Passion Week: March 31, AD 33

March 31st, 2026
by Lance Waldie

Matthew 21:12-13 And Jesus entered the temple and drove out all those who were buying and selling in the temple, and overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who were selling doves. 13 And He said to them, “It is written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer’; but you are making it a robbers’ den.”

Jerusalem was teeming with people for the annual Passover when Jesus “entered the temple” the next day. Pilgrims traveled from all over to offer their lambs (Exod. 12:3-6). Yet those who traveled from far away did not bring lambs due to the travails of traveling with animals; they simply purchased lambs at the temple. The problem was the merchants, under the watchful eye of Annas the high priest, were taking advantage of them. Trade was controlled by the priestly nobility who profited greatly at the expense of the Jews. First, those who needed their foreign currency converted for use in the temple were charged upwards of 25%. Second, those who needed to purchase animals were charged up to ten times the amount of the normal costs. Many who did bring them were denied and forced to purchase animals for sale in the temple. Even those who were poor and could only offer a dove (Lev. 5:7; 14:22) were being bilked. All of this occurred at the Passover, a feast of worship and remembrance of God’s deliverance of His people from Egyptian bondage. Thus, these crooked merchants were interfering with the worship of God. Truly the temple courtyard was filled with corruption and exploitation. Jesus, however, took exception to this wicked practice, and He put an end to it, at least on that day.

Mark 11:16 also reveals that some Jews, loaded with merchandise, were taking shortcuts through the temple area and using it as an access road from one part of the city to another. This brought further confusion and chaos to an area that was supposed to be devoted to prayer and worship. So, when Jesus entered the temple on Tuesday March 31, AD 33, having come there the previous day and observed the corruption (Mark 11:11), He was livid. In vv. 12-13 Jesus is seen driving out everyone there who was corrupting the temple. He overturned the tables of the merchants and the seats of those who sold doves. And He refused to allow anyone to use the temple courtyard as a shortcut to the other side of the city. The entire wicked and widespread operation came to a sudden halt. On that day at least, Jesus shut down Annas’ corrupt bilking of the Jewish people for his own wicked profit. This is why he sought Jesus’ death (Mark 11:18).

Jesus cited two texts as the basis for His attack on the temple merchants. First, he quoted Isaiah 56:7, reminding them that God’s temple was to be a place of worship for all nations. Second, Jesus cited Jeremiah 7:11, where Jeremiah condemned the notion that the temple provides protection for the Jews in their sin. On the contrary, God would destroy His own temple (Jer. 7:3-15), fulfilling this text some 37 years later when the Romans demolished the temple. Jesus simply called attention to the fact that God was angry with how His people treated Him.

Food For thought
There is no temple in Jerusalem today. The temple of God (1 Cor. 6:18-20; Rom. 12:1-2) is the body of each believer. Our church buildings are still “houses of prayer,” but they are just buildings. We as Christians comprise God’s temple. Now just like the temple that Jesus angrily cleansed of its corruptions, our bodies too become corrupted when we fill our minds with filth, selfishly pursue wanton pleasure, and fail to glorify God with our bodies. It was Martin Luther who came to hate the indulgences of his day—the supposed buying and selling of God’s grace. His disdain for this practice ushered in the Protestant Reformation and moved people back to the study of the Scriptures. We too should cry out today for Christ to expose our sins and cleanse us just like He did in the temple so long ago. Only then can we truly reap God’s eternal blessings.