And saying, Thou that destroyest the temple and buildest it in three days, save Thyself. If Thou be the Son of God, come down from the cross. Matthew 27:40
Herod’s temple, the temple that was in use in Jerusalem at the time of the Lord Jesus, was a magnificent reconstruction of the one that Zerubbabel built when the Jewish remnant returned from Babylon. Herod spared no expense, and the work consumed some 40 years of construction and renovations. The temple became the focal point of Jewish life, with everything important happening there. The Jewish leaders were very proud of it, and Jesus’ claim to rebuilt it in three days if it were destroyed was beyond their understanding. When they saw Him on the cross, they threw His claim in His face, making a huge mockery of it. What they missed was that they were taking part in what the Lord Jesus had prophesied.
It is interesting that of all the words the Lord Jesus spoke during His ministry, the reference to raising the temple in three days was the only one that the scoffers mentioned as they stood by the cross. We know that the Lord Jesus was referring to His body when He spoke of destroying the temple (John 2:21). The Jewish leaders did all they could to destroy that temple. And in doing so, they were fulfilling that which Jesus spoke. The One hanging on the cross could not save Himself. But He would rise in triumph after He had purchased salvation for us. And that was a far greater miracle than rebuilding the temple in three days. Just as providing salvation for a lost and sinful world was a greater deed than saving Himself.
The scoffers did not expect the Lord Jesus to come down from the cross, although they used the fact that He did not to add to their mockery. Would they have believed if He had come down from the cross? Probably not. But if He had done so, there would have been an empty salvation for them and us, because no sacrifice would have been offered, and no judgment would have been meted out on the Lamb of God. It was because He was indeed the Son of God that He could not come down from the cross. There He hung in shame and torments, and there He died. But three days later, He rose again, just as He said He would. And His work on the cross is all that we need for our salvation.
We know that some 40 years after the Lord Jesus died on the cross, the armies of Rome marched into Jerusalem, and Herod’s magnificent temple was razed. So, both temples were destroyed. We also know that the Lord Jesus rose in triumph over the death of crucifixion, while the temple in Jerusalem is no more, except for one part of its Western Wall. When it is raised up in the not-too-distant future, it will honour Him Who was raised up in three days. -Jim MacIntosh