John 2:12-25

Jesus Clears the Temple ~

This is the first time Jesus clears the temple.  Remember, the temple wasn't like your church.  It was made of several different areas.  The first was the court of the Gentiles, followed by the court of women, then the court of men, the Holy Place and the Most Holy Place.  Passover was a pilgrim feast - every Jewish male was expected to come to Jerusalem to worship.  This made the temple (& Jerusalem) a very busy place.  To make a little extra money, the religious leaders allowed money changers and merchants to set up shop in the court of Gentiles causing all sorts of traffic problems.  The Gentiles, who could go no further than this outer court, struggled to worship in this crowded place.  Plus, the money changers & merchants drove up prices, making it even harder for people to worship God.   Remember, worship of God is not about how much you spend, but the condition of your heart.  This market showed the corrupted heart of the merchants, money changers, and religious leaders.  They weren't concerned about the people, they just wanted to make a quick buck. 

Of course, this made Jesus irate.  He drove them out with a whip.  Is this anger a sin?  No, it's called righteous anger - justified outrage at the mistreatment of people.  Understand this - God becomes angry when His people are being hurt, taken advantage of, and mistreated.  Not only were the people being mistreated, the religious leaders were insulting the God they served.  No wonder Jesus reacted so intensely.  Does this mean we get to throw things around when we get angry.  I guess that depends on our motivation.  There is a BIG difference between uncontrolled rage & righteous indignation.  We must be careful to weigh our motivations before acting.  It is right to be angry about injustice and sin; it is not OK to be angry over trivial personal offenses.

Take note, we have another fulfilled prophecy here, "Zeal for your house will consume me."  Psalm 69:9.

Jesus was asked by whose authority was He clearing the temple.  They wanted a sign or proof.  Jesus tells them to destroy THIS temple & He will raise it in three days.  They think He is speaking of THE temple - which was built 500 years earlier, but had just undergone 46 years of remodeling.  But Jesus was talking about Himself.  John tells us that the disciples remembered this prophecy after Jesus was risen & it helped them to believe.  Many times we have no idea just what a prophecy means until after it has been fulfilled. 

Finally, Jesus showed His power & ministry by performing many other miracles during this Passover.  The last scripture is telling us that Jesus wasn't depending on the opinions or words of man to spread His message.  He knows the heart of man - it is fickle & easily swayed.  So, Jesus will continue to rely on God.  You would be wise to do the same.