to one question and one statement. “What did you do with Jesus? It will be done with you.”
## The Purpose