September 22, 2021

Then He went into the temple and began to drive out those who bought and sold in it, saying to them, “It is written, ‘My house is a house of prayer,’ but you have made it a ‘den of thieves.’” Luke 19:45-46 (see also Isaiah 56:7 and Jeremiah 7:11)

Jesus cleansed the temple a second time during His earthly ministry, like a bookend to the first cleansing. At this Passover, the desecrated condition of temple activity was even worse than before.

“The outer court of the temple was like a vast cattle yard. With the cries of the animals and the sharp chinking of coin was mingled the sound of angry altercation between traffickers, and among them were heard the voices of men in sacred office. The dignitaries of the temple were themselves engaged in buying and selling and the exchange of money. So completely were they controlled by their greed of gain that in the sight of God they were no better than thieves.” DESIRE OF AGES by E.G.White (p. 589)

Once again we encounter the theme of buying and selling. When any exchange between men is tainted with greed, the heart of the Lord is grieved. But when that which is set apart to represent Him to the lost world is polluted from within, the deadly cause of the enemy of our souls is promoted and advanced. The three-year period between the two temple cleansings of Jesus’ ministry, during which temple services continued in their downward direction, is a showcase for the intensity of Satan’s efforts to maintain his hold on the professed people of God. It is a fact that fallen human nature, apart from continuous access to divine grace, is subject to the downward pull of the gravity (from which we get the word “grave”) of sin.

Beloved, with your spiritual eyes, gaze intently into the eyes of Jesus as He enters upon this scene just before His own crucifixion. Watch Him as He sees the lack of discernment regarding the shed blood of all those innocent animals. The temple services that were meant to point to the ultimate sacrifice of His own precious blood, now just an empty ritual. The very symbol meant to point to the Lamb of God is now a means of getting monetary gain. The multiplying of sacrifices of beasts for greater sales and profits all but obliterate the message of humble repentance for sin. The incessantly flowing blood, used as a cover for deliberate and ongoing sin, make the great assembly a horrific scene of cruelty. The hearts of religious leaders are hardened against the truth of what they have allowed the Passover assembly to become, while the tender hearts of children and others with normal sensibilities are stricken with horror. Jesus sees all of this and more. In His humanity, His eyes flash with divinity! In His eyes are wrath and compassion mingled with dignity and glory as He speaks the words above. In His voice is a divine power that reverberates throughout the temple. Do you love Him for it? Keep gazing into His eyes . . .

So Samuel said, “Has the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, As in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, And to heed [better] than the fat of rams. 1 Samuel 15:22 (see also Psalm 50, Ecclesiastes 5:1, Hebrews 3:18, 5:9)