Cleansing the Temple

Lesson #29

Our lesson today will cover the text from John 2:14 – 17. Jesus went from Capernaum (the center of Jesus’ Galilean ministry) to Jerusalem (probably with his mother and brothers and disciples). “He found in the temple courts those who were selling oxen and sheep and doves, and the money changers sitting at tables” (2:14 NET). Inside the temple court, a place meant for prayer and other acts of worship, there were pens of oxen and sheep, and cages of doves and merchants sitting around them waiting to make a transaction, and others who were prepared to exchange a pilgrim’s money into the right currency so that they could make a purchase. By selling these animals the merchants were rendering a service to those who had traveled from long distances as it was much easier to bring money and purchase the needed animals for sacrifice upon their arrival. But by doing this business in the temple courts it disrupted the worship of non-Jewish God fearing people and thus obstructed the very purpose for which the temple courts existed.

When Jesus saw what was taking place it upset him, “So he made a whip of cords and drove them all out of the temple courts, with the sheep and the oxen. He scattered the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables” (2:15 NET). The whips would be seen as an emblem of his authority and used to encourage the merchants and their animals to leave. There is no evidence that Jesus used any violence against the merchants engaged in this unhallowed traffic. Scattering the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables was a way of enforcing his position. As Jesus did this he gave clear instructions to the merchants by saying, “Take these things away from here! Do not make my Father’s house a marketplace” (2:16 NET)! In this statement Jesus is identifying himself as the Son of God by referring to the temple as his Father’s house. The disciples watched Jesus and remembered that it was written years ago, “Zeal for your house will consume me” (2:17 ESV). This is a reference back to Psalm 69:9 and suggest a growing opposition against Jesus.

Before leaving this section, a problem should be noted. Why is this temple cleansing episode placed here at the beginning of Jesus’ ministry, while the other gospel writers have it near the end of his ministry? Is there one or two temple cleansings? The debate goes on and as it does I am willing to accept this to be the first cleansing with a second one occurring later.

Prayer

Father, as I study about this temple abuse I see similar problems today in our churches. We have programs and projects and social events with a focus on entrainment or fun times and we forget to worship and praise as we should the One who gives meaning and purpose to life. We have our Bibles but we don’t spend the time we should with them to learn about you and how we should live with one another and we wonder why we have such a limited effect on our culture. Lord, do what it takes to draw us back to you.