Jesus did not commit Himself to them, because He knew all men, and had no need that anyone should testify of man, for He knew what was in man

 Now the Passover of the Jews was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.  And He found in the temple those who sold oxen and sheep and doves, and the money changers doing business.  When He had made a whip of cords, He drove them all out of the temple, with the sheep and the oxen, and poured out the changers' money and overturned the tables.  And He said to those who sold doves, "Take these things away!  Do not make My Father's house a house of merchandise!"  Then His disciples remembered that it was written, "Zeal for Your house has eaten Me up." 

So the Jews answered and said to Him, "What sign do You show to us, since You do these things?"  Jesus answered and said to them, "Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up."  Then the Jews said, "It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and will You raise it up in three days?"  But He was speaking of the temple of His body.  Therefore, when He had risen from the dead, His disciples remembered that He had said this to them; and they believed the Scripture and the word which Jesus had said. 

Now when He was in Jerusalem at the Passover, during the feast, many believed in His name when they saw the signs which He did.  But Jesus did not commit Himself to them, because He knew all men, and had no need that anyone should testify of man, for He knew what was in man.

- John 2:13-25

Yesterday, we read there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there.  Now both Jesus and His disciples were invited to the wedding.  And when they ran out of wine, the mother of Jesus said to Him, "They have no wine."  Jesus said to her, "Woman, what does your concern have to do with Me?  My hour has not yet come."  His mother said to the servants, "Whatever He says to you, do it."  Now there were set there six waterpots of stone, according to the manner of purification of the Jews, containing twenty or thirty gallons apiece.  Jesus said to them, "Fill the waterpots with water."  And they filled them up to the brim.  And He said to them, "Draw some out now, and take it to the master of the feast."  And they took it.  When the master of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and did not know where it came from (but the servants who had drawn the water knew), the master of the feast called the bridegroom.  And he said to him, "Every man at the beginning sets out the good wine, and when the guests have well drunk, then the inferior.  You have kept the good wine until now!"  This beginning of signs Jesus did in Cana of Galilee, and manifested His glory; and His disciples believed in Him. After this He went down to Capernaum, He, His mother, His brothers, and His disciples; and they did not stay there many days.

Now the Passover of the Jews was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.  And He found in the temple those who sold oxen and sheep and doves, and the money changers doing business.  When He had made a whip of cords, He drove them all out of the temple, with the sheep and the oxen, and poured out the changers' money and overturned the tables.  And He said to those who sold doves, "Take these things away!  Do not make My Father's house a house of merchandise!"  Then His disciples remembered that it was written, "Zeal for Your house has eaten Me up."  The cleansing of the temple is given in the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke at the end of His ministry.  Here in John, it appears at the beginning of His ministry.  Some Church Fathers are of the opinion that there were two cleansings of the temple.  In any case, it is Passover, and pilgrims are in Jerusalem for the feast.   Oxen and sheep and doves were sold for sacrifices, while money changers traded Roman coins for Jewish coins, as the Roman money, with its image of Caesar, was considered defiling to the temple.  John includes the detail of the whip of cords (fit for driving out the animals), giving us a vigorous picture of Jesus' outrage at defiling the temple as to make it a "marketplace" of commerce and profiteering from those who come for prayer and worship.  One can simply imagine the noisy and crowded conditions, and perhaps haggling over the prices of animals and their quality for sacrifice.  My study bible says that as each person is considered to be a temple of God (1 Corinthians 3:16; 6:19), this is a sign for each of us and the cleansing of our own hearts from "earthly matters" - whatever separates us from God.  The Scripture recalled by the disciples is from Psalm 69:9.  See also Jeremiah 7:11.

 So the Jews answered and said to Him, "What sign do You show to us, since You do these things?"  Jesus answered and said to them, "Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up."  Then the Jews said, "It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and will You raise it up in three days?"  But He was speaking of the temple of His body.  Therefore, when He had risen from the dead, His disciples remembered that He had said this to them; and they believed the Scripture and the word which Jesus had said.  Jesus is not a Levitical priest, and so He's asked for a sign of His authority to cleanse the temple.  The term the Jews is used in John's Gospel most often to refer to the Jewish leadership.  Here it refers to the chief priests and elders.  It's important to remember that all the people here are Jews, and that would include the author of the Gospel.  Jesus answers their question in a hidden way, careful not to reveal Himself to those who will scoff.  The ultimate sign will be His death and Resurrection.  His answer also points to the the idea of the body as a temple. 

Now when He was in Jerusalem at the Passover, during the feast, many believed in His name when they saw the signs which He did.  But Jesus did not commit Himself to them, because He knew all men, and had no need that anyone should testify of man, for He knew what was in man.  This is the first of three Passover feasts in John's Gospel reported during Jesus' ministry (see also 6:4, 11:55).  This gives us the three year period of His ministry.   Again, the text tells us about Jesus' understanding of the hearts of people (such as in the meeting with Nathanael), and His discernment.  He does not commit Himself to those who follow simply because of signs.

What is faith?  The word in the last paragraph above for "commit" (in He did not commit Himself to them) is the past tense of the Greek word for faith when used as a verb.  (As a verb, we use the word "believe.")  That is, He did not put His faith in them.  More closely, it means He did not entrust Himself to them.  The root of the Greek word for faith means trust.  Jesus gives us this strong example of discernment, and sets the example for us as well.  It's important to discern where we put our trust, important to evaluate what we'll believe -- but more importantly, as Jesus does here, who we'll put our trust in.  Christ as Incarnate God brings us the personhood of God.  That is, we put our faith or trust in a Person, not merely in a set of intellectual concepts.  That means for us that faith is all about Person-to-person relationship, not merely an intellectual assent to concepts we agree with.  Our faith uses much more of us as persons -- involves all of who we are on all levels -- than merely an intellectual agreement.  This is a rational choice, but involves more than rationality.  It involves everything that engages in relationship and relatedness.  Jesus' own actions teach us about discernment.  The one with the greatest love and mercy retained His discernment and discretion of the hearts of people, and it's a lesson for all of us to learn as well.  We don't entrust what is precious in a place which doesn't truly value its worth.  With faith, we trust in the One who truly loves us.