Luke 19:45

SECOND CLEANSING OF THE TEMPLE AND SUBSEQUENT TEACHING. (Luk 19:45-48)

As the first cleansing was on His first visit to Jerusalem (Joh 2:13-22), so this second cleansing was on His last.

den of thieves--banded together for plunder, reckless of principle. The mild term "house of merchandise," used on the former occasion, was now unsuitable.

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Luk_19:45-46

My house is the house of prayer

The purified temple

Regarding the Church as an institution, with its possessions, its laws, its days of worship, its rulers, its teachers, its outward services, we may find for ourselves a lesson in this incident.

And that lesson is, that the spiritual character of the Church is everything, and that its first object is to deepen in mens hearts the sense of the Divine and the spiritual. When that great end is lost sight of, the Church has parted with her strongest claims upon the world, and it has forfeited also its privilege as a witness for God on the earth. The spiritual influence is the first and chief purpose of the Church of Christ. The lesson of this narrative comes home to us in these days, when so much time and thought are given to the outer framework of Church forms and usages; and that lesson may be needed to correct our spirit of bustling and restless energy in what is at the best only the machinery of spiritual life, and not spiritual life itself. There is no class of men who are more in danger of losing the true meaning of religion than those who are employed in its service. If I were to seek for cases in which spiritual truth had been travestied and turned to not only secular but profane purposes, I do not know that I could find them more readily than in men to whom all sacred words and acts have grown so familiar that they have ceased to express spiritual facts at all. Those who are always engaged in religious works are apt to lose the sense of their sacredness. No man more needs to be on his guard against an unspiritual life than the man who is perpetually employed in spiritual offices. He brings within the courts of Gods house what ought to be left without; he forgets his high spiritual functions in the bustle and care which attend them; and it is really no absolute guarantee of a religious and spiritual life that a mans profession is the teaching of religion. Christs words and acts read us all a lesson, then; they tell us that in the most sacred occupations of life there may be found cares and anxieties which are less religious, and which are apt to swallow up too much of a mans time and thoughts. There is another temple of a different kind, of which a word may be said. The whole Christian body is, in the words of the New Testament, a temple of God. There is a sacredness in that temple, the spiritual community of Christians, if we would only think of it, much greater than in the Temple of Jerusalem, or in any building devoted to holy uses. And just as the whole Christian community is a temple sacred to God, so each individual heart is in itself a temple where God Most High is honoured and worshipped. (A. Watson, D. D.)

Lessons from Christs cleansing of the temple

1. Abuses are apt to creep into the Church. Let us be on our guard against their first introduction.

2. The Church is much indebted, under God, to those who have had the courage to stand forward as real reformers. Hezekiah; Josiah; the English reformers. They are indeed the benefactors of the Church who successfully exert themselves to correct doctrinal and practical errors, and to promote the scriptural administration of ordinances, discipline, and government. Thus, the progress of corruption is arrested, the beauty of Christianity is restored, and the glory of God, and the religious, and even civil, interests of men are promoted.

3. It is the duty of us all, according to our several places and stations, to do what we can to reform whatever abuses may exist in the Church in our own times.

4. Let this purification of the temple lead us to seek the purification of our own hearts.

5. In all we attempt for the benefit of others, or of ourselves, let us imitate the zeal which our Master displayed on this occasion. To be useful to man, or acceptable to God, we must be deeply in earnest--we must have the Spirit of Christ in this respect. Neither fear, nor shame, nor sinful inclination should restrain us in such cases. (James Foote, M. A.)

Christs indignation aroused by irreverence

In contemplating this action we are at first sight startled by its peremptoriness. Is this, we say to ourselves--is this He who is called the Lamb of God? He of whom prophecy said that He should neither strive nor cry; He who said of Himself, Come to Me; I am meek and lowly of heart? Is there not some incongruity between that meek and gentle character and those vehement acts and words. No, my brethren, there is no incongruity. As the anger which is divorced from meekness is but unsanctified passion, so the false meekness which can never kindle at the sight of wrong into indignation, is closely allied, depend upon it, to moral collapse. One of the worst things that the inspired Psalmist can find it in his heart to say of a man is, Neither doth he abhor anything that is evil. Bishop Butler has shown that anger, being a part of our natural constitution is intended by our Maker to be excited, to be exercised upon certain legitimate objects; and the reason why anger is as a matter of fact generally sinful is, because it is generally wielded, not by our sense of absolute right and truth, but by our self-love, and, therefore, on wrong and needless occasions. Our Lords swift indignation was just as much a part of His perfect sanctity as was His silent meekness in the hour of His passion. We may dare to say it, that He could not, being Himself, have been silent m that temple court, for that which met His eye was an offence first against the eighth commandment of the Decalogue. The money brokers were habitually fraudulent. But then this does not explain His treatment of the sellers of the doves, which shows that He saw in the whole transaction an offence against the first and second commandments. All irreverence is really, when we get to the bottom of it, unbelief. The first great truth that we know is the solitary supremacy of the Eternal God; the second, which is its consequence, the exacting character of His love. God is said, in the second commandment, to be a jealous God. (Canon Liddon.)

Christ dealt immediately with wrong

What He might have done! He might have said, Well, this temple will one day, and that day not far distant, be thrown down. I shall not interfere with this abuse now, because in the natural order of things it will be overturned along with this structure. Jesus Christ did not know what it was to trifle so. I dont know that Jesus Christ knew the meaning of the word expediency, as we sometimes prostitute it. He saw wrong. If that wrong would in five minutes work itself out, that was no consideration to Him. Meanwhile, to Him five minutes was eternity! (J. Parker, D. D.)

The cleansing of the temple

I shall endeavour to call your attention to one or two of the most marked features. And in the first place, I would bid you notice our blessed Lords zeal, that zeal of which the Psalmist said, speaking prophetically, the zeal of Thine house hath even eaten me Psa_69:9).

2. But again, the conduct of our Lord shows us the reverence that is due to Gods house. The Jewish temple was emphatically a house of prayer, it was a place where God had promised His special presence to those who came to worship. And there are some things which, like oxen and sheep, are things not clean enough to be brought into the temple of God; all evil feelings, and pride, and unkindness, and envy, and self-conceit, and other wicked emotions may not be brought into Gods temple; they must be driven out with scourges, they must not be tolerated. Then also there are some things which, like the doves, though pure in themselves, have no business in the temple of God; the cares of this world, things necessarily engaging our attention at other times, may not enter these doors: Gods church is intended to be as it were a little enclosed spot where worldly things may not enter. But again, the tables of moneychangers must not be here; this is no place for thoughts of gain, it is a profanation of Gods temple to bring them here. And, lastly, Christian brethren, we cannot but be reminded, by our Lords cleansing of the temple in the days of His flesh, of that awful cleansing of His temple which will one day take place, when all that is vile and offensive shall be cast out of His temple, and everything that maketh a lie cast into the lake of brimstone. (H. Goodwin, M. A.)

The Louse of prayer

I. Our first inquiry is--WHAT IS OUR LORDS VIEW AS TO THE PURPOSE AND END WHICH HE DESIGNS HIS EARTHLY TEMPLES TO SERVE? And this is the answer--My house is the house of prayer. He calls us here to pray. The work to which He sets us in the sanctuary is mainly devotional.

1. As first, that common or united prayer is needful for man. Prayer itself is almost an instinct of nature. Man must worship. And he must worship in company; he must pray with others.

2. Another observation which the Divine idea in regard to the earthly sanctuary suggests is, that common or united prayer is acceptable to God.

3. Common or united prayer is efficacious to obtain Divine gifts. Otherwise, God would not assign to it so foremost a position in the worship of the sanctuary.

II. MANS DEPARTURE FROM THIS DIVINE IDEA ABOUT THE HOUSE OF GOD ON EARTH. Ye have made it a den of thieves. There is mans perversion of Gods design. You know, of course, what the particular sin was which these words of our Lord were intended to reprove. It was the appropriation on the part of these Jews of a portion of the temple enclosure to purposes of worldly barter. This was the way in which the Jewish people lost sight of the Divine idea in regard to their temple. And though it is not possible for men now to commit precisely the same offence, I fear it would not be difficult to trace a corresponding sin, even in the present altered condition of the church. It is possible now to desecrate sacred places and offices to purposes of worldly gain. It is possible to make a traffic of spiritual functions and emoluments. But, my friends, these are not the only things in which a departure from Gods idea about His sanctuary may be marked now. There are others, of another complexion and character, it is true, but not the less to be reprehended. It is to these that I would more especially call your attention.

1. Let me say, then, that some pervert Gods idea by making the house of prayer a house of preaching. With them the sermon is almost everything. They are impatient of all else to get to that. Prayers, and lessons, and psalms, and creeds, are all just to be endured as a sort of preliminary to that.

2. I remark again, that some depart from Gods intention with respect to the sanctuary by making the house of prayer a house of mere Sunday resort. They must pass the day somewhere; they must get through it somehow, and so, as it is customary, and seemly, and respectable, they will go to church. They are as well there, they think, as anywhere else; but, alas! this is all.

3. I remark, in the next place, that some pervert this design by making the house of prayer a house of formal service. Their service is no more than lip service. (G. M. Merry.)

My house is the house of prayer

Nor are there wanting examples, in all succeeding ages, of the conscientious and religious regularity with which the faithful ever attended the public means of grace. Thus, for example, Zacharias and Elizabeth walked in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless. The just and devout Simeon waited for the consolation of Israel, and came by the Spirit into the temple of the Lord. These, so striking examples of such excellent men, and the uniform and continuous practice of the faithful in all ages, show that the public worship of God is an institution of Divine authority. That there is a God is the first suggestion of unassisted reason, and that God ought to be worshipped is the foundation and first principle of all religion. Accordingly, we have reason to believe, that public worship began with the beginning of the world, and that it has been continued and maintained in all countries and in all times, and under every form of religion that man has devised or God instituted. The ancient Jews for example, dedicated a seventh part of their time to the service and worship of God. We may also remark, that, from the earliest ages, not only particular times, but also particular places, were set apart and consecrated to these sacred services. In the darkest times of heathen idolatry, when there were gods many, and lords many, magnificent temples were built, stately altars erected, costly sacrifices offered, solemn rites celebrated, and the elegant arts of painting and sculpture, poesy and music, were called into the service of dumb idols. In after times, when the children of Israel were in the wilderness, and had no fixed nor settled abode, the tabernacle was erected by Gods special command, and richly endowed with sacred utensils and ornaments for His solemn worship.

I. PUBLIC WORSHIP IS CALCULATED TO DISPLAY THE GLORY OF GOD. As the court of an earthly monarch derives its dignity from the splendour and number of its attendants, so the church, the court of the Lord, shows forth the majesty of the Most High by its multitudes of humble worshippers.

II. PUBLIC WORSHIP IS ALSO CALCULATED TO PROMOTE AND PERPETUATE THE PRACTICE OF PURE AND UNDEFILED RELIGION. Prayer kindles and keeps up the spirit of piety in the soul. And if the house of prayer be thus holy, how great should be the purity of those who frequent it? Here, again, let the royal Psalmist be our director, Praise is comely for the upright. (A. McEwen.)

The house of prayer

My house is the house of prayer. This is as true of that portion of the holy body which we call the Church visible or militant as it is of the rest. The object of the visible Church is not solely philanthropic, although the Churchs duty is to do good unto all men, specially to them that are of the household of faith. It is not solely the moral perfection of its members, although the purification to Himself of a peculiar people zealous of good works was certainly a main object of its founder; still less is it the prosecution of inquiry or speculation, however interesting about God, because we already know all that we ever really shall know in this state about Him. We have on our lips and in our hearts the faith that was once delivered to the saints. This temple, visible and invisible, is thus organized by its Divine founder throughout earth and heaven to be a whole of ceaseless communion with God; and as its heavenly members never, never for one moment cease in their blessed work, so by prayers, broken though they be and interrupted--by prayers and intercessions, by thanksgiving and praise, private and public, mental and vocal, the holy Church throughout the world doth acknowledge Him who is the common centre of light and love to all its members, whether on this side the veil or beyond it. Into this temple also there sometimes intrudes that which moves the anger of the Son of Man, for this spiritual society has its place among men. It is in the world, although not of it, and it thus sometimes admits within its courts that which cannot bear the glance of the All-Holy. And especially is this apt to be the case when the Church of Christ has been for many ages bound up with the life and history of a great nation, and is, what we call in modern language, established--that is to say, recognized by the State, and secured in its property and position by legal enactments. I am far from denying that this state of things is or may be a very great blessing, that it secures to religion a prominence and a consideration among the people at large, which would else be wanting to it, that it visibly asserts before men the true place of God as the ruler and guide of national destiny; but it is also undeniable that such a state of things may bring with it danger from which less favoured churches escape. To be forewarned, let us trust, is to be forearmed; but whenever it happens to a great Church, or to its guiding minds, to think more of the secular side of its position than they think of the spiritual--more, it may be, of a seat in the Senate and of high social rank than of the work of God among the people; if, in order to save income and position in times of real or supposed peril, there is any willingness to barter away the safeguards of the faith, or to silence the pleadings of generosity and justice in deference to some uninstructed clamour, then be sure that, unless history is at fault as well as Scripture, we may listen for the footfalls of the Son of Man on the outer threshold of the temple, and we shall not long listen in vain. Churches are disestablished and disendowed to the eye of sense, through the action of political parties; to the eye of faith by His interference who ordereth all things both in heaven and in earth, and who rules at this moment on the same principles as those which of old led Him to cleanse His Fathers temple in Jerusalem. (Canon Liddon.)

Gods house a house of prayer

My house shall be called the house of prayer. Here is a law for the furniture and equipment; here is a definition of the object and purpose of a material Christian church. There are great differences, no doubt, between the Jewish Temple and a building dedicated to Christian worship; but over the portals of each there might be traced with equal propriety the words, My house shall be called the house of prayer. No well-instructed, no really spiritual Christian thinks of his parish church mainly or chiefly as a place for hearing sermons. Sermons are of great service, especially when people are making their first acquaintance with practical Christianity, and they occupy so great a place in the Acts of the Apostles, because they were of necessity the instrument with which the first teachers of Christianity made their way among unconverted Jews and heathens. Nay, more, since amid the importunities of this world of sense and time the soul of man is constantly tending to close its eyes to the unseen, to the dangers which so on every side beset it, to the pre-eminent claims of its Redeemer and its God, sermons which repeat with unwearying earnestness the same solemn certainties about God and man, about the person, and work, and gifts of Christ, about life and death, about the fleeting present and the endless future, are a vital feature in the activity of every Christian Church, a means of calling the unbelieving and the careless to the foot of the cross, a means of strengthening and edifying the faithful. Still, if a comparison is to be instituted between prayers and sermons, there ought not to be a moments doubt as to the decision; for it is not said, My house shall be called a house of preaching, but My house shall be called the house of prayer. Surely it is a much more responsible act, and, let me add, it is a much greater privilege, to speak to God, whether in prayer or praise, than to listen to what a fellow-sinner can tell you about Him; and when a great congregation is really joining in worship, when there is a deep spiritual, as it were an electric, current of sympathy traversing a vast multitude of souls as they make one combined advance to the foot of the eternal throne, then, if we could look at these things for a moment with angels eyes, we should see something infinitely greater, according to all the rules of a true spiritual measurement, than the effect of the most eloquent and the most persuasive of sermons. My house shall be called the house of prayer is a maxim for all time, and if this be so, then all that meets the eye, all that falls upon the ear within the sacred walls, should be in harmony with this high intention, should be valued and used only with a view to promoting it. Architecture, painting, mural decoration, and the like, are only in place when they lift the soul upwards towards the invisible, when they conduct it swiftly and surely to the gate of the world of spirits, and then themselves retire from thought and from view. Music the most pathetic, the most suggestive, is only welcome in the temples of Christ, when it gives wings to spiritualized thought and feeling, when it promotes the ascent of the soul to God. If these beautiful arts detain men on their own account, to wonder at their own intrinsic charms, down among the things of sense; if we are thinking more of music than of Him whose glory it heralds, more of the beauty of form and colour than of Him whose Temple it adorns, then be sure we are robbing God of His glory, we are turning His Temple into a den of thieves. No error is without its element of truth, and jealousy on this point was the strength of Puritanism, which made it a power notwithstanding its violence, notwithstanding its falsehood. And as for purely secular conversations within these walls, how unworthy are they in view of our Redeemers words! Time was, under the first two Stuarts, when the nave of the old St. Pauls was a rendezvous for business, for pleasure, for public gossiping, so that Evelyn the diarist, lamenting the deplorable state to which the great church was reduced, says that it was already named a den of thieves. Is it too much to say that the Redeemer was not long in punishing the desecration of His Temple? First there came the axes and hammers of the rebellion, and then there came the swift tongues of fire in 1660, and the finest cathedral that England ever saw went its way. Would that in better times we were less constantly unmindful of the truth that its successor is neither a museum of sculpture nor yet a concert-room, and that He whose house it is will not be robbed of His rights with permanent impunity. (Canon Liddon.)

The regenerate soul is a house of prayer

My house shall be called the house of prayer. This is true of every regenerate soul. When it is in a state of grace the soul of man is a temple of the Divine presence. If any man love Me, and will keep My words, My Father will love him, and we will come unto him and make our abode with him. Christs throne within the soul enlightens the understanding, and kindles the affections, and braces the will, and while He thus from His presence-chamber in this His spiritual palace, issues His orders hour by hour to its thinking and acting powers, He receives in return the homage of faith and love, a sacrifice which they delight to present to Him. So it is with Gods true servants, but alas! my brethren, if you and I compare notes, what shall we say? Even when we desire to pray we find ourselves in the outer court of the soul surrounded all at once with the tables of the money-changers, and with the seats of the men who sell the doves. Our business, with all its details, follows us in the churches, follows us into our private chambers, follows us everywhere into the presence of our God. Our preparations for religious service, the accidents of our service, occupy the attention which is due to the service itself. Sometimes, alas! we do not even try to make the very first steps towards real prayer, and steps which ordinary natural reverence would suggest; we lounge, we look about us, just as though nothing in the world were of less importance than to address the Infinite and Eternal God. But sometimes, alas! we do close the eyes, we do bend the knee, we try to put force upon the souls powers and faculties, and to lead them forth one by one, and then collectively to the footstool of the King of kings; when, lo! they linger over this memory or that, they are burdened with this or that load of care, utterly foreign to the work in hand. They bend, it is true, in an awkward sort of way in the sacred presence beneath, not their sense of its majesty, not their sense of the love and the beauty of God, but the vast and incongruous weight of worldliness which prevents their realizing it. And when a soul is thus at its best moments fatally troubled and burdened about many things, God in His mercy bides His time; He cleanses the courts of a Temple which He has predestined to be His for ever, He cleanses it in His own time and way; He sends some sharp sorrow which sweeps from the soul all thoughts save one, the nothingness, the vanity of all that is here below; and so He forces that soul to turn by one mighty, all-comprehending act to Himself, who alone can satisfy it; or He lays a man upon a bed of sickness, leaving the mind with all its powers intact, but stripping from the body all the faculties of speech and motion, and then through the long, weary hours the man is turned in upon himself; and if there is any hope for him at all, if at that critical moment he is at all alive.to the tender pleadings of the All-merciful, he will with his own hands cleanse the temple; he sees the paltriness of the trifles that have kept him back from his chiefest, from his only good; he expels first one and then another unworthy intruder upon the sacred ground. The scourge is sharp, the resistance it may be persevering; the hours are long, and they are weary, but the work is done at last. (Canon Liddon.)

Irreverence rebuked

When Walter Hook (afterwards Dean of Chichester) was Vicar of Coventry, he was once presiding at a vestry meeting which was so largely attended as to necessitate an adjournment to the church. Several persons kept their hats on. The vicar requested them to take them off, but they refused. Very well, gentlemen, He replied, but remember that in this house the insult is not done to me, but to your God. The hats were immediately taken off.

The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Luk 19:45-48. And he went into the temple — See notes on Mat 21:12-14; Mar 11:11; Mar 11:18. And he taught daily in the temple — Jesus, being now to remain but a short time upon earth, employed himself without intermission in teaching as many people as possible, and in the most public places.

Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

§ 112.—CLEANSING OF THE TEMPLE, Luk_19:45-48.

See our notes on Mat_21:12-13. That there were a first and second cleansing, see notes on the parallel in Matthew and on Joh_2:13-17.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

THE CLEANSING OF THE TEMPLE

Mat 21:12-13; Luk 19:45-48; Mar 11:15-19. “And they came into Jerusalem; and Jesus, coming into the temple, began to cast out the buyers and sellers in the temple, and He overturned the tables of the money changers, and the seats of those selling doves; and He did not suffer that any one may carry a vessel through the temple. And He was teaching, saying unto them, Has it not been written that My house shall be called the house of prayer for all nations? But you have made it a den of thieves. And the scribes and the chief priests heard, and they were seeking how they shall destroy Him; for they feared Him, because all the multitude were delighted with His teaching. And when it was evening, He departed out of the city.” Luk 19:48 : “And they did not find what they can do; for all the people hung on Him, hearing Him.” Our Savior’s ministry embraced four Passovers, beginning with one by purifying the temple, verifying the prophecy, in reference to the Messiah, that on arrival He would come suddenly to the temple and purify it; two Passovers transpiring in the interim of His ministry and this one, at the conclusion, so eminently commemorated by His arrest, prosecution, condemnation, crucifixion, and resurrection, rendering it the most celebrated of all the Passovers since that memorable night when Egypt was visited by the destroying angel, slaying the first-born in every house in all the land, but passing over the tenements occupied by the children of Israel, because, pursuant to the commandment of Moses, they had sprinkled on their door-posts and lintels the blood of the slain lamb, that vivid type of the bleeding Lamb of Calvary which was perpetuated at the great Passover festival, through all the intervening ages, down to this momentous culmination, when they not only slay the innocent typical lamb, but the Great Antitype, who, symbolized by countless millions of bleeding victims through the fugitive ages, now Himself bleeds and dies. Our Lord having purified the temple when inaugurating His ministry, now performs the same responsible and significant office in the conclusion. He will also, when He comes in His glory, give it a complete and final purgation, as it will be polluted no more, Satan having been east out. This traffic in beasts and birds was for the accommodation of multitudes, coming from afar, who desired to purchase a sacrifice, the birds being kept on hand for the especial accommodation of the poor. While in this you might see a degree of plausibility, doubtless much fraudulent dealing for the sake of filthy lucre had crept in among them, as we see plainly indicated by the Savior calling them thieves. All cheating and defrauding are theft in the sight of God, however honorable in the estimation of men. The temple was the house of God upon the earth in a sense vastly more preeminent than any other sanctuary in all the world, the great end in view being the rendezvous of God’s saints, that they might prevail in prayer for all the nations of the earth. It is very sad to contemplate the fairs, festivals, frolics, and fandangoes now so frequently held in church edifices, to the grief of the Holy Spirit and the profanation of God’s temple. Every, preacher should walk in the footprints of Jesus in this and every other respect, making a specialty of purifying the Church in the inauguration and the conclusion of His ministry. No one has a right to hold a pastoral charge in the ministry of Christ unless he exemplified Him in all his ministration. This bold procedure was very offensive to the hierarchy, who looked upon Him as an intruder and a usurper, and would have interfered if they had not feared the people, who were so delighted with His preaching that they hung on Him spellbound.

Luk 21:37-38. “And He was teaching in the temple during the days, and at night, going out, He was lodging in the mount called Olivet. And all the people were assembled unto Him in the temple to hear Him.” Tuesday night and Wednesday night He lodged in some of the villages on Mount Olivet, having spent the two preceding nights in Bethany; Thursday night He was arrested, and Friday night He was in the sepulcher. Jerusalem was this week thronged with vast multitudes, not only those having come to the Passover, but the whole country was on tiptoe with excitement about Jesus, a tremendous popular sensation breaking out three years previously, when John so powerfully preached Him to the multitudes attending his ministry, and increasing through the three successive years, having spread abroad into all nations, so that now the world is aroused and waiting spellbound to witness the issue impending, they know not what.

William B. Godbey, Commentary on the New Testament (1896–1900) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

19:45-48 Having just entered Jerusalem as the Messiah, Jesus performed a messianic action (cp. Mal 3:1) by driving money changers and merchants selling animals for sacrifices out of the Temple. This cleansing was to restore true worship to the Temple. It was also symbolic of the judgment that Jesus had just pronounced against Israel (19:41-44).

19:45 Pilgrims coming to worship at the Temple would purchase animals for sacrifices in the Temple courts. Jesus also drove out the money changers who provided the correct currency for the Temple tax (Matt 21:12; Mark 11:15; see Exod 30:13-16; Neh 10:32-33). While these were necessary services, Jesus objected to the exploitation of the Temple for illicit commercial gain that distracted from its purpose as a place of worship. The Temple was meant to reflect God’s glory for all nations, but it had become corrupt.

Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Luk 19:45. [Καὶ, and) Noble zeal follows close upon His tears.—V. g.]—ἱερὸν, the temple) the stronghold of religion, where, upon seeing His zeal, they ought to have known and acknowledged the things which belonged to their peace.

Bengel's Gnomon of the New Testament — English translation (T&T Clark, Edinburgh, 1860) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Luk_19:45-46. See on Mat_21:12 f.; Mar_11:15-17. Luke proceeds by brief extracts, and, moreover, gives the saying in Isa_56:7 not as Mark gives it, but in the abbreviated form of Matthew.

ἤρξατο] He began therewith His Messianic ministry in the temple. Schleiermacher erroneously regards Luk_19:45-46 as the concluding formula of the narrative of the journey.

Meyer — Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament — English translation by Peter Christie, edited by Frederick Crombie (T&T Clark, 1880) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Luk 19:45-48 . Jesus in the temple (Mat 21:12-17 , Mar 11:15-19 ). We have here two tableaux: Jesus reforming temple abuses (Luk 19:45-46 ), and Jesus teaching in the temple to the delight of the people and the chagrin of their religious and social superiors. Of the former we have but a slight and colourless presentation from Lk., whose editorial solicitudes, now well known to us, here come into play. The story as told by Mt. and Mk. shows passion (of the true Divine prophetic type) and action bordering on violence. This disappears from Lk.’s page in favour of a decorous but neutral picture. J. Weiss thinks it incredible that Lk. should have given us so inadequate a statement had he had such an account as that in Mk. before him (Meyer, eighth edition, note, p. 584). It is perfectly intelligible, once we understand Lk.’s method of handling his material. Equally groundless, for the same reason, is the inference of Hahn from the omissions of Lk. between Luk 19:44-45 (Mat 21:10-11 , Mar 11:11-14 ) that he cannot have known either Mt. or Mk.

Luk 19:45 . τοὺς πωλοῦντας , the sellers, no mention of the buyers in the true text (W.H [158] after [159] [160] [161] ).

[158] Westcott and Hort.

[159] Codex Sinaiticus (sæc. iv.), now at St. Petersburg, published in facsimile type by its discoverer, Tischendorf, in 1862.

[160] Codex Vaticanus (sæc. iv.), published in photographic facsimile in 1889 under the care of the Abbate Cozza-Luzi.

[161] Codex Regius--eighth century, represents an ancient text, and is often in agreement with א and B.

The Expositor's Greek Testament, edited by W. Robertson Nicoll (1897–1910) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

1. Expulsion of the Sellers: Luk 19:45-48.

Vers. 45-48. Without Mark’s narrative, we should think that the expulsion of the sellers took place on the day of the entry into Jerusalem. But from that evangelist, whose account is here peculiarly exact, we learn that the entry did not take place till towards the close of the day, and that on that evening the Lord did nothing but give Himself up to the contemplation of the temple. It was on the morrow, when He returned from Bethany, that He purified this place from the profanations which were publicly committed in it. If Matthew and Luke had had before them the account of the original Mark, how and why would they have altered it thus? Holtzmann supposes that Matthew intended by this transposition to connect the Hosanna of the children (related immediately afterwards) with the Hosanna of the multitude. The futility of this reason is obvious. And why and how should Luke, who does not relate the Hosanna of the children, introduce the same change into the common document, and that without having known Matthew’s narrative!

The entry of Jesus into Jerusalem took place either on Sunday (Comment. sur. l’évang. de Jean, t. ii. pp. 371-373) or on the Monday; it would therefore be Monday or Tuesday morning when He drove out the sellers.

Stalls (חֲ–ֻניוֹת) had been set up in the court of the Gentiles. There were sold the animals required as sacrifices; there pilgrims, who came from all countries of the world, found the coins of the country which they needed. There is nothing to prove that this exchange had to do with the didrachma which was paid for the temple. The words καὶ ἀγοράζοντας, and them that bought, are perhaps borrowed from the other two Syn. But they may also have been omitted, in consequence of confounding the two endings ντας.

The saying of Jesus is taken from Isa 56:7 and Jer 7:11. Luke does not, like Mark, quote the first passage to the end: “My house shall be called a house of prayer πᾶσι τοῖς ἔθνεσι, for all peoples.” Those last words, however, agreed perfectly with the spirit of his Gospel. He has not therefore borrowed this quotation from Mark.

The appropriateness of this quotation from Isaiah is the more striking, because it was in the court of the Gentiles that those profanations were passing. Israel was depriving the Gentiles of the place which Jehovah had positively reserved for them in His house (1Ki 8:41-43). By the designation, a den of thieves, Jesus alludes to the deceptions which were connected with those different bargainings, and especially with the business of the exchangers.

If Israel in a spirit of holiness had joined with Jesus in this procedure, the act would have ceased to have a simply typical value; it would have become the real inauguration of the Messianic kingdom.

Vers. 47 and 48 are of the nature of a summary; the καθ᾿ ἡμέραν, daily, and the imperfects, they sought, etc., prove that Luke does not affect to give a complete account of these last days. The words, the chief of the people, are added as an appendix to the subject of the verb sought. They probably denote the chiefs of the synagogue representing the people, who, with the priests and scribes, formed the Sanhedrim. This singular construction arises from the fact that the real instigators of hostilities against Jesus were the priests and scribes; the chief of the people only yielded to this pressure. This idea forms the transition from Luk 19:47 to Luk 19:48. The people formed the support of Jesus against the theocratic authorities. Certainly, if He had thought of establishing an earthly kingdom, now would have been the time. The passage Mar 11:18 is the parallel of those two verses. But neither of the two accounts can proceed from the other.

Should this event be regarded as identical with the similar one which John places at the beginning of Jesus’ ministry, Luk 2:13 et seq.? This seems to have been the generally received opinion in Origen’s time (in Joh. T. Luk 10:15). As the Syn. relate none but this last residence at Jerusalem, it would be very natural for them to introduce here different events which properly belonged to previous residences. See, nevertheless, in our Comment. sur. l’évang. de Jean, t. i. p. 391, the reasons which make it probable that the two events are different. Here we shall add two remarks: 1. Mark’s narrative must rest on the detailed account of an eye-witness. Comp. those minute particulars: “And Jesus entered into Jerusalem, and into the temple; and when He had looked round about upon all things, and now the eventide was come, He went out unto Bethany with the Twelve” (Luk 11:11); “And would not suffer that any man should carry any vessel through the temple” (Luk 19:16). These are such details as are not invented; it was not tradition that had preserved them (see Luke and Matthew). They proceed, therefore, from an eye-witness. How in this case can we question Mark’s narrative, and consequently that of the three Syn.? 2. If Jesus was returning for the first time after the lapse of two years (John 2) to the feast of Passover, which more than any other gave occasion to those scandals (Bleek on Mat 21:12), He could not but be roused anew against the abuses which He had checked the first time, more especially in the Messianic attitude which He had taken up. Here, then, again John supplies what the others have omitted, and omits what they have sufficiently narrated.

Second Cycle: The Reign of Jesus in the Temple, Luk 19:45 to Luk 21:4.

From this moment, Jesus establishes Himself as a sovereign in His Father’s house; He there discharges the functions not only of a prophet, but of a legislator and judge; for some days the theocratic authorities seem to abdicate their powers into His hands.

These are the days of the Messiah’s sovereignty in His temple (Mal 3:1-2).

This section contains the following facts: Jesus driving out the sellers (Luk 19:45-48); His answer to an official question of the Sanhedrim regarding His competence (Luk 20:1-8); His announcing their deprivation of authority (Luk 20:9-19); His escape from the snares laid for Him by the Pharisees and Sadducees (Luk 20:20-40); His putting to them a question respecting the person of the Messiah (Luk 20:41-44); His guarding the people against those seducers (Luk 20:45-47); His setting up, in opposition to their false system of moral appreciation, the true standard of divine judgment (Luk 21:1-4).

Frédéric Louis Godet — Commentaries on Luke, John, Romans, and 1 Corinthians — English translation (T&T Clark, Edinburgh, 1870s–1890s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Christ showeth after his entry into Jerusalem by a visible sign, that it is his office enjoined him of his Father to purge the Temple.

Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain. Text via Bolls.life.

Verse 45. Went into the temple] See all this transaction explained, Mt 21:12-16.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

(45-48) And he went into the temple.—See Notes on Mat_21:12-17; Mar_11:15-19. St. Luke apparently agrees with St. Matthew in thinking of the expulsion of the money-changers as taking place on the same day as the Entry. His narrative is here the least descriptive of the three.

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

45, 46. Final Cleansing of the Temple.

45. he went into the temple] The procession of Galilaean pilgrims would leave Jesus at the foot of Mount Moriah—(the ‘Mountain of the House,’ Isa_2:2), beyond which none might advance with dusty feet or stained by travel. Jesus would enter by the Shushan gate.

began to cast out, &c.] As He had also done at the beginning of His ministry, Joh_2:15. The needs of the pilgrims—the money which had to be changed—the purchase of cattle for sacrifice, &c.—had made the cloisters, precincts, and even the outer court of the Temple a scene of noisy and greedy barter, as the nave of St Paul’s used to be a few generations ago. For further details, see Mat_21:12-13; Mar_11:15-17.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And he taught daily in the temple,.... Every day till the passover came, and only in the day; for at night he went out of the city to Bethany, or to the Mount of Olives: some of his discourses in the temple, the parables he delivered, and his disputations with the doctors, are recorded in Mat 21:27,

but the chief priests, and the Scribes, and the chief of the people; or "the elders of the people", as the Syriac version renders it; that is, the whole sanhedrim:

sought to destroy him; met and consulted together how to get him into their hands, and what charges to bring against him, in order to put him to death.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

45 And he went into the temple, and began to cast out them that sold therein, and them that bought;

Ver. 45. See Mat 21:12-13, &c.; {See Trapp on "Joh 2:14"}

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

See the notes at Mat 21:12-13.

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

We have met with this before more fully: See Poole on "Mat 21:12-13". See Poole on "Mar 11:15", and following verses to Mar 11:17.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

Vers. 45, 46. And he went into the temple. The recital of St. Luke here is more general and less precise than that of the other two synoptists. The Lord on that "Palm Sunday" evening simply went into the temple, and when he had looked round about upon all things" it was then evening, and he returned to his lodging at Bethany with the twelve. (Mar_11:11) The expulsion of the money-changers, mentioned in the next verse (46), took place on the following day. St. Matthew adds another interesting detail respecting the excitement caused by the presence of Jesus in the city. "When he was come into Jerusalem, all the city was moved, saying, Who is this?". (Mat_21:10) And he went into the temple, and began to cast out them that sold therein, and them that bought; saying unto them, It is written, My house is the house of prayer: but ye have made it a den of thieves. This visit of the Lord to the temple, in which he spoke and acted as King Messiah, was a fulfilment of Mal_3:1, Mal_3:2. In the outer court of the temple stalls had been erected in which money-changers were located (geld-wechsel comptoir change de monnaies), in order that pilgrims from foreign lands might be able to exchange their foreign coins for the purchase of sacrificial victims. These also seem to have been sold in the precincts. All this made the courts of the Lord"s house a scene of noise and tumult, and, from the Master"s stern words, a scene often of cheating and overreaching. The words of Jesus were taken from Isa_56:7 and Jer_7:11.

Luk_20:18. Passion Week.

The last of the old Hebrew prophets, Malachi (Mal 3 and Mal 4), had announced that the Lord, the Sought One, would come "suddenly" into his temple, and manifest himself there in a threefold character that of Judge, that of the Purifier and Refiner, and that of the swift Witness of the kingdom of heaven. It is in this threefold character that Christ is presented during the week in which he suffered. The Judge. St. Mark, with his usual delicacy of touch, informs us that, after the procession which swept through the gates of the city halted at the foot of Mount Moriah, Jesus advanced to the temple, walked through its courts, and looked round about on all things. (Mar_11:11) Every part of the building, every arrangement, every feature, was comprehended in that gaze. It was the act of the Judge. The survey completed, the Purifier and Refiner disposes his crucible. At the beginning of the ministry he cleansed the house of his Father, which had been rendered a den of merchandise; at the end of the ministry he repeats the cleansing (vers. 45, 46). Jerusalem was crowded; outside the city wall there was a vast city of pilgrims" booths. For the sale of victims for sacrifice, and no doubt for the vending of many wares besides, the temple precincts were for the time a huge holy fair. One could scarcely distinguish that its real purpose was an asylum for weary hearts, a refuge for sin-stricken consciences, a place for quiet meditation and prayer. Where, amid the hubbub of buyer and seller, could the pious Israelite "dwell in the courts of Jehovah, beholding his beauty and inquiring in his temple"? It is this that kindles the wrath of the Son of God, and incites to the action portrayed by the synoptic evangelists. "Who shall stand when he appears who is like a refiner"s tire, and like fuller"s soap?" This purging of the holy house of that which made it like a cave of brigands was the work of that first day, which has been called Palm Sunday. The night which followed was spent in Bethany, perhaps on the slope of Olivet. On the second day we find the Lord again in the temple, and now in the third of Malachi"s characters as the swift Witness against the enemies of God. This was the aspect of his countenance on the days which remained until the night came on which, in the form of his human presence, the Lord could no more work. "He taught daily in the temple" (ver. 47). The events of the Monday would seem to be these: In the keen-aired early morning, Jesus, on his way to the temple, is hungry. He sees (Mat_21:19 Mar_11:12-14) a fig tree, evidently a conspicuous one, which, rich in leaves, gave the promise of fruit. There is nothing but leaves, a mere simulacrum, the semblance without the reality of goodness. As a lesson to all the ages, a swift witness against all part-acting, he pronounces over it the curse of the Eternal Truth, and leaves it to wither and rot. The temple gained, again the dense crowd gathers around the Prophet of Nazareth. The phrase is most expressive: "The people were very attentive to hear him" (ver. 48). The tide had not yet turned. He was still engirt by the hosannahs of the multitude; when, lo! cries are heard, "Make way for the chief priest!" and, followed by a retinue of priests and scribes, the head of the temple-worship confronts the Teacher. Poor, purblind souls! they do not look for his authority to the truth with which he is filled, to the works which he does. To bigots like them the certificates which the truth supplies are unintelligible; their only point is a formally expressed delegation of power. (Luk_20:2) Had not Jesus met similar cavils at the Feast of Tabernacles two years before? Had he not argued (Joh_5:32-47) that itis impossible for minds brimful of prejudice, loving and courting the honour of men, to understand him, to know whose he is, whence he comes, and by what right he speaks? But now he will not thus argue. They are there to browbeat and overawe him; they shall themselves be silenced by a thrust impaling them on the horns of a dilemma from which they will escape only in confusion and chagrin. Question is replied to by the question of Luk_20:3, Luk_20:4. They cannot answer. Then, rejoins the Truth, "Neither tell I you by what authority I do these things" (ver. 8). And there follows a series of parables bearing on and bringing out the obstinacy which had just been exemplified: the two sons; the wicked husbandmen; and the marriage of the king"s son. Only the second of these is quoted by St. Luke. (Luk_20:9-16) The parable is in harmony with well-known prophetic symbols; e.g. Isa_5:1-7. The vineyard is the kingdom of God, which had been planted in Israel; the husbandmen are the priests and scribes to whom had been committed the care of the vineyard; the servants sent first one, then another, and then a third to demand the fruit, represent the prophets, ending with John the Baptist; and the climax of the wickedness of the husbandmen is the rejection and death of the beloved Son. "What will the owner do with such men?" Christ demands. He pauses for the reply; and, not perceiving that it is pronouncing its own judgment, his audience answers, "He will miserably destroy them, and give the vineyard to others," Ah! priest and Pharisee, out of your own mouth are you condemned. "The kingdom of heaven shall be taken from you, and given to a nation bringing forth the fruits thereof." And from startled consciences comes back the shuddering, "God forbid!" He has not done with them. The eye, flashing its holy fire, fastens on the crouching multitude, and, resuming the discourse, he sends straight home the words of Psa_118:22, Psa_118:23. Solemn, memorable words! Pause and ponder them. The spurning of the Incarnate Love and truth by those amongst whom he came often seems to us a miserable infatuation, a double-dyed sin against the Holy Ghost. Are we sure that Christ, coming as the swift Witness, would be welcomed even in the house of his friends to-day? The late General Gordon said, "No; he would be a Stranger, rejected, if not despised, by the society which is professedly Christian," One thing, at all events, is strange; and that is that men and women should live in such marvellous light as that into which we are called, and remain the men and women they are, unmoved by, unresponsive to, the voice of God, willing to live apart from him whose service is their perfect freedom. May we not summon ourselves before the great white throne of truth, and ask whether God is receiving from us the fruit of his own vineyard; whether we are consciously and really living to him; whether our attitude towards the Son of his love is that of a wholehearted and loyal acceptance; or only like that which has been strikingly compared to "some fever-reduced patient, lifting himself up for an instant from the bed on which he is lying, and putting out a hand, and then falling back again, the vacillating, fevered, paralyzed will recoiling from the resolution, the conscience having power to say, "Thou oughtest," but with no power to enforce the execution of its decrees, and the heart turning away from the salvation that it would have found in the love of God to the loss that it finds in the love of self and earth." That vacillation, that impotence, is the strange, sad thing. Reflect intensely, prayerfully, on the house which the builders rejected. Which of the two ways is it, will it be: this House taken as the Head of the corner, the reconciling centre of all the days pride, wilfulness falling on it, and through the fall broken? or, the house rejected, and the Corner-stone falling on the disobedient soul, grinding its very strength to powder? Love rejected the wrath of the Lamb: who can measure that force?

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Matt. xxi, 12; Mark xi, 11.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

The purging of the Temple:

v. 45. And He went into the Temple, and began to cast out them that sold therein, and them that bought,

v. 46. saying unto them, It is written, My house is the house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves.

v. 47. And He taught daily in the Temple. But the chief priests and the scribes and the chief of the people sought to destroy Him,

v. 48. and could not find what they might do; for all the people were very attentive to hear Him.

It was on the next morning that Jesus carried out a plan that had occurred to Him the day before, when He had seen the abuses to which the Temple had been put by the people. Since it would have been very inconvenient, in some cases almost impossible, for every Israelite to bring his sacrificial animal from his home to Jerusalem, the Lord permitted those living at a distance to buy their sacrificial beasts and birds in Jerusalem. The consequence was that a thriving business soon developed, which seems to have been controlled by some of the religious leaders themselves, for they were not at all averse to making money. All would have been well if they had held their market somewhere down in the lower town. But the venders had moved up into the neighborhood of the Temple, and finally into its very court. There were the stalls for the oxen, the pens for the sheep and goats, the coops for the doves. There were also the money-counters; for it was necessary to make change. The fact that their methods profaned the courts of the Lord had apparently not entered into the minds of these eager business men. But the Lord made short work of their marketing, of their buying and selling. He began to thrust out the buyers and sellers, reminding them meanwhile of the words of the prophet concerning the fact that the house of God should be considered a house of prayer for all people, Isa 56:7, as Solomon had said in his prayer of dedication. They had converted it into a den of robbers, where the people sat haggling over prices and pocketing excessive profits. It was not only the marketing that profaned the house of the Lord, but also the fact that many of the people came there without true repentance, intending to buy themselves free from the wrath to come with sacrifices. But all sacrifices and prayers that are made with an unrepentant heart are an abomination in the sight of God, a blasphemy of the most holy name of God. But the Lord is the Judge of all such, and will, in the end, pass sentence upon all such as are guilty of hypocrisy. After Jesus had thus purged the Temple, He taught in its halls daily. The leaders of the people, the members of the Sanhedrin, were greatly embittered over His words and works, and they sought for some way of destroying Him. But they were afraid to carry out their murderous designs; they could find no way of approaching Him with an evidently hostile intention. For the common people all together, during these days, were most attentive to hear Him; they hung upon His every word as though they could not get enough of the words of salvation. The word used by Luke describes not only the most careful attention, but also the very great pleasure and gratification that was theirs because they were privileged to hear Jesus. Thus all men should at all times hang upon the Word of eternal life as it has been revealed in the Gospel, for it testifies of the Savior of the world.

Summary

Jesus visits Zacchaeus, the publican, in Jericho, tells the parable of the pounds, enters Jerusalem in triumph, but weeps in the knowledge of the future fate of the city, and purges the Temple.

Paul E. Kretzmann, Popular Commentary of the Bible (1921–1924) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

No sooner had our blessed Saviour entered Jerusalem, but his first walk was to the temple, and his first work was to purge and reform it from abuses, not to ruin and destory it because it had been abused.

But what was the profanation of the temple, that so offended our Saviour?

Answer. In the court of the Gentiles, the outward court of the temple, there was a public mart or market kept, where were sold oxen, sheep, and doves, for sacrifice, which otherwise the people must have brought up along with them from their houses: as a pretended ease therefore to the people, the priests ordered these things to be sold hard by the altar; but our blessed Saviour being justly offended at this profanation of his Father’s house, cast the buyers and sellers out of the temple: teaching us, that there is a special reverence due to God’s house, both for the Owner’s sake, and for the service sake: nothing but holiness can become the place where God is worshipped in the beauty of holiness.

The reason in added, My house is the house of prayer; where by prayer is to be understood, the whole worship and service of God, of which prayer is an eminent and principal part. That which gives denomination to an house, is most certainly the chief work to be done in that house; now God’s house being called an house of prayer, implies that prayer is a chief and principal work to be performed in this house; yet take we heed, that we set not the ordinances of God at variance one with another; we must not idolize one ordinance, and vilify another, but reverence them all, and pay an awful respect to all divine institutions. Our blessed Saviour here in his house of prayer preached daily to the people, as well as prayed with them; and all the people were as attentive to hear his sermons as he was constant at their prayers.

Prayer sanctifies the word, and the word fits us for prayer. If we would glorify God, and edify ourselves, we must put honor upon all the ordinances of God, and diligently attend them upon all occasions.

William Burkitt's Expository Notes on the New Testament (1700–1703) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

J. W. McGarvey's The Fourfold Gospel [CVI. The Barren Fig-Tree].

CVI. BARREN FIG-TREE. TEMPLE CLEANSED. (Road from Bethany and Jerusalem. Monday, April 4, A. D. 30.) aMATT. XXI. 18, 19, 12, 13; bMARK XI. 12-18; cLUKE XIX. 45-48.

b12 And a18 Now bon the morrow [on the Monday following the triumphal entry], ain the morning bwhen they were come out from Bethany, aas he returned to the city [Jerusalem], he hungered. [Breakfast with the Jews came late in the forenoon, and these closing days of our Lord's ministry were full of activity that did not have time to tarry at Bethany for it. Our Lord's hunger implies that of the disciples also.] 19 And seeing a fig tree by the way side, bafar off having leaves, ahe came to it, bif haply he might find anything thereon: and when he came to it, [580] he afound nothing but leaves only; bfor it was not the season of figs. [Two varieties of figs are common in Palestine. The bicura or boccore, an early fig with large green leaves and with fruit which ripens in May or June, and sometimes earlier near Jerusalem. Thomson found ripe fruit of this variety as early as May in the mountains of Lebanon, a hundred fifty miles north of Jerusalem, and Professor Post, of Beyrut, states that fig-trees there have fruit formed as early as February, which is fully ripe in April. The second variety is the summer fig or kermus. This ripens its main crop in August, but its later fruitage often hangs on all winter when the weather is mild, dropping off when the new spring leaves come. As the fruit usually appears before the leaves, the leaves were a promise that fruit might be found, and the fruit, though not perfectly ripe, is considered edible when the leaves are developed. Though it was too early for fruit, it was also too early for leaves. The tree evidently had an unusually favorable position. It seemed to vaunt itself by being in advance of the other trees, and to challenge the wayfarer to come and refresh himself.] 14 And he answered and said { asaith unto it, Let there be no fruit from thee henceforward for ever. bNo man eat fruit of thee henceforward for ever. And his disciples heard it. aAnd immediately the fig tree withered away. [The disciples did not pause to watch the effect of Christ's words upon the tree. But from the degree to which it had shriveled when they saw it next day it became evident to them that it had begun to wither as soon as Christ had finished uttering its sentence. Our Lord here performed a miracle of judgment unlike any other of his wonderful works. The reader can hardly fail to note how perfectly this fig-tree, in its separation from the other trees, its showy pretensions, its barrenness of results and its judgment typifies the Jewish people. In fact, Christ's treatment of it appears in some respects to be a visible and practical application of the principles which he had formerly set forth in a parable ( Luk_13:6-9). But we must not too confidently make such an application of the parable since Jesus himself gave [581] no hint that he intended us so to apply it.] b15 And they come to Jerusalem: and he entered into the temple, and began to cast out aall them that sold band them that bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the moneychangers, and the seats of them that sold the doves [three years before, Jesus had thus cleansed the temple at the first passover of his ministry, for an account of which see Mat_12:29, Luk_17:31. The LXX. uses it as equivalent to "instruments of war" at Deu_1:41, and to "vestments" at Deu_22:5.] 17 And he taught, and said { asaith c46 Saying unto them, It is written [the prophecy cited is a combination of Isa_56:7, Jer_7:11], { bIs it not written, cAnd my house shall be bshall be called a house of prayer for all the nations? but ye have made aye make it a den of robbers. [The caves in certain sections of Palestine have been immemorially infested with robbers, and Jesus, because of the injustice of extortion practiced by the merchants, likens the polluted temple to such a den. The dickering and chafing and market talk were probably not unlike the grumbling and quarreling of thieves as they divide the booty.] b18 And the chief priests and the scribes heard it, and sought how they might destroy him: for they feared him, c47 And he was teaching daily in the temple. But the chief priests and the scribes and the principal men of the people sought to destroy him: 48 and they could not find what they might do; for the people all hung upon him, listening bfor all the people was astonished at his teaching. [Overawed by the magnitude [582] of the popular demonstration made on Sunday, the Jewish rulers feared to attempt any violent measures in dealing with Jesus. But they neglected no opportunity by appeals to Jesus himself, by treacherous questions, etc., to divert the popular favor from the Lord that they might put him to death.]

[FFG 580-583]

J. W. McGarvey (with Philip Y. Pendleton), Commentaries on the New Testament (The Fourfold Gospel, 1914; Acts; and the epistles) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

45–48. He cast out them that sold. An act of kingly authority. See notes on Matt. 21:12–15 and Mark 11:18, 19.

For the people all hung upon him. His popularity with the people made it difficult for his enemies to carry out their purposes.

B. W. Johnson's The People's New Testament with Notes (1889–1891) — public domain. Electronic text from the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (CCEL) ThML edition.

Connecting Statement:

This is the next event in this part of the story. Jesus enters the temple in Jerusalem.

Jesus entered the temple

You may need to make explicit that he first entered Jerusalem, where the temple was located. AT: "Jesus entered Jerusalem and then went to the temple courtyard" (See: Assumed Knowledge and Implicit Information)

entered the temple

Only priests were allowed to enter the temple building. AT: "went into the temple courtyard" (See: Assumed Knowledge and Implicit Information)

cast out

"throw out" or "force out"

It is written

This is a quotation from Isaiah. This can be stated in active form. AT: "The scriptures say" or "A prophet wrote these words in the scriptures" (See: Active or Passive)

My house

The word "My" refers to God and "house" refers to the temple.

house of prayer

"a place where people pray to me"

a den of robbers

Jesus speaks of the temple as if it were a place where thieves come together. AT: "a place where thieves hide" (See: Metaphor)

translationWords

temple

cast out

written

house of God

pray

unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.

45, 46. FINAL CLEANSING OF THE TEMPLE

45. εἰς τὸ ἱερόν. The procession of Galilaean pilgrims would leave Jesus at the foot of Mount Moriah—(the ‘Mountain of the House,’ Isa 2:2), beyond which none might advance with dusty feet or stained by travel. Jesus would enter by the Shushan gate.

ἐκβάλλειν. As He had also done at the beginning of His ministry, Joh 2:15. The needs of the pilgrims—the money which had to be changed—the purchase of cattle for sacrifice, &c.—had made the cloisters, precincts, and even the outer court of the Temple a scene of noisy and greedy barter, as the nave of St Paul’s used to be a few generations ago. For further details, see Mat 21:12-13; Mar 11:15-17.

Cambridge Greek Testament for Schools and Colleges (Cambridge University Press, 1896; 21 vols, various authors incl. Carr, Maclear, Plummer, Farrar, Lumby, Moule, M. R. James, Simcox) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

45, 46. The Second Cleansing of the Temple. Mat 21:12, Mat 21:13; Mar 11:15-17. Both Mt. and Mk. record the entry into Jerusalem. The latter tells us how He entered the city and the temple, and having “looked round about upon all things,” went back in the evening to Bethany with the Twelve (ver. 11.) It was the day following that He returned to Jerusalem and cleansed the temple, the cursing of the barren fig-tree taking place on the way. Lk. omits the latter, and records the former very briefly. He groups the cleansing and the subsequent teaching in the temple with the triumphal procession as a series of Messianic acts. They we all put of the last great scene in which Jesus publicly assumed the position of the Christ.

That this is a second cleansing, and not identical with Joh 2:14-22, may be regarded as reasonably certain. What is gained by the identification, which involves a gross chronological blunder on the part of either Jn., who places it at the beginning of Christ’s ministry, or of the others, who place it at the very end? Could any o those who were present, John or Peter, transfer so remarkable an event from one end of their experiences to the other? Such confusion in memory is not probable, especially when we consider the immense changes which distinguish the last Passover in the ministry from the first. That the three should omit the first cleansing is only natural, for they omit the whole of the early Judæan ministry. Jn. omits the second, as he omits the institution of the Eucharist and many other things, because it has been recorded already, and is not necessary for the plan of his Gospel. On the other hand, there is no difficulty in the supposition that the temple was twice cleansed by Jesus. He was not so reverenced in Jerusalem that one such act would put an end to the scandal for ever. The hierarchy would be glad of this opportunity for publicly treating His authority with contempt; and this would pportu more easy, as Jesus does not seem to have kept the next Passover at Jerusalem (Joh 6:4). If a year or two later He found that the evil had returned, and perhaps increased, would He not be likely to act as He did before? There are differences in the details as given by Jn. and by the others, which confirm the view that he and they are recording different events. D.C.G. ii. p. 712.

45. εἰσελθὼν εἰς τὸ ἱερόν. If we had no other account, we should suppose that this took place on the same day as the triumphal entry. But as Lk. gives no note of time, there is no discrepancy between him and Mk. The Court of the Gentiles is meant. The traffic would be great as the Passover drew now; and, as the hierarchy profited by it, we may be sure that they would try to make the attempt to stop it fail.

ἤρξατο ἐκβάλλειν. So also in Mk., whose account is specially graphic, as that of an eye-witness. In this respect the narrative in Joh 2:14 ff. is similar. Here perhaps ἤρξατο ἐκβ. is merely the Hebraistic paraphrase for ἐξέβαλεν (Mat 21:12) or ἐξέβαλλεν. See on 3:8 and 12:45, and comp. LXX of Gen 2:3; Deu 1:5; Jdg 1:27, Jdg 1:35; Jdg_1 Esdr. 4:1, 13, 33. Lk. omits the buyers, the money-changers, and the dove-sellers (Mt. Mk.); also His allowing no vessel to be carried through the temple (Mk.).

International Critical Commentary — older volumes (1896–1929), various authors — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.