The Desire of Ages
by Ellen G. White
Chapter 16: In His Temple
This chapter is based on John 2:12-22.
"After this He went down to Capernaum, He, and His
mother, and His brethren, and His disciples: and they continued there not many
days. And the Jews' Passover was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem."
{DA 154.1}
In this journey, Jesus joined one of the large companies
that were making their way to the capital. He had not yet publicly announced
His mission, and He mingled unnoticed with the throng. Upon these occasions,
the coming of the Messiah, to which such prominence had been given by the
ministry of John, was often the theme of conversation. The hope of national
greatness was dwelt upon with kindling enthusiasm. Jesus knew that this hope
was to be disappointed, for it was founded on a misinterpretation of the Scriptures.
With deep earnestness He explained the prophecies, and tried to arouse the
people to a closer study of God's word. {DA 154.2}
The Jewish leaders had instructed the people that at
Jerusalem they were to be taught to worship God. Here during the Passover week
large numbers assembled, coming from all parts of Palestine, and even from
distant lands. The temple courts were filled with a promiscuous throng. Many
were unable to bring with them the sacrifices that were to be [155]
offered up as typifying the one great Sacrifice. For the convenience of these,
animals were bought and sold in the outer court of the temple. Here all classes
of people assembled to purchase their offerings. Here all foreign money was
exchanged for the coin of the sanctuary. {DA 154.3}
Every Jew was required to pay yearly a half shekel as
"a ransom for his soul;" and the money thus collected was used for
the support of the temple. Exodus 30:12-16. Besides this, large sums were
brought as freewill offerings, to be deposited in the temple treasury. And it
was required that all foreign coin should be changed for a coin called the
temple shekel, which was accepted for the service of the sanctuary. The money
changing gave opportunity for fraud and extortion, and it had grown into a
disgraceful traffic, which was a source of revenue to the priests. {DA 155.1}
The dealers demanded exorbitant prices for the animals sold,
and they shared their profits with the priests and rulers, who thus enriched
themselves at the expense of the people. The worshipers had been taught to
believe that if they did not offer sacrifice, the blessing of God would not
rest on their children or their lands. Thus a high price for the animals could
be secured; for after coming so far, the people would not return to their homes
without performing the act of devotion for which they had come. {DA 155.2}
A great number of sacrifices were offered at the time of the
Passover, and the sales at the temple were very large. The consequent confusion
indicated a noisy cattle market rather than the sacred temple of God. There
could be heard sharp bargaining, the lowing of cattle, the bleating of sheep,
the cooing of doves, mingled with the chinking of coin and angry disputation.
So great was the confusion that the worshipers were disturbed, and the words
addressed to the Most High were drowned in the uproar that invaded the temple.
The Jews were exceedingly proud of their piety. They rejoiced over their
temple, and regarded a word spoken in its disfavor as blasphemy; they were very
rigorous in the performance of ceremonies connected with it; but the love of
money had overruled their scruples. They were scarcely aware how far they had
wandered from the original purpose of the service instituted by God Himself. {DA 155.3}
When the Lord descended upon Mount Sinai, the place was
consecrated by His presence. Moses was commanded to put bounds around the mount
and sanctify it, and the word of the Lord was heard in [156]
warning: "Take heed to yourselves, that ye go not up into the mount, or
touch the border of it: whosoever toucheth the mount shall be surely put to
death: there shall not an hand touch it, but he shall surely be stoned, or shot
through; whether it be beast or man, it shall not live." Exodus 19:12, 13.
Thus was taught the lesson that wherever God manifests His presence, the place
is holy. The precincts of God's temple should have been regarded as sacred. But
in the strife for gain, all this was lost sight of. {DA 155.4}
The priests and rulers were called to be the representatives
of God to the nation; they should have corrected the abuses of the temple [157]
court. They should have given to the people an example of integrity and
compassion. Instead of studying their own profit, they should have considered
the situation and needs of the worshipers, and should have been ready to assist
those who were not able to buy the required sacrifices. But this they did not
do. Avarice had hardened their hearts. {DA 156.1}
There came to this feast those who were suffering, those who
were in want and distress. The blind, the lame, the deaf, were there. Some were
brought on beds. Many came who were too poor to purchase the humblest offering
for the Lord, too poor even to buy food with which to satisfy their own hunger.
These were greatly distressed by the statements of the priests. The priests
boasted of their piety; they claimed to be the guardians of the people; but
they were without sympathy or compassion. The poor, the sick, the dying, made
their vain plea for favor. Their suffering awakened no pity in the hearts of
the priests. {DA 157.1}
As Jesus came into the temple, He took in the whole scene.
He saw the unfair transactions. He saw the distress of the poor, who thought
that without shedding of blood there would be no forgiveness for their sins. He
saw the outer court of His temple converted into a place of unholy traffic. The
sacred enclosure had become one vast exchange. {DA 157.2}
Christ saw that something must be done. Numerous ceremonies
were enjoined upon the people without the proper instruction as to their
import. The worshipers offered their sacrifices without understanding that they
were typical of the only perfect Sacrifice. And among them, unrecognized and
unhonored, stood the One symbolized by all their service. He had given
directions in regard to the offerings. He understood their symbolical value,
and He saw that they were now perverted and misunderstood. Spiritual worship
was fast disappearing. No link bound the priests and rulers to their God.
Christ's work was to establish an altogether different worship. {DA 157.3}
With searching glance, Christ takes in the scene before Him
as He stands upon the steps of the temple court. With prophetic eye He looks
into futurity, and sees not only years, but centuries and ages. He sees how
priests and rulers will turn the needy from their right, and forbid that the
gospel shall be preached to the poor. He sees how the love of God will be
concealed from sinners, and men will make merchandise of His grace. As He
beholds the scene, indignation, authority, and power are expressed in His
countenance. The attention of the people is attracted to Him. The eyes of those
engaged in their unholy traffic [158] are riveted upon His face. They
cannot withdraw their gaze. They feel that this Man reads their inmost
thoughts, and discovers their hidden motives. Some attempt to conceal their
faces, as if their evil deeds were written upon their countenances, to be
scanned by those searching eyes. {DA 157.4}
The confusion is hushed. The sound of traffic and bargaining
has ceased. The silence becomes painful. A sense of awe overpowers the
assembly. It is as if they were arraigned before the tribunal of God to answer
for their deeds. Looking upon Christ, they behold divinity flash through the
garb of humanity. The Majesty of heaven stands as the Judge will stand at the
last day,—not now encircled with the glory that will then attend Him,
but with the same power to read the soul. His eye sweeps over the multitude,
taking in every individual. His form seems to rise above them in commanding
dignity, and a divine light illuminates His countenance. He speaks, and His
clear, ringing voice—the same that upon Mount Sinai proclaimed the
law that priests and rulers are transgressing—is heard echoing
through the arches of the temple: "Take these things hence; make not My
Father's house an house of merchandise." {DA 158.1}
Slowly descending the steps, and raising the scourge of
cords gathered up on entering the enclosure, He bids the bargaining company
depart from the precincts of the temple. With a zeal and severity He has never
before manifested, He overthrows the tables of the money-changers. The coin
falls, ringing sharply upon the marble pavement. None presume to question His
authority. None dare stop to gather up their ill-gotten gain. Jesus does not
smite them with the whip of cords, but in His hand that simple scourge seems
terrible as a flaming sword. Officers of the temple, speculating priests,
brokers and cattle traders, with their sheep and oxen, rush from the place,
with the one thought of escaping from the condemnation of His presence. {DA 158.2}
A panic sweeps over the multitude, who feel the
overshadowing of His divinity. Cries of terror escape from hundreds of blanched
lips. Even the disciples tremble. They are awestruck by the words and manner of
Jesus, so unlike His usual demeanor. They remember that it is written of Him,
"The zeal of Thine house hath eaten Me up." Psalm 69:9. Soon the
tumultuous throng with their merchandise are far removed from the temple of the
Lord. The courts are free from unholy traffic, and a deep silence and solemnity
settles upon the scene of confusion. [161] The
presence of the Lord, that of old sanctified the mount, has now made sacred the
temple reared in His honor. {DA
158.3}
In the cleansing of the temple, Jesus was announcing His
mission as the Messiah, and entering upon His work. That temple, erected for
the abode of the divine Presence, was designed to be an object lesson for
Israel and for the world. From eternal ages it was God's purpose that every
created being, from the bright and holy seraph to man, should be a temple for
the indwelling of the Creator. Because of sin, humanity ceased to be a temple
for God. Darkened and defiled by evil, the heart of man no longer revealed the
glory of the Divine One. But by the incarnation of the Son of God, the purpose
of Heaven is fulfilled. God dwells in humanity, and through saving grace the
heart of man becomes again His temple. God designed that the temple at
Jerusalem should be a continual witness to the high destiny open to every soul.
But the Jews had not understood the significance of the building they regarded
with so much pride. They did not yield themselves as holy temples for the
Divine Spirit. The courts of the temple at Jerusalem, filled with the tumult of
unholy traffic, represented all too truly the temple of the heart, defiled by
the presence of sensual passion and unholy thoughts. In cleansing the temple
from the world's buyers and sellers, Jesus announced His mission to cleanse the
heart from the defilement of sin,—from the earthly desires, the
selfish lusts, the evil habits, that corrupt the soul. "The Lord, whom ye
seek, shall suddenly come to His temple, even the Messenger of the covenant,
whom ye delight in: behold, He shall come, saith the Lord of hosts. But who may
abide the day of His coming? and who shall stand when He appeareth? for He is
like a refiner's fire, and like fullers' soap: and He shall sit as a refiner
and purifier of silver: and He shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as
gold and silver." Malachi 3:1-3. {DA 161.1}
"Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that
the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? If any man defile the temple of God, him
shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are." 1
Corinthians 3:16, 17. No man can of himself cast out the evil throng that have
taken possession of the heart. Only Christ can cleanse the soul temple. But He
will not force an entrance. He comes not into the heart as to the temple of
old; but He says, "Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear
My voice, and open the door, I will come in to him." Revelation 3:20. He
will come, not for one day merely; for He says, "I will dwell in them, and
walk in them; . . . and they shall [162] be My
people." "He will subdue our iniquities; and Thou wilt cast all their
sins into the depths of the sea." 2 Corinthians 6:16; Micah 7:19. His
presence will cleanse and sanctify the soul, so that it may be a holy temple
unto the Lord, and "an habitation of God through the Spirit."
Ephesians 2:21, 22. {DA
161.2}
Overpowered with terror, the priests and rulers had fled
from the temple court, and from the searching glance that read their hearts. In
their flight they met others on their way to the temple, and bade them turn
back, telling them what they had seen and heard. Christ looked upon the fleeing
men with yearning pity for their fear, and their ignorance of what constituted
true worship. In this scene He saw symbolized the dispersion of the whole
Jewish nation for their wickedness and impenitence. {DA 162.1}
And why did the priests flee from the temple? Why did they
not stand their ground? He who commanded them to go was a carpenter's son, a
poor Galilean, without earthly rank or power. Why did they not resist Him? Why
did they leave the gain so ill acquired, and flee at the command of One whose
outward appearance was so humble? {DA 162.2}
Christ spoke with the authority of a king, and in His
appearance, and in the tones of His voice, there was that which they had no
power to resist. At the word of command they realized, as they had never
realized before, their true position as hypocrites and robbers. When divinity
flashed through humanity, not only did they see indignation on Christ's
countenance; they realized the import of His words. They felt as if before the
throne of the eternal Judge, with their sentence passed on them for time and
for eternity. For a time they were convinced that Christ was a prophet; and
many believed Him to be the Messiah. The Holy Spirit flashed into their minds
the utterances of the prophets concerning Christ. Would they yield to this
conviction? {DA 162.3}
Repent they would not. They knew that Christ's sympathy for
the poor had been aroused. They knew that they had been guilty of extortion in
their dealings with the people. Because Christ discerned their thoughts they
hated Him. His public rebuke was humiliating to their pride, and they were
jealous of His growing influence with the people. They determined to challenge
Him as to the power by which He had driven them forth, and who gave Him this
power. {DA 162.4}
Slowly and thoughtfully, but with hate in their hearts, they
returned to the temple. But what a change had taken place during their absence!
[163]
When they fled, the poor remained behind; and these were now looking to Jesus,
whose countenance expressed His love and sympathy. With tears in His eyes, He
said to the trembling ones around Him: Fear not; I will deliver thee, and thou
shalt glorify Me. For this cause came I into the world. {DA 162.5}
The people pressed into Christ's presence with urgent,
pitiful appeals: Master, bless me. His ear heard every cry. With pity exceeding
that of a tender mother He bent over the suffering little ones. All received
attention. Everyone was healed of whatever disease he had. The dumb opened
their lips in praise; the blind beheld the face of their Restorer. The hearts
of the sufferers were made glad. {DA 163.1}
As the priests and temple officials witnessed this great
work, what a revelation to them were the sounds that fell on their ears! The
people were relating the story of the pain they had suffered, of their
disappointed hopes, of painful days and sleepless nights. When the last spark
of hope seemed to be dead, Christ had healed them. The burden was so heavy, one
said; but I have found a helper. He is the Christ of God, and I will devote my
life to His service. Parents said to their children, He has saved your life;
lift up your voice and praise Him. The voices of children and youth, fathers
and mothers, friends and spectators, blended in thanksgiving and praise. Hope
and gladness filled their hearts. Peace came to their minds. They were restored
soul and body, and they returned home, proclaiming everywhere the matchless
love of Jesus. {DA 163.2}
At the crucifixion of Christ, those who had thus been healed
did not join with the rabble throng in crying, "Crucify Him, crucify
Him." Their sympathies were with Jesus; for they had felt His great
sympathy and wonderful power. They knew Him to be their Saviour; for He had
given them health of body and soul. They listened to the preaching of the
apostles, and the entrance of God's word into their hearts gave them
understanding. They became agents of God's mercy, and instruments of His
salvation. {DA 163.3}
The crowd that had fled from the temple court after a time
slowly drifted back. They had partially recovered from the panic that had
seized them, but their faces expressed irresolution and timidity. They looked
with amazement on the works of Jesus, and were convicted that in Him the
prophecies concerning the Messiah were fulfilled. The sin of the desecration of
the temple rested, in a great degree, upon the priests. It [164] was by
their arrangement that the court had been turned into a market place. The
people were comparatively innocent. They were impressed by the divine authority
of Jesus; but with them the influence of the priests and rulers was paramount.
They regarded Christ's mission as an innovation, and questioned His right to
interfere with what was permitted by the authorities of the temple. They were
offended because the traffic had been interrupted, and they stifled the
convictions of the Holy Spirit. {DA 163.4}
Above all others the priests and rulers should have seen in
Jesus the anointed of the Lord; for in their hands were the sacred scrolls that
described His mission, and they knew that the cleansing of the temple was a
manifestation of more than human power. Much as they hated Jesus, they could
not free themselves from the thought that He might be a prophet sent by God to
restore the sanctity of the temple. With a deference born of this fear, they
went to Him with the inquiry, "What sign showest Thou unto us, seeing that
Thou doest these things?" {DA 164.1}
Jesus had shown them a sign. In flashing light into their
hearts, and in doing before them the works which the Messiah was to do, He had
given convincing evidence of His character. Now when they asked for a sign, He
answered them by a parable, showing that He read their malice, and saw to what
lengths it would lead them. "Destroy this temple," He said, "and
in three days I will raise it up." {DA 164.2}
In these words His meaning was twofold. He referred not only
to the destruction of the Jewish temple and worship, but to His own death,—the
destruction of the temple of His body. This the Jews were already plotting. As
the priests and rulers returned to the temple, they had proposed to kill Jesus,
and thus rid themselves of the troubler. Yet when He set before them their
purpose, they did not understand Him. They took His words as applying only to
the temple at Jerusalem, and with indignation exclaimed, "Forty and six
years was this temple in building, and wilt Thou rear it up in three days?"
Now they felt that Jesus had justified their unbelief, and they were confirmed
in their rejection of Him. {DA
164.3}
Christ did not design that His words should be understood by
the unbelieving Jews, nor even by His disciples at this time. He knew that they
would be misconstrued by His enemies, and would be turned against Him. At His
trial they would be brought as an accusation, and on Calvary they would be
flung at Him as a taunt. But to explain them now would give His disciples a
knowledge of His sufferings, and bring [165] upon
them sorrow which as yet they were not able to bear. And an explanation would
prematurely disclose to the Jews the result of their prejudice and unbelief.
Already they had entered upon a path which they would steadily pursue until He
should be led as a lamb to the slaughter. {DA 164.4}
It was for the sake of those who should believe on Him that
these words of Christ were spoken. He knew that they would be repeated. Being
spoken at the Passover, they would come to the ears of thousands, and be
carried to all parts of the world. After He had risen from the dead, their
meaning would be made plain. To many they would be conclusive evidence of His
divinity. {DA 165.1}
Because of their spiritual darkness, even the disciples of
Jesus often failed of comprehending His lessons. But many of these lessons were
made plain to them by subsequent events. When He walked no more with them, His
words were a stay to their hearts. {DA 165.2}
As referring to the temple at Jerusalem, the Saviour's
words, "Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up,"
had a deeper meaning than the hearers perceived. Christ was the foundation and
life of the temple. Its services were typical of the sacrifice of the Son of
God. The priesthood was established to represent the mediatorial character and
work of Christ. The entire plan of sacrificial worship was a foreshadowing of
the Saviour's death to redeem the world. There would be no efficacy in these
offerings when the great event toward which they had pointed for ages was
consummated. {DA 165.3}
Since the whole ritual economy was symbolical of Christ, it
had no value apart from Him. When the Jews sealed their rejection of Christ by
delivering Him to death, they rejected all that gave significance to the temple
and its services. Its sacredness had departed. It was doomed to destruction.
From that day sacrificial offerings and the service connected with them were
meaningless. Like the offering of Cain, they did not express faith in the
Saviour. In putting Christ to death, the Jews virtually destroyed their temple.
When Christ was crucified, the inner veil of the temple was rent in twain from
top to bottom, signifying that the great final sacrifice had been made, and
that the system of sacrificial offerings was forever at an end. {DA 165.4}
"In three days I will raise it up." In the
Saviour's death the powers of darkness seemed to prevail, and they exulted in
their victory. But from the rent sepulcher of Joseph, Jesus came forth a
conqueror. "Having spoiled principalities and powers, He made a show of
them openly, triumphing over them." Colossians 2:15. By virtue of His
death and resurrection [166] He became the minister of the
"true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched, and not man." Hebrews 8:2.
Men reared the Jewish tabernacle; men builded the Jewish temple; but the
sanctuary above, of which the earthly was a type, was built by no human
architect. "Behold the Man whose name is The Branch; . . . He
shall build the temple of the Lord; and He shall bear the glory, and shall sit
and rule upon His throne; and He shall be a priest upon His throne."
Zechariah 6:12, 13. {DA
165.5}
The sacrificial service that had pointed to Christ passed
away; but the eyes of men were turned to the true sacrifice for the sins of the
world. The earthly priesthood ceased; but we look to Jesus, the minister of the
new covenant, and "to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things
than that of Abel." "The way into the holiest of all was not yet made
manifest, while as the first tabernacle was yet standing: . . . but
Christ being come an high priest of good things to come, by a greater and more
perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, . . . by His own blood He
entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for
us." Hebrews 12:24; 9:8-12. {DA 166.1}
"Wherefore He is able also to save them to the
uttermost that come unto God by Him, seeing He ever liveth to make intercession
for them." Hebrews 7:25. Though the ministration was to be removed from
the earthly to the heavenly temple; though the sanctuary and our great high
priest would be invisible to human sight, yet the disciples were to suffer no
loss thereby. They would realize no break in their communion, and no diminution
of power because of the Saviour's absence. While Jesus ministers in the
sanctuary above, He is still by His Spirit the minister of the church on earth.
He is withdrawn from the eye of sense, but His parting promise is fulfilled,
"Lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world." Matthew
28:20. While He delegates His power to inferior ministers, His energizing
presence is still with His church. {DA 166.2}
"Seeing then that we have a great high priest,
. . . Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession. For we
have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our
infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. Let
us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy,
and find grace to help in time of need." Hebrews 4:14-16. {DA 166.3}
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"Nicodemus"
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