Book Study lesson chapter 76: Jesus cleanses the temple

What did Jesus do when he saw some people selling animals in the temple?

Commentary 1
Jesus acted decisively. He made a whip of ropes, pulled the sheep and the cows out of the temple, and did not allow him to follow that business environment in a holy place.

Commentary 2
He also overturned the tables of the money, and the money was scattered on the ground. With that he made it clear that he was not willing to tolerate the use of worship to make economic profit.

Commentary 3
To those who sold pigeons he gave a very direct order: to remove all that from there. It was not a simple complaint; it was a firm intervention to cleanse his Father’s house.

Commentary 4
What Jesus did must have impressed all those present very much. He did not act with uncontrolled violence, but with authority and a strong sense of respect for true worship.

Commentary 5
Besides, it wasn’t isolated, because years later he cleaned the temple again. This shows that for Jesus the purity of worship was not a minor detail, but something that had to be defended over and over again.

Why did he do that?

Commentary 1
Jesus did it because the temple was the house of worship of Jehovah, not a market. What he saw was a very serious disrespect for a place dedicated to his Father.

Commentary 2
Those people were turning worship into business. Instead of helping people get closer to Jehovah, they were taking advantage of the situation to earn money in a sacred place.

Commentary 3
Jesus was grave enough for the house of Jehovah. His disciples recalled the prophecy that said that respect and zeal for the house of God would consume it, and that was exactly what they saw on that occasion.

Commentary 4
He also did so to defend clean worship. Jesus did not want people to associate the house of Jehovah with greed, abuse, or material interests, because that completely dishonored God.

Commentary 5
Deep down, Jesus was showing that worship cannot be mixed with the love of money. The house of Jehovah was to reflect holiness, not trade or ambition.

Additional comments on lesson 76

What do we learn in this lesson upon Jehovah, Jesus, and the Bible? And how can you apply in our lives today?

Commentary 1
About Jehovah we learn that he deserves clean and respectful worship. He does not accept that the holy is mixed with greed or selfish interests, for his name and worship are pure.

Commentary 2
On Jesus we learn that he was brave and that he was not indifferent to the wrong. He had such a strong love for the true worship that he acted when he saw that his Father was being disgraced.

Commentary 3
On the Bible we learn that his prophecies are fulfilled with precision. What the disciples remembered of the Psalm on the zeal for the house of Jehovah fit perfectly with the way Jesus acts.

Commentary 4
This lesson also teaches us that love for Jehovah sometimes demands firmness. Not everything is resolved with silence or passivity; there are times when the right thing to be defended with courage and good judgment.

Commentary 5
Today we can apply it by reviewing our motives by worshipping Jehovah. We should ask ourselves whether our worship is clean and sincere, or if we sometimes let material matters take too big.

Commentary 6
It also helps us take great care of the attitude we show in places and moments related to worship. Everything that has to do with Jehovah deserves respect, seriousness and a spiritually focused heart.

Commentary 7
Finally, this lesson encourages us to imitate the zeal of Jesus. We may not clean a literal temple, but we can keep our worship clean, rejecting everything that contaminates it and always giving Jehovah the first place.

Book Study lesson chapter 77: Jesus talks to a woman in a well

Questions from the Lesson 77

Why was the Samaritan surprised that Jesus spoke to her?

Commentary 1
The Samaritan was surprised because Jesus was Jewish and she Samaritan. At that time, among Jews and Samaritans there was a lot of distance and mistrust, so it was not normal for them to talk naturally.

Commentary 2
It also struck him that Jesus spoke to him as a woman. In that society, many men did not treat an unknown woman in public, let alone to start a serious conversation.

Commentary 3
Surely he was also surprised by the tone of Jesus. He did not speak to him with contempt or superiority, but with respect and with real interest, something that completely broke the prejudices of the time.

Commentary 4
The woman’s reaction shows she was used to social and religious barriers. That is why Jesus’ open attitude must have seemed very unusual and even disconcerting at first.

Commentary 5
Deep down, what is most surprising is that Jesus saw the person, not the labels. He was not guided by national, cultural or personal prejudices, and that made possible a conversation that changed that woman’s life.

What did Jesus say to the Samaritan?

Commentary 1
Jesus began asking him to drink, but immediately took the conversation to something much deeper. He spoke of the “water of life,” implying that he could offer something that really satisfies spiritual necessity.

Commentary 2
Then he explained to him that whoever received that water would never be thirsty again in a spiritual sense. That is, Jesus was speaking not of literal water, but of the teaching and life that come from Jehovah.

Commentary 3
He also showed him knowing his personal situation, telling him the truth about his marriage life. That convinced the woman that Jesus was not just any man, but someone with authentic spiritual authority.

Commentary 4
When she mentioned worship and the Messiah, Jesus revealed to her something very important: that he was the Messiah. That’s awesome, because he made that revelation so clearly to a Samaritan woman.

Commentary 5
In short, Jesus spoke to him about water of life, true worship and his identity as Messiah. It was a short conversation in time, but very deep and able to awaken faith in it and many others.

Additional comments on the 77th

What do we learn in this lesson upon Jehovah, Jesus, and the Bible? And how can you apply in our lives today?

Commentary 1
About Jehovah we learn that he doesn’t respect people. He was not only interested in an ethnic group or in a social category, but any sincere person who wanted to worship him in the right way.

Commentary 2
About Jesus we learn that he knew how to reach people’s hearts. He began with a daily need, the water, and gradually directed the conversation towards the deepest spiritual need.

Commentary 3
We also learn that Jesus treated those who despised others with dignity. He did not allow cultural prejudices to mark the way he spoke, and that reflects Jehovah’s way of thinking very well.

Commentary 4
On the Bible we learn that it offers precisely that water of life – of the one Jesus spoke of. His teachings shake spiritual thirst, give direction and help a person find true worship and real hope.

Commentary 5
Today this lesson encourages us to talk to all kinds of people, without prejudice. We never know who can respond well to the truth, so it is advisable to imitate the mental openness and love of Jesus.

Commentary 6
It also teaches us how to use good touch when preaching. Jesus did not begin by condemning the woman, but by talking, arousing interest and guiding her little by little to deep truths. That method remains very effective.

Commentary 7
And finally, this lesson reminds us that a single conversation can change a lot. The Samaritan listened, believed and then led others to Jesus. That encourages never underestimating the power of a sincere conversation about Jehovah.