John 2:12-17 Do not make My Father’s house a house of merchandise

After this He went down to Capernaum, He, His mother, His brothers, and His disciples; and they did not stay there many days.  Now the Passover of the Jews was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.  And He found in the temple those who sold oxen and sheep and doves, and the money changers doing business.  When He had made a whip of cords, He drove them all out of the temple, with the sheep and the oxen, and poured out the changers' money and overturned the tables.  And He said to those who sold doves, "Take these things away! Do not make My Father’s house a house of merchandise!"  Then His disciples remembered that it was written, "Zeal for Your house has eaten Me up."

(12) After this He went down to Capernaum, He, His mother, His brothers, and His disciples; and they did not stay there many days.  Jesus, His family, and His disciples traveled from the hill country of western Galilee down to Capernaum on the northern edge of the Sea of Galilee.  Jesus' brothers were not recorded to have attending the wedding in Cana.  But they may have joined Jesus in order to travel as a family to the upcoming Passover in Jerusalem.  The road to Capernaum would have been the most expedient route from the area of Nazareth and Cana in order to avoid traveling through Samaria on the way to Jerusalem.

The Bible makes no assertions supporting the tradition that Mary was a perpetual virgin, but it does speak openly regarding the siblings of Jesus.  John makes reference to His brothers again in the seventh chapter of his gospel.  And Matthew recorded the following dialog when Jesus visited His hometown of Nazareth: Is this not the carpenter’s son?  Is not His mother called Mary?  And His brothers James, Joses, Simon, and Judas?  And His sisters, are they not all with us? - Matthew 13:55,56  Among the brothers listed by Mathew are the two accredited with writing the epistles of James and Jude, respectively.

In the Gospel of John, and all other New Testament occurrences, the word for used for the brothers of Jesus is the Greek word "adelphoi."  The brothers and sisters are not once denoted in any of the ancient texts as merely cousins or relatives (Gr.- syngeneis).  Some have suggested that the gospels intended to indicate "cousins" by the use of "adelphoi."  But this would be as improper as translating philadelphia as "cousinly-love" rather than "brotherly-love."  The sisters are not mentioned by John most likely due to the fact that only the men were required to attend the Passover.

These brothers and sisters could have been no more than half-siblings, because Jesus Himself was conceived by the Holy Spirit; God being His Father.  Either Joseph was previously married, (leaving Mary's ongoing virginity as a possibility), or else Mary continued to bear children after Jesus was born.  We simply have no Biblical evidence of Mary's lifelong abstinence.  But we would have difficulty explaining why John would been appointed to care for Mary, if indeed Joseph had children older than Jesus who would have been the rightful supporters of Mary in her elderly years.  The conclusion that Mary bore children by Joseph after the virgin birth of Jesus is the most graceful explanation for the brothers and sisters of Jesus.  This theory also appropriately expresses Mary's humanity, and her humility as the wife of Joseph.

(13) Now the Passover of the Jews was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.  From Capernaum the sojourners would have followed the Jordan Valley to Jericho, and then hiked the Jericho Road, a narrow winding trail that climbs through the mountains up to Jerusalem.  John's mention of their brief return to the lake seems only to be included so that we would know that Jesus' brothers had joined in the pilgrimage; and, so that we might be informed that they had not traveled through Samaria on this trip to Jerusalem.

(14) And He found in the temple those who sold oxen and sheep and doves, and the money changers doing business.  The outer courtyard area of the Temple, known as the Treasury or the Court of the Women, had become a regular exchange for trading money for sacrificial animals and produce.  This practice was perfectly in keeping with the law prescribed by Moses.

And you shall eat before the Lord your God, in the place where He chooses to make His name abide, the tithe of your grain and your new wine and your oil, of the firstborn of your herds and your flocks, that you may learn to fear the Lord your God always.  But if the journey is too long for you, so that you are not able to carry the tithe, or if the place where the Lord your God chooses to put His name is too far from you, when the Lord your God has blessed you, then you shall exchange it for money, take the money in your hand, and go to the place which the Lord your God chooses.  And you shall spend that money for whatever your heart desires: for oxen or sheep, for wine or similar drink, for whatever your heart desires; you shall eat there before the Lord your God, and you shall rejoice, you and your household. - Deuteronomy 14:23-26

(15) When He had made a whip of cords, He drove them all out of the temple, with the sheep and the oxen, and poured out the changers’ money and overturned the tables.  Moses did not, however, stipulate that the exchange of money for goods should take place within the Temple itself.  Jesus did not condemn their activity, but desired that they carry out their business outside the Temple.  Thus, He drove them all out of the temple.  Jesus was determined to enforce the proper distinction between the mundane activity of business and the sacred activity of worship.

Ezekiel likewise rebuked the spiritually blind religious leaders of Israel; stating, "Her priests have violated My law and profaned My holy things; they have not distinguished between the holy and unholy, nor have they made known the difference between the unclean and the clean; and they have hidden their eyes from My Sabbaths, so that I am profaned among them." - Ezekiel 22:26

 

(16) And He said to those who sold doves, “Take these things away!  Do not make My Father’s house a house of merchandise!”  In reference to merchandise in the house of God, Jesus may have been contemplating how He would set His house in order, in fulfillment of the last words from the prophet Zechariah. 

 

In that day "HOLINESS TO THE LORD" shall be engraved on the bells of the horses.  The pots in the Lord’s house shall be like the bowls before the altar.  Yes, every pot in Jerusalem and Judah shall be holiness to the Lord of hosts.  Everyone who sacrifices shall come and take them and cook in them.  In that day there shall no longer be a Canaanite in the house of the Lord of hosts. - Zechariah 14:20,21

 

That day, which Zechariah addressed will be the day when Messiah will have established His worldwide kingdom.  In that day people will come from distant lands to worship at the Temple.  The spirit of worship will be so pervasive in that day that the sacred inscription worn on the forehead by the high priests will even be imprinted on the bells of the horses.  Likewise, all the pots in Judah will be considered just as holy as the vessels set apart for use at the altar.

 

Also, in that day of Messiah's reign, there will no longer be a Canaanite in the house of the Lord of hosts.  The Canaanites were so associated with trade that this verse is commonly translated as, "there shall no longer be a merchant in the house of the Lord of hosts."  It can be no coincidence that Jesus began and ended His first ministry on earth with the cleansing of the Temple.  This first cleansing focused on the presence of mercantilism; the second cleansing emphasized the lack of prayerfulness.  But both of these cleansings have a direct association with the coming of Christ and the gathering of the nations to worship in Jerusalem. 

(17) Then His disciples remembered that it was written, “Zeal for Your house has eaten Me up."  The cleansing of the Temple by Jesus during His first ministry was a precursor to that time when "the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of God as the waters cover the sea."  You may be assured that in that day (of Christ's second coming) there shall no longer be a Canaanite in the house of the Lord of hosts.  Christ, in His zeal at His first coming, had merely portended that future day when He will rule the earth with a rod of iron according to the Second Psalm.  Some have suggested that using a whip seems contrary to the nature of Christ.  But when we consider that Jesus is the King of kings, who has been given authority over heaven and earth, we can appreciate the gentle gesture of using a makeshift light-duty whip to accomplish this purification of the Temple.

 

Jesus apparently did not explain what He was about to do when He entered the Temple.  Nor did He offer an explanation to His disciples after the fact.  The Disciples may have been shocked by Jesus' behavior, but the Spirit brought to mind that which was written in the Scriptures.  We also need to be familiar with all sixty-six books of the Bible.  How else will we remember what has been written when we are surprised or perplexed by the Lord's work in our lives?

 

The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul;
The testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple;
The statutes of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart;
The commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes;
The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever;
The judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether.
More to be desired are they than gold,
Yea, than much fine gold;
Sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb.
Moreover by them Your servant is warned,
And in keeping them there is great reward. - Psalms 19:7-11