“And if any man say unto you, Why do ye this? say ye that the Lord hath need of him; and straightway he will send him hither.”
Mark 11:3 — Greek Interlinear
Church Fathers on Mark 11:3
Bethany is a little village or town by the side of mount Olivet, where Lazarus was raised from the dead. But in what way He sent His disciples and for what purpose is shewn in these words, 'And saith unto them, Go your way into the village over against you.'
Now consider how many things the Lord foretold to His disciples, that they should find a colt; wherefore it goes on, 'And as soon as ye be entered into it, ye shall find a colt tied, whereon never man sat, loose him, and bring him;' and that they should be impeded in taking it, wherefore there follows, 'And if any man say unto you, Why do ye this? say ye, The Lord hath need of him;' and that on saying this, they should be allowed to take him; wherefore there follows, 'And…
Matthew says, an ass and a colt, the rest however do not mention the ass. Where then both may be the case, there is no disagreement, though one Evangelist mentions one thing, and a second mentions another; how much less should a question be raised, when one mentions one, and another mentions that same one and another.