Chapter

     Jesus actually cleanses the Temple twice. As 'book end' events surrounding his earthly ministry, in the beginning of his ministry upon his first visit to Jerusalem during the Passover, Jesus enters the temple and cleanses it. Then at the end of his ministry, Jesus again on that last Passover visit does once again so cleanse the temple.

Only John's Gospel preserves that first cleansing, but well he did, for it does give Jesus' begining ministry statement concerning God the Father. For when Jesus came to Jerusalem for that first ministry passover he found in the temple the buying and selling of animals within the temple walls and also the money changers who would for a price of interest exchange the common coin of the realm for the proper coin of sacrifice in the temple. In short the temple grounds had become a commercial place of business with those so associated with the leaders of the Jews and those of the temple making their cuts of the commissions and over pricing for the most convenient places within the temple walls.

When Jesus saw this, as the Son of God officiating in his ministry, he made a scourge of small cords and powerfully drove them all out of the temple. And the sheep and the oxen he drove with his the small cords in his hand out of the temple court and he poured out the changer's money and turned over their tables. The people, the Jewish leaders, the priests and the merchandisers would all have had an already feeling of guilt, for they knew that this was the premises and House of the Lord and that they ought not be defiling it with such. Thus Jesus by that power and authority of righteousness upon his side the Lord did declare to them those words which would condemn them in their very souls:

"Take these things hense; make not my Father's house an house of merchandise." ~ John 2:16

Though artist like to picture it so, it is most likely that Jesus did not strike any man but only used the scorge of cords to heard the sheep and oxen out of the temple. But perhaps the self guilt of the people envolved did put the fear of God in them that they of themselves may have felt so threatened, like a child knowing he deserved punishment will so react. To this action the Jewish leaders did challenge Jesus' authority to so drive the animals and merchandisers out of the temple court. The said, "What sign shewest thou unto us, seeing that thou doest these things?" (John 2:18) To which Jesus replied in a type of a mixed metaphor, the Sign of Jonah which implied that it was a wicked generation who so sought after such signs. To them he said simply:

"Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up." ~ John 2:19

Jesus had just given the Jewish leaders the answer of the 'Sign of Jonah', which he would appearantly give them in answer to their asking for a sign upon other occasions as well. And though Jesus did work many miracles which were signs of witness to who he was and that of his power and authority, it was the challege of giving the 'sign of Jonah' which did condemn the Jews. For the schooled Jewish leaders of the scriptures knew well the 'sign of Jonah' that Jonah had come out alive from the belly of the whale after three days and the people of Nineveh had accepted Jonah's signs and message from the Lord, which had included Jonah's three day ordeal in the belly of the whale and repented, but the Jews would not repent and would not accept Jesus though many miracles were performed by him and were of common knowledge amoung the people.

And though these Jewish leaders so schooled at the 3 day Sign of Jonah, when Jesus metaphorically spoke of the tabernacle of his own body and that the Jews would kill him and bury him in the earth and that he would rise again; the Jews chose to take the statment literally and mocked him by speaking only of the temple and how long it had taken to build the temple and did put Jesus to scorn that he could rebuild the temple, the House of the Lord again in only three days. This they did not only to point the mocking finger of pride against the Lord, but also to mislead the people into their thinking that this is what Jesus meant when it was not what was truly meant.

But the point here is that Jesus here spoke of the temple as being his Father's house. That first statement alone anounced boldly and clearly to any learned man of the scriptures who he was, that he was the Son of God the Father. His mircles witnessed it, he witnessed it, the Spirit would have witnessed it and he would also point out that if they indeed were children of God themselves, that they would know who he was for the Father had witnessed it at his baptism and would witness it to any who truly sought to know without any further signs to be given.