John 2 19

John 2:19 kjv

Jesus answered and said unto them, Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.

John 2:19 nkjv

Jesus answered and said to them, "Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up."

John 2:19 niv

Jesus answered them, "Destroy this temple, and I will raise it again in three days."

John 2:19 esv

Jesus answered them, "Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up."

John 2:19 nlt

"All right," Jesus replied. "Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up."

John 2 verses

John 2 19 Meaning

John 2:19 is a prophetic statement by Jesus that encapsulates His divine identity and the core of the Gospel message. He spoke of His own body as the "temple" that the Jewish leaders could "destroy" through His crucifixion, but He possessed the unique power and authority to "raise it up" on the third day through His resurrection. This declaration served as a sign of His Messiahship, yet it was deliberately veiled, understood only after its fulfillment by His disciples. It marked a crucial redefinition of worship, shifting its focus from a physical structure to the Person of Christ Himself, who is the true dwelling place of God.

John 2 19 Context

This verse follows Jesus' powerful action of cleansing the Temple in Jerusalem (Jn 2:13-17), where He expelled money-changers and vendors, challenging the established religious practices. The Jewish authorities, witnessing this act of profound authority, demand a "sign" from Jesus to justify His actions. John 2:19 is Jesus' response to their demand. Culturally and historically, the Second Temple was the epicentre of Jewish life, worship, and national identity. It had been under renovation and expansion by Herod the Great for 46 years (Jn 2:20) by the time Jesus spoke these words, making its physical integrity deeply symbolic and profoundly sacred to the Jewish people. Therefore, any mention of its destruction, let alone its re-erection in three days, was met with confusion and considered blasphemous, if not an insane boast. Jesus' words are a veiled prophecy, interpreted clearly only after His resurrection by His disciples (Jn 2:22), signaling a paradigm shift from a physical, sacrificial system to Himself as the new and living way to God.

John 2 19 Word analysis

• Jesus (Ἰησοῦς - Iēsous): The subject of this profound statement. His very identity imbues His words with divine authority and prophetic power.
• answered (ἀπεκρίθη - apekrithē): More than a mere reply; it's a pronouncement given in response to a demand for a sign, carrying the weight of prophetic truth.
• and said (καὶ εἶπεν - kai eipen): Emphasizes a direct, unambiguous declaration to the confronting Jewish authorities.
• to them (αὐτοῖς - autois): Specifically refers to the Jewish leaders and questioning crowds who demanded a sign of His authority in the Temple.
• "Destroy (Λύσατε - Lysate):" This is an imperative verb, "untie," "loosen," or "demolish." While appearing as a command, it functions as a prophetic challenge and permission. Jesus knows His fate will involve His physical destruction, and He permits them to execute this, but it will be within His divine plan.
• this temple (τὸν ναὸν τοῦτον - ton naon touton):
  • "ναὸν" (naon): Refers specifically to the inner sanctuary, the sacred dwelling place of God, the Holy Place and Holy of Holies, not just the larger outer courts (hieron).
  • This phrase is the pivot of misunderstanding; the Jewish leaders understood the literal Jerusalem Temple, while Jesus spoke of His own physical body.
• and in three days (καὶ ἐν τρισὶν ἡμέραις - kai en trisin hēmerais): A precise temporal indicator. This timeframe for His resurrection is frequently reiterated throughout the Gospels and is a fundamental pillar of Christian doctrine, often echoing Old Testament typologies like Jonah's three days in the fish.
• I (ἐγὼ - egō): The emphatic first-person singular pronoun highlights Jesus' personal and active agency. He is not merely a passive recipient of God's resurrection power; He actively participates in His own raising.
• will raise it up (ἐγερῶ αὐτόν - egerō auton):
  • "ἐγερῶ" (egerō): The future active indicative form of "egeiro," meaning "to raise" or "to awaken." The active voice is critical, underscoring Jesus' intrinsic, divine power over death, His self-resurrection, distinct from simply "being raised."
  • "αὐτόν" (auton): Refers back to "this temple" (His body), emphasizing that what was destroyed would be what was raised.

• "Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up": This entire declaration serves as a complex, multilayered prophecy and claim of divine authority. It functions as both a challenge and a cryptic sign. Jesus links His physical death (destruction) to His physical resurrection (raising), indicating that His earthly body is the true "temple" where God dwells fully (Col 2:9). The implied agency ("you" for destroying, "I" for raising) also points to human responsibility for His crucifixion and His divine power for His resurrection, revealing His foreknowledge, sovereignty, and identity as the one who fulfills and supersedes all prior religious institutions.

John 2 19 Bonus section

This prophecy from John 2:19, although initially misunderstood by many, became a central accusation against Jesus during His trial before the Sanhedrin (Mk 14:58, Mt 26:61). This highlights the deliberate ambiguity of some of Jesus' pronouncements, designed to reveal their full truth only through the lens of fulfillment and divine revelation, post-resurrection. It also implicitly underscores the tragic irony that the very Temple guardians, who ought to have recognized the divine presence, failed to discern it in the person standing before them, foreshadowing the literal destruction of the physical Temple by 70 AD and the shift to a spiritual temple (the Church, with Christ as cornerstone) built on belief in Him. The emphasis on "I will raise it up" profoundly distinguishes Jesus' resurrection as an act of His own divine will and power, not merely a passive experience.

John 2 19 Commentary

John 2:19 is a concise yet immensely profound statement that defines Jesus' Messiahship and reconfigures the locus of God's presence. Jesus challenges the established Jewish sacrificial system, pointing to Himself as the ultimate Temple—the living dwelling place of God. His prediction of the Temple's "destruction" through His death, followed by His "raising" in three days, unveils His unique power over life and death and His divine authority. This verse prefigures the end of the old covenant with its reliance on physical structures and animal sacrifices, ushering in the new covenant centered on His resurrected body and His perfect sacrifice. For the Jewish leaders, it was a perplexing enigma leading to accusation; for His disciples, it became a key to understanding His true identity after the resurrection. Practically, it teaches that true worship and access to God are now through Christ alone, not through human institutions or rituals.