John 2:16

As Jesus expels the merchants from the temple, he calls out the dove-sellers specifically and tells them, “Get out of here—the whole lot of you!” You have no right to convert my Father’s house into a marketplace!” John 2:16 EFP

A couple of questions come to mind as I consider this text.  The first is somewhat obvious—why does Jesus single out the dove-sellers out of the whole bunch of merchants present in the temple court?  This is Passover, after all; there must have been a wide variety of merchants, since the sacrificial system required various forms of sacrifices (Leviticus 1-9).  There were lambs, sheep, goats, bullocks, and doves for sale.  Why did Jesus single out the ones selling doves? 

I can’t help but believe Jesus singles out these particular sellers because they primarily provided their service to the poor—those who could not afford to purchase a more expensive lamb, or even a bullock, to offer up to God.  You may recall that Mary and Joseph took Jesus to be dedicated in the temple when he was eight days old.  They offered "a pair of doves or two young pigeons" (Luke 2:24) since they were of limited means.  This must have particularly affected Jesus when his mother recounted the story, since his family was among the many that had to sacrifice to even be able to afford two simple doves in order to fulfill the requirements of the Levitical regulations.  Now here, during the Passover, the highest of all Jewish holy days, merchants are taking advantage of the needy to provide a service at the highest cost the market can bear.  The dove merchants took advantage of the most vulnerable.

It’s easy to overlook the needy among us.  They are “out of sight—out of mind” for much of the time.  Jesus later said the poor would always be with us (John 12:8), and yet other than the individuals who stand at major intersections asking for money with “God Bless You!” signs, most of us are either poor like them or oblivious to the poor and their plight.  Yet Jesus has a special place in his heart for the poor, not only because he identifies with them, but because he knows the danger inherent in the rabid pursuit of money.  This exchange in the temple court presents a contrast between the devotion of the destitute and the blind greed of the religious vendors seeking to line their pockets on the backs of the poor.  “You have no right!” Jesus says.  Church should be a haven from the fight to survive.  We are all lifted above the ordinary of life and placed on equal footing in our Father’s house!