Q1. Offense in the Temple

[royk]

Q1. (John 2:14-17) What was going on in the temple? Why was Jesus offended by it? What action did Jesus take?

In the house of His Father, there were commercial activities going on that even included profits for the high priest. This is corruption, plane and simple, "holy" men using their position of power to take a commission related to the religious days of worship. The common people were powerless, much like later them not wanting to be expelled from the synagogue by openly recognizing Jesus.  

 

For a true worshiper of God who understood this, it lowered their attitude, lowered everything, giving the devil much opportunity to deal with the ordinary person. In brief, the Jews were in need of a savior, but were expecting the messiah to come in the form of a "new David" to deliver them from the Romans.

 

Jesus put a stop to the commercial activities in His Father's house, in a fit of controlled anger. For the book of John, this was the beginning of His ministry to the lost people of Israel.

[parkerslope]

What was going on in the temple?

Through the years, the priests had allowed more and more secular activities to take place on the temple grounds.  By the time that Jesus started His ministry, the court of Gentiles had become a market place, where animals for sacrifice were sold and the money exchanged to pay the temple tax..

 

Why was Jesus offended by it?

The temple was built to replace the traveling Tabernacle.  After having been destroyed several times and rebuilt, it still was God's house where He met with the Priests who offered the blood.  The temple was the place that represented God on the earth and it was a very holy place.  Jesus was offended by the actions of the people who made profits on the poor people needing an animal to sacrifice.  

 

What action did Jesus take?

Jesus took a whip and drove out the animals and overturned the tables of the money changers, saying, "this is my Father's house".

[linda bass]

What was going on in the temple was, it was being used as a marketplace.

Jesus was offended by this because the temple was supposed to be a place to worship God, not buy and sell goods.

The action Jesus took was to make a whip out of cords and to use it to drive from the temple area the moneychangers as well as the sheep and cattle. He also overturned the tables of the moneychangers.

[JoanG]

The temple area was being used as a market place. However, there was much corruption of the vendors and those that exchanged money for the temple tax. This upset Jesus because people had come there to worship and they could not pray to God in a peaceful and serene setting as He had hoped for. Jesus cleared out the temple area by scattering the animals and turning over all the tables. He told the people of the injustice that was going on there.

[John6:68-69]

Selling of animals, exchanging of money.

They turned the temple a place of worship and prayer, a place to seek God's presence as a place of business. They disrespected God's house. 

Jesus dismantled what was happening, knocking over tables, sending the animals out of the temple, verbally reprimanding by telling them how they were disrespecting God's house.

By claiming the temple as His Father's house, Jesus was telling all that he had the authority.

[Joe_Applegarth]

Q1. (John 2:14-17) What was going on in the temple? Why was Jesus offended by it? What action did Jesus take?
 

1. Merchants were selling sacrificial animals and money changing.  2)  He was offended because they were disrespecting the temple (His Father’s House) by turning it from a place of worship to a marketplace.  3)  He drove the vendors and their animals out with a whip, poured out the changer’s money and overturned the tables.

[van]

That was a Temple for worshipping God, not quite place to make money. What He was really angry with the the money changers.coins being past back and forth. That was a big insult to Jesus Christ because that was His Father House!

[Lionwolf]

Q1. (John 2:14-17) What was going on in the temple? Why was Jesus offended by it? What action did Jesus take?

The temple was being used as a market. Anyone could bring in anything, set up a booth, and make money. Money changers were there changing money for a profit and the chief priest was getting a share. Jesus was offended as the temple was being used as a market and not as a place of prayer and worship as was intended. The temple was a place to honor God. Jesus made a whip and used it to throw the sellers and money changers out of the temple and overturned their tables. 

[Paul Hodge]

Q1. (John 2:14-17) What was going on in the temple? Why was Jesus offended by it? What action did Jesus take?

 

Jesus Cleanses the Temple

¹³ The Passover of the Jews was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. 

The Passover is one of the central festivals of high importance by the Jewish religious and the Jewish community in general. The Holy Temple in Jerusalem was the central place for all local Jews and those from afar to offer burnt offerings to atone for their transgressions against God. The act of going to the Temple was the most sacred way a person of the Jewish Faith could be made right with God. A Jew was required by law to make a least one pilgrimage in their lifetime to Jerusalem at Passover.

¹⁴ In the temple he found those who were selling oxen and sheep and pigeons, and the money-changers at their business. 

It was easy for a local Jew to bring their animal sacrifice to the temple. However, for the traveling Jew they had to purchase an unclean animal from sellers operating in the Temple courtyard. The traveler also had to purchase the approved sacrifice with the currency that the Priests of the Temple demanded. So there were tables set up to exchange their foreign/unclean money.

¹⁵ And making a whip of cords, he drove them all, with the sheep and oxen, out of the temple; and he poured out the coins of the money-changers and overturned their tables. ¹⁶ And he told those who sold the pigeons, “Take these things away; you shall not make my Father’s house a house of trade.” 

If you ever been to a foreign country where you have an open market place with dealers scattered around in a somewhat orderly line of stalls and tables, the place is very noisy and people are roaming here and there bustling up against each other. It is also a good idea before you go to the market to have the local currency on hand to make your purchase.

This is similar to what Jesus saw when he entered the Temple courtyard. However, the Temple represented something extremely holy and sacred to Jesus. He referred to the Temple as his “Father’s House”.

So imagine yourself returning to the house you were born in and grew up in only to find it occupied by people who turned into a market place. Would you calmly walk over to them and say, “Please take your trade elsewhere this is my father’s house and you have no right to be using it as a market place”.

What reaction would you expect from the traders? “ O very sorry Sir we will pack up right away and leave”. Not likely!

If they continue to resist what would be your next course of action? Get angry?

¹⁷ His disciples remembered that it was written, “Zeal for thy house will consume me.” ¹⁸ The Jews then said to him, “What sign have you to show us for doing this?” 

However, the traders in your house stand their ground and shout back at you, “ How do we know that you are the son of the man who is the rightful owner of this building?” So us some proof.

¹⁹ Jesus answered them, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” ²⁰ The Jews then said, “It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and will you raise it up in three days?” 

Shock! Horror! What did Jesus say? “ Destroy the temple and in three days I will raise it up.”

On hearing those words the crowds would have been silenced the all trade in the courtyard would stop; you could hear a pin drop.

²¹ But he spoke of the temple of his body. ²² When therefore he was raised from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this; and they believed the scripture and the word that Jesus had spoken.

These two verses hold such profound meaning to the Christian Faith - The foretelling of his resurrection three days after his death on the cross - AND something else just as important.

Jesus identified his body as a temple of God. Likewise, our bodies should be seen a temple of God and not used solely for the gain worldly profits. Instead

“Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own”. 1 Corinthians 6:19

"I urge you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice..." (Rom. 12:1) 

 

Edited February 4, 2018 by Paul Hodge
grammar and spelling mistakes

[Old Jerry]

The temple had been set up to be a money making machine. There were selling sacrificial animals and changing the local currency into the money that the temple would accept for its taxes. Jesus was offended because these booths were set up in the temple and people couldn’t come in and worship God. Jesus took action and ran all the merchants out of the temple.

[Godswriter]

Q1. (John 2:14-17) What was going on in the temple? Why was Jesus offended by it? What action did Jesus take?

People were selling and buying things like doves and other things for the temple. He was offended by it because it states in the Bible that the temple was a den of thieves and not a place for prayer. He cleansed it by creating a whip of cords and driving the sellers out with it. He also overturned the tables as well and poured out the money from the money changers. 

[Rosesam]

Q1. (John 2:14-17) What was going on in the temple? Why was Jesus offended by it? What action did Jesus take?

A scam was happening in the courts of the gentiles. The sacrificial animals were sold here and the exchange of temple currency with other currency was also happening here. The sacrificial animals brought by the worshiper would invariably be rejected by the specially qualified priests who had been extensively trained to spot blemishes. But these same animals would be given to another worshiper on the payment of money they required. Moreover only the temple currency was accepted for payment of these animals as well as to pay their temple tax which was mandatory every year for every Jewish male. For exchanging their currency for temple currency exorbitant exchange rates were charged. The priests made money in exchange of currencies, for the sacrificial animals and they were disrupting the worship of the gentiles which was the only place that the gentiles could enter. They were not allowed to proceed any further. This offended Jesus, for He knew that they were making His Father’s house to be a den of robbers, making merchandise of the place and not allowing the gentiles to worship God. So He made a chord of whip and drove them out and overturned their tables.  

[newwine50]

Q1. (John 2:14-17) What was going on in the temple?

They were selling cattle, sheep and doves.  Others were sitting at tables exchanging money. 

Why was Jesus offended by it?

They had turned His Father's house which should have been a house of prayer into a market place. 

What action did Jesus take?

He made a whip out of cords and drove the sheep and goats out from the Temple area.  He scattered the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables.   He told those who sold doves, 'Get those out of here!  How dare you turn my Father's house ubti a market!'

[theoldveteran]

On 8/7/2014 at 1:40 PM, Pastor Ralph said:

Q1. (John 2:14-17) What was going on in the temple? Why was Jesus offended by it? What action did Jesus take?

(1) It had been turned into a marketplace, a place where sacrificial animals were sold, and money to buy the animals was exchanged from foreign currency to the local currency.

(2) It had originally been built and dedicated to God as a place of worship, learning and prayer.  Jesus was offended by the desecration of His Father's house.

(3) He deliberately and angrily, fashioned a whip of cords, and proceeded to beat and drive out the evil merchants and their animals, that were profiting from the sale of the animals to be used as sacrifices, and He turned over the tables and scattered the coins of the money changers, of which they were also making a profit in the exchange.

[Jonathan Edwards]

There was a market and exchange currency businesses going on.  What Christ was very mad about is that commerce was conducted in the Court of the Gentiles. The Temple was not a house oof prayer for all nations.  No Gentile was allowed to venture beyond the perimeter,  under threat and penalty of death.

 Christ was attacking  the Temple itself. Christ has replaced the Jweish purification at Cana.  CHRIST alone is the true Temple, Christ the eternal Logos, very God from very God, Light from light, now flesh in Christ Jesus.   Christ wanted to teach that the call of the Israelites was a universal call to be sent all through the world.  We see that the gentile court area was like a quarantine area for Temple commerce; it was not a place of prayer.  Christ stated, "Take these things away " (John 2:16).  The Temple would be superseded by spiritual worship.  No more commerce due to the fact that there would  be no more Temple.  Demand for sacrifice was to be done away with.

Christ made a whip of cords.   He drove out the animals and disposing of required monies.   For a time, Temple sacrifices were impossible because the money exchange process to obtain Tyrian coinage was halted.  Christ is the Messianic Temple.

[Daniel R]

What was going on in the temple?

The temple was becoming like a marketplace! No longer like a house of God and of prayer, but of money and animals!

Why was Jesus offended by it?

Jesus was offended by it because they destroyed God's house! They defiled it by making it like a market! Personally, I wouldn't want my house to be made into a market...

What action did Jesus take?

Jesus drove/kicked out all the people and animals out, He scattered all the money, and He overturned the tables. RIGHTFULLY SO!

[Irmela]

John 2:14-17)

What was going on in the temple?

The people were selling oxen, sheep and doves for the sacrifices. There were also money changers at their stands. This was to change the money for the then coinage used for the temple tax. It sounded like a market place. 

Why was Jesus offended by it?

The area where this was taking place was supposed to be the place where the Gentiles gathered for prayer. (It was in the Court of the Gentiles). 

What action did Jesus take?

Jesus made a lash (a whip) of cords. He drove them (the sheep and the oxen) all out of the temple enclosure. He spilled and scattered the money-changers trays. Tossed over their stands. He told those that sold doves to take tbem out of there.