John 2

The Voice

2 Three days later, they all went to celebrate a wedding feast in Cana of Galilee. Mary, the mother of Jesus, was invited ²together with Him and His disciples. ³While they were celebrating, the wine ran out; and Jesus’ mother hurried over to her son.

Mary: The host stands on the brink of embarrassment; there are many guests, and there is no more wine.

Jesus: ⁴Dear woman, is it our problem they miscalculated when buying wine and inviting guests? My time has not arrived.

⁵But she turned to the servants.

Mary: Do whatever my son tells you.

⁶In that area were six massive stone water pots that could each hold 20 to 30 gallons.^[a] They were typically used for Jewish purification rites. ⁷Jesus’ instructions were clear:

Jesus: Fill each water pot with water until it’s ready to spill over the top; ⁸then fill a cup, and deliver it to the headwaiter.

They did exactly as they were instructed. ⁹After tasting the water that had become wine, the headwaiter couldn’t figure out where such wine came from (even though the servants knew), and he called over the bridegroom in amazement.

Headwaiter: ¹⁰This wine is delectable. Why would you save the most exquisite fruit of the vine? A host would generally serve the good wine first and, when his inebriated guests don’t notice or care, he would serve the inferior wine. You have held back the best for last.

¹¹Jesus performed this miracle, the first of His signs, in Cana of Galilee. They did not know how this happened; but when the disciples and the servants witnessed this miracle, their faith blossomed.

With a wedding as the setting of Jesus’ first sign, John shows how Jesus’ ministry isn’t limited to just “spiritual” things, but is His blessing for all of life.

¹²Jesus then gathered His clan—His family members and disciples—for a journey to Capernaum where they lingered several days. ¹³The time was near to celebrate the Passover, the festival commemorating when God rescued His children from slavery in Egypt, so Jesus went to Jerusalem for the celebration. ¹⁴Upon arriving, He entered the temple to worship. But the porches and colonnades were filled with merchants selling sacrificial animals (such as doves, oxen, and sheep) and exchanging money. ¹⁵Jesus fashioned a whip of cords and used it with skill driving out animals; He scattered the money and overturned the tables, emptying profiteers from the house of God. ¹⁶There were dove merchants still standing around, and Jesus reprimanded them.

Jesus: What are you still doing here? Get all your stuff, and haul it out of here! Stop making My Father’s house a place for your own profit!

¹⁷The disciples were astounded, but they remembered that the Hebrew Scriptures said, “Jealous devotion for God’s house consumes me.”^[b] ¹⁸Some of the Jews cried out to Him in unison.

Jews: Who gave You the right to shut us down? If it is God, then show us a sign.

Jesus: ¹⁹You want a sign? Here it is. Destroy this temple, and I will rebuild it in 3 days.

Jews: ²⁰Three days? This temple took more than 46 years to complete. You think You can replicate that feat in 3 days?

²¹The true temple was His body. ²²His disciples remembered this bold prediction after He was resurrected. Because of this knowledge, their faith in the Hebrew Scriptures and in Jesus’ teachings grew.

²³During the Passover feast in Jerusalem, the crowds were watching Jesus closely; and many began to believe in Him because of the signs He was doing. ^24-25But Jesus saw through to the heart of humankind, and He chose not to give them what they requested. He didn’t need anyone to prove to Him the character of humanity. He knew what man was made of.