The Bible Book

244

J

esus chasing money

changers and merchant

priests from the Temple in

Jerusalem is described in all four

Gospels. Often referred to as the

cleansing of the Temple because

Jesus expelled corrupt, “impure”

priests, the event shows Jesus

fulfilling prophecies of Isaiah (56:7)

and Zechariah (14:21).

When Jesus arrives in Jerusalem,

it is the height of the Passover

pilgrimage season, a time when

Jews would travel en masse to the

city to visit the Temple. Priests

would often sell offerings to the

pilgrims to be sacrificed in their

name, as only priests could

approach the Temple’s innermost

altars. Such transactions typically

took place outside the Temple

walls. However, when Jesus goes

inside, He sees money changers,

as well as priests selling sheep,

cattle, and doves.

Anger of Jesus

Jesus sees this as corruption.

The priests are profiting from the

faithful and not allowing them

clear access to God. He proceeds

to overturn the priests’ tables and

call them a den of robbers. He tells

them: “Stop turning my Father’s

house into a market!” (John 2:16).

Many people remember only the

compassionate, “turn the other

cheek” descriptions of Jesus;

however, Jesus is angry here.

John’s narrative states that Jesus

“made a whip out of cords and

drove all from the Temple courts,

both sheep and cattle” (2:15).

This and other accounts

describe Jesus “driving out” the

priests and money lenders—in

the Greek, the same word is used

for Jesus cleansing the Temple as

Jesus drives out the corrupt in

this 19th-century oil painting by

Danish artist Carl Heinrich Bloch.

Jesus is shown holding the whip

above His head, ready to strike.

HE SCATTERED THE COINS

OF THE MONEY CHANGERS

AND OVERTURNED

THEIR TABLES

JOHN 2:15, CLEANSING THE TEMPLE

IN BRIEF

PA S SAGE

Matthew 21:12–17; Mark

11:15–19; Luke 19:45–48;

John 2:13–16

THEME

Challenging corruption

in the old religion

SETTING

c. 27–29 ce The Temple

courtyard in Jerusalem,

before Jesus is crucified.

KEY FIGURES

Jesus The Messiah and Son

of God, who is filled with anger

at the corruption He finds in

His Father’s Temple.

Temple merchants Priests

who sold offerings to Jewish

pilgrims visiting the Temple,

capitalizing on the fact that

they could not enter the

Temple’s innermost altars.

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245

See also: A Child in the Temple 188 ■ The Temple Tax 222 ■

Betrayal in the Garden 254–55 ■ The Crucifixion 258–65

THE GOSPELS

is used elsewhere in the Gospel

when He expels demons. The power

of Jesus’s command alone is enough

to force the corrupt to leave His

Father’s Temple.

Jesus’s motives

In the 1st century ce, there were

a number of sectarian groups

unhappy with the administration

of the Temple. One such group was

the Essenes, some of whom had

exiled themselves to the Dead Sea.

Jesus’s anger in the Temple has

led some to suggest that He may

have been a member of the Essenes,

but there is little evidence of this.

Some historians believe Jesus was

crucified by the Romans for trying

to incite a riot and that His actions

in the Temple would have been

viewed as those of a rebellious

Jewish leader.

Some Christians see Jesus’s

actions as evidence of Him looking

toward a reformation and split

from traditional Judaism. Others

see His actions as working to fulfill

Mosaic Law and institute a new

covenant. According to this

interpretation, Jesus is not a rebel:

He is exercising responsibility and

authority as an heir to King David

to order the service of the priests

and ensure the purity of their

obedience to the Mosaic Law. ■

Solomon builds the Temple (10th century bce) as

a house of prayer for all nations (1 Kings 6–7) ...

... Babylon destroys the Temple (587 bce), which

had become a focus of Israelite pride ...

... Ezra rebuilds the Temple (c.520–15 bce),

evoking humble worship from the people ...

... After Herod’s renovation (19 bce–63 ce), the Temple

again becomes a focus of nationalistic pride ...

Jesus cleanses the Temple for all nations.

Palm Sunday

Jesus enters Jerusalem on

a day now known as Palm

Sunday, and does so by

humble means, on the back

of a donkey. This fulfills the

prophecy of Zechariah, that

the king would come in riding

a donkey. As Jesus enters the

city, people gather to greet

Him. The crowds spread

their cloaks and branches

from palm trees to cover

the ground, and proclaim

Hosanna—the imperative form

of the Hebrew word meaning

“save”—as a form of praise.

The crowd also quotes Psalm

118, proclaiming that Jesus

is the Son of David coming

in the name of the Lord.

Although it takes place

at a different time of year,

Palm Sunday is reminiscent

of the Jewish holiday of

Sukkot. During this festival,

Jews weave together pieces

of palms and wave them

in each of the four cardinal

directions. The palm frond

is also a symbol of life and

resurrection, and a symbol

for the Assyrian Tree of Life.

Some scholars believe that the

palm fronds of Palm Sunday

could therefore signify that

Jesus will die in Jerusalem,

but soon also be resurrected.

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