03062021 – John 2. 13-22
Let’s talk about Jerusalem and the Temple and Passover.
You do realize Passover was “a big deal.” The population of the Holy City would actually “quadruple” as people made their way to the Holy City. It was THE MOST IMPORTANT festival of the year.
Passover lasts for 7 days (8 days, if you are outside of Israel.) The first and the last days of the holiday are days on which NO WORK is permitted.
The streets and the alleyways would be teeming with people… TEEMING!
The crowds would include, soldiers, (lots of them,) religious zealots, priests, children, religious fanatics, wonder workers, magicians, the Sicarri (or dagger men, as they were called,) pietists, thieves (pickpockets) and animals…EVERYWHERE.
The city limits would actually burst with people and needed to be expanded to accommodate ALL of THE PILGRIMS.
If you will remember the TEMPLE was the ONLY PLACE OF WORSHIP IN ISRAEL.
It was GODS HOUSE, not just one-of-the-houses-of-God…but the ONLY ONE! Nor was it “the house of the people.” It was clearly, THE HOUSE OF GOD. It was Ginormous. 46 years in the making and they were not done yet.
It took up an area of more than 40 acres…and was the equivalent of 25 football fields in length.
The finishing touches were not actually completed until around 64 in the Common Era, just six years before it was completely destroyed…by the Romans.
In the center of it, was the HOLY OF HOLIES – where the Ark of the Covenant was set. And there, in the heart of the TEMPLE COMPLEX, in the heart of the CITY, which served as the “spiritual and political HEART of the PEOPLE” …GOD “DWELT” AMONG HIS PEOPLE.
Talk about your SACRED SPACES. There were numerous courts and chambers, too many to count. Even the thought of going there, was overwhelming. This was HEROD’S MASTERPIECE.
In John’s gospel – “the event before us” happens close to the beginning of Jesus’ ministry. It serves as a catalyst that “jump-starts the opposition to Jesus” almost immediately. From this time on, his opponents have one goal in mind, his annihilation.
In the Synoptic Gospels of Mark, Matthew, and Luke it occurs TOWARD THE END of Jesus’ earthly ministry.
In John, Jesus UTILIZES the writings of two of the most beloved prophets of old: Isaiah and Jeremiah.
It was Trito-Isaiah who wrote, “My house shall be called a house of prayer for all peoples.”
And the young Jeremiah penned, “Has this house, which is called by MY NAME, become a DEN OF ROBBERS in your sight?”
Scholars are pretty equally divided by Jesus’ actions. Roman coins were forbidden in the Temple, which meant the people needed to get their Roman coins changed into Temple currency. The moneychangers would perform this service at an exchange rate of as high as 50%.
The animals and their sacrifices were all dictated by the Torah, or the LAW OF MOSES…as being A NECESSITY.
So, was Jesus’ action – symbolic – temporarily bringing a halt to the sacrificial system OR was it a political statement being made because of the collaboration between the Temple Elite and the Romans OR was it because of the “BUYING AND SELLING” and the Market atmosphere?
We do NOT KNOW FOR SURE!
What we DO KNOW is that Jesus expressed a LOVE, PASSION, FERVOR, ENTHUSIASM and DEVOTION for the House of God. He displayed a VIGOR and an ENERGY about it.
You do not mess with God’s house…you REVERENCE IT. Jesus was consumed with ZEAL.
And, as is common in John’s Gospel, Jesus was totally misunderstood. He speaks on one level and the people always misunderstand him on a more LITERAL level.
We know that HIS HOUSE was meant to be a place of AWE, PRAISE, PRAYER, MEDITATION, COMFORT, STRENGTH and GUIDANCE…a place of REVERENCE. A place like no other on earth. And it is here, that WE WORSHIP HIM.
And some of us are brazen enough to call it “HOME!”
Amen.