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Read John Chapter 2

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

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

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

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

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

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

7Jesus saith unto them, Fill the waterpots with water. And they filled them up to the brim.

8And he saith unto them, Draw out now, and bear unto the governor of the feast. And they bare it.

9When 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,

10And 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.

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

12After this he went down to Capernaum, he, and his mother, and his brethren, and his disciples: and they continued there not many days.

13And the Jews' passover was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem,

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

15And 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;

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

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

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

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

20Then said the Jews, Forty and six years was this temple in building, and wilt thou rear it up in three days?

21But he spake of the temple of his body.

22When 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.

23Now 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.

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

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

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Explanation

John 2

In short

John 2 shows Jesus performing his first miracle at a wedding, turning water into wine, which leads his disciples to believe in him. It then moves to Jerusalem, where Jesus clears the temple of merchants and predicts his own resurrection in mysterious words that his followers only understand later.

What the text says

Verses 1-11 describe a wedding feast in Cana. When the wine runs out, Jesus's mother tells him. He says his time has not yet come, but his mother instructs the servants to do whatever he tells them. Jesus orders them to fill six stone water jars to the brim. He then tells them to draw water from the jars and take it to the feast's supervisor. The supervisor tastes it and finds it is wine, and good wine at that. The servants know what happened; the supervisor does not. Verse 11 states this was Jesus's first sign and that it displayed his glory so his disciples believed in him.

Verses 12-16 move to Jerusalem at Passover time. Jesus finds people selling animals and money-changers in the temple. He makes a whip of cords, drives them out, overturns the tables, and tells the sellers not to make his Father's house a house of business.

Verses 17-22 record the challenge that follows. The Jews ask what sign gives him the right to do this. Jesus answers, "Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up." They think he means the building. Verse 21 clarifies that he spoke of his body. Verse 22 states that after his resurrection, his disciples remembered this saying and believed both the scripture and his words.

Verses 23-25 note that many believed in his name when they saw his miracles in Jerusalem, but Jesus did not trust them because he knew what was in all people.

Takeaways

  • Jesus's first recorded miracle was not a matter of life and death but a social problem at a celebration, revealing something about what glory means to him.
  • The temple cleansing showed Jesus treating his Father's house as sacred, distinct from commercial use.
  • Jesus spoke of his own body as a temple that would fall and rise, a meaning hidden to his listeners until after events proved it true.

Explanation written with the help of AI. The Bible text above is not changed. Context and interpretation are flagged as such; always come back to the text itself.