John 2:13 The Passover of the Jews was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. 14 He found in the temple those who sold oxen, sheep, and doves, and the changers of money sitting. 15 He made a whip of cords, and threw all out of the temple, both the sheep and the oxen; and he poured out the changers’ money and overthrew their tables. 16 To those who sold the doves, he said, “Take these things out of here! Don’t make my Father’s house a marketplace!” 17 His disciples remembered that it was written, “Zeal for your house consumes me, [and the insults of those who insult you fall on me].” (Psalm 69:9)
The Passover celebration commemorated God’s freeing Israel from slavery in Egypt. At the original Passover God had instructed each family to slaughter a lamb for the Passover meal and then to paint the blood on the top and sides of their wooden door frames to protect them from the judgment of God.
The blood will be a sign for you on your houses where you are, and when I see the blood, I will pass over you. No destructive plague will touch you when I strike Egypt. Exodus 12:13
We now understand that this looked forward to the day when the true Lamb of God, Jesus Christ the Messiah would come to rescue his people from sin and death; his blood spilled on a wooden cross.
Every year millions of Jews came to the temple in Jerusalem from around the Roman world to celebrate the Passover. But this year Jesus, the Lamb of God, went up to Jerusalem, and he was not pleased with what he saw there. As prescribed in Leviticus, worshipers were to bring their sacrifices to the temple. However, for the convenience of the worshipers and seeking a profit for themselves, merchants had monetized the worship of God. They were actually selling the sacrificial animals and exchanging foreign currency for the temple tax inside the temple. The holy temple where God dwelled among his people was to be approached with reverence and awe. It had been degraded into a market for profit rather than worship.
In fulfillment of the ancient prophesy recorded in Psalm 69, “Zeal for your house consumes me, [and the insults of of those who insult you fall on me]”, Jesus made a whip of cords, and threw all out of the temple, both the sheep and the oxen; and he poured out the changers’ money and overthrew their tables.
The temple was designed to accommodate the worship of God. Imagine if you went to church on a Sunday morning and went into the sanctuary to pray, but you couldn’t focus your thoughts because of the loud and persistent bleating of sheep. That’s what was going on in the temple. The sacred grounds that had been set apart for worship had become chaotic. Yes, people’s needs were being met. I’m sure the temple authorities were saying, “We’re just trying to be relevant; we’re being seeker-sensitive for those who can’t bring their lambs from home and who need their money to be exchanged.” But their efforts…impacted the people’s ability to worship. R.C. Sproul, John, An Expositional Commentary, Ligonier Ministries
John 2:18 The Jews therefore responded to him, “What sign can you show us to prove your authority to do all this?” 19 Jesus answered them, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.”
20 The Jews therefore said, “It took forty-six years to build this temple! Will you raise it up in three days?” 21 But he spoke of the temple of his body. 22 When therefore he was raised from the dead, his disciples remembered that he said this, and they believed the Scripture, and the word which Jesus had said.
23 Now when he was in Jerusalem at the Passover, during the feast, many believed in his name, observing his signs which he did. 24 But Jesus didn’t entrust himself to them, because he knew everyone, 25 and because he didn’t need for anyone to testify concerning man; for he himself knew what was in man.
The religious leaders were, to say the least, upset. They demanded to know, who was this young, untrained, upstart that burst into the temple literally upsetting our lucrative business? By what authority did he dare do this?
“What sign can you show us to prove your authority to do all this?”
Jesus responded, “You want a sign? I’ll tell you what, after you destroy this temple I’ll raise it up in three days.” Of course, what Jesus said was true; however, he deliberately spoke in a veiled fashion to bewilder the religious leaders. He knew that these same leaders would, in fact, destroy the temple of his body. Ephesians 2:19-22 At his trial just before his crucifixion, Jesus was prosecuted for saying, “I am able to destroy the temple of God and build it back in three days.” Matthew 26:61 And that is just what happened. The religious leaders destroyed Jesus but he rose back from the dead in three days.
After his resurrection Jesus’ disciples remembered this incident. When therefore he was raised from the dead, his disciples remembered that he said this, and they believed the Scripture, and the word which Jesus had said.
Many of the Jews who came to the Passover believed in Jesus because of the signs which he did. Because they saw many miracles such as water turning into wine and the sick being healed they were willing to believe. But for now, at the outset of his ministry, Jesus was not ready to entrust himself to the crowds because he himself knew what was in man. In other words, many people were willing to follow Jesus, but for only selfish reasons. Getting healed, or fed, or even seeing the religious leaders confounded by Jesus’ questions, was exciting but was not a foundation for lasting faith. Jesus knew that when the miracles stopped the people would drift away.