The Final Week of Jesus' Life: An 8-Day Holy Week Devotional SeriesНамуна

Day Two: Monday: Cleansing of the Temple - The Outrage of Injustice

The temple cleansing is one of the most dramatic events in Jesus’ short ministry. The Temple in the Holy City of Jerusalem was the center of the Jews’ religious tradition, history, and worship. That temple was recognized for its beauty across the ancient world. When Jews came to Jerusalem to observe their Passover celebration, they would purchase an animal for the required sacrifice. The poorer the family, the simpler the sacrifice would be, such as a small bird (see Luke 2:24, Mary and Joseph in the Temple with baby Jesus). The religious establishment sold doves at exorbitant prices, shrewdly cheating the poor who were forced to buy from them. They had devised a system of deceitful money exchanging since it was unlawful to purchase the sacrifice with Roman coins. Of course, their “system” was of great financial benefit to them but was an enormous expense for the common people. Their greed in preying on the poor seeking to worship God was the sin that so angered Jesus. In Matthew 21, verse 13, we read that Jesus accused the religious leaders of making God’s house “a den of thieves!”

Their sin was not in the selling of sacrificial animals, it was the fraud intentionally perpetuated on God’s people by their own religious leaders. Jesus once again revealed the heart of God, who hates deceit, corruption, and greed. This incident should remind us of a sober truth: many evils have been done in the name of Christianity…such as the medieval Crusades, the Inquisition, and religious pogroms. Such events may have been done by people claiming to do them in God’s name, but we can be sure he had nothing to do with them. Always God’s people have been exhorted to protect the needy and oppressed, the resident alien, and the unloved. Jesus did that consistently in His interaction with men and women, showing us his love of justice and his care for the wounded, ignored, and exploited.

Prayer for Today: Lord Jesus, I pray that my heart would be your temple, cleansed from its sin by your presence. Purify my motives and desires. “Search me, O God, and know my heart. Try me and know my anxieties, see if there is any wicked way in me, and lead me in the everlasting way” (Psalm 139:23–24).

“Let the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O Lord, my strength and my redeemer” (Psalm 19:14). Amen.

Photo Collection of Susie Hawkins, East Gate of Jerusalem, 2019