What is the meaning of John 2:21? But Jesus was - The contrastive “But” reminds us something different is going on from what the crowd assumed. They had just protested, “This temple took forty-six years to build” (John 2:20), yet Jesus’ answer in John 2:19—“Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up again”—signaled a deeper meaning. - Jesus, fully aware of their misunderstanding, intentionally used the temple scene to reveal His identity. Like the officers later confessed, “Never has anyone spoken like this man!” (John 7:46). - His words carry divine authority. As Matthew 16:21 notes, “From that time on Jesus began to show His disciples that He must…be raised to life on the third day.” He always knew where His words were headed: the cross and the resurrection. speaking about - Jesus often taught through figurative statements that required spiritual ears (John 16:25, “I have spoken these things to you in figures of speech”). - He was not being evasive; He was unveiling truth step-by-step. In doing so, He prepared His followers to remember and believe after the resurrection (John 2:22). - The phrase underscores purpose: He was actively communicating, not merely commenting. His speech carried the creative power seen in Genesis 1 and echoed in John 1:1—what He says is reality. the temple - For Israel the temple was the meeting place with God. Yet Jesus had already fulfilled that role: “The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us” (John 1:14). - By calling His body “the temple,” He declared Himself the ultimate dwelling of God: “For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form” (Colossians 2:9). - He also signaled that the physical building would become obsolete: “I tell you that something greater than the temple is here” (Matthew 12:6), and in eternity, “I saw no temple in the city, because the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple” (Revelation 21:22). of His body - The phrase locks His words to a literal, physical resurrection. When He said “three days,” He meant exactly that (1 Corinthians 15:3-4). - After rising, He proved the reality of His body: “Put your finger here…stop doubting and believe” (John 20:27). His body was not a symbol; it was tangible, glorified, alive. - Because His body rose, ours will too: “He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies” (Romans 8:11). Peter echoed the same certainty in Acts 2:31, noting that Christ’s flesh “did not see decay.” - In Him, believers become God’s dwelling (1 Corinthians 3:16), but only because His resurrected body forever stands as the true and first temple. summary John 2:21 reveals that Jesus deliberately identified His physical body as the true temple, predicting His literal resurrection and replacing the Jerusalem sanctuary as the meeting place between God and humanity. His words affirm both the certainty of His bodily rising on the third day and the new, living way He provides for all who believe. |
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