Day 8 of 14 — The King in the Temple
Yesterday, the King entered Jerusalem. Crowds lined the road with cloaks and branches, shouting Hosanna and hailing Him as the political deliverer who would overthrow Rome and restore Israel to its former glory. But the King who rode through the gates on a donkey had something very different in mind, and what He did the morning after the triumphal entry reveals the true nature of the authority He came to exercise.
“And Jesus entered the temple and drove out all those who were buying and selling in the temple, and overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who were selling doves. And He said to them, ‘It is written, My house shall be called a house of prayer; but you are making it a robbers’ den.’” (Matthew 21:12-13)
The temple was the hub of Israel’s religious life, the place where God promised to dwell among His people. By the time Jesus came on this morning, it had become something else entirely. The outer courts, which were supposed to be open for Gentiles to come and pray, had been converted into a marketplace. Money changers were trading foreign currency for temple coins at corrupt rates, and the merchants were selling sacrificial animals at unreasonable prices. The system was designed to profit off of people’s obedience to God, (Think modern day prosperity peddlers) and the religious authorities were fully aware of it.
Jesus walked in, flipped the tables, and drove out the merchants, quoting Isaiah, “My house shall be called a house of prayer.” The emphasis is on “My house.” Jesus claims ownership of the temple, speaking as the One for whom it was built. What He finds is a place hijacked by men who turned worship into trade.
The scene shows what kind of Messiah Jesus is. The crowd that shouted “Hosanna” wanted a king to drive out the Romans. Jesus walked past the Romans and went straight to the temple, because the corruption He came to confront was spiritual before it was political. The religious system meant to lead people to God had become a barrier between them and God, and the King’s first act of authority in Jerusalem was to tear that barrier down.
Matthew adds a detail that is easy to overlook, “And the blind and the lame came to Him in the temple, and He healed them.” Once the merchants were gone and the tables overturned, the people pushed to the margins came to Jesus, and He received them. The temple that had been exploiting worshipers was now, even if only for a moment, functioning as it was meant to.
The King has entered His city and exercised authority over His Father’s house. Tomorrow, His confrontation with the religious leaders will intensify.