Mateo 21:13

13 «Escrito está —les dijo—: “Mi casa será llamada casa de oración”;^[a] pero ustedes la están convirtiendo en “cueva de ladrones”.^[b]»

Mateo 21:13 Meaning and Commentary

Matthew 21:13

And said unto them, it is written
In ( Isaiah 56:7 ) .

My house shall be called the house of prayer.
These are the, words of God, calling the temple his house, which was built according to the plan he gave; and was the place of his worship, and where he dwelt, and vouchsafed his presence to his people; and signifying, that in time to come, it should be an house of prayer; not for the Jews only, but for the Gentiles also: "for all people", as it is expressed by the prophet, and cited by Mark; and particularly this part of it, in which were the money changers and sellers of doves; for that was the court of the Gentiles, where they were admitted to pray, and perform other parts of worship. These words are rightly applied by Christ to the temple; nor can the Jews themselves deny it; for their own Targum paraphrases it thus, (yvdqm tyb) , "the house of my sanctuary shall be called an house of prayer"; or shall be one; for the meaning is not that it should go by such a name, but should be for such use, and not for buying and selling, and merchandise, to which use the Jews now put it: hence it follows,

but ye have made it a den of thieves.
These are the words of Christ, affirming what is complained of in ( Jeremiah 7:11 ) and applying it to the present case, on account of the wicked merchandise, unlawful gain, avarice and extortion, of the priests and other officers of the temple, who had a considerable share in these things; and to whom the temple was, and by them used, as a den is to and by thieves and robbers, where they shelter themselves; for these persons robbed both God and man, and the temple was a sanctuary to them: here they screened themselves, and, under the appearance of religion and devotion, devoured widows' houses, plundered persons of their substance, and were full of extortion and excess.

Mateo 21:13 In-Context

11 —Este es el profeta Jesús, de Nazaret de Galilea —contestaba la gente.

12 Jesús entró en el templo y echó de allí a todos los que compraban y vendían. Volcó las mesas de los que cambiaban dinero y los puestos de los que vendían palomas.

13 «Escrito está —les dijo—: “Mi casa será llamada casa de oración”; pero ustedes la están convirtiendo en “cueva de ladrones”.»

14 Se le acercaron en el templo ciegos y cojos, y los sanó.

15 Pero cuando los jefes de los sacerdotes y los maestros de la ley vieron que hacía cosas maravillosas, y que los niños gritaban en el templo: «¡Hosanna al Hijo de David!», se indignaron.

Footnotes

• [a] Is 56:7
• [b] Jer 7:11