THE GOSPEL OF JOHN CHAPTER 2 EXPLAINED
Greetings everyone. I'm in the process of explaining the entire Gospel of John, to best of my ability. It's a lengthy process, as the chapters are long; however, I'm about half way through. After I'm done I plan to create a compendium of sorts to go with the book. It would include cross references to key verses, of which there are many. In the meanwhile, thank-you for bearing with me. As Jesus said, the time is short and the laborers are few.
T H E G O S P E L A C C O R D I N G T O S A I N T J O H N
By Reginald Jacob Block
CHAPTER II
“1 Christ turneth water into wine, 12 Departeth into Capernaum, and to Iersualem, 14 Where hee purgeth the temple of buyers and sellers. 19 He foretelleth his death and resurrection. 23 Many beleeued because of his miracles, but he would nto trust himself with them.”
The Translators
OVERVIEW
Jesus’s mother was at a wedding in Cana. Both Jesus and his disciples were invited. She turned to Jesus and said they have no wine. He said, “…what haue I to doe with thee? mine hour is not yet come.” Then she said to the servants do whatever he asks.
And, Jesus turned water into wine. The servants knew where the wine came from, but, the governor did not and marveled at the quality.
This was the beginning of miracles Jesus did in Cana.
After this, Jesus went to Capernaum, then to Jerusalem; for, it was the time of Passover.
He encountered the money lenders in the Temple and chased them out with a whip of sorts and turned over their tables.
He said, “Destroy this temple, and in three dayes I will raise it vp.”
They thought he spake of the physical Temple, but he meant the temple of his body.
Many came to faith during the Passover; for, they witnessed his miracles. But, he didn’t trust them because he knew what was in man.
V. 1
“1 And the third day there was a mariage in Cana of Galilee, and the mother Iesus was there.”
There is some debate about what the third day means, as the Jews had different rules regarding the marriage dates of virgins and widows; and, we know not which. Thus, we need not waste our time debating the timeline from a previous recorded event; however, as the scripture declares, the wedding was in “Cana of Galilee” and Jesus’ mother was there.
V. 2
“2 And both Iesus was called, and his disciples, to the mariage.”
Jesus and his disciples were invited. At this point in John’s narrative we might surmise that Andrew and the other disciple not mentioned and Simon Peter, Philip and Nathaneel accompanied Jesus.
V. 3
“3 And when they wanted wine, the mother of Iesus saith vnto him, They haue no wine.”
We might speculate that they ran out of wine because the family was poor and could only afford a certain amount; however, it is possible that more guests showed up than was anticipated. Needless, Jesus’ mother turned to him subtly asking if he could do anything about it; for, she knew who he was. Having been informed by the Angel Gabriel during her pregnancy, it was logical for her to ask Jesus for a miracle.
V. 4
“4 Iesus saith vnto her, Woman, what haue I to doe with thee? mine houre is not yet come.”
Jesus called his mother, “Woman,” which to some seems slightly disrespectful. He sometimes referred to her as such, intending great affection and respect (John 19:26). When Jesus says, “…what haue I to doe with thee?” he intends no abruptness, rather; he questions whether or not he has any business with her in the matter of this wedding. Furthermore, he says, “mine houre is not yet come,” meaning that it is not time for him to publicly declare the start of his ministry. This accounts for the fact that he performed the miracle mostly in private, whereby only the servants, his mother and perhaps his disciples knew.
V. 5
“5 His mother saith vnto the seruants, Whatsoeuer he saith vnto you, doe it.”
It seems she received confirmation that he would fix the problem; the details of their conversation to which we are not privy. However, appearing to operate in an official capacity at the wedding, she orders to the servants to do has he asks.
V. 6
“6 And there were set there sixe pots of stone, after the maner of the purifying of the Iewes conteining two or three firkins apeece.”
A “firkin” is a nine gallon cask. Though there may be some debate over this, it nevertheless represents a large quantity of wine. This might not be excessive considering the average Jewish wedding celebration lasted seven days.
V. 7
“7 Iesus saith vnto them, Fill the water pots with water. And they filled them vp to the brimme.”
Jesus chose new vessels, that the miracle be untainted by residue from the previous empty vessels. Furthermore, they were filled to the brim, eliminating the possibility that anything could be added to the final product.
V. 8
“8 And hee saith vnto them, Drawe out now, and beare vnto the gouernor of the feast. And they bare it.”
Unaware of what Jesus had done, the governor of the feast was first to taste the wine. This was appropriate, as the governor was the manager of the servants and of the feast.
Vs. 9 - 10
“9 When the ruler of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and knew not whence it was, (but the seruants which drew the water knew) the gouernor of the feast called the bridegrome, 10 And saith vnto him, Euery man at the beginning doth set foorth good wine, and when men haue well drunke, then that which is worse: but thou hast kept the good wine vntill now.”
Even today it is typical at parties to serve the better wine first, and when taste buds are sufficiently numbed, bring out the inferior wine.
V. 11
“11 This beginning of miracles did Iesus in Cana of Galilee, and manifested forth his glory, and his disciples beleeued on him.”
This was the first public miracle done by Jesus. His disciples, though already convinced Jesus was the Messiah God with us, became firm believers; for, what man can, by his will, transform one element into another?
V. 12
“12 After this, hee went downe to Capernaum, hee and his mother, and his brethren, and his disciples, and they continued there not many dayes.”
Jesus and Mary (his mother); his brethren (meaning various relatives) and Jesus’ disciples to date, which were: Andrew, the other disciple that followed Jesus, Simon Peter, Philip and Nathaneel went to Capernaum on the Sea of Galilee. The distance from Canan to Capernaum is around 30 kilometers.
V. 13
“13 And the Iewes Passeouer was at hand, & Iesus went vp to Hierusalem.”
The Passover feast was held on the 14th day of Nissan according to the Jewish calendar, which is sometime in April by the Gregorian calendar. The distance from Capernaum to Jerusalem is approximately 190 kilometers.
V. 14
“14 And found in the Temple those that sold oxen, and sheepe, and doues, and the changers of money, sitting.”
Vendors sold sacrificial animals to those planing to offer sacrifices, and sheep for the Passover supper. The money changers changed foreign currency into local to more easily facilitate financial transactions for the purchase of animals and goods. Vendors and money changers would have likely been situated in the outer court of the Gentiles; for, even the most greedy Jews would not have tolerated such in the inner courts or in the holy of holies.
V. 15
“15 And when he had made a scourge of small cordes, he droue them all out of the Temple, and the sheep & the oxen, and powred out the changers money, and ouerthrew the tables,”
How one man could drive out many and wreak havoc on their booths and inventory is a testament to the power of God in Christ. Truly, these greedy Jews were intimidated by the hand of God, wielding a small whip.
Some historians have noted that these vendors were gouging the people, knowing that travelers from afar had little choice but to pay inflated prices for animals, and they were at the mercy of the money changers’ high exchange rates.
V. 16
“16 And said vnto them that sold doues Take these things hence, make not my fathers house an house of merchandize.”
The doves were likely held in cages; thus, unable to chase them out with his whip, Jesus commanded the sellers to get them out of the house of God. He performed the same eviction later in his ministry, shortly after he rode into Jerusalem on a donkey (Matthew 21:10-13), saying they had made the house of prayer a den of thieves.
V. 17
“17 And his disciples remembred that it was written, The zeale of thine house hath eaten me vp.”
His disciples remembered that it was written in Psalm 69:9.
V. 18
“18 Then answered the Iewes, and said vnto him, What signe shewest thou vnto vs, seeing that thou doest these things?
The Jews did not deny that Jesus was right; rather, they wanted to know what right he had; that he might show them a sign of some sort proving he had the authority to drive the merchants from the Temple.
“The Iewes,” meaning the high council of Israel, knew his authority did not come from them; so, was it by his own authority or from another? If he claimed a divine authority, surely he could produce a sign.
V. 19
“19 Iesus answered, and said vnto them, Destroy this temple, and in three dayes I will raise it vp.”
Jesus said the sign would be his resurrection from the grave; he would raise himself after three days in the grave. In part, Jesus prophesied that the Jews, meaning the high council of Israel, would kill him.
V. 20
“20 Then said the Iewes, Fourty and six yeres was this Temple in building, and wilt thou reare it vp in three dayes?”
They thought he spake of the Temple in Jerusalem; that if it were destroyed he could raise it up in three days. Little did they know that the Temple would be destroyed and not rebuilt. Indeed, it was demolished by the armies of Titus Vespasian in 70 A.D. To this day it has not been rebuilt.
V. 21
“21 But he spake of the temple of his body.”
Hebrews speaks of the body of Christ, “…the true Tabernacle, which the Lord pitched, and not man.” (Hebrews 8:2) Conversely, the Jews reverenced the temple in Jerusalem failing to understand that it was only a representation of Messiah, who is the eternal temple. And, when Messiah came, the temple of Jerusalem would have served its purpose and no longer be necessary.
Further to this, Paul wrote, “For in him dwelleth all the fulnesse of the Godhead bodily” (Colossians 2:9), meaning that the human nature of Jesus was filled with the perfection of God.
And, Paul wrote to the Corinthian believers “…your body is the temple of the holy Ghost…” and, “…ye are the Temple of the liuing God…” respectively, 1 Corinthians 6:19 & 2 Corinthians 6:16.
Thus, Jesus referenced a spiritual matter entirely foreign to the Jews.
V. 22
“22 When therefore hee was risen from the dead, his disciples remembred that hee had said this vnto them: and they beleeued the Scripture, and the word which Iesus had said.”
Three years later when Jesus rose from the dead, the disciples remembered what he said to the Jews regarding the temple. At that time, the disciples did not understand what Jesus said; they were uncertain of the doctrine of the resurrection and the indwelling of the Holy Ghost. But, all these things were brought to their remembrance (John 14:26) that they might fully believe all the prophecies of Christ and that he is, indeed, Emmanuel, God with us.
V. 23
“23 Now when hee was in Hierusalem at the Passeouer, in the feast day, many beleeued in his Name, when they saw the miracles which he did.”
Passover refers to the entire seven days of the festival; however, John distinguishes the day of the Passover feast, which was eaten on the same day the LORD passed over the Hebrews, sparing their first born sons. This was a major festival in Jerusalem, and all the leaders and important persons of the nation were in attendance; thus, Jesus chose this time to perform miracles that many might come to faith. And, as the text says, “many beleeued in his Name.”
V. 24
“24 But Iesus did not commit himselfe vnto them, because he knew al men,”
Jesus did not speak his whole mind to them, nor did he preach the whole Gospel; for, surely he understood that true belief needed to run deeper than the impression of miracles. Likely when John says “many beleeued in his Name,” he refers to belief in his Messianic right to the throne of David, not necessarily the fulness of the Gospel. Thus, “he did not commit himselfe vnto them,” means that he did not sit and speak with them intimately as he did the disciples, but kept his distance, knowing it was not time to preach of his suffering, death and resurrection.
Because, “he knew al men,” he knew that many possessed a shallow faith and were more interested in setting him on the throne of David, that the nation might regain the former glory of King David and Solomon. Their temporal notion was a far cry from the eternal kingdom of God of which Jesus preached. He saw into the hearts of men, and no intent or motive was hidden from him; he knew the good and the bad in all men; their hypocrisy and deceit did not escape his notice.
Thus, Jesus regarded his reception in Jerusalem at the time of Passover with caution, knowing the same persons could easily turn on him (Matthew 7:6); and, they would (John 19:15).
V. 25
“25 And needed not that any should testifie of man: for hee knew what was in man.”
To know a man, Jesus did not need his confession or the testimonies of others; he knew “what was in man.”
The fulness of the Godhead dwells bodily in Jesus (Colossians 2:9); and, as Creator of all things, he knows all things. No man may have a thought or feeling that God does not know. Thus, Jesus knew the spirit of the ‘Passover mob,’ and remained silent on the deep things of the Gospel.