To those selling doves
This phrase highlights a specific group among the merchants in the temple courts. Doves were often sold for sacrifices, particularly for those who could not afford more expensive offerings like lambs. The Greek word for "doves" is "περιστεράς" (peristeras), which signifies the common use of these birds in sacrificial practices. Historically, the selling of doves in the temple was a provision for the poor, as outlined in Leviticus 5:7. However, the presence of these sellers in the temple courts indicates a commercialization of sacred practices, which Jesus vehemently opposed.

He said
The authority of Jesus is underscored in this phrase. The Greek verb "λέγει" (legei) is in the present tense, suggesting a continuous or immediate action. Jesus speaks with divine authority, not as a mere teacher or prophet, but as the Son of God. His words are not just a rebuke but a declaration of His divine right to cleanse His Father’s house.

Get these out of here!
This command is a direct and forceful imperative. The Greek word "ἄρατε" (arate) means "take away" or "remove," indicating an urgent action. Jesus is not merely suggesting but commanding the removal of these items. This reflects His zeal for the sanctity of the temple, aligning with the prophetic zeal seen in Psalm 69:9, "Zeal for Your house will consume me."

How dare you
This phrase conveys a strong sense of indignation and moral outrage. The Greek "μὴ ποιεῖτε" (mē poieite) translates to "do not make," which is a prohibition against their actions. Jesus challenges the audacity of the merchants and money changers, questioning their right to defile the sacred space. This rhetorical question emphasizes the gravity of their actions against the holiness of God’s house.

turn My Father’s house
Here, Jesus refers to the temple as "My Father’s house," asserting His unique relationship with God. The Greek "οἶκον τοῦ Πατρός μου" (oikon tou Patros mou) emphasizes the personal and possessive nature of this relationship. By calling God "My Father," Jesus claims divine sonship, which is a central theme in the Gospel of John. This declaration also highlights the intended purpose of the temple as a place of worship and communion with God.

into a marketplace
The Greek word "ἐμπορίου" (emporiou) means "market" or "place of trade." This term indicates a place of commerce, contrasting sharply with the temple’s intended purpose as a house of prayer. The transformation of the temple into a marketplace symbolizes the corruption and materialism that had infiltrated religious practices. Jesus’ cleansing of the temple serves as a prophetic act, calling for a return to genuine worship and reverence for God. This act foreshadows the new covenant, where worship is not confined to a physical location but is centered on spirit and truth (John 4:23-24).

(16) My Father's house.--Some among those present now (John 2:18) may have been present in that same house when He, a lad of twelve years, was there at the Passover, and after questions and answers, higher and deeper than these doctors could grasp, claimed God as His true Father (Luke 2:49). What that repeated claim meant now must have been clear to all. Their own messengers had brought them John's witness; later reports must have come before, and come with, the crowd of Galilaean pilgrims; the disciples are themselves with Him (John 2:17), and their hearts are too full for silence; but there was more than all this. Those expounders of the oracles of God who remembered that Elijah was to come before the day of the Lord, must have remembered, too, that the Lord was to come to this Temple, like a refiner's fire, and like fullers' soap (Malachi 3:1-3; Malachi 4:5). That fire was in their midst, and from that Presence buyers and sellers and changers shrunk back in awe, none daring to resist; that cleansing was then taking place, and the Son was claiming the sanctity and reverence due to His Father's house. He has before claimed to be Son of Man. The Messianic title is publicly claimed before the official representatives of the people at the great national festival, in the Temple, at Jerusalem. If, while this scene is fresh is our minds, we think again of the marriage at Cana, we shall feel how different the manifestations are, and that this latter was not, and was not intended to be, a public declaration of His person and work. Now we understand what seemed hard before, that the assertion "Mine hour is not yet come" (John 2:4) immediately precedes the first sign. This sign was at a family gathering known only to few, probably not to all who were there, for "the ruler knew not whence it was" (John 2:9), and no effect is described as resulting from it, except that the little band of disciples believed (John 2:11). The "forth," which in the English version seems to mark an effect upon others, is not found in the Greek. It is within the circle of the other Gospel narratives, but is included in none of them. It left no such impression in the mind of St. Peter as to lead him to include it in the Gospel of his interpreter, St. Mark, or upon Mary herself as to lead her to include it in the answers she must have given to the questions of St. Luke. It was, indeed, the first sign in Cana of Galilee, but the scene before us is the announcement to the world. . . . Verse 16. - And he said to those that sold the doves. The vendors of tethered or caged birds were as guilty of profanation as the rest. Some sentimental comments have gathered round this verse, as though the Lord were more tender in his treatment of the turtle doves than in that of the oxen or sheep. But there would be no meaning in such a distinction. No other way of scattering the doves was so simple as to command their removal. At "the Ammergan Passion play," the doves are let loose, fly away over the heads of the audience, and disappear. The lifting of the scourge, accompanied, doubtless, with words of solemn warning and command, said in effect what he now put into words. Take these things hence. Make not the house of my Father a house of merchandise. In this act our Lord simply assumed the role of any and every Hebrew prophet. The Talmud enjoins the sanctity for which the Saviour pleads. He called the temple "my Father's house" (cf. Luke 2:49), and therefore claims especially to be the Son of God Most High. The Eternal, the Holy One of Israel, stands in this mysterious relationship to him. He does not say, "our Father's house." When, however, alter the second cleansing of the temple, he spake of the temple, from which he finally withdrew (Matthew 23:38), he called it by no other name than "your house," "left unto you desolate." Moreover, on that subsequent occasion, he used, in place of "house of merchandise," the bitter description, "den of robbers" (Matthew 21:13). This first act was reformatory of a gross abuse; the latter was judicial and condemnatory (see Hengstenberg, 'Christology' and 'Comm.,' Zechariah 14:21; Zephaniah 1:11; Malachi 3:1). Archdeacon Watkins has wisely called attention to the contrast between this scene and sign and that given at Cana. Here we see how true it was that his hour had not yet come.

Parallel Commentaries ...


To those
τοῖς (tois)
Article - Dative Masculine Plural
Strong's 3588: The, the definite article. Including the feminine he, and the neuter to in all their inflections; the definite article; the.

selling
πωλοῦσιν (pōlousin)
Verb - Present Participle Active - Dative Masculine Plural
Strong's 4453: To sell, exchange, barter. Probably ultimately from pelomai; to barter, i.e. To sell.

doves
περιστερὰς (peristeras)
Noun - Accusative Feminine Plural
Strong's 4058: A dove, pigeon. Of uncertain derivation; a pigeon.

He said,
εἶπεν (eipen)
Verb - Aorist Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular
Strong's 2036: Answer, bid, bring word, command. A primary verb; to speak or say.

“Get
Ἄρατε (Arate)
Verb - Aorist Imperative Active - 2nd Person Plural
Strong's 142: To raise, lift up, take away, remove.

these
ταῦτα (tauta)
Demonstrative Pronoun - Accusative Neuter Plural
Strong's 3778: This; he, she, it.

out of here!
ἐντεῦθεν (enteuthen)
Adverb
Strong's 1782: Hence, from this place, on this side and on that. From the same as enthade; hence; on both sides.

How dare you
μὴ (mē)
Adverb
Strong's 3361: Not, lest. A primary particle of qualified negation; not, lest; also (whereas ou expects an affirmative one) whether.

turn
ποιεῖτε (poieite)
Verb - Present Imperative Active - 2nd Person Plural
Strong's 4160: (a) I make, manufacture, construct, (b) I do, act, cause. Apparently a prolonged form of an obsolete primary; to make or do.

My
μου (mou)
Personal / Possessive Pronoun - Genitive 1st Person Singular
Strong's 1473: I, the first-person pronoun. A primary pronoun of the first person I.

Father’s
Πατρός (Patros)
Noun - Genitive Masculine Singular
Strong's 3962: Father, (Heavenly) Father, ancestor, elder, senior. Apparently a primary word; a 'father'.

house {into}
οἶκον (oikon)
Noun - Accusative Masculine Singular
Strong's 3624: A dwelling; by implication, a family.

a marketplace!”
οἶκον (oikon)
Noun - Accusative Masculine Singular
Strong's 3624: A dwelling; by implication, a family.


John 2:16 NIV
John 2:16 NLT
John 2:16 ESV
John 2:16 NASB
John 2:16 KJV

John 2:16 BibleApps.com
John 2:16 Biblia Paralela
John 2:16 Chinese Bible
John 2:16 French Bible
John 2:16 Catholic Bible

NT Gospels: John 2:16 To those who sold the doves he (Jhn Jo Jn)