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Holy Week · Palm Sunday (Sunday of the Passion) · Year A

Matthew 27:11-66

The Passion According to Matthew

March 29, 2026

Pilate's First Interrogation of Christ, Duccio di Buoninsegna
Pilate's First Interrogation of Christ, Duccio di Buoninsegna, 1308–1311Museo dell'Opera del Duomo, Siena (Maestà predella)
From the Maestà's Passion sequence. The governor sits, the accusers crowd the doorway, and Christ stands between them on a gold ground.Are you the King of the Jews? Jesus said, You say so.Duccio di BuoninsegnaThe founder of Sienese painting, who kept the gold and the Byzantine patterns while letting real feeling into the faces.Museo dell'Opera del Duomo, Siena (Maestà predella)The cathedral's own museum, built into an unfinished nave, where Duccio's Maestà has been kept since it was taken off the altar.Museo dell'Opera del Duomo, Siena (Maestà predella)
LSB Three-Year Lectionary
GospelMatt. 26:1-27:66Mt 26:1-27:66Alt. GospelMatt. 27:11-66Mt 27:11-66Alt. GospelJohn 12:20-43Jn 12:20-43
EpistlePhil. 2:5-11Phil 2:5-11
Old TestamentIsa. 50:4-9aIs 50:4-9a
PsalterPs. 118:19-29Ps 118:19-29Alt. PsalmPs. 31:9-16Ps 31:9-16

Overview & Insights

“Truly this was the Son of God!” (Matthew 27:54)

The reading covers the Roman trial, the crucifixion and the burial, and what distinguishes it are Matthew’s additions to the tradition he shares with Mark. He alone reports Pilate’s wife and her dream (v. 19), the hand washing with its formula of innocence (v. 24) and the crowd’s answer, a verse with a long and terrible history of use against Jews. He alone records that at the death the tombs were opened and many bodies of the saints raised (vv. 52 and 53), a notice without parallel and much debated. The cry from the cross is given in its Semitic form and quotes the opening of Psalm 22 (v. 46), a psalm this Gospel has already drawn on for the divided garments and the wagging heads. The final paragraph, the sealing of the tomb and the guard (vv. 62 to 66), prepares the report of 28:11-15.

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Commentary

Commentary on Matthew 27:11-54Commentary on Mt 27:11-54 workingpreacher.org

Luther Seminary's exegetical commentary on the Pilate trial and crucifixion scenes in the Passion narrative.

Palms and Passion: SALT's Commentary for Palm/Passion Sunday saltproject.org

Ecumenical lectionary commentary connecting the palm procession to the Passion reading that follows it.

Palm Sunday of the Lord's Passion, Cycle A loyolapress.com

Catholic Sunday Connection guide to the Passion Gospel, the Catholic voice on this reading.

Lost in Translation, Palm Sunday (A) episcopalchurch.org

Sermons That Work homily on the Passion Gospel for Palm Sunday Year A, the Anglican voice on this reading.

Matthew 27 Commentary: Jesus' Trial, Death, and BurialMt 27 Commentary: Jesus' Trial, Death, and Burial enduringword.com

David Guzik's verse-by-verse walk through the trial, crucifixion, and burial in Matthew 27.

Passion Sunday's Dynamic of Location 1517.org

Lutheran reflection on the settings of the Passion narrative and their theological weight.

Background & Word Study

Matthew 27:11 InterlinearMt 27:11 Interlinear biblehub.com

Greek interlinear text of the trial before Pilate for word-level study.

The Church Fathers

Matthew 27 - Catena Bible & CommentariesMt 27 - Catena Bible & Commentaries catenabible.com

Patristic commentary chain (Chrysostom, Jerome, and others) on the Passion narrative in Matthew 27.

Sermons & Reflections

In the Name of Love: Palm Sunday journeywithjesus.net

Contemporary reflection on the crowd's welcome and Jesus's path from palms to the cross.

Worship & Prayers

Palm/Passion Sunday, Year A - Lectionary Planning Notes umcdiscipleship.org

Worship planning notes on whether and how to feature the palm procession alongside the Passion reading.

Podcast

A New York Times Op-Ed "Palm Sunday Was a Protest, Not a Procession" issuesetc.org

LCMS radio conversation with Dr. Peter Scaer on how to read the Palm Sunday narrative.

Art & Music

Year A - Lent - Liturgy of the Passion (texts page) lectionary.library.vanderbilt.edu

Vanderbilt's per-Sunday texts-and-art page for the Passion Gospel.

Study Hub

Passion A textweek.com

Textweek's per-Sunday index of sermons, commentary, and worship links for the Year A Passion texts.

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