Expositor's Bible Commentary Commentary Matthew 21:13

"and he saith unto them, It is written, My house shall be called a house of prayer: but ye make it a den of robbers." — Matthew 21:13 (ASV)

Jesus here refers to Scripture, much as he did when confronted by the devil (4:1–10). His first words are from Isa 56:7. Isaiah looked forward to a time when the temple would be called a house of prayer. But now, at the dawn of the Messianic Age, Jesus finds a “den of robbers.” The words come from Jer 7:11, which warns against the futility of superstitious reverence for the temple compounded with wickedness that dishonors it. This suggests that the Greek word for “robbers” (GK 3334) should be given its normal meaning of “nationalist rebel” . The temple was meant to be a house of prayer, but they had made it “a nationalist stronghold.” It was not fulfilling its God-ordained role as witness to the nations but had become, like the first temple, the premier symbol of a superstitious belief that God would protect and rally his people irrespective of their conformity to his will.

The Lord whom the people see now comes to his temple (cf. Malachi 3:1).

Purification of Jerusalem and the temple was part of Jewish messianic expectation. So for those with eyes to see, Jesus’ action was one of selfdisclosure and an implicit claim to his authority over the Holy Place. That the purification would entail destruction and building a new temple none but Jesus could yet foresee.