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Matthew 21:13

King James Version (KJV)

“In our prayers we talk to God, in our Bible study God talks to us, and we had better let God do most of the talking.”
— D.L. Moody

Matthew 21:13

Verse 13 of 46

Scripture focus

And said unto them, It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves.

Matthew 21:13 — KJV

Commentary

Commentary on Matthew 21:13

Theological / Devotional

It is written. The quotation is from Isa. 56:7, which, taken in its context, refers specifically to the fact that Gentiles were to be converted to the true God (see on Isa. 56:6-8). For the place God designed the Temple at Jerusalem to fill in the great ingathering of the nations to the worship of the true God see Vol. IV, pp. 28-30.

Den of thieves. Rather, “den of robbers.” Jesus employs the language of Scripture (see on Jer. 7:11) in giving His own comment on the scene before Him. By making the sacred symbols of the Lamb of God a source of personal profit, the rulers were making sacred things common and robbing God of the honor and glory that were His. They were also robbing all the worshipers of a knowledge of the character and requirements of God; and particularly were they robbing the Gentile worshipers of the opportunity to know God as He is. In their spirit of greed the dignitaries of the Temple were no better than thieves.

By SdaBc