Articles
Jesus' Figures of Speech - 8
“I tell you that if these should keep silent, the stones would immediately cry out.” (Lk 19:40)
The setting of this statement is Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem a few days before His crucifixion. This is commonly called the “triumphal entry” in view of the large crowd that serenaded Him with “Hosanna to the Son of David!” (Mt 21:9); “Blessed is the kingdom of our father David” (Mk 11:10); “Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord!” (Lk 19:38).
“But when the chief priests and scribes saw the wonderful things that He did, and the children crying out in the temple … they were indignant” (Mt 21:15). “And some of the Pharisees called to Him from the crowd, ‘Teacher, rebuke Your disciples’” (Lk 19:39).
Personifying inanimate objects is a common literary device. We may refer to the wind “whispering” or a mountain as “witness” to the history that has taken place or the stones of an archaeological dig “telling a story.” Jesus replies to the Jewish leaders that the truths uttered by the people are so obvious and His praise so deserved that the rocks would shout even if the people were silenced. Makes me wonder: Are there obvious truths which inanimate nature would proclaim that I am missing?
