Zeal for your house will consume me.
Mon, 12 December, 2005: Today’s Bible readings.
13 The Passover of the Jews was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. 14 In the temple he found those who were selling oxen and sheep and pigeons, and the money-changers sitting there. 15 And making a whip of cords, he drove them all out of the temple, with the sheep and oxen. 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; do not make my Father’s house a house of trade.” 17 His disciples remembered that it was written, “Zeal for your house will consume me.”
John tells us that at the beginning of His ministry, Jesus cleanses the temple.
The priests were running a market in the courts of the temple. Money-changers were there to exchange whatever kind of money the people had for the appropriate coin for the temple tax. The priests apparently were offering the temple tax coin at an exchange rate that was quite favorable to themselves.
People would travel great distances to offer sacrifices at the temple, and ostensibly as a service, the priests would offer animals for sale at the temple so that distant travelers would not have to bring an animal with them. Since the priests had to certify that any animal brought for sacrifice was acceptable, this apparently had also become a money making racket as they could refuse to accept any but animals from their market, for sale at a generous markup.
We are speculating that the priests were extorting money from those who came to worship, as the scriptures don’t explicitly tell us that was what was going on as they converted the courts of the temple into a market place. But we see that Jesus was very angry about what the priests had done to the temple courts.
What do we learn from this?
Jesus is very concerned about anything that distracts His people from their appointed worship. As the people gathered to bring their sacrifices to God, the priests saw it as a money-making opportunity. In doing so, they disrupted those who come to worship, and made a travesty of their sacrifice. Imagine how it changed their attitude toward worship as the people were being fleeced by the priests.
We must guard our worship against anything that distracts us from our focus upon God and the worship due to Him. The service should include a focus upon God and His word, and all distractions from that should be removed.
Where is Christ in this passage?
When Jesus suddenly appeared in the temple to purify it, He was fulfilling (at least partially — some people believe this will only be fully fulfilled at the second coming) Malachi’s prophecy from chapter three:
1 “Behold, I send my messenger and he will prepare the way before me. And the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to his temple; and the messenger of the covenant in whom you delight, behold, he is coming, says the LORD of hosts. 2 But who can endure the day of his coming, and who can stand when he appears? For he is like a refiner’s fire and like fullers’ soap. 3 He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver, and he will purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver, and they will bring offerings in righteousness to the LORD. 4 Then the offering of Judah and Jerusalem will be pleasing to the LORD as in the days of old and as in former years.
