Jesus’ Zeal
The Father’s house, God’s temple,
Was supposed to be a house of prayer.
Jesus was righteously angry
When He saw the merchants there.
They were selling sacrificial animals,
Robbing the people with the price.
They were exchanging money unfairly
At high rates instead of what should suffice.
Jesus shocked many people
As He fashioned a whip out of cords.
He drove those robbers out of the court,
And His disciples remembered these words:
“Zeal for your house will consume me,”
The Psalmist, a prophet, had penned.
The temple was built as a house of prayer,
And this purpose Jesus had to defend.
We don’t often picture an angry Jesus in our minds, but Jesus had had enough! The temple, His Father’s house, was being used as a place of buying and selling, merchandising. The merchants were not thinking of how they could be of service to the worshipers, but were thinking, “How much revenue can I walk away with this Passover when everybody has come in from the countryside to sacrifice?” The people were between a rock and a hard place because the men exchanging Roman coins for temple coins charged an unfair rate, and only temple coins could be used. Outraged, Jesus turned over tables, scattered doves, and used a whip to drive out those thieves!
God’s house is supposed to be a place of intimate worship, prayer, offerings, and praise. How can we prepare our hearts to reverence God’s house each time we enter?
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