John 2:13-25 - Jesus Throws Merchants And Moneychangers Out Of The Temple Courtyard

¹³ Now the Jewish Passover Festival was soon [to be held], so Jesus went up to Jerusalem [to attend it]. ¹⁴ There in the Temple [area] He found people selling oxen, sheep and pigeons. [i.e., for use as sacrifices]. Also cashiers were sitting there. [Note: These people exchanged foreign coins so visitors to Jerusalem could make purchases and pay taxes]. ¹⁵ Then Jesus made a whip out of strands of rope and drove all of the sheep and oxen out of the Temple [area], dumped out the cashiers' money and overturned their tables. ¹⁶ He said to those who were selling the pigeons, "Take these things out of here, and quit making my Father's house [i.e., the Temple] a merchandise mart."

¹⁷ Then Jesus' disciples remembered that it was written [Psa. 69:9], "Enthusiasm for Your [i.e., God's] house [i.e., the Temple] will consume me."

¹⁸ So, the Jews asked Him, "What [miraculous] sign will you show us, since you are doing these things [i.e., disrupting their merchandising activities]?"

¹⁹ Jesus answered them, "[If you] destroy this Temple, I will raise it up in three days."

²⁰ But the Jews said, "It took forty-six years to build this Temple, and are you going to rebuild it in three days?"

²¹ But Jesus was speaking about the "temple" of His [physical] body. ²² Therefore, when He was raised from the dead, His disciples remembered what He had said and they believed the Scriptures and the words Jesus had spoken.

²³ Now when Jesus was in Jerusalem at the Passover Festival, many people believed in His name [i.e., in Jesus Himself] when they saw the [miraculous] signs He was doing. ²⁴ But Jesus would not trust Himself to them [i.e., to the care of these Jewish leaders] because He knew all men, ²⁵ and He did not need anyone to tell Him about mankind, for He Himself knew what was in the hearts of mankind.