John 2

The First Miracle

John 2:1 And the third day there was a marriage in Cana of Galilee; and the mother of Jesus was there:

The mention of the baptism of Jesus, was not followed by the story of the forty days in the wilderness fasting and being tempted by the devil. Nevertheless we know that this day mentioned was not the third day after his baptism. Jewish custom was that a virgin was to be married on a Wednesday, so perhaps Jesus was three days in Galilee, having arrived on Sunday, or he was on the third day after speaking with Nathaneal. At any rate, Jesus' mother was attending a wedding in Galilee and there was going to be a miracle on the third day. As Jesus would later rise on the third day bringing forth a new covenant, this was the beginning of his miracles leading to that day.

John 2:2 And both Jesus was called, and his disciples, to the marriage.

Jesus was invited, with his disciples who had left all behind to follow him. We must follow Jesus, putting him first in our lives.

Mat 4:19 And he saith unto them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.
Mat 4:20 And they straightway left their nets, and followed him.
Mat 4:21 And going on from thence, he saw other two brethren, James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, in a ship with Zebedee their father, mending their nets; and he called them.
Mat 4:22 And they immediately left the ship and their father, and followed him.

John 2:3 And when they wanted wine, the mother of Jesus saith unto him, They have no wine.

This is an indication that Mary new her son had within him the nature of God. Although there is no earlier recorded miracle or supernatural event, other than the witness of John the Baptist and the baptism of Jesus; the Holy Ghost and the voice of God proclaiming that Jesus was his beloved Son from heaven. Perhaps she was considering the voice of the angel Gabriel who said:

Luke 1:31 And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS.
Luke 1:32 He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David:
Luke 1:33 And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end.
Luke 1:34 Then said Mary unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a man?
Luke 1:35 And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God.

We are not to imply by this verse, that we must go to Mary in order to have Jesus respond to our prayers. Mary knew who Jesus was, if we know who he is and trust in him, then we may ask of him and receive.

John 2:4 Jesus saith unto her, Woman, what have I to do with thee? mine hour is not yet come.

Jesus did not refer to Mary as, oh Mary, mother of God, blessed art thou among women. He didn't even call her mom, he said Woman, the capital letter was added by the translators. What does your concern have to do with me? He was to do the Father's will in his time and his time to be revealed was not yet come. Yet, he respected his mother's request, having no sin.

John 2:5 His mother saith unto the servants, Whatsoever he saith unto you, do it.

Mary does not command Jesus, she trusted in his authority, having faith in him. This is our example, hear my request Lord, you have power and whatever you say, I will do. Are we willing to do what Jesus says? Do we read his word with obedient hearts? If we hear and do not do, there is no reward.

James 1:23 For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass:
James 1:24 For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was.
James 1:25 But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.

John 2:6 And there were set there six waterpots of stone, after the manner of the purifying of the Jews, containing two or three firkins apiece.

The waterpots were used for the washing of the hands and the feet of the guests. The quantity each held in gallons is unsure. One source said from nine to thirteen gallons, another said from twenty to thirty gallons. Six of these containers would hold a lot of liquid. Let us consider that it was around one hundred gallons.

John 2:7 Jesus saith unto them, Fill the waterpots with water. And they filled them up to the brim.
John 2:8 And he saith unto them, Draw out now, and bear unto the governor of the feast. And they bare it.

They were given specific instructions, they filled the waterspouts to the brim with water. If they were slack, only filling the container a little, they would receive little. How big is your faith to receive, is your container only part way full of faith, or are you brim full in anticipation? Now draw out and give to the wedding coordinator, or the master of the servants. The marriage was kept for up to seven days, so a large amount of wine was required.

John 2:9 When the ruler of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and knew not whence it was: (but the servants which drew the water knew;) the governor of the feast called the bridegroom,

Was the wine fermented? The Greek word "oinos" is used for both fermented and natural grape juice. No,it was not fermented, that would contribute to intoxication. If Jesus caused a weak brother to sin from alcohol in his wine, he would have not been able to die for our sins. The pure first juice of the grape is grape juice. Proverbs 23:31 commands that we are not even to look upon strong drink.

Prov 23:31 Look not thou upon the wine when it is red, when it giveth his colour in the cup, when it moveth itself aright.
Prov 23:32 At the last it biteth like a serpent, and stingeth like an adder.
Prov 23:33 Thine eyes shall behold strange women, and thine heart shall utter perverse things.
Prov 23:34 Yea, thou shalt be as he that lieth down in the midst of the sea, or as he that lieth upon the top of a mast.
Prov 23:35 They have stricken me, shalt thou say, and I was not sick; they have beaten me, and I felt it not: when shall I awake? I will seek it yet again.

John 2:10 And saith unto him, Every man at the beginning doth set forth good wine; and when men have well drunk, then that which is worse: but thou hast kept the good wine until now.

The master of the feast, tasted the water and it was made delicious grape juice. He did not know where it came from, so he was not biased, nor trying to please Jesus in what he was about to say to the bridegroom. He kept the best tasting wine until the end. Wine brought joy to the people, the sweet juice brought pleasure as the honeycomb enlightens the eyes. (1Sam 14:27)

Our joy at first is at our salvation.

Luke 15:10 Likewise, I say unto you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth.

Our Joy is with Jesus, it increases as we look forward to being with him. This is come in part when we receive his Holy Spirit.

Luke 24:49 And, behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high.
Luke 24:50 And he led them out as far as to Bethany, and he lifted up his hands, and blessed them.
Luke 24:51 And it came to pass, while he blessed them, he was parted from them, and carried up into heaven.
Luke 24:52 And they worshipped him, and returned to Jerusalem with great joy:
Luke 24:53 And were continually in the temple, praising and blessing God. Amen.

Our greatest joy will come later when we are in the presence of the Lord.

John 16:19 Now Jesus knew that they were desirous to ask him, and said unto them, Do ye inquire among yourselves of that I said, A little while, and ye shall not see me: and again, a little while, and ye shall see me?
John 16:20 Verily, verily, I say unto you, That ye shall weep and lament, but the world shall rejoice: and ye shall be sorrowful, but your sorrow shall be turned into joy.

John 2:11 This beginning of miracles did Jesus in Cana of Galilee, and manifested forth his glory; and his disciples believed on him.

This was only the beginning of his miracles; this glorified the Son of God, he was the Messiah, God in the flesh man, Jesus and his disciples believed on him.

The wine was from the water, the New Covenant is from the Old Covenant
The wine was better than the water; the New Covenant is better than the Old Covenant. (Guzik)

2 Cor 3:5 Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think any thing as of ourselves; but our sufficiency is of God;
2 Cor 3:6 Who also hath made us able ministers of the new testament; not of the letter, but of the spirit: for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life.
2 Cor 3:7 But if the ministration of death, written and engraven in stones, was glorious, so that the children of Israel could not stedfastly behold the face of Moses for the glory of his countenance; which glory was to be done away:
2 Cor 3:8 How shall not the ministration of the spirit be rather glorious?
2 Cor 3:9 For if the ministration of condemnation be glory, much more doth the ministration of righteousness exceed in glory.
2 Cor 3:10 For even that which was made glorious had no glory in this respect, by reason of the glory that excelleth.
2 Cor 3:11 For if that which is done away was glorious, much more that which remaineth is glorious.

The wine he wrought in his miracle was superior, the very best wine. Jesus takes the common and makes excellent creations.

1 Cor 1:27 But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty;
1 Cor 1:28 And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are:
1 Cor 1:29 That no flesh should glory in his presence.
1 Cor 1:30 But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption:
1 Cor 1:31 That, according as it is written, He that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord.

Col 1:12 Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light:
Col 1:13 Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son:
Col 1:14 In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins:

Rejoice in that you were made excellent, by the miracle of the one who changed the water into wine at the wedding in Cana of Galilee. It was the Father's will that you be bought from the devil and translated into his dear kingdom, beloved children of the most high God.

Cleansing the Temple

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.

After this miracle, of changing water to wine. After this showing that he was God the Son and after his disciples believed in him because of this miracle. They continued, his mother, his brothers, and his disciples to Capernaum, but not many days.

John 2:13 And the Jews' Passover was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem,

The Passover commemorates the historical time when the death angel passed over the Hebrew people in Egypt. All who had the blood of the lamb around the door to their dwellings, were passed over. This final miracle from God allowed the people to escape Egypt into freedom. Jesus was to be the final Lamb to be slain to free his people from sin for all time. Then and now, faith is required to be truly free.

John 2:14 And found in the temple those that sold oxen and sheep and doves, and the changers of money sitting:

The animals were used for sacrifice. The lesser animals were used by the poor people.

John 2:15 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 changers' money, and overthrew the tables;

He carefully made a scourge, a whip of small cords to drive the sellers and money exchangers out of the temple.

Later the Temple guards would whip him 39 times with whips made with pieces of bone and glass tied to the cords to gouge deeply into His flesh.

Isa 53:5 But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.

John 2:16 And said unto them that sold doves, Take these things hence; make not my Father's house an house of merchandise.

The second recorded event in John's gospel was the cleansing of the temple which occurred early in his ministry. This would happen again at the end of his ministry, as recorded by Matthew, Mark and Luke.

The money changers were giving an unfair exchange for the money from other nations. They were making a profit and selling sacrificial animals in the outer court, the court of the Gentiles. This was the only place a Gentile could come to worship. The money changers interfered with their worship. Is this too different from the TV preachers, the ones the non churched come to learn of God, when more time is spent on pleas for money and merchandising, then on giving out the message of hope?

The smell of animals and their droppings and the noise of the sellers, made it impossible for the Gentiles to pray there. Jesus did not like this. He carefully fashioned a whip made of cords, he poured the money changers money out and tipped over their tables. This was no puny weak man, he had authority as a son of man and the Son of God. He no doubt drove out man and beast who were defiling the place of prayer.

Mat 21:13 And said unto them, It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves.

John 2:17 And his disciples remembered that it was written, The zeal of thine house hath eaten me up.

Psa 69:9 For the zeal of thine house hath eaten me up; and the reproaches of them that reproached thee are fallen upon me.

Jesus began his miracles with converting water to wine. Our coming to God begins with conversion followed by cleansing of our temple. Jesus cleansed the temple, fulfilling prophecy.

Perhaps too often those who are given gifts to serve God, use these gifts for financial prophet. Is not this the sin of the prophet Balaam? Using Gods gift for profit?

Jude 1:11 Woe unto them! for they have gone in the way of Cain, and ran greedily after the error of Balaam for reward, and perished in the gainsaying of Core.

Yet in another sense, is not God in all that we do? Does He not gift us for work as well as for ministries? I believe the key is to not use our gifts to prevent others from entering into the things of God, we are not to use God's gifts in an unworthy manner. If our ministry becomes more about money then in reaching the lost with the gospel, we are needing correction.

Mat 6:24 No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon (money).

This applies for our life in Christ, also. If we behave in a way that brings shame upon Jesus' name, we are doing the opposite of what God has created us for. We were made to love God and to have fellowship with him and each other. If we fail we are to be corrected, not judged, but restored through repentance and confession of the wrong.

1 John 1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

All things are for God's glory.

John 2:18 Then answered the Jews and said unto him, What sign showest thou unto us, seeing that thou doest these things?

1 Cor 1:22 For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom:

The sign was that he was fulfilling a prophecy of Malachi.

Mal 3:1 Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come, saith the LORD of hosts.
Mal 3:2 But who may abide the day of his coming? and who shall stand when he appeareth? for he is like a refiner's fire, and like fullers' soap:
Mal 3:3 And he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the LORD an offering in righteousness.

John 2:19 Jesus answered and said unto them, Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.

Jesus speaking of His body, then speaks in authority that only God's Spirit could say. I will raise it up. God is Spirit. The Word is spirit, God the Word, God the Father and God the Holy Spirit are one God.

Gal 1:1 Paul, an apostle, (not of men, neither by man, but by Jesus Christ, and God the Father, who raised him from the dead;)

Rom 8:11 But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you.

John 2:20 Then said the Jews, Forty and six years was this temple in building, and wilt thou rear it up in three days?
John 2:21 But he spake of the temple of his body.

This was Herod's temple, having been in construction forty-six years. The completion of the temple complex would be finished only a few years, before it was destroyed in 70 AD.

The Jews only could see what was before them. Jesus spoke in the Spiritual and in prophecy of things to come. He would give the temple, his body, to be destroyed as a sacrifice for our sins. On the third day he would take it up again, alive forever more.

John 2:22 When therefore he was risen from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this unto them; and they believed the scripture, and the word which Jesus had said.

His disciples were slow to understand and to believe in who Jesus is. Following the miracle of changing water to wine, they believed in him, but not understanding all that he was and what he came to do. We come to Jesus believing in him, but not yet understanding all the Bible says about him. This takes time and dedication.

John 2:23 Now when he was in Jerusalem at the passover, in the feast day, many believed in his name, when they saw the miracles which he did.

Again, many believed in his name, that he did miracles, but would they follow and be dedicated to him? This was shallow belief, more in miracles than in the God who had a purpose in all that was done.

John 2:24 But Jesus did not commit himself unto them, because he knew all men,

He loved them, but did not commit himself to them. I see this in reference to spending a lot of time with them. He had his disciples who followed him, he was their teacher. Seeing so many, not all were of faith, not all were going to continue with him.

John 2:25 And needed not that any should testify of man: for he knew what was in man.

He loved them with without entrusting himself in them. In truth they would have to trust in him and continue in faith. He had other places to go, many signs and wonders to do, healings and casting out demons. He could not stay in one place for one group of people.

I think all of us need to be part of a ministry team. Yet, not all are called together. Only in the church do all fit together as a team. In the church is the fulness of the gifts. In Christ we all fit together as lively building stones.

Eph 2:19 Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God;
Eph 2:20 And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone;
Eph 2:21 In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord:
Eph 2:22 In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit.

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