Rabbi, look! The fig tree which You cursed has withered away

 

 Now the next day, when they had come out from Bethany, He was hungry.  And seeing from afar a fig tree having leaves, He went to see if perhaps He would find something on it.  When He came to it, He found nothing but leaves, for it was not the season for figs.  In response Jesus said to it, "Let no one eat fruit from you ever again."  And His disciples heard it. 

 

So they came to Jerusalem.  Then Jesus went into the temple and began to drive out those who bought and sold in the temple, and overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who sold doves.  And He would not allow anyone to carry wares through the temple.  Then He taught, saying to them, "Is it not written, 'My house shall be called a house of prayer for all nations'?  But you have made it a 'den of thieves.'"  And the scribes and chief priests heard it and sought how they might destroy Him; for they feared Him, because all the people were astonished at His teaching.  When evening had come, He went out of the city. 

 

 Now in the morning, as they passed by, they saw the fig tree dried up from the roots.  And Peter, remembering, said to Him, "Rabbi, look!  The fig tree which You cursed has withered away."  So Jesus answered and said to them, "Have faith in God.  For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, 'Be removed and be cast into the sea,' and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says.  Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.  And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him, that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses.  But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses."

 

- Mark 11:12-26 

 

On Saturday we read that when Jesus and the disciples drew near Jerusalem, to Bethphage and Bethany, at the Mount of Olives, He sent two of His disciples; and He said to them, "Go into the village opposite you; and as soon as you have entered it you will find a colt tied, on which no one has sat.  Loose it and bring it.  And if anyone says to you, 'Why are you doing this?' say, 'The Lord has need of it,' and immediately he will send it here."  So they went their way, and found the colt tied by the door outside on the street, and they loosed it.  But some of those who stood there said to them, "What are you doing, loosing the colt?"  And they spoke to them just as Jesus had commanded.  So they let him go.  Then they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their clothes on it, and He sat on it.  And many spread their clothes on the road, and the others cut down leafy branches from the trees and spread them on the road.  Then those who went before and those who followed cried out, saying: "Hosanna! 'Blessed is He who comes in the name of the LORD!'  Blessed is the kingdom of our father David that comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!"  And Jesus went into Jerusalem and into the temple.  So when He had looked around at all things, as the hour was already late, He went out to Bethany with the twelve. 

 

Now the next day, when they had come out from Bethany, He was hungry.  And seeing from afar a fig tree having leaves, He went to see if perhaps He would find something on it.  When He came to it, He found nothing but leaves, for it was not the season for figs.  In response Jesus said to it, "Let no one eat fruit from you ever again."  And His disciples heard it.   It was not the season for figs, my study Bible explains, means that this fig tree had sprouted an early fall foliage, which indicated a first crop, but without bearing any fruit.  So Jesus, finding not even one fig, condemns it.  In Scripture, my study Bible says, a fig tree is often a symbol of Israel (Hosea 9:10).  Her fruitfulness has ceased, so the Kingdom will be taken from her and given to another people, who are called to bear spiritual fruit (see Matthew 21:43; Galatians 5:22-23).  After three years of ministry, Christ has arrived in Jerusalem, where He will find refusal and rejection, rather than spiritual fruitfulness.

 

 So they came to Jerusalem.  Then Jesus went into the temple and began to drive out those who bought and sold in the temple, and overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who sold doves.  And He would not allow anyone to carry wares through the temple.  Then He taught, saying to them, "Is it not written, 'My house shall be called a house of prayer for all nations'?  But you have made it a 'den of thieves.'"  And the scribes and chief priests heard it and sought how they might destroy Him; for they feared Him, because all the people were astonished at His teaching.  When evening had come, He went out of the city.  Those who bought and sold in the temple were trading in life animals to be used for sacrifices.  The money changers would trade Roman coins for Jewish coins; this is because Roman coins bore the image of Caesar, who was worshiped as a god, and they were considered defiling in the temple.  The cleansing of the temple also points to the necessity that the Church be kept free from earthly pursuits.  As each person is considered a temple of God (1 Corinthians 3:16; 6:19), it is also a sign that our hearts and minds must be cleansed of earthly matters.  Jesus quotes from Isaiah 56:7 and Jeremiah 7:11 to make His point clear regarding the use of the temple.  

 

  Now in the morning, as they passed by, they saw the fig tree dried up from the roots.  And Peter, remembering, said to Him, "Rabbi, look!  The fig tree which You cursed has withered away."   The cursing and withering of the fig tree is a prophetic act which signifies the judgment of Israel.  The disciples need to learn that the old covenant with Israel is becoming "obsolete" and will "vanish away" (Hebrews 8:13).  My study Bible explains that they will establish His Church, ultimately to be filled with Gentiles and Jews, and need assurance that they are following Christ's will.  The fig tree will be an indelible image in their minds. 

 

 So Jesus answered and said to them, "Have faith in God.  For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, 'Be removed and be cast into the sea,' and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says.  Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them."  To have faith in God is to believe and follow.  From this faith in God, then, it follows that what one asks in prayer means necessarily prayer according to the will of God, not simply our own whims or aspirations alone.  My study Bible comments that while it is not recorded that an apostle literally moved mountain, patristic commentary is clear that they had this authority if the need had arisen (certain saints did make crevices appear in mountains).  Additionally, it explains, not everything the apostles accomplished was written down.  Beyond the literal meaning, my study Bible adds, this promise is also an illustration of the power of faith and prayer in all areas of life.  Theophylact comments that "whatever we ask, without hesitation and believing in God's power, we shall receive" when we ask for spiritually profitable things.  This passage is inseparable from Christ's words that follow regarding forgiveness.  

 

 "And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him, that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses.  But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses."   Here Jesus insists upon mutual forgiveness between people as a precondition of God's forgiveness.  Those who do not forgive are not forgiven -- period, my study Bible claims.  This teaching is repeated in the parable of the unforgiving servant (Matthew 18:21-35), which concludes with this same teaching.  To not forgive others is to willfully flee from the forgiveness of God for ourselves.  

 

In today's reading, St. Peter draws attention to the fig tree, now dried up from its roots.  He says, "Rabbi, look!  The fig tree which You cursed has withered away."   All the disciples know very well this sequence of events, the curse by Jesus for fruitlessness (noted as metaphor to people), and then witnessing its complete desiccation (dried up from the roots).  Jesus' response is interesting, as He does not speak of the tree per se, but rather He speaks about faith.  He says, "Have faith in God.  For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, 'Be removed and be cast into the sea,' and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says.  Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them."  There are those who seemingly read these words as if Jesus is saying that no matter what we think we want or need, if we just pray for them without any doubt that Jesus will make them happen for us, then they will.  But this is not what Jesus is teaching here.  Prayer is not a magical incantation; it's not bargaining or bribing or manipulating God; it's not a formula for manifestation.  First of all, in the prayer that Jesus gave us Himself (the Lord's Prayer), He has taught us to pray, "Our Father in heaven . . . Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven" (Matthew 6:12; Luke 11:2).  Moreover, we recall from Christ's own life and practice His memorable prayer to the Father on the night before His Crucifixion.   Christ's first prayer, as reported by St. Matthew was as follows:  "O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will."  Christ's natural human response to death is to seek to let this cup pass from Him.  But His prayer ends with "not as I will, but as You will."  His next prayer is as follows:  "O My Father, if this cup cannot pass away from Me unless I drink it, Your will be done."  This further enforces that Jesus prays above all not for His own (human) will to be done, but for the divine will He shares with the Father, "Your will be done" -- even if it means this cup of Crucifixion He wishes to avoid cannot pass away by any other means except that He drinks it, accepts it.  So Jesus is not saying that all we have to do is believe that God will do what we ask God to do; He is teaching us about the power of faith in God, and the reality that brings to us in seeking God's will.  This is the way to effective prayer.  That is, as my study Bible puts it, when we ask for spiritually profitable things.  What He says next emphasizes this, for He speaks about forgiveness: "And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him, that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses.  But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses."   To forgive is to give up, to let go (this is the literal meaning of the word in Greek translated as forgive).   It is precisely as it is when a debt is forgiven; it is let go off the books.  When we thus "forgive" in this sense, when we let go and give it up, we are turning it over to God for God's will.  It's the same sense in which we are reminded by St. Paul that "'Vengeance is Mine; I will repay,' says the Lord" (Romans 12:19; quoting Deuteronomy 32:35).  To forgive in this sense, and particularly in the sense of giving up seeking vengeance, is to seek God's will instead of our own.  We let things go, and ask for God's way.  In this sense also, we are reminded that it is our work to seek God's will in all things, and to pursue that as best we can.  In this sense, our practices help us to discern God's will, to give ourselves to that will, to ask for the things we're led toward by that faith in God which Jesus says is of utmost importance.  And in this way, our prayers become effective and powerful.  We seek to align our will with God's will, to learn how to do that as best we can, and not the other way around.  Christ Himself gives us the ultimate example in seeking God's way.  It is this in which we are to place our faith and do not doubt.  Let us try as best we can to follow His word and teachings.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

If you had known, even you, especially in this your day, the things that make for your peace!

 

 Now as He drew near, He saw the city and wept over it, saying, "If you had known, even you, especially in this your day, the things that make for your peace!  But now they are hidden from your eyes.  For days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment around you, surround you and close you in on every side, and level you, and your children within you, to the ground; and they will not leave in you one stone upon another, because you did not know the time of your visitation."  

 

Then He went into the temple and began to drive out those who bought and sold in it, saying to them, "It is written, 'My house is a house of prayer,' but you have made it a 'den of thieves.'"  And He was teaching daily in the temple.   But the chief priests, the scribes, and the leaders of the people sought to destroy Him, and were unable to do anything; for all the people were very attentive to hear Him.

 

- Luke 19:41–48 

 

Yesterday we read that, after giving a parable to the disciples to prepare them for what will happen in Jerusalem, and their lives as apostles after His Passion, Jesus went on ahead, going up to Jerusalem.  And it came to pass, when He drew near to Bethphage and Bethany, at the mountain called Olivet, that He sent two of His disciples, saying, "Go into the village opposite you, where as you enter you will find a colt tied, on which no one has ever sat.  Loose it and bring it here.  And if anyone asks you, 'Why are you loosing it?' thus you shall say to him, 'Because the Lord has need of it.'"  So those who were sent went their way and found it just as he had said to them.  But as they were loosing the colt, the owners of it said to them, "Why are you loosing the colt?"  And they said, "The Lord has need of him."  Then they brought him to Jesus.  And they threw their own clothes on the colt, and they set Jesus on him.  And as He went, many spread their clothes on the road.  Then, as He was now drawing near the descent of the Mount of Olives, the whole multitude of the disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty works they had seen, saying: "'Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the LORD!' Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!"  And some of the Pharisees called to Him from the crowd, "Teacher, rebuke Your disciples."  But He answered and said to them, "I tell you that if these should keep silent, the stones  would immediately cry out."  

 

  Now as He drew near, He saw the city and wept over it, saying, "If you had known, even you, especially in this your day, the things that make for your peace!  But now they are hidden from your eyes."  My study Bible says that Jerusalem means "foundation of peace."  Only faith in Christ, it says, brings true peace, which is a truth hidden from a city that will soon rebel against its Savior.  Peace here should not be confused with "false peace," which my study Bible calls a shallow harmony resulting from ignoring issues of truth.  Genuine peace, it says, is reconciliation to God through faith in Christ and surrender to truth.  Genuine peace has division as a byproduct, because not everyone wants truth.  Moreover, in the fallen world, divisions become necessary for truth to be manifest (see Luke 12:51; 1 Corinthians 11:18-19).

 

"For days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment around you, surround you and close you in on every side, and level you, and your children within you, to the ground; and they will not leave in you one stone upon another, because you did not know the time of your visitation."  Jesus foretells the destruction of Jerusalem which would occur in AD 70.  My study Bible adds that this also describes the spiritual end of every person who lacks faith.

 

 Then He went into the temple and began to drive out those who bought and sold in it, saying to them, "It is written, 'My house is a house of prayer,' but you have made it a 'den of thieves.'"  And He was teaching daily in the temple.   But the chief priests, the scribes, and the leaders of the people sought to destroy Him, and were unable to do anything; for all the people were very attentive to hear Him.  Those who bought and sold in the temple were trading in live animals to be used for sacrifices.   My study Bible says that the cleansing of the temple also points to the necessity that the Church be kept free from earthly pursuits.  As each person is considered a temple of God (1 Corinthians 3:16; 6:19), it's also a sign for us to cleanse our hearts and minds of earthly matters.  Jesus quotes from Isaiah 56:7, Jeremiah 7:11.  Note how despite Christ's open conflict with the religious leaders, the people were very attentive to hear Him.

 

 The cleansing of the temple is an important lesson to us all, my study Bible says, because we are each a temple ourselves.  This places an emphasis on our knowing choices; that is, on our own initiative to guard ourselves and our hearts for what is good, and to cast away what is not good.  See, for example, Matthew 5:29, Jesus' teaching from the Sermon on the Mount:  "If your right eye causes you to sin, pluck it out and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell."  Of course the "right eye" in this statement is a metaphor for something precious yet causing ailment -- perhaps a way we look or see, a covetousness that causes sin.  But Christ's cleansing of the temple, in today's reading, is also coupled with His warnings about what is to come in Jerusalem, and imply the consequences of "not knowing what makes for your peace."  That is, the rejection of Christ Himself by the people and the city.  There's an implied connection that the destruction of the city that was to come at the hands of the Romans is linked both to the cleansing of the temple and to the rejection of Jesus as Messiah by the nation.  The devastation to Jerusalem, and indeed, to all the Jewish people, which was to come in the Siege of Jerusalem, encompassed the most extreme levels of catastrophe and destruction.  The temple itself was destroyed to a remarkable extent, so that Christ's description here was absolutely true:  "For days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment around you, surround you and close you in on every side, and level you, and your children within you, to the ground; and they will not leave in you one stone upon another, because you did not know the time of your visitation."  So much so, that literally not one stone was left upon another, the Roman soldiers having believed rumors that there was gold between the stones, with a fire so intense it no doubt destroyed whatever gold there was.  Only one retaining wall remains of that splendid second temple as it was left by the building and refurbishing of Herod the Great, considered in its time one of the architectural marvels of the world.  (That wall for many centuries was known as the Wailing Wall, today called the Western Wall, remaining a site of prayer.)  This complete destruction and devastation in mayhem and fire is surely an image of hell -- in that sense reflecting Christ's words teaching us to cast off harmful habits (even those precious to us) so that our "whole body" is not cast into hell (again, see Matthew 5:29, quoted above).  For a devastation like this it must surely have been required that much was rejected, just as much corruption was practiced for a very long time.  In effect, it teaches us about rejecting what grace is on offer, especially when we know better.  It is evidence of the harmful effects of treating a priceless treasure, such as our faith, as if it were worthless.  One wonders if so much of what passes for popular culture might fall into this category today, where human beings considered to be precious and loved creations of God and meant for adoption as God's heirs -- are instead paraded as so much flesh for consumption, exploitation, and self-harm.  One doesn't have to look far from headlines, media, popular apps and websites, or the devastation of homelessness and destruction rooted in drug culture and the slavery of addiction.  Do we know better?  Like the people of Jerusalem, we may be very attentive to hear Christ.  But how do we follow Him in faith?  Let's note again the context of our reading today, coming after yesterday's statement by Christ that if His disciples were not witnessing their faith He is their Messiah, then the very stones would cry out (see yesterday's reading and commentary).  Today He speaks to Jerusalem, lamenting the ferocious fighting that will "level you, and your children within you, to the ground; and they will not leave in you one stone upon another, because you did not know the time of your visitation."  We should all take it as a warning for our own lives, and the world we create with our choices, lest we lose even that which we have.  For the things that make for our peace are found in Him.

 

 

 

If you had known, even you, especially in this your day, the things that make for your peace!

 

 Now as He drew near, He saw the city and wept over it, saying, "If you had known, even you, especially in this your day, the things that make for your peace!  But now they are hidden from your eyes.  For days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment around you, surround you and close you in on every side, and level you, and your children within you, to the ground; and they will not leave in you one stone upon another, because you did not know the time of your visitation."

Then He went into the temple and began to drive out those who bought and sold in it, saying to them, "It is written, 'My house is a house of prayer,' but you have made it a 'den of thieves.'"  And He was teaching daily in the temple.  But the chief priests, the scribes, and the leaders of the people sought to destroy Him, and were unable to do anything; for all the people were very attentive to hear Him.

 

-  Luke 19:41-48

 

Yesterday we read that, after Jesus told the parable of the Minas to His disciples, he went on ahead, going up to Jerusalem.  And it came to pass, when He drew near to Bethphage and Bethany, at the mountain called Olivet, that He sent two of His disciples, saying, "Go into the village opposite you, where as you enter you will find a colt tied, on which no one has ever sat.  Loose it and bring it here.  And if anyone asks you, 'Why are you loosing it?' thus you shall say to him, 'Because the Lord has need of it.'"  So those who were sent went their way and found it just as He had said to them.  But as they were loosing the colt, the owners of it said to them, "Why are you loosing the colt?"  And they said, "The Lord has need of him."  Then they brought him to Jesus.  And they threw their own clothes on the colt, and they set Jesus on him.  And as He went, many spread their clothes on the road.  Then, as He was now drawing near the descent of the Mount of Olives, the whole multitude of the disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty works they had seen, saying: "'Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the LORD!' Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!" And some of the Pharisees called to Him from the crowd, "Teacher, rebuke Your disciples."  But He answered and said to them, "I tell you that if these should keep silent, the stones would immediately cry out." 

 

  Now as He drew near, He saw the city and wept over it, saying, "If you had known, even you, especially in this your day, the things that make for your peace!  But now they are hidden from your eyes."  My study Bible explains that the name Jerusalem means "foundation of peace."  It's only faith in Christ that brings true peace.  This is a truth hidden from a city that will soon rebel against its Savior.  My study Bible further explains that there are two kinds of peace.  One is a false or shallow peace; harmony that results from ignoring issues of truth or from a repressive coercion.  Genuine peace is reconciliation to God through faith in Christ and surrender to truth.  

"For days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment around you, surround you and close you in on every side, and level you, and your children within you, to the ground; and they will not leave in you one stone upon another, because you did not know the time of your visitation."  The destruction of Jerusalem, here predicted by Jesus, would occur in AD 70.  My study Bible says that this also describes the spiritual end of every person who lacks faith. 

Then He went into the temple and began to drive out those who bought and sold in it, saying to them, "It is written, 'My house is a house of prayer,' but you have made it a 'den of thieves.'"  And He was teaching daily in the temple.  But the chief priests, the scribes, and the leaders of the people sought to destroy Him, and were unable to do anything; for all the people were very attentive to hear Him.  Those who bought and sold in the temple were trading in live animals which were to be used for sacrifices.  Jesus quotes from Isaiah 56:7 and Jeremiah 7:11.  My study Bible comments that the cleansing of the temple also points to the necessity that the Church be kept free from earthly pursuits.  As each person is considered to be a temple of God (1 Corinthians 3:16; 6:19), it's also a sign that our hearts and minds must be cleansed of earthly matters. 

 

It's important to observe that the text presents us with the various layers of social conflict around Jesus.  While Jesus is teaching daily in the temple, the chief priests, the scribes, and the leaders of the people sought to destroy Him.  The elites at the top, those who administer and regulate the faith and hold positions of high authority, are seeking to destroy Him at the time of the Passover, in this final week of Christ's earthly life.  At the same time, this coalition of the powerful were unable to do anything, because all the people were very attentive to hear Him.  It's interesting to note the power of the people in this presentation.  It is "all the people" who wish to listen to Jesus and hear what He has to teach.  Presumably, we can read into this statement that the people seek to know truth, regardless of the concerted effort from the powerful entities above who wish to control how people worship and how they practice their faith.  Clearly, the cleansing of the temple by Jesus points to practices He finds to be objectionable and corrupt, especially the practices involved in the collection of money and the ways that the things necessary for sacrifice become used to gather wealth and profit.  In the other Gospels we read vivid descriptions of Christ driving out the money changers.  These are people who exchanged Roman coins for Jewish coins to be used in the temple, as Roman coins bore the image of Caesar and so were considered to be defiling in the temple. But no doubt this exchange opened the door for profiteering from pilgrims who come for the Passover.  The texts also speak specifically of Christ chastising and targeting those who sold doves in the temple (Matthew 21:12, Mark 11:15, John 2:14-16).  Doves were the least expensive and therefore affordable sacrifice for the poor; to profit off the poor is an insult to Christ and to traditional Jewish spiritual sensibility, in the understanding that God loves the poor.  As Messiah, Jesus' great act of cleansing the temple is the first He undertakes as He's made His Triumphal Entry into the city.  It's the first great act of authority He makes, and the one vivid action of force we see Him expressing in the Gospels.  He will certainly be immediately questioned regarding His authority to do so by the religious leaders.  But nonetheless, as the Gospels tell the story, none of their power can completely avail them of the ability to suppress the gospel message and the ministry of Christ.  There is expressed in the story of Christ the deep, almost organic tie between an unstoppable truth and the faith of the people that draws them to that truth in Christ.  They long to hear Him, and the religious authorities must fear that deep desire on the part of the people, for the Roman authorities will look askance at any instability among the people under their rule.   Christ speaks truth directly to the hearts of people who are receptive to it, who will respond with faith, with trust (the root meaning of the word for "faith" in the Gospels).  The rigid control of the authorities, and their corrupt practices, cannot long withstand that truth -- and this is the dynamic at work which will culminate in Christ's prophesied destruction of Jerusalem.  It is the unseen world of the Kingdom, of the holiness which Christ brings into the world, that challenges the structures of manipulation, the materialist power of "mammon," and the people whose hearts are open to it, and deeply desire it, will respond.  The religious leaders can already see that, but they cannot foresee its power and lasting impact remaining in the world to come.  Christ reveals to us the reality of the Kingdom, and may we continue to live and dwell within that reality, despite those who might wish to deny it today.   That is, those for whom these things remain hidden from their eyes.  For we still need to recognize the time of our visitation, and the things that make for our peace.

Let no one eat fruit from you ever again

 

 Now the next day, when they had come out from Bethany, He was hungry.  And seeing from afar a fig tree having leaves, He went to see if perhaps He would find something on it.  When He came to it, He found nothing but leaves, for it was not the season for figs.  In response, Jesus said to it, "Let no one eat fruit from you ever again."  And His disciples heard it.  

So they came to Jerusalem.  Then Jesus went into the temple and began to drive out those who bought and sold in the temple, and overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who sold doves.  And He would not allow anyone to carry wares through the temple.  Then He taught, saying to them, "Is it not written, 'My house shall be called a house of prayer for all nations'?  But you have made it a 'den of thieves.' "  And the scribes and the chief priests heard it and sought how they might destroy Him; for they feared Him, because all the people were astonished at His teaching.  When evening had come, He went out of the city.

Now in the morning, as they passed by, they saw the fig tree dried up from the roots.  And Peter, remembering, said to Him, "Rabbi, look!  The fig tree which You cursed has withered away."  So Jesus answered and said to them, "Have faith in God.  For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, 'Be removed and be cast into the sea,' and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says.  Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.  And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him, that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses.  But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses."

 

- Mark 11:12-25

On Saturday, we read that Jesus and the disciples came to Jericho (as they traveled on the road to Jerusalem).  As He went out of Jericho with His disciples and a great multitude, blind Bartimaeus, the son of Timaeus, sat by the road begging.  And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out and say, "Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!"  Then many warned him to be quiet; but he cried out all the more, "Son of David, have mercy on me!"  So Jesus stood still and commanded him to be called.  Then they called the blind man, saying to him, "Be of good cheer.  Rise, He is calling you."  And throwing aside his garment, he rose and came to Jesus.  So Jesus answered and said to him, "What do you want Me to do for you?"  The blind man said to Him, "Rabboni, that I may receive my sight."  Then Jesus said to him, "Go your way; your faith has made you well."  And immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus on the road.

 

 Now the next day, when they had come out from Bethany, He was hungry.  And seeing from afar a fig tree having leaves, He went to see if perhaps He would find something on it.  When He came to it, He found nothing but leaves, for it was not the season for figs.  In response, Jesus said to it, "Let no one eat fruit from you ever again."  And His disciples heard it.   Between Saturday's reading (see above) and today, is Mark 11:1-11, the passage which describes the events of Palm Sunday, or Christ's Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem.  Presumably, it's not included as today's reading because Palm Sunday was celebrated in most Churches yesterday.  The exception is the Eastern Orthodox, for whom Easter comes in May this year, as in Eastern Orthodox tradition Easter is calculated to fall after Passover.  (Passover this year takes place April 22 - 30, 2024).  So this "next day" described in today's reading is Monday of Holy Week, the final week of Christ's earthly life, and corresponds to today in most church calendars.  My study Bible comments that it was not the season for figs means that this fig tree had sprouted an early full foliage, seeming to indicate a first crop -- but it had not borne any fruit.  So, Jesus, finding not a single fig, condemns it.  In Scripture, my study Bible says, a fig tree is frequently a symbol of Israel (Hosea 9:10).  So, in this case, it is a sign of the lack of fruitfulness, even after the fullness of Christ's earthly ministry.  The Kingdom will be taken from her and given to another people, called to bear spiritual fruit (see Matthew 21:43; Galatians 5:22-23).  In the poetry of the ancient world, and even of Scripture (Song of Solomon 2:13) figs are the sweetest and richest of fruit, and so symbolizing spiritual treasure.  Here, the lack of figs shows spiritual barrenness.

So they came to Jerusalem.  Then Jesus went into the temple and began to drive out those who bought and sold in the temple, and overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who sold doves.  And He would not allow anyone to carry wares through the temple.  Then He taught, saying to them, "Is it not written, 'My house shall be called a house of prayer for all nations'?  But you have made it a 'den of thieves.' "  And the scribes and the chief priests heard it and sought how they might destroy Him; for they feared Him, because all the people were astonished at His teaching.  When evening had come, He went out of the city.  Those who bought and sold in the temple were trading in life animals which were used for sacrifices.  The job of the money changers was to trade Roman coins for Jewish ones, as Roman coins bore the image of Caesar (worshiped as a god) and so were considered to be defiling in the temple.  Here Jesus -- clearly upset at the trade which seems geared to make profits at the expense of the pilgrims who come to worship at Passover -- quotes from Isaiah 56:7 and Jeremiah 7:1 in order to make an explicit statement about the practices of the religious leadership.  My study Bible says that the cleansing of the temple also points to the necessity that the Church be kept free from earthly pursuits.  As each person is considered to be a temple of God (1 Corinthians 3:16; 6:19), it notes, this is also a sign that our hearts and minds must be cleansed of earthly matters.  

Now in the morning, as they passed by, they saw the fig tree dried up from the roots.  And Peter, remembering, said to Him, "Rabbi, look!  The fig tree which You cursed has withered away."  My study Bible comments that the cursing and withering of the fig tree is a prophetic act signifying the judgment of Israel.  It notes that the disciples need to learn that the old covenant with Israel is becoming "obsolete" and will "vanish away" (Hebrews 8:13).  They will establish His Church, filled ultimately with both Gentiles and Jews, and they need assurance that they are following His will.  Thus, my study Bible asserts, this fig tree will be an indelible image in their minds. 

 

  So Jesus answered and said to them, "Have faith in God.  For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, 'Be removed and be cast into the sea,' and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says.  Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them."  My study Bible comments that, while it is not recorded that an apostle literally moved a mountain, the patristic literature is clear that they had this authority if the need had arisen (there are legends of certain saints making crevices appear in mountains).  Moreover, my study Bible adds, not everything the apostles accomplished was written down.  Beyond the literal meaning, this is a promise which illustrates the power of faith and prayer in all areas of life.  My study Bible quotes Theophylact as saying, "Whatever we ask, without hesitation and believing in God's power, we shall receive" when we ask for spiritually profitable things.  

 

"And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him, that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses.  But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses."  This is a very essential addition to Christ's teaching regarding the power of faith.  Forgiveness is inescapable as a component of the effectiveness of faith, and a part of faith.  In forgiveness, one does not necessarily invite close relations with people who will abuse or hurt, but it is similar to confession.  Forgiveness, in the Gospels, is a word that means to "let go."  Essentially, we "let go" of hurts, debts, trespasses (in the language of the Lord's Prayer) and give them to God, to guide us through the proper response and to heal us.  In this way, they do not stand as obstacles to our relationship to God.  This mutual forgiveness assures us of our own forgiveness from God.  In this way, we also affirm for ourselves that judgment -- for all, including ourselves -- is ultimately in the hands of God.

 

In today's passage, we're given rather vivid images of Christ acting decisively, even somewhat violently, with coercive action designed to make an indelible impression (in the words of my study Bible).  The first such action is perhaps His curse upon the fig tree, overheard by the disciples, "Let no one eat fruit from you ever again."  The way the passage is written seems designed to let us know that this act by Christ was not necessarily one intended with calm foresight as a demonstration or teaching action, but rather one made out of the depths of Christ's reactions to the things He finds in Jerusalem, and even what He knows is going to come.  Perhaps it is only He who knows that this is the final week of His earthly life, and what is to come in a few days.  But this decisive action on His part has clearly the significance of a judgment coming from Christ.  Then He moves on to the temple and again, the vehemence of what is in His understanding about the corruption in the temple and the practices of the religious leadership results in the strongest and perhaps most violent action undertaken by Christ as He overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who sold doves.  If we want to understand the indignation expressed here, we have only to look at Matthew 23, the fullness of His scathing indictment of the scribes and Pharisees and their corruption and hypocrisy.  These incidents come at this stage because it is the closing week of Christ's earthly life, so if we wish to extrapolate, we could say that the time has come because His "time" (or His "hour") draws near, and after that He will not be in the world any longer, and so circumstances for these institutions and these men whom He addresses will change.  John's Gospel focuses a lot of attention on Christ's "hour" (the time of glorification, of the Cross, His Passion), and so repeats several warnings by Jesus saying that it is only "a little while longer" that He would be with them (John 7:33; 12:35; 13:33).  In Luke's Gospel, Jesus says flatly, "For I say to you that this which is written must still be accomplished in Me: 'And He was numbered with the transgressors.'  For the things concerning Me have an end" (Luke 22:37).  Therefore, the things that appear surprisingly violent in some sense to us in today's reading come as Jesus knows the time is very near that His "end" is at hand, and the spiritual fruits that could be hoped for from the religious leadership are not forthcoming.  In this sense, we do well to consider that Christ's ministry is decided not by Himself alone, but by the Father, for it is the Father who determines the times of things (Mark 13:32), and so if no fruits have been produced by now, these leaders who now seek to put Him to death are far from likely to produce any fruits of repentance at all.  Let us remember that we are now in Holy Week, and walk with Christ knowing what is to come.  For the message here to us is clear, that things do eventually have an end, even our very lives in this world.  "Ever again" is long time.  Therefore, today's events indicate to us that our time in life is precious, and every moment is one in which we may meet Christ and find where He calls us, what fruits He desires from us.  What do you need to change?  Today's reading ends with a note endorsing and emphasizing faith.  Let us remember where to turn when we feel stuck, or when we need a new start.

Out of the mouth of babes and nursing infants You have perfected praise

 

 Then Jesus went into the temple of God and drove out all those who bought and sold in the temple, and overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who sold doves.  And He said to them, "It is written, 'My house shall be a called a house of prayer,' but you have made it a 'den of thieves.'" 

Then the blind and the lame came to Him in the temple, and He healed them.   But when the chief priests and scribes saw the wonderful things that He did, and the children crying out in the temple and saying, "Hosanna to the Son of David!" they were indignant and said to Him, "Do You hear what these are saying?"  And Jesus said to them, "Yes.  Have you never read, 

    'Out of the mouth of babes and nursing infants

    You have perfected praise'?"

Then He left them and went out of the city to Bethany, and He lodged there.

Now in the morning, as He returned to the city, He was hungry.  And seeing a fig tree by the road, He came to it and found nothing on it but leaves, and said to it, "Let no fruit grow on you ever again."  Immediately the fig tree withered away.  

 

And when the disciples saw it, they marveled, saying, "How did the fig tree wither away so soon?"  So Jesus answered and said to them, "Assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what was done to the fig tree, but also if you say to this mountain, 'Be removed and be cast into the sea,' it will be done.  And whatever things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive."

 

- Matthew 21:12-22 

 

Yesterday we read that when Jesus and the disciples drew near Jerusalem, and came to Bethphage, at the Mount of Olives, then Jesus sent two disciples, saying to them, "Go into the village opposite you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her.  Loose them and bring them to Me.  And if anyone says anything to you, you shall say, 'The Lord has need of them,' and immediately he will send them."  All this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying:   "Tell the daughter of Zion, 'Behold, your King is coming to you, lowly, and sitting on a donkey, a colt, the foal of a donkey.'"  So the disciples went and did as Jesus commanded them.  They brought the donkey and the colt, laid their clothes on them, and set Him on them.  And a very great multitude spread their clothes on the road; others cut down branches from the trees and spread them on the road.  Then the multitudes who went before and those who followed cried out, saying:  "Hosanna to the Son of David!  'Blessed is He who comes in the name of the LORD!'  Hosanna in the highest!"  And when He had come into Jerusalem, all the city was moved, saying, "Who is this?"  So the multitudes said, "This is Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth of Galilee."

 

  Then Jesus went into the temple of God and drove out all those who bought and sold in the temple, and overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who sold doves.  And He said to them, "It is written, 'My house shall be a called a house of prayer,' but you have made it a 'den of thieves.'"  We recollect that it is the beginning of Holy Week as we celebrate it; the time is just before the Passover when pilgrims arrived in Jerusalem for the feast.   Those who bought and sold were the ones who traded in live animals used for sacrifices.  The money changers were those who traded Roman coins for Jewish coins.  This was because Roman coins bore the image of Caesar, who was worshiped as a god, and therefore were considered to be defiling in the temple.  My study Bible says that the cleansing of the temple is also indicative of the necessity that the Church be kept free from earthly pursuits.  Moreover, each person is considered a temple of God (1 Corinthians 3:16, 6:19), it's also a sign that our hearts and minds must be cleansed of earthly matters.  Christ quotes from Isaiah 56:7; Jeremiah 7:11, putting the two prophecies together to castigate what is happening in the temple at this time.

Then the blind and the lame came to Him in the temple, and He healed them.   But when the chief priests and scribes saw the wonderful things that He did, and the children crying out in the temple and saying, "Hosanna to the Son of David!" they were indignant and said to Him, "Do You hear what these are saying?"  And Jesus said to them, "Yes.  Have you never read,  'Out of the mouth of babes and nursing infants You have perfected praise'?"  Then He left them and went out of the city to Bethany, and He lodged there.  My study Bible quotes from the Vespers of Palm Sunday, "Keep the feast with the children, and holding branches in your hands, sing 'Hosanna."  It notes that many liturgical hymns of this day emphasize the perfect praise of the children, which unlike that of the adults, was innocent, fitting, unashamed, and from hearts of pure love.  So we also are called to glorify Christ in this same spirit (see Matthew 18:1-4).  By contrast, my study Bible says, the adults' praise carried earthly expectations and agendas, which, when left unfulfilled, led them to rebel against Jesus just five days later (Matthew 27:20-23).

Now in the morning, as He returned to the city, He was hungry.  And seeing a fig tree by the road, He came to it and found nothing on it but leaves, and said to it, "Let no fruit grow on you ever again."  Immediately the fig tree withered away.  The fig tree is described by my study Bible as a symbol of prosperity and peace, and it withers because it is fruitless.  This is a prophetic act, it says, directed toward those among both the leaders and the crowds who, after three years of Christ's preaching, teaching, and healing, are destitute of spiritual fruit.  Jesus curses the tree also as a warning to those in each generation of what will befall anyone who fails to listen and take His message to heart.

And when the disciples saw it, they marveled, saying, "How did the fig tree wither away so soon?"  So Jesus answered and said to them, "Assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what was done to the fig tree, but also if you say to this mountain, 'Be removed and be cast into the sea,' it will be done.  And whatever things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive."  We don't have any recorded stories of an apostle literally moving a mountain, but patristic commentary is clear that they had this authority if the need had arisen, says my study Bible.  (There are stories of certain saints who made crevices appear in mountains.)  Moreover, my study Bible notes, not everything accomplished by the apostles was written down.  But in addition to its literal meaning, this is a promise given as an illustration of the power of faith and prayer in all areas of life.  My study Bible quotes Theophylact, who writes, "Whatever we ask, without hesitation and believing in God's power, we shall receive" when we ask for things which are spiritually profitable.

 

I'm intrigued by the note in my study Bible regarding the rejection of Christ by the adults in contrast to the children (rejection both among the leadership and the common people).  It says that the adults' praise carried earthly expectations and agendas, which, when left unfulfilled, led them to rebel against Jesus just five days later.  This is because, at Christ's time, the expectation was that the Messiah would be an earthly ruler, delivering them from Roman rule, and re-establishing the throne of David.   But this sense of expectation, and the rejection based on the unfulfillment of such expectation, remains ever with us, and so is also a problem today.  We can see this for ourselves in modern day criticisms not simply of the Church, but for Christianity itself.  We can see distortions and misreading of Biblical texts used as an excuse for rejection, as if to say that Scripture is merely meant to be taken literally, and if it can't, then it must simply be rejected.  Sometimes popular heresies turn out to be just that, and so establish a broken expectation then used as an excuse for rejection.  We can see such rejection on the basis of an assumption that every wish must be granted, or that there is evil that exists in the world, and pain and suffering all the time.  But most of all these objections come from a sense of unrealistic and unpromised expectations that aren't based on faith in the first place.  Many popular assumptions run contrary to long-established Church tradition.  There is an assumption at work that those who were founders of the Church -- those early disciples and apostles and Church Fathers and faithful martyrs and saints from all manner of walks of life and cultures -- were simply superstitious, or perhaps not educated, or simplistic as they did not come from an age with the kinds of technological and scientific advances that we do now.  But this is again a rejection based on unrealistic assumptions and expectations.  The early Fathers of the Church were the best educated of their time, a time when the full flower of Hellenistic civilization was readily at hand and expected to be known by any such educated person, be that culture such as the literature of Homer, Euripides, and Sophocles or all the ancient philosophers such as Plato and Socrates, as well as science, medicine, mathematics, history, and the beauty of art and architecture which remains astonishing and sophisticated to us today.  The unrealistic expectations of moderns includes assumptions about ancient peoples and their lives which not only miss the mark in terms of knowledge, but even in terms of a pragmatic approach to what they must have known and not known, and how they lived their lives.   So often one hears unrealistic criticisms of a faith structured upon the care, understanding, and insight of centuries of brilliant thinkers by those who have not bothered to cultivate the least knowledge about them.  As such, we might fault the adults in this picture for being more childish than the children.  For children, with their more open minds, may be far more able to grasp what faith is about, what God is like, and how faith is offered to us, than adults who have limited their understanding to their own expectations.  But God does not come to us to fulfill our expectations -- and definitions -- of God.  God comes to us to lead us somewhere, to teach us something, and that "something" comes to us on a long -- even lifelong -- journey of discovery.  To come to know Christ, to come to know God, is a question of opening one's mind and heart so that it may be expanded, transformed, and given a shape that does not start merely with us and our desires or expectations.  It doesn't come from popular culture.  It really doesn't matter what we think we know from others, or our expectations and upbringing.  What matters is the approach, the understanding that there is a gift held before us, but that gift must be accepted, opened, and adjusted to as it leads us and informs us -- and not the other way around.  It's a question of the proper understanding of and approach to grace.  This is why we're told that one must be converted and become as little children in order to enter the kingdom of heaven (Matthew 18:3).   This is an allusion to the open minds of children, that remarkable ability to absorb information in ways that seem extraordinary to adults, such as picking up a language by ear, or even using modern technology such as computer games or mobile software applications.  This is how we should be approaching God and approaching Scripture, and not as if it is meant to meet our own expectations or simply to fail, to be rejected.  Such an approach is actually immature and uninformed, especially when there is a treasure stored within the long history of the Church of understanding, insight, and depth of knowledge.  Let us consider the Lord's extended hand to us, and with what level of sophistication we respond to the grace in that offer.  So Christ says, in the words of the Psalmist, "Out of the mouths of babes and nursing infants You have perfected praise."

Is it not written, "My house shall be called a house of prayer for all nations?" But you have made it a den of thieves"

 

 Now the next day, when they had come out from Bethany, He was hungry.  And seeing from afar a fig tree having leaves, He went to see if perhaps He would find something on it.  When He came to it, He found nothing but leaves, for it was not the season for figs.  In response Jesus said to it, "Let no one eat fruit from you ever again."  And His disciples heard it.

So they came to Jerusalem.  Then Jesus went into the temple and began to drive out those who bought and sold in the temple, and overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who sold doves.  And He wold not allow anyone to carry wares through the temple.  Then He taught, saying to them, "Is it not written, 'My house shall be called a house of prayer for all nations'?  But you have made it a 'den of thieves.'  And the scribes and chief priests heard it and sought how they might destroy Him; for they feared Him, because all the people were astonished at His teaching.  When evening had come, He went out of the city.

Now in the morning, as they passed by, they saw the fig tree dried up from the roots.  And Peter, remembering, said to Him, "Rabbi, look!  The fig tree which You cursed has withered away."  So Jesus answered and said to them, "Have faith in God.  For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, 'Be removed and be cast into the sea,' and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says.  Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.  And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him, that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses.  But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses."

 

- Mark 11:12–26 

 

On Saturday, we read that when Jesus and the disciples drew near Jerusalem, to Bethphage and Bethany, at the Mount of Olives, He sent two of His disciples; and He said to them, "Go into the village opposite you; and as soon as you have entered it you will find a colt tied, on which no one has sat.  Loose it and bring it.  And if anyone says to you, 'Why are you doing this?' say, 'The Lord has need of it,' and immediately he will send it here."  So they went their way, and found the colt tied by the door outside on the street, and they loosed it.  But some of those who stood there said to them, "What are you doing, loosing the colt?"  And they spoke to them just as Jesus had commanded.  So they let them go.  Then they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their clothes on it, and He sat on it.  And many spread their clothes on the road, and others cut down leafy branches from the trees and spread them on the road.  Then those who went before and those who followed cried out, saying:  "Hosanna!  'Blessed is He who comes in the name of the LORD!'  Blessed is the kingdom of our father David that comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!"  And Jesus went into Jerusalem and into the temple.  So when He had looked around at all things, as the hour was already late, He went out to Bethany with the twelve.

 

  Now the next day, when they had come out from Bethany, He was hungry.  And seeing from afar a fig tree having leaves, He went to see if perhaps He would find something on it.  When He came to it, He found nothing but leaves, for it was not the season for figs.  In response Jesus said to it, "Let no one eat fruit from you ever again."  And His disciples heard it.  That it was not the season for figs means that this fig tree had sprouted an early full foliage, my study Bible comments.  This would indicate a first crop, but without bearing any fruit.  Jesus -- having found not a single fig -- condemns it.  In Scripture, my study Bible explains, a fig tree is often a symbol of Israel (Hosea 9:10).  Israel's fruitfulness has ceased (hinting at the rejection of Christ), so the Kingdom will be taken from her and given to another people, my study Bible says; that is, a people who are called to bear spiritual fruit (see Matthew 21:43; Galatians 5:22-23).

 

 So they came to Jerusalem.  Then Jesus went into the temple and began to drive out those who bought and sold in the temple, and overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who sold doves.  And He wold not allow anyone to carry wares through the temple.  Then He taught, saying to them, "Is it not written, 'My house shall be called a house of prayer for all nations'?  But you have made it a "den of thieves.'  And the scribes and chief priests heard it and sought how they might destroy Him; for they feared Him, because all the people were astonished at His teaching.  When evening had come, He went out of the city.   My study Bible explains that those who bought and sold were trading in live animals to be used for sacrifices.  The money changers were trading roman coins for Jewish coins.  This is because Roman coins bore the image of Caesar, and so were therefore considered to be defiling in the temple.  My study Bible adds that the cleansing of the temple also points to the necessity that the Church be kept free from earthly pursuits.  As each person is considered to be a temple of God (1 Corinthians 3:16; 6:19), it is also a sign that our hearts and minds must be cleansed of earthly matters, my study Bible says.   In condemning the activities within the temple, Jesus cites Isaiah 56:7; Jeremiah 7:11.

Now in the morning, as they passed by, they saw the fig tree dried up from the roots.  And Peter, remembering, said to Him, "Rabbi, look!  The fig tree which You cursed has withered away."  So Jesus answered and said to them, "Have faith in God.  For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, 'Be removed and be cast into the sea,' and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says.  Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.  And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him, that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses.  But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses."  My study Bible says that the cursing and withering of the fig tree is a prophetic act, and that it signifies the judgment of Israel.  This is a visible way for the disciples to learn that the old covenant with Israel is becoming "obsolete" and will "vanish away" (Hebrews 8:13).  They will establish Christ's Church, ultimately to be filled with both Gentiles and Jews, and, as my study Bible frames it, they need assurance that they are following His will.  The fig tree will thus be an indelible image of this moment in their minds.  

It's very interesting to consider the money changers, as they are being so scrupulous in following the Law by exchanging coins bearing the image of Caesar for Jewish coins to use in the temple treasury.  But once again, Jesus' act -- and this time a very visceral and dramatic act -- centers on the aims of the Law, and against the legalism of the ruling Council.  He says that instead of Isaiah's "house of prayer," the temple has been reduced to Jeremiah's "den of thieves" through the machinations of the system, and how it no doubt penalized the poor who could not afford a good sacrifice.   One suspects, however, that there was more to it than this.  Possibly -- as can happen in so many Churches today -- the whole focus of Passover was becoming this great business of doing business in the temple, with less emphasis on the prayer for which purpose it was meant.  We should remember that the animals being sold in the temple (for which purpose Roman money was being exchanged  for Jewish coins in the first place), were for sacrificial offerings to the Lord Himself.  It reminds us that the Psalmist writes, "For You do not desire sacrifice, or else I would give it; You do not delight in burnt offering.  The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, a broken and a contrite heart—these, O God, You will not despise" (Psalm 51:16-17).  Indeed, the interactions of Jesus with the Council all seem to point to the lack of "broken and contrite hearts" among them, so rigorous are they in their legalism and absolutely assured of their own righteousness.  In today's reading we have what might be the two most dramatically "violent" acts of Christ:  the cleansing of the temple and also the withering of the fig tree.  But they both go hand in hand.  They are the very visible signs of the Lord's own judgment regarding what He sees, and also what He fails to see.  It is the righteousness of true self-sacrifice and the spiritual fruits of humility before God that He does not see here.  The withering of the fig tree is an act of judgment aimed at those who put on a good show, but who fail to produce true spiritual fruit.  Let us keep in mind that the final judgment is yet to come for all of us, and that repentance always remains a possibility.  But Jesus has pronounced clearly in these acts His judgment about what is happening in real time, what He witnesses.  We cannot forget that He also as Messiah is the Lord of the temple, the Lord of the Sabbath (Mark 2:28).  As such He has surveyed what He sees (in Saturday's reading, above), and He has now given His judgment, with His authority.  The scrupulosity of money exchanges cannot cover the mechanisms for hypocrisy, legalism, and corruption that He sees -- and also the absent spiritual fruit that He doesn't see.  Bede comments on today's passage using images of the marketplace, "What, my beloved, do you suppose our Lord would do if he should discover people involved in disputes, wasting time gossiping, indulging in unseemly laughter, or engaged in any other sort of wicked actions?" (Exposition on the Gospel of Mark 2.1).   Let us consider for our own time precisely this rough and vigorous display of judgment in today's reading, for all of it applies equally to us when we lose ourselves to commerce, profit, useful mechanisms to turn church into mere marketplace -- and leave behind the real purpose of worship and prayer and the spiritual fruit that must go with it.  For this is not about the past alone.  Christ's message is meant for us, and to be with us, even as He is as yet with us when we worship as well (Matthew 18:20).  

If you had known, even you, especially in this your day, the things that make for your peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes

 

 Now as He drew near, He saw the city and wept over it, saying, "If you had known, even you, especially in this your day, the things that make for your peace!  But now they are hidden from your eyes.  For days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment around you, surround you and close you in on every side, and level you, and your children within you, to the ground; and they will not leave in you one stone upon another, because you did not know the time of your visitation."

Then He went into the temple and began to drive out those who bought and sold in it, saying to them, "It is written, 'My house is a house of prayer,' but you have made it a 'den of thieves.'"  And He was teaching daily in the temple.  But the chief priests, the scribes, and the leaders of the people sought to destroy Him, and were unable to do anything; for all the people were very attentive to hear Him.

 

- Luke 19:41–48 

 

Yesterday we read that, after teaching the disciples the parable of the Minas, Jesus went on ahead, going up to Jerusalem.  And it came to pass, when He drew near to Bethphage and Bethany, at the mountain called Olivet, that He sent two of His disciples, saying, "Go into the village opposite you, where as you enter you will find a colt tied, on which no one has ever sat.  Loose it and bring it here.  And if anyone asks you, 'Why are you loosing it?' thus you shall say to him, 'Because the Lord has need of it.'"  So those who were sent went their way and found it just as He had said to them.  But as they were loosing the colt, the owners of it said to them, "Why are you loosing the colt?"  And they said, "The Lord has need of him."  Then they brought him to Jesus.  And they threw their own clothes on the colt, and they set Jesus on him.  And as He went, many spread their clothes on the road.  Then, as He was now drawing near the descent of the Mount of Olives, the whole multitude of the disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty works they had seen, saying: "'Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the LORD!'  Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!"  And some of the Pharisees called to Him from the crowd, "Teacher, rebuke Your disciples."  But He answered and said to them, "I tell you that if these should keep silent, the stones would immediately cry out."   

 Now as He drew near, He saw the city and wept over it, saying, "If you had known, even you, especially in this your day, the things that make for your peace!  But now they are hidden from your eyes."  My study Bible comments that the name Jerusalem means "foundation of peace."  It notes that only faith in Christ brings a true peace.  This is a truth hidden from a city that will soon rebel against its Savior.  There is an explanation about peace; my study Bible notes that there are two kinds of peace.  One is a false peace, which is a shallow harmony that results from ignoring issues of truth.  A genuine peace is reconciliation to God through faith in Christ and surrender to truth, such as when sins are acknowledged and forgiven, a foundation upon which reconciliation can take place.  Genuine peace will have division as a byproduct because not everyone wants truth.  In the fallen world, my study Bible says, divisions are necessary for truth to be manifest (see 1 Corinthians 11:18-19).  

"For days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment around you, surround you and close you in on every side, and level you, and your children within you, to the ground; and they will not leave in you one stone upon another, because you did not know the time of your visitation."  The destruction of Jerusalem foretold here by Jesus would take place in AD 70.  My study Bible says this also describes the spiritual end of every person who lacks faith.  

 

 Then He went into the temple and began to drive out those who bought and sold in it, saying to them, "It is written, 'My house is a house of prayer,' but you have made it a 'den of thieves.'"  And He was teaching daily in the temple.  But the chief priests, the scribes, and the leaders of the people sought to destroy Him, and were unable to do anything; for all the people were very attentive to hear Him.  Those who bought and sold in the temple were trading in live animals to be used for sacrifices.  Here Jesus quotes from prophecy in Isaiah 56:7 and Jeremiah 7:11.  My study Bible comments that the cleansing of the temple by Jesus also points to the necessity that the Church be kept free from earthly pursuits.  As each one is considered a temple of God (1 Corinthians 3:16; 6:19), it's also a sign that our hearts and minds must be cleansed of earthly matters.  Note also Christ's popularity among all the people who want to hear Him, in contrast to the aims of the leaders.

 

 So what is peace?  How do we consider it?  Clearly what Jesus speaks about in today's passage is the failure of Jerusalem -- and all that represents -- to accept what God has given them.  This is an important consideration, for when we think of gifts of God, this might cover much more than we suppose.  As Jesus is a gift to humankind, and especially to Jerusalem as the One who is sent by God, it is important to note that this qualification as unimaginable gift and blessing stands without regard to whether or not people want it, accept it, object to it, are disturbed by it, or find their personal interests somehow interfered with through the gift of Christ.  Most notably we observe the cleansing of the temple.  This is not an act against the system of sacrifices as established in the Law, but rather an act decrying the profit motive -- the love of money -- that seems to be embedded within the leadership and their use of power and position, effectively harming the people and keeping them from God.  What this gift from God does is present us with the ways in which God would like us to be more in communion with God, especially and effectively asking us to discard that which gets in the way.  And that is the realm of sin, habits that break right relationship, in which communion becomes broken or difficult, plagued with problems that essentially harm community.  So peace becomes that place where harm is recognized and acknowledged, repented, and forgiven.  This is the key for reconciliation, just as it is for each of us in individual relationships on a smaller scale.  Peace is that place where we can forgive and be forgiven, but this is only possible where truth is not ignored at the expense of one person or favor of another, all to the detriment of community.  In yesterday's post, we commented on the many references to stones in the Gospels.  Here there is another, when Jesus correctly prophecies there will not be one stone left upon another -- something that would be true of the temple in the Siege of Jerusalem.  Perhaps we can take this as an image of what it is to have a broken community, in which true peace is not found. It would seem to be a spiritual reality that foreshadows the destruction to come.  In today's reading, Jesus cleanses the temple, and clearly uses language that suggests a practice that is abusing the community when He refers to the temple as a "den of thieves" which is supposed to be a "house of prayer."  In Matthew 23, we read Jesus most explicitly condemning the practices of the scribes and Pharisees.  Note that He does not condemn the establishment, the institution, saying "they sit in Moses' seat," and so commanding His disciples to do what they teach.  But His criticism of them is that they are hypocrites, so His disciples are not to "do as they do," for their works do not bear out what they say.  Here is where covetous behavior is hidden behind an outward show of piety, and hence His cleansing of the temple in today's reading.  In Matthew 23, He rails against their hypocritical practices, preying on "widows' houses" and lacking justice and mercy and faith.  One might only guess how the poor would be penalized as they could not afford the better sacrifice.  But let us now look at this properly, and in the context of our own times, because the lessons in the Gospels are certainly not simply for the people we read about.  We have the Gospels because they are lessons for ourselves, and this is the most important consideration we have.  How do we fail to know what makes for our peace?  Do we pray to know God's will for us?  Are we capable of acknowledging our sin or harm to community, or the ways in which we do damage within a community?  Are we capable of forgiveness?  Do we know what it is to draw our hearts closer to God, and to love Christ and seek to follow His teachings?   In Christ's cleansing of the temple, Jesus expresses what He has said elsewhere: "No servant can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon" (Luke 16:13).  The hypocrisy of the rulers He criticizes is to cover their covetousness, their priority of position and money first.  Such behavior can come in all kinds of forms, in ways that play out in our own time and place.  There are those who pose as moralists but whose motives prioritize currency:  wealth, power, influence.  Let us be aware of such choices in our own midst, our own times, our own world -- and remember that the solution to such corruption is found in our own faithful lives.  Do we know what makes for our peace?  From how many do such things seem hidden?  Let us remember the One whom we serve, first.  Let us remember the things that make for our true peace.

 

If you had known, even you, especially in this your day, the things that make for your peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes

 

 Now as he drew near, He saw the city and wept over it, saying, "If you had known, even you, especially in this your day, the things that make for your peace!  But now they are hidden from your eyes.  For days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment around you, surround you and close you in on every side, and level you, and your children within you, to the ground; and they will not leave in you one stone upon another, because you did not know the time of your visitation."

Then He went into the temple and began to drive out those who bought and sold in it, saying to them, "It is written, 'My house is a house of prayer,' but you have made it a 'den of thieves.'"  And He was teaching daily in the temple.  But the chief priests, the scribes, and the leaders of the people sought to destroy Him, and were unable to do anything; for all the people were very attentive to hear Him.

 

- Luke 19:41-48 

 

 Yesterday we read that Jesus went up toward Jerusalem.  When He drew near to Bethphage and Bethany, at the mountain called Olivet, that He sent two of His disciples, saying, "Go into the village opposite you, where as you enter you will find a colt tied, on which no one has ever sat.  Loose it and bring it here.  And if anyone asks you, 'Why are you loosing it?' thus you shall say to him, 'Because the Lord has need of it.'"  So those who were sent went their way and found it just as He had said to them.  But as they were loosing the colt, the owners of it said to them, "Why are you loosing the colt?"  And they said, "The Lord has need of him."  Then they brought him to Jesus.  And they threw their own clothes on the colt, and they set Jesus on him.  And as they went, many spread their clothes on the road.   Then, as He was now drawing near the descent of the Mount of Olives, the whole multitude of the disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty works they had seen, saying: "'Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the LORD! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!" And some of the Pharisees called to Him from the crowd, "Teacher, rebuke Your disciples."  But He answered and said to them, "I tell you that if these should keep silent, the stones would immediately cry out." 

 

 "Now as he drew near, He saw the city and wept over it, saying, "If you had known, even you, especially in this your day, the things that make for your peace!  But now they are hidden from your eyes."  Jerusalem, as noted in yesterday's reading, means "foundation of peace."   My study Bible comments that only faith in Christ brings true peace, which is a truth hidden from a city which will soon rebel against its Savior.  There is a kind of peace which is shallow, which comes from ignoring issues of truth.  There is a genuine peace, my study Bible explains, which is reconciliation to God through faith in Christ and surrender to truth.  Genuine peace has division as a byproduct because not everyone wants truth.  In the fallen world, it says, divisions are necessary for truth to be manifest (see Luke 12:51, 1 Corinthians 11:18-19).  

"For days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment around you, surround you and close you in on every side, and level you, and your children within you, to the ground; and they will not leave in you one stone upon another, because you did not know the time of your visitation."  This destruction of Jerusalem that Jesus foretells here would come in AD 70.  It is quite true that one stone would not be left upon another in the destruction of the temple.  My study Bible adds that this also describes the spiritual end of every person who lacks faith.

Then He went into the temple and began to drive out those who bought and sold in it, saying to them, "It is written, 'My house is a house of prayer,' but you have made it a 'den of thieves.'"  And He was teaching daily in the temple.  But the chief priests, the scribes, and the leaders of the people sought to destroy Him, and were unable to do anything; for all the people were very attentive to hear Him.  Jesus quotes from Isaiah 56:7 and Jeremiah 7:11 in His scathing indictment of these practices in the temple.  Those who bought and sold in it were trading in live animals to be used for sacrifices.  The money changers were trading Roman coins for Jewish coins, as Roman coins bore the image of Caesar (worshiped as a god) and were therefore considered to be defiling in the temple.  My study Bible adds that the cleansing of the temple also points to the necessity that the Church be kept free from earthly pursuits.  Each person is considered to be a temple of God, St. Paul writes (1 Corinthians 3:16; 6:19), and so it's a sign as well that our hearts and minds must be cleansed of earthly matters.  

 

Let us note again the great divisions in Jerusalem made evident in the text.  It tells us that while the chief priests, scribes, and leaders of the people sought to destroy Jesus, all the people were very attentive to hear Him.  Jesus laments over Jerusalem itself, showing His love for the city and its people and its spiritual heritage.  He says, "If you had known, even you, especially in this your day, the things that make for your peace!  But now they are hidden from your eyes."   The text ties this statement to the destruction of Jerusalem that would come in AD 70, when the temple would be destroyed by Roman soldiers, and tremendous devastation would occur to the city and its people.  What are the things that make for Jerusalem's peace?  Clearly Christ Himself is central to that peace, as my study Bible indicates.  That is, the person of Christ Himself, His teachings, His fulfillment of the Law and the Prophets in Himself (Matthew 5:17-20).  Should He have been welcomed as Messiah, or the religious leaders accepting His teachings regarding the kingdom of God, we might well wonder what would have happened instead of the ultimate destruction of the city in the first century.  As noted in yesterday's reading, Jerusalem remains a city with its divisions and turmoils and even violence.  So we have to ask, where is our peace?  How do we find it?  The world is rife with divisions, and even the citations in my study Bible point us to St. Paul's addressing of the divisions within the church at Corinth (1 Corinthians 11:17-19).  How do we address our own divisions, and our own need for peace?  We first of all must place our faith in Christ, for it is there that peace is to be found.  This is a peace that means a reconciliation with God, and not simply a healing of division for its own sake.  There are also times when truth -- and true peace -- is covered up because it is not what people truly want.  Every sort of selfish ambition seems to get in the way.  The leaders in the temple are zealously guarding their places, and do not want Christ recognized as an authority separately -- and in open opposition -- to themselves.  They do not want to recognize His authority or divinity.  They resent His disciples' heralding His entry into Jerusalem as Messiah.  As for the common people in the temple at this time of the Passover, they delight to hear Him.  But John's Gospel tells us that at an earlier festival, the people are also divided amongst themselves regarding Jesus (John 7:12), which we can presume remains true at this crucial point in the final Passover of Christ's life.  At that same festival, the people ask one another, "But look! He speaks boldly, and they say nothing to Him. Do the rulers know indeed that this is truly the Christ?" (John 7:26).  So the Gospels present to us a picture of the dissension and divisions surrounding Jesus, the people's suspicion of their own rulers, the power held onto so zealously by the leaders in the temple, and the use of state power to come in order to condemn Jesus and put Him to death.  But again, we have to ask ourselves, what are the things that make for our peace?  Can we center ourselves in Christ?  Clearly these divisions all betray selfish and even financial motivations.  Jesus' first action in the temple indicates an important message to us about our divisions and our conflicting motives in life.  Can we submit our desires to Christ?  Can we put His kingdom first and our communion in it with Him?  Is that where and how our peace is found?  Even within the church at Corinth, when St. Paul writes of their divisions, he seems to bring up the divisions that lead strife among them in sharing the supper meant to unite them:  "Therefore when you come together in one place, it is not to eat the Lord’s Supper.  For in eating, each one takes his own supper ahead of others; and one is hungry and another is drunk" (1 Corinthians 11:20-21).  Selfish desire leads the way, even at a communal gathering.  The great divisions within Jerusalem are the stuff of the strife of nations, and will become a major turning point in the history of the world, its civilizations, and empires -- while the discussion of the supper at the Corinth church is a division among what is small and intimate.  But each tells us of the importance of our own peace and where we find it and how we find it.  Our lives need to be centered in Christ, and it is for this that He will make His sacrifice out of which we receive the true mystical supper, the spiritual reality of the Eucharist.  For on the Cross, He will make His voluntary plea for our peace, and He will give us the true food and drink of that peace and that life in abundance.  The solution remains the same, even among the divisions and strife, big and small, that mark our world.  Let us remember, for our own part, to go to the place where we find that peace, and in turn offer all things back to Christ -- even our strife and division.