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Chapter 65—The Temple Cleansed Again
This chapter is based on
Matthew 21:12-16, 23-46
;
Mark 11:15-19,
27-33
;
12:1-12
;
Luke 19:45-48
;
20:1-19
.
At the beginning of His ministry, Christ had driven from the
temple those who defiled it by their unholy traffic. His stern and
godlike demeanor had struck terror to the scheming traders.
At the close of His mission He came again to the temple and
found it still desecrated as before—with the cries of animals, the
sharp chinking of coin, and the sound of angry altercation. The
dignitaries of the temple were themselves buying and selling. So
completely were they controlled by greed of gain that in the sight of
God they were no better than thieves.
At every Passover and Feast of Tabernacles, thousands of animals
were slain, their blood caught by the priests and poured on the altar.
The Jews had almost lost sight of the fact that sin made necessary
all this shedding of blood. They did not discern that it prefigured the
blood of God’s dear Son, to be shed for the life of the world.
Jesus saw how the Jews had made these great convocations
scenes of bloodshed and cruelty. They had multiplied the sacrifice
of beasts, as if God could be honored by a heartless service. The
priests and rulers had made the symbols pointing to the Lamb of
God a means of getting gain. Thus the sacredness of the sacrificial
service had been in a great measure destroyed. Jesus knew that His
blood, so soon to be shed for the sins of the world, would be as little
appreciated by the priests and elders as was the blood of beasts!
Against these practices Christ had spoken through the prophets.
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Isaiah, seeing in prophetic vision the apostasy of the Jews, addressed
them: “What to Me is the multitude of your sacrifices? says the
Lord; I have had enough of burnt offerings of rams and the fat of
fed beasts; I do not delight in the blood of bulls, or of lambs, or of
he-goats.” “Wash yourselves; make yourselves clean; remove the
evil of your doings from before My eyes.”
Isaiah 1:11, 16
, RSV.
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