RTW 2023

Jesus made a whip from some ropes and chased them all out of the Temple. He drove out the sheep and cattle, scattered the money changers’ coins over the floor, and turned over their tables.

John 2:15

John replied in the words of the prophet Isaiah:“I am a voice shouting in the wilderness, ‘Clear the way for the LORD’s coming!’”

John 1:23

• The book of John informed Gentile readers of Jewish festivals.
• Some scholars are divided about whether there was one cleansing of the temple or two. John may have put it at the beginning for theological effect instead of chronology.
• The whip Jesus used was likely the kind people used to herd their animals.
• Roman coins were not accepted at the temple.
• Jesus directly addressed those selling doves–the sacrifice of the poor.
• The court of the Gentiles (and possibly the court of the women) was being exploited, causing further separation from their ability to worship at the temple.
• Jesus was disrupting a system that exploited and segregated people from a sacred place of worship.

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Listen for Jesus’ “divine disruptions” in our lives.