Final Teachings at the Temple

After the Savior drove out those that sold in the temple at the start of the last week of His life, Luke recorded, “And he taught daily in the temple. But the chief priests and the scribes and the chief of the people sought to destroy him, And could not find what they might do: for all the people were very attentive to hear him” (Luke 19:47-48).  S. Kent Brown commented, “Jesus does not step away from the temple, as if avoiding the authorities, after tossing out ‘them that sold… and them that bought’ (19:45). Instead, he makes the temple grounds, now purged of illicit practices, the headquarters for his last days in mortality. All of his teachings recorded in the next chapter take place here….  The Savior now controls the temple; he now holds Jerusalem in his hand; he now sets the agenda for his message…. From this metaphorically elevated place, he will become more direct and forthright in his pronouncements and teaching in an effort to reach people’s souls during his last days” (Testimony of Luke, 888-89).  I don’t know that I’d ever really considered the fact that these final teachings before the Passover took place in the temple where Jesus had essentially cleared it so He could teach the people there.  Knowing that the end of His mortal life was near, not fearing what they would do to Him, He spoke boldly to the people in the open at the temple as He sought to pull them away from the wickedness of the scribes and Pharisees. 

               Many of His teachings during that week at the temple were focused on exposing the evil of the Jewish leaders.  Jesus gave the parable of the wicked husbandmen who killed the “beloved son” of the lord of the vineyard, foretelling how those husbandmen (symbolizing Israel’s leaders at that time) would kill the Son of God (Luke 20:9-18).  At the temple He also gave the parable of the two sons, speaking directly to chief priests and elders.  He likened them to the son who said, “I go sir: and went not,” telling them, “That the publicans and the harlots go into the kingdom of God before you” (Matt. 21:28-31).  Jesus gave them there yet another parable, that of the marriage of the king’s son, with the same message.  Those who were bidden to the marriage by servants of the king “took his servants, and entreated them spitefully, and slew them,” and clearly He was again accusing those who were about to slay Him (Matt. 22:2-6).  These leaders of the House of Israel were indeed bidden to the table of the Lord but would not come and partake of salvation (and committed murder instead).  His final condemnation of the Jewish leaders came in Matthew 23, a chapter excoriating their hypocrisy and evil.  Matthew 24 begins with the statement, “And Jesus went out, and departed from the temple,” confirming that all of Matthew 23 was indeed spoken while in the open at the temple.  It was perhaps one last attempt to help the people see the wickedness of their “blind guides” in an effort to try to save them from the destructive influence of their leaders: “Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte, and when he is made, ye make him twofold more the child of hell than yourselves” (Matt. 23:15).  Seven times He gave the denunciation “Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!”  His words were aimed at helping pull down the façade of the righteousness that the people perhaps failed to see through: “Ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men’s bones, and of all uncleanness” (Matt. 23:27).  He gave no thought for His own life as He boldly revealed the truth about those who would turn Him over to the Romans to be killed.    

              But the goal of Jesus was not to simply call out the wickedness of His enemies; He was trying to save the people from their spiritually destructive ways.  He ended His rebuke with this plea, “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!” (Matt. 23:37)  His aim was to gather the house of Israel unto Himself, to save them from the unrighteousness of those bent on killing their own Lord they claimed to worship.  Soon after His death, resurrection, and ascension, as the apostles set out to build up the kingdom, there were many who were baptized (3000 even in one day) and they did continue “daily with one accord in the temple” (Acts 2:41, 46).  I have to think that the work He did those final days to help the people see the evil of the scribes and Pharisees prepared many to fully receive the gospel at the hands of the apostles.