Day 35: April 14, 2025

Scripture: Matthew 21:12–17; Matthew 21:28–32; Matthew 22:1–14; Mark 11:15–33; Luke 20:1–7

“My house shall be called a house of prayer; but you are making it a den of robbers.” – Matthew 21:13

Devotion:

The day after Palm Sunday, Jesus returned to the heart of Jerusalem—not for a business meeting, lunch with friends, or even to rest—but to confront the center of religious life head-on.

He entered the temple courts, the holiest space in all of Israel, and found anything but holiness. What was meant to be a place of worship and prayer had become an unruly, profit-driven marketplace. Money changers sat at tables exchanging currency. Animal vendors haggled and sold sacrifices. The sacred work of the temple had become transactional.

The system in the temple courtyard had once served a legitimate purpose. Pilgrims traveling great distances for worship or festivals like Passover couldn’t always bring animals for sacrifice or the correct currency for temple offerings. Thus, a marketplace developed.

But over time, what began as a convenience turned into corruption. The temple leadership—already known for greed and collusion with Rome—were raking in a fortune. The exchange rates were dishonest. The prices were exorbitant. And the outer courts—the only space where Gentiles could even approach God—had become a center of exploitation and exclusion.

Jesus had seen it since childhood, and now He was finished with the entire fraudulent system.

In righteous fury, He overturned the tables of the money changers and drove them out. He accused them of turning His Father’s house into a “den of thieves.” The message was clear: this wasn’t just about coins and currency, or pigeons and doves. It was about the integrity of worship. It was about justice. And it was a direct and public indictment of the temple authorities who had allowed it to happen. They—and everyone else in Jerusalem—understood what He was doing.

But Jesus didn’t just make a scene and disappear. He stayed. He spent the rest of the day teaching in the very same courtyards. The tension must have been thick. The same chief priests, teachers of the law, and Pharisees who personally profited from the temple’s corruption now confronted Jesus. They questioned His authority (Luke 20:1–7), tried to trap Him with legal tricks (Mark 11:27–33), and looked for every opportunity to discredit Him.

Jesus responded—not with arguments, but with parables. Each story was a mirror He held up to the religious elite, showing them exactly who they had become—and then pointing them toward the true heart of God.

In the parable of the two sons, Jesus made it clear that real obedience shows itself in action, not words. “Tax collectors and prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God ahead of you,” He said (Matt. 21:31). Why? Because they believed and repented. The religious leaders saw the same truth—and hardened their hearts.

In the parable of the tenants, the leaders recognized themselves as the wicked tenants who rejected and killed the landowner’s servants—and would kill his son. After hearing it, they wanted to arrest Jesus immediately (Mark 12:12).

Then came the parable of the wedding banquet. Those originally invited refused to come, so the king opened the doors to everyone else—the forgotten, the outsiders. “For many are invited,” Jesus said, “but few are chosen” (Matt. 22:14).

What we now call Holy Monday was no ordinary day. Jesus wasn’t easing into the week. He was drawing a clear line in the sand between empty religion and living faith. He was calling out injustice, calling people back to worship, and calling all of us to prepare for the coming kingdom of God.

By the end of the day, the religious leaders were no longer just concerned about Jesus—they were enraged.

His words, His actions, His very presence threatened their power and their comfort.

The stage was set. The cross was now inevitable.

This Monday in the temple was the moment the nails began to be gathered for the cross on that dark Friday, now only hours away.

Reflection Questions:

• What in your life has become a transaction instead of an act of worship?

• Where is Jesus calling you to speak truth, even when it’s uncomfortable?

• Are there areas in your faith that need to be overturned and reclaimed?

Quote:

“Jesus’ cleansing of the temple is not so much about wrath as it is about love—fierce, urgent love for a people called to be holy.” – N.T. Wright