Two Firsts: First Stay At Capernaum & First Cleansing Of The Temple Series

Harmony of the Gospels

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Capernaum, “His City”

First Stay in Capernaum

John 2:12

After this he went down to Capernaum, he, and his mother, and his brethren, and his disciples: and they continued there not many days. (John 2:12)

Joseph’s name is not mentioned, and I believe that he was dead by this time. As the oldest son, Jesus was the head of the family. That’s why His mother and His brothers accompanied Him. He supported them and they traveled with Him at this time. He traveled with a large group. Remember, that at one time, He sent out 70. There were more than twelve disciples; but the twelve were His inner group that He trained. They were His friends, which would be entrusted with the mission of building His church.

“After this,” probably refers to the time that His hometown, Nazareth, would not receive Him. When He went into the synagogue and read from Isaiah, they said, “…..Is not this Joseph’s son?” (Luke 4:22) They would have killed Him, but it was not His time. He walked out of Nazareth and took His family and disciples to Capernaum. This would be His headquarters, for the remainder of His earthly ministry.

It should be pointed out that His brothers did not believe in him, at this time. John 7:5 says, “For even his own brothers did not believe in him.” They may have thought that He was just carried away with religious enthusiasm. Later, they would believe, and one of His brothers, James, would become the head of the church in Jerusalem.

Capernaum was not only His headquarters, but it was also where more miracles were done than in any other city. Jesus would comment about this and rebuke the people who lived there, for their unbelief. They should have believed in Him, because He spoke more often in their synagogues and did more miracles there.

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Jerusalem

(6) First Cleansing of the Temple

(Psalms 69:9) John 2:13-22

And the Jew’s Passover was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. (John 2:13)

Jesus began His ministry in Cana of Galilee, went to Capernaum, and is now in Jerusalem.

Notice that John labels the feast of Passover as the “Jew’s Passover.” This is no longer the “Lord’s Passover”, as it was called in Exodus 12:27, “That ye shall say, It is the sacrifice of the Lord’s Passover, …..” It has become merely a religious feast, quite meaningless, just a ritual to go through. The one of whom the Passover speaks, has now come, "…..For even Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us.” (1 Corinthians 5:7)

Jesus has gone up to Jerusalem, because He keeps the Law. The Law requires that all males go up to Jerusalem three times a year, at the time of the Feast of Passover, at the time of the Feast of Tabernacles and at the time of the Feast of Pentecost. It would have been around mid-April.

Now we come to the cleansing of the temple. He did this on two occasions. One cleansing occurred at the beginning of His ministry, and the second cleansing was toward the end of His ministry.

And found in the temple those that sold oxen and sheep and the changers of money setting. (John 2:14)

They were selling animals and doves and they were exchanging money. The moneychangers performed a service. The only money that could be offered was temple money, so the moneychangers had a booth where Roman coins, for example, were exchanged for Jewish coins. The reason for not allowing Roman coins was because they had the effigy of Caesar on them. Now, the moneychangers made a good profit when the exchange was made.

I said that this was a service, and it was, but it also made religion easy. They changed large coins into small ones, for convenience to the worshiper, but they also made religion cheap.

They were also selling animals. It was a lot of work to raise the animals, and people got paid for doing that. It was very easy for all of this to become a religious racket. Today, we have the same problem.

And when he had made a scourge of small cords, he drove them all out of the temple, and the sheep, and the oxen; and poured out the changer’s money, and overthrew the tables; And said unto them that sold doves, Take these things hence; make not my fathers house an house of merchandise. And his disciples remembered that it was written, The zeal of thine house hath eaten me up. (John 2:15-17)

In my opinion, Jesus was not the enemic-looking Christ, that artists portray. I believe that He was a man’s man.

These verses tell us that the disciples remembered Psalm 69:9, “For the zeal of thine house hath eaten me up; and the reproaches of them that reproached thee are fallen upon me.”