Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Matthew 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.
13. My house shall be called the house of prayer ] Isa 56:7, “Mine house shall be called a house of prayer for all people,” or for all nations, not of all nations (Mark).
a den of thieves ] Rather, a cave of robbers or bandits. Cp. Jer 7:11, “Is this house which is called by my name become a den of robbers in your eyes?” The context of these words is strikingly suggestive: “if ye thoroughly amend your ways and your doings and shed not innocent blood in this place then will I cause you to dwell in this place in the land that I gave to your fathers for ever and ever.” The caves of Palestine had always been refuges for the lawless, and in the reign of Herod the Great the robbers dwelling in caves had rebelled against him and resisted his power, Jos. Ant. i. 12. Possibly this thought may be present here: “Ye have made my house a stronghold of rebels against God and the Messiah, when it ought to be a garrison of loyal subjects.” Also the disputes of the traffickers resembled the wrangling of bandits in their caves.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Verse 13. My house shall be called the house of prayer] This is taken from Isa 56:7.
But ye have made it a den of thieves.] This is taken from Jer 7:11.
Our Lord alludes here to those dens and caves in Judea, in which the public robbers either hid or kept themselves fortified.
They who are placed in the Church of Christ to serve souls, and do it not, and they who enjoy the revenues of the Church, and neglect the service of it, are thieves and robbers in more senses than one.
Our Lord is represented here as purifying his temple; and this we may judge he did in reference to his true temple, the Church, to show that nothing that was worldly or unholy should have any place among his followers, or in that heart in which he should condescend to dwell. It is marvellous that these interested, vile men did not raise a mob against him: but it is probable they were overawed by the Divine power, or, seeing the multitudes on the side of Christ, they were afraid to molest him. I knew a case something similar to this, which did not succeed so well. A very pious clergyman of my acquaintance, observing a woman keeping a public standing to sell nuts, gingerbread, &c., at the very porch of his Church, on the Lord’s day, “desired her to remove thence, and not defile the house of God, while she profaned the Sabbath of the Lord.” She paid no attention to him. He warned her the next Sabbath, but still to no purpose. Going in one Lord’s day to preach, and finding her still in the very entrance, with her stall, he overthrew the stall, and scattered the stuff into the street. He was shortly after summoned to appear before the royal court, which, to its eternal reproach, condemned the action, and fined the man of God in a considerable sum of money!
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
And said unto them, it is written,…. In Isa 56:7.
My house shall be called the house of prayer. These are the, words of God, calling the temple his house, which was built according to the plan he gave; and was the place of his worship, and where he dwelt, and vouchsafed his presence to his people; and signifying, that in time to come, it should be an house of prayer; not for the Jews only, but for the Gentiles also: “for all people”, as it is expressed by the prophet, and cited by Mark; and particularly this part of it, in which were the money changers and sellers of doves; for that was the court of the Gentiles, where they were admitted to pray, and perform other parts of worship. These words are rightly applied by Christ to the temple; nor can the Jews themselves deny it; for their own Targum paraphrases it thus, , “the house of my sanctuary shall be called an house of prayer”; or shall be one; for the meaning is not that it should go by such a name, but should be for such use, and not for buying and selling, and merchandise, to which use the Jews now put it: hence it follows,
but ye have made it a den of thieves. These are the words of Christ, affirming what is complained of in Jer 7:11 and applying it to the present case, on account of the wicked merchandise, unlawful gain, avarice and extortion, of the priests and other officers of the temple, who had a considerable share in these things; and to whom the temple was, and by them used, as a den is to and by thieves and robbers, where they shelter themselves; for these persons robbed both God and man, and the temple was a sanctuary to them: here they screened themselves, and, under the appearance of religion and devotion, devoured widows’ houses, plundered persons of their substance, and were full of extortion and excess.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
A den of robbers ( ). By charging exorbitant prices.
Fuente: Robertson’s Word Pictures in the New Testament
Thieves [] . Rev., correctly, robbers. See on Mt 26:55; Luk 10:30.
Fuente: Vincent’s Word Studies in the New Testament
13. It is written. Christ quotes two passages taken out of two Prophets; the one from Isa 56:7, and the other from Jer 7:11. What was written by Isaiah agreed with the circumstances of the time; for in that passage is predicted the calling of the Gentiles. Isaiah, therefore, promises that God will grant, not only that the temple shall recover its original splendor, but likewise that all nations shall flow to it, and that the whole world shall agree in true and sincere piety. (14) He speaks, no doubt, metaphorically; for the spiritual worship of God, which was to exist under the reign of Christ, is shadowed out by the prophets under the figures of the law. Certainly this was never fulfilled, that all nations went up to Jerusalem to worship God; and therefore, when he declares that the temple will be a place of prayer for all nations, this mode of expression is equivalent to saying, that the nations must be gathered into the Church of God, that with one voice they may worship the true God, along with the children of Abraham. But since he mentions the temple, so far as it then was the visible abode of religion, Christ justly reproaches the Jews with having applied it to totally different purposes from those to which it had been dedicated. The meaning therefore is: God intended that this temple should exist till no as a sign on which all his worshippers should fix their eyes; and how base and wicked is it to profane it by thus turning it into a market?
Besides, in the time of Christ, that temple was actually a house of prayer; that is, so long as the Law, with its shadows, remained in force. But it began to be a house of prayer for all nations, when out of it resounded the doctrine of the Gospel, by which the whole world was to be united in one common faith. And though shortly afterwards it was totally overthrown, yet even in the present day the fulfillment of this prophecy is manifest; for, since
out of Zion, went forth the law, (Isa 2:2; Mic 4:2,)
those who wish to pray aright must look to that beginning. I do acknowledge that there is no distinction of places, for it is the will of the Lord that men should call upon Him everywhere; but as believers, who profess to worship the God of Israel, are said to
speak in the language of Canaan, (Isa 19:18,)
so they are also said to come into the temple, because out of it flowed the true religion. It is likewise the fountain of the waters, which, enlarged to an astonishing degree within a short period, flow in great abundance, and give life to those that drink them, as Ezekiel (Eze 47:9) mentions, (15) which, going out from the temple, spread, as Zechariah (Zec 14:8) says, from the rising to the setting sun. Though in the present day we make use of temples (or churches) for holding the holy assemblies, yet it is for a different reason; for, since Christ was manifested, no outward representation of him under shadows is held out to us, such as the fathers anciently had under the Law.
It must also be observed, that by the word prayer the prophet expresses the whole worship of God; for, though there was at that time a great variety and abundance of religious rites, yet God intended briefly to show what was the object of all those rites; namely, that they might worship him spiritually, as is more clearly expressed in the fiftieth psalm, where also God comprehends under prayer all the exercises of religion.
But you have made it a den of robbers. Christ means that the complaint of Jeremiah (Jer 7:11) applied equally well to his own time, in which the temple was not less corrupted. The prophet directs his reproof against hypocrites, who, through confidence in the temple, allowed themselves greater liberty in sinning. For, as it was the design of God to employ outward symbols, as a sort of rudiments, for instructing the Jews in true religion, so they satisfied themselves with the empty pretense of the temple, as if it were enough to give their attention to outward ceremonies; just as it is customary with hypocrites to
change the truth of God into a lie (Rom 1:25.).
But the prophet exclaims that God is not bound to the temple, or tied to ceremonies, and therefore that they falsely boast of the name of the temple, which they had made a den of robbers. For as robbers in their dens sin with greater hardihood, because they trust that they will escape punishment, so by means of a false covering of godliness hypocrites grow more bold, so that they almost hope to deceive God. Now as the metaphor of a den includes all corruptions, Christ properly applies the passage of the prophet to the present occasion.
Mark adds, that Christ gave orders that no man should carry a vessel through the temple; that is, he did not permit any thing to be seen there that was inconsistent with religious services; for by the word vessel the Hebrews denote any kind of utensil. In short, Christ took away whatever was at variance with the reverence and majesty of the temple.
(14) “ A la vraye et droiet cognoissanc de Dieu;” — “in the true and right knowledge of God.”
(15) “ Et aussi c’est ceste source des quatre fleuves desquels Ezekiel (Eze 47:2) parle, qui doyvent arrouser les quatre coins du monde;” — “and this is also the source of the four rivers of which Ezekiel (Eze 47:2) speaks, which are to water the four quarters of the world.”
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
(13) It is written.The words which our Lord quotes are a free combination of two prophetic utterances: one from Isaiahs vision of the future glory of the Temple, as visited both by Jew and Gentile (Isa. 56:7); one from Jeremiahs condemnation of evils like in nature, if not in form, to those against which our Lord protested (Jer. 7:11).
A den of thieves.The pictorial vividness of the words must not be passed over. Palestine was then swarming with bands of outlaw brigands, who, as David of old in Adullam (1Sa. 22:1), haunted the lime-stone caverns of Juda. The wranglings of such a company over the booty they had carried off were reproduced in the Temple, and mingled with the Hallelujahs of the Levites and the Hosannas of the crowds. We ask, as we read the narrative, how it was that the work of expulsion was done so effectively, and with so little resistance. The answer is found (1) in the personal greatness and intensity of will that showed itself in our Lords look and word and tone; (2) in the presence of the crowd that had followed Him from the Mount of Olives, and had probably filled the courts of the Temple; and (3) in the secret consciousness of the offenders that they were desecrating the Temple, and that the Prophet of Nazareth, in His zeal for His Fathers house, was the witness of a divine truth.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
13. Den of thieves Jer 7:11: “Is this house which is called by my name become a den of robbers in thine eyes?” Den of thieves is a terrible antithesis to the house of God. The word den probably is an allusion to the caves and recesses of rocks in Judea in which robbers and bandits found shelter.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
‘And he says to them, “It is written, My house shall be called a house of prayer, but you make it a den of robbers.”
In defence of His actions, and in order to explain their significance, Jesus then cites Isa 56:7 conjoined with Jer 7:11. ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer for all peoples’ conjoined with ‘is this house which is called by My Name become a den of robbers in your eyes? I, even I, have seen it.’ It brings out the purpose of His action, to turn the Temple back into a House of Prayer from being a ramp by which as much money as possible could be squeezed out of the people. Of course, the chief priests would have defended the trading on the grounds that it was necessary so as to make it convenient for the people to obtain what was necessary in their religious worship. But it could have been carried out elsewhere, and that certainly did not excuse the underhand tactics that were often employed, nor did it justify causing disruption in the only part of the Temple where Gentiles could worship.
Jesus was always very conscious of the context of His quotations and this particular one from Isaiah very much had the coming new age in mind (as had His use of the ass), when reformed worship would become genuine and true. He may well indeed have intended people to remember back to another leader who had purified the Temple in former days, in the days of Judas Maccabaeus. That too had been associated with the waving of palm branches. Then it had been from the defilement of idolatry. This time it was from the defilement of Mammon.
It was not only Jesus Who was against the Temple trading. It is thought by many that it had in fact become something of a scandal. Extortionate rates of exchange were regularly charged (shared out in different ways, some charitable so as to justify them); sheep which had been rejected for sacrifice because they were blemished, suddenly became unblemished after they had been bought at a cheap price, and were then sold on as unblemished, and accepted as such; high prices were charged for everything. This would not necessarily be true of all, but it would probably be true of a large minority, even a majority. Business corrupts. And even the chief priests raked in their percentage. But even worse in Jesus’ eyes was that it prevented the neediest and lowliest people, the Gentiles and the underprivileged, from praying and worshipping. Note that He was equally concerned to drive out the buyers!
Thus Jesus was revealing that in the new age that He was bringing in, prayer and worship was to become foremost, and everything else must be subsidiary to that, especially corrupt forms of religion and Mammon. Purification of Jerusalem and the Temple were in fact a part of national Messianic expectation (Mal 3:1-3; Psalms of Solomon 17:30). But this was only a final gesture, a last call to repent, for as He will shortly make clear the corruption of the Temple had gone too far, and it must be replaced (Mat 23:38; Mat 24:2; Mat 24:15; compare Joh 2:19-22; Joh 4:21-24). It was in fact symbolic of precisely how different the new age was going to be!
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Mat 21:13. But ye have made it a den of thieves The Jews, reckoning the lower and outer court of the temple as a place of no sanctity, because it was designed for accommodatingthe Gentile proselytes in their worship, not only kept the daily market there, of such things as were necessary in offering sacrifices, but suffered the common porters, in going from one part of the city to another, to pass through it with their burdens, for the sake of shortening their way: but as these abuses occasioned great disturbances to the proselytes, Jesus reformed them a second time, see Joh 2:14 telling the people around him that the Gentiles worshipped there by divine appointment as well as the Jews; the temple being ordained of God to be the house of prayer for all nations, Mar 11:17 and to prove this, he cited Isa 56:7 from which the inference was plain, that they were guilty of a gross profanation of the temple, who carried on any traffick even in the courts of the Gentiles; much more they, who made gain, committed frauds and extortions in the prosecution of their traffick; because thus they turned God’s house of prayer into a den of thieves. The expression of a den of thieves may allude to those gangs of robbers which at that time infested Judea, and used to hide themselves in the holes and dens of the mountains, as appears from several passages in Josephus’s history; not but that our blessed Saviour here plainly refers to Jer 7:11. St. Jerome, who thinks this one of our Lord’s greatest miracles, in his commentary on the place, gives a lively description of several artifices whereby the avaricious priests endeavoured to extort money. “In the temple of Jerusalem, (says he) the finest and most spacious of any in the world, where the Jews from almost all the countries of the earth assembled, sacrifices of different kinds, some for the rich, and others for the poorer sort, were offered according to the law; but, because those who came from distant countries often wanted such sacrifices, the priests took the advantage of buying up allthe beasts appointed for that purpose, sold them to those who wanted them, and received them again at their hands; and because some who came to worship were so very poor that they could not even purchase the lesser sacrifices, namely birds, the priests placed bankers in thecourts of the temple, to lend money upon security; but finding that they could not do this without transgressing the law, they had recourse to another device, namely, to appoint a kind of pawn-brokers, instead of bankers; that is to say, men, who forthe advancing a small sum, took fruits, herbs, and other commodities, instead of interest-money. Our Lord, therefore, having observed this method of traffick carried on by the priests in his Father’s house, not only expelled their agents, but arraigned them also as a band of thieves; for he is really a robber who makes lucre of religion, and whose worship is not so much for the veneration he has for God, as the opportunity of making his own interest and advantage.” See Jerome on the place, and bishop Smallbrooke’s Vindication of our Saviour’s Miracles, vol. 1 Chronicles 4 p. 130.
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
Mat 21:13 . Free combination of Isa 56:7 and Jer 7:11 , and taken from the Sept.
.] how sacred the purpose for which it was intended, but ye , etc.
(see critical notes) censures this desecration of the temple as a thing in which they are still persisting .
] The strong language of the prophet (otherwise in John) was in keeping with the emotion that was awakened in Jesus. The use of such language is sufficiently accounted for by the fact that avarice had taken up its abode in those sacred precincts to carry on its huckstering and money-changing: , Theophylact. Differently Fritzsche: “Vos undequaque pecuniam, animalia hue congerere sustinetis, ut latrones praedam comportant in speluncam,” where, however, due prominence is not given to the distinctive point of comparison, viz. the robbery .
In Mat 21:12-13 , Jesus acts with higher authority than that of a mere zealot (Num 25:11 ): He addresses Himself to the purifying of the temple and its worship with such a reforming energy as, according to Mal 3:1-3 , befitted the Messiah . Comp. Bertholdt, Christol . p. 163; Ullmann, Sndl . p. 177. And the acquiescence of the astonished multitude is all the more intelligible on the occasion of this cleansing, that the indignant reformer had just celebrated His triumphal march into the city in the character of Messiah. But even on the first occasion, Joh 2 , their acquiescence is sufficiently explicable from the sudden and decided nature of the proceeding, taken in connection with the spiritually-imposing character of the Lord’s person and bearing (“divinitatis majestas lucebat in facie,” Jerome), so that it is quite needless to resort to the hypothesis of a miracle (Origen, Jerome).
Fuente: Heinrich August Wilhelm Meyer’s New Testament Commentary
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.
Ver. 13. Shall be called the house of prayer ] A principal piece of God’s public worship, and here put for the whole. Christ himself never came into this house but he preached as well as prayed. In the sanctuary was the incense altar in the middle, a type of prayer; the table of shewbread on the one side, betokening the twelve tribes, and the candlestick, a type of the word, on the other: to teach us that there is a necessity of both ordinances to all God’s people.
But ye have made it a den of thieves ] So Christ calleth not the money merchants only, but the priests also that set them to work. And whereas they cried, “the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord” (for to those was this speech first addressed, Jer 7:11 ), as if they could not do amiss because they served in the temple, the prophet tells them there, and our Saviour these here, that it is so much the worse. What should an angel of darkness do in heaven? Who required these things at your hands, to tread the courts of my temple? This is the gate of the Lord, into which the righteous only should enter, Psa 118:20 . The Papists in like sort cry out at this day, Ecclesia, Ecclesia, Nos sumus Ecclesia; and herewith think to shroud their base huckstering of holy things. For omnia Romae venalia, all things are saleable and soluble at Rome. But this covering is too short, and their gross thieveries are now made apparent to all the world, as their cross of grace and the blood of Hales were at Paul’s cross by that noble Cromwell; and as their cheating trade of indulgencies and pope’s pardons was by Luther, who by dint of argument overthrew those Romish money changers, and drove the country of those and , as Nazianzen fitly calleth them.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
13. ] Stier remarks that the verse quoted from Jeremiah is in connexion with the charge of murder , and the shedding of innocent blood (see Jer 7:6 ). Luther translates . ., Mardergrube .
On the intention of this act of our Lord, see notes on Joh 2:15 . It was a purely Messianic act; see Mal 3:1-3 .
Fuente: Henry Alford’s Greek Testament
Mat 21:13 . , it stands written, in Isa 56:7 ; from the Sept [115] but with omission of , retained in Mk., and a peculiarly appropriate expression in the circumstances, the abuse condemned having for its scene the court of the Gentiles. , a den of robbers, a strong expression borrowed from another prophet (Jer 7:11 ), pointing probably to the avarice and fraud of the traders ( , Theophy.), taking advantage of simple provincials. This act of Jesus has been justified by the supposed right of the zealot (Num 25:6 ; Num 25:13 ), which is an imaginary right: “ein unfindbar Artikel” (Holtz., H. C.), or by the reforming energy befitting the Messiah (Meyer). It needed no other justification than the indignation of a noble soul at sight of shameless deeds. Jesus was the only person in Israel who could do such a thing. All others had become accustomed to the evil.
[115] Septuagint.
Fuente: The Expositors Greek Testament by Robertson
It is written = It standeth written.
My house, &c. A composite quotation from Isa 56:7, and Jer 7:11. See App-107 and App-117.
thieves = robbers. Same word as in Mat 27:38, Mat 27:44.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
13.] Stier remarks that the verse quoted from Jeremiah is in connexion with the charge of murder, and the shedding of innocent blood (see Jer 7:6). Luther translates . ., Mardergrube.
On the intention of this act of our Lord, see notes on Joh 2:15. It was a purely Messianic act; see Mal 3:1-3.
Fuente: The Greek Testament
Mat 21:13. , My house shall be called ([918] or the) house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves.-The LXX., in Isa 56:7, have- , , My house shall be called ([919] or the) house of prayer for all nations; and in Jer 7:11, ; is My house become a den of thieves?-, of prayer) Prayer is the principal part of public worship; see 1 Kings 8; therefore prayer is put before the apostolic ministry of the Word in Act 6:4. The synagogues also were places for teaching and houses of prayer as well. In the temple there was more prayer, in the synagogues more teaching.- , a den of thieves) A severe and proverbial expression, used of a place which admits all infamous characters and all profane things. He does not say, A market-place. in a den, thieves do not so much attack others, as house themselves.
[918] Vercellensis of the old Itala, or Latin Version before Jeromes, probably made in Africa, in the second century: the Gospels.
[919] Vercellensis of the old Itala, or Latin Version before Jeromes, probably made in Africa, in the second century: the Gospels.
Fuente: Gnomon of the New Testament
It is: Mat 2:5, Joh 15:25
My: Psa 93:5, Isa 56:7
ye: Jer 7:11, Mar 11:17, Luk 19:46
Reciprocal: Exo 20:15 – General Lev 19:30 – reverence 2Ch 29:5 – sanctify the house 2Ch 29:16 – all the uncleanness Ezr 7:17 – buy speedily Neh 13:7 – in preparing Psa 119:139 – because Isa 1:23 – companions Jer 23:11 – in Eze 22:27 – to get Zec 11:5 – sell Zec 14:21 – no more Luk 19:45 – went Joh 2:16 – make Joh 10:10 – thief Joh 12:6 – because Rom 2:21 – dost thou steal 1Ti 3:3 – not covetous 1Ti 6:5 – supposing
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
1:13
It is written is cited from Isa 56:7 where the prophet was writing about the restoration of the Jews after the captivity, but where he also included some words that referred to the age of the church. Jesus called the temple as it was used then a den of thieves because they were taking advantage of the situation to charge undue fees for their transactions; they were profiteering.
Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary
Mat 21:13. It is written. The first clause is from Isa 56:7; the second from Jer 7:7.
Ye make it a den of robbers. What they did here was a sign of the general venality and corruption, a desecration of a place of worship for purposes of gain, ill-gotten often enough. Isaiah adds, for all nations (which Mark retains), alluding to the extension of Gods blessings to the Gentiles. This driving of bargains in the place where the Gentiles could come and pray, was a robbery, a contemptuous disregard of the rights and privileges of the Gentiles.At the beginning of His ministry (at the first Passover) our Lord had performed a similar cleansing, narrated by John (Joh 2:13-17). Such a cleansing was appropriate both at the beginning and the close of Christs ministry. In the first case it was more the act of a reformer; here it assumes a Messianic character. In both we find power, holy zeal for the honor of the Lord of the temple; hence an outbreak of passion is inconceivable.
Fuente: A Popular Commentary on the New Testament
Verse 13
It is written; Isaiah 56:6.
Fuente: Abbott’s Illustrated New Testament
Jesus explained why He was doing what He did to the authorities. He quoted Scripture here similarly to the way He did in replying to Satan (Mat 4:1-10). First, He referred to Isa 56:7, a passage in which Isaiah looked forward to a time when the temple would be a house of prayer. Significantly Matthew omitted "for all the peoples" from Isaiah’s statement focusing his readers’ attention on Israel as the target of Jesus’ ministry still. Second, Jesus referred to Jer 7:11, a condemnation of superstitious reverence for the temple while the people dishonored it.
"No matter what they do even by violating the sanctity of their Temple, they imagine that their adherence to this Temple will protect and shield them from any penalty." [Note: Ibid., p. 816.]
In the context of Jeremiah’s prophecy, the "robbers" in view were nationalist rebels. That is also the meaning of the Greek word lestai that Jesus used here. Rather than being a house for prayer, Israel’s leaders had turned it into a stronghold of Jewish nationalism that dishonored the temple while they maintained a superstitious respect for it. [Note: For some insights into the temple environment to which Jesus alluded, see Karen K. Maticich, "Reflections on Tractate Shekalim," Exegesis and Exposition 3:1 (Fall 1988):58-60.]
". . . for Jesus to raise the claim through his cleansing of the temple that the temple has, under the custody of the religious leaders, become a ’den of robbers’ and that his purification of it from the desecration of merchants is its restoration to rightful use as Israel’s house of prayer and worship, is for him to mount a massive assault on the authority and integrity of the religious leaders (Mat 21:12-13)." [Note: Kingsbury, Matthew as . . ., p. 81.]
By coming to the temple and purifying it, Jesus was making another messianic claim (cf. Mal 3:1-4). However the nation’s rejection of her Messiah frustrated the cleansing of the temple and precluded the fulfillment of the blessing following purification (Mal 3:5-6). This prophecy will finally find fulfillment when Messiah comes the second time.