The Wedding at Cana and the First Prophecy of the Resurrection - Week 3

John 2:1-25

Note: The study related to these questions may be found at Catholic Exchange. Please go to their site for the complete material concerning this study. Unless otherwise noted, on scriptural references are from the Revised Standard Version (RSV). Below are my thoughts on the questions presented for the given study (Please see disclaimer at bottom).

Read John 2:1-25

1. In verse 1 John does not name Mary but refers to her by the title, "the mother of Jesus." Why might he do this?
(a) To underscore the personal relationship she has with Jesus.

2. What does Mary's request in verse 3 suggest about her faith in Jesus?
(a) That her faith is complete.

3. What does the title "Woman" in verse 4 suggest? (See Genesis 2:23.) What might, "What have you to do with Me?" mean? What do you think Jesus' "hour" is? What does it have to do with what He is about to grant?
(a) The title of "Woman" is typological term meant to remind us of the Eve. (b) This is a Jewish idiom meaning, "I would not have initiated what you request, but I will comply with what you want." (See Points to Ponder) (c) The "hour" is most likely a reference to Christ's Redemptive Act in the His Passion. (d) What He is about to grant is a Messianic sign which begins the path to the Cross and Resurrection. This sign is peformed at a wedding, a prelude to the Marriage Supper of the Lamb found in Revelation, Chapters 21 and 22.

4. What does Mary's ability to command the servants in verse 5 suggest about her stature in their eyes? Why is Mary's command significant to us?
(a) It suggests that they respect her. (b) It's significance lies in it's timeless nature. "Do whatever he tells you" is the command echoed by the Blessed Mother to this very day. It is what it means to be a disciple of Jesus.

5. How do the "rites of purification" of which John speaks in verse 6 relate to what is prophesied in Ezekiel 36, especially verses 22-38 and to Numbers 19, especially verses 1-10 and to the sacrament of baptism?
(a) From Ezekiel:

22: "Therefore say to the house of Israel, Thus says the Lord GOD: It is not for your sake, O house of Israel, that I am about to act, but for the sake of my holy name, which you have profaned among the nations to which you came. 23: And I will vindicate the holiness of my great name, which has been profaned among the nations, and which you have profaned among them; and the nations will know that I am the LORD, says the Lord GOD, when through you I vindicate my holiness before their eyes. 24: For I will take you from the nations, and gather you from all the countries, and bring you into your own land. 25: I will sprinkle clean water upon you, and you shall be clean from all your uncleannesses, and from all your idols I will cleanse you. 26: A new heart I will give you, and a new spirit I will put within you; and I will take out of your flesh the heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. 27: And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to observe my ordinances. 28: You shall dwell in the land which I gave to your fathers; and you shall be my people, and I will be your God. 29: And I will deliver you from all your uncleannesses; and I will summon the grain and make it abundant and lay no famine upon you. 30: I will make the fruit of the tree and the increase of the field abundant, that you may never again suffer the disgrace of famine among the nations. 31: Then you will remember your evil ways, and your deeds that were not good; and you will loathe yourselves for your iniquities and your abominable deeds. 32: It is not for your sake that I will act, says the Lord GOD; let that be known to you. Be ashamed and confounded for your ways, O house of Israel. 33: "Thus says the Lord GOD: On the day that I cleanse you from all your iniquities, I will cause the cities to be inhabited, and the waste places shall be rebuilt. 34: And the land that was desolate shall be tilled, instead of being the desolation that it was in the sight of all who passed by. 35: And they will say, `This land that was desolate has become like the garden of Eden; and the waste and desolate and ruined cities are now inhabited and fortified.' 36: Then the nations that are left round about you shall know that I, the LORD, have rebuilt the ruined places, and replanted that which was desolate; I, the LORD, have spoken, and I will do it. 37: "Thus says the Lord GOD: This also I will let the house of Israel ask me to do for them: to increase their men like a flock. 38: Like the flock for sacrifices, like the flock at Jerusalem during her appointed feasts, so shall the waste cities be filled with flocks of men. Then they will know that I am the LORD." (Ez 36:22-38)

From the Book of Numbers:

1: Now the LORD said to Moses and to Aaron, 2: "This is the statute of the law which the LORD has commanded: Tell the people of Israel to bring you a red heifer without defect, in which there is no blemish, and upon which a yoke has never come. 3: And you shall give her to Elea'zar the priest, and she shall be taken outside the camp and slaughtered before him; 4: and Elea'zar the priest shall take some of her blood with his finger, and sprinkle some of her blood toward the front of the tent of meeting seven times. 5: And the heifer shall be burned in his sight; her skin, her flesh, and her blood, with her dung, shall be burned; 6: and the priest shall take cedarwood and hyssop and scarlet stuff, and cast them into the midst of the burning of the heifer. 7: Then the priest shall wash his clothes and bathe his body in water, and afterwards he shall come into the camp; and the priest shall be unclean until evening. 8: He who burns the heifer shall wash his clothes in water and bathe his body in water, and shall be unclean until evening. 9: And a man who is clean shall gather up the ashes of the heifer, and deposit them outside the camp in a clean place; and they shall be kept for the congregation of the people of Israel for the water for impurity, for the removal of sin. 10: And he who gathers the ashes of the heifer shall wash his clothes, and be unclean until evening. And this shall be to the people of Israel, and to the stranger who sojourns among them, a perpetual statute. (Num 19:1-10)

We see that this purification rite foreshadows the Sacrament of Baptism in that both cleanse from our sins. However, Baptism cleanses from all of our sins and creates in us a new person. The passage in Ezekiel gives us a notion of what the effect of Baptism is on the baptized.

6. Was this an act of faith on the part of the servants? What does this suggest about their attitude toward Jesus and His mother? Who does the bridegroom symbolize? What does the "best wine" symbolize?
(a) This was an act of faith by the servants. (b) This suggests that they respected both Jesus and His mother. (c) The bridegroom is symbolic of the Messiah. (d) The "best wine" is symbolic of the New Covenant. From the Points to Ponder Section:

St. Thomas Aquinas (as well as virtually all the patristic sources who comment on the miracle at Cana) see a pre- guring of the crowning of the history of salvation in the good wine kept for the end of the celebrations and now poured out in such abundance (150 - 180 gallons). Jesus has come at the end of a long period of preparation under the Old Covenant and has now poured out the new wine of the gospel with grace far exceeding righteousness of the Old Covenant. In the same way, the fathers see in this good wine, given at the end of the feast, a sign of the joy given in eternal life, which God grants to those who seek to follow Christ and enter into heaven after the bitterness and struggles of this life.

7. What was one of the first of Moses' signs? (See Exodus 7:14-24.) Why is this "first" sign of Jesus in verse 11 significant in light of that?
(a) From the Book of Exodus:

14: Then the LORD said to Moses, "Pharaoh's heart is hardened, he refuses to let the people go. 15: Go to Pharaoh in the morning, as he is going out to the water; wait for him by the river's brink, and take in your hand the rod which was turned into a serpent. 16: And you shall say to him, `The LORD, the God of the Hebrews, sent me to you, saying, "Let my people go, that they may serve me in the wilderness; and behold, you have not yet obeyed." 17: Thus says the LORD, "By this you shall know that I am the LORD: behold, I will strike the water that is in the Nile with the rod that is in my hand, and it shall be turned to blood, 18: and the fish in the Nile shall die, and the Nile shall become foul, and the Egyptians will loathe to drink water from the Nile."'" 19: And the LORD said to Moses, "Say to Aaron, `Take your rod and stretch out your hand over the waters of Egypt, over their rivers, their canals, and their ponds, and all their pools of water, that they may become blood; and there shall be blood throughout all the land of Egypt, both in vessels of wood and in vessels of stone.'" 20: Moses and Aaron did as the LORD commanded; in the sight of Pharaoh and in the sight of his servants, he lifted up the rod and struck the water that was in the Nile, and all the water that was in the Nile turned to blood. 21: And the fish in the Nile died; and the Nile became foul, so that the Egyptians could not drink water from the Nile; and there was blood throughout all the land of Egypt. 22: But the magicians of Egypt did the same by their secret arts; so Pharaoh's heart remained hardened, and he would not listen to them; as the LORD had said. 23: Pharaoh turned and went into his house, and he did not lay even this to heart. 24: And all the Egyptians dug round about the Nile for water to drink, for they could not drink the water of the Nile. (Ex 7:14-24)

The first sign of Moses was a curse from God. The first sign of Jesus was a blessing from God.

8. Why is John's mention of the Passover in verses 12-13 significant with the miracle at Cana?
(a) John's mention of the Passover is to bring to mind the life giving sacrifice made by Christ. Here, at the wedding feast, Jesus begins with his first sign. But what to what does this sign point? It points to the Cross and Resurrection. To the sacrifice of the Lamb of God.

9. Is anger always a sin? (See Genesis 44:18; Exodus 4:14 and Numbers 22:22.) What is the Temple for Jesus? Why is Jesus angry?
(a) From the Book of Genesis:

Then Judah went up to him and said, "O my lord, let your servant, I pray you, speak a word in my lord's ears, and let not your anger burn against your servant; for you are like Pharaoh himself. (Gen 44:18)

From the Book of Exodus:

Then the anger of the LORD was kindled against Moses and he said, "Is there not Aaron, your brother, the Levite? I know that he can speak well; and behold, he is coming out to meet you, and when he sees you he will be glad in his heart. (Ex 4:14)

From the Book of Numbers:

But God's anger was kindled because he went; and the angel of the LORD took his stand in the way as his adversary. Now he was riding on the ass, and his two servants were with him. (Num 22:22)

10. What is the connection between Psalm 69 and verse 17? Why do you think it's significant that His disciples "remembered it?"
(a) From the Book of Psalms:

0: To the choirmaster: according to Lilies. A Psalm of David. 1: Save me, O God! For the waters have come up to my neck. 2: I sink in deep mire, where there is no foothold; I have come into deep waters, and the flood sweeps over me. 3: I am weary with my crying; my throat is parched. My eyes grow dim with waiting for my God. 4: More in number than the hairs of my head are those who hate me without cause; mighty are those who would destroy me, those who attack me with lies. What I did not steal must I now restore? 5: O God, thou knowest my folly; the wrongs I have done are not hidden from thee. 6: Let not those who hope in thee be put to shame through me, O Lord GOD of hosts; let not those who seek thee be brought to dishonor through me, O God of Israel. 7: For it is for thy sake that I have borne reproach, that shame has covered my face. 8: I have become a stranger to my brethren, an alien to my mother's sons. 9: For zeal for thy house has consumed me, and the insults of those who insult thee have fallen on me. 10: When I humbled my soul with fasting, it became my reproach. 11: When I made sackcloth my clothing, I became a byword to them. 12: I am the talk of those who sit in the gate, and the drunkards make songs about me. 13: But as for me, my prayer is to thee, O LORD. At an acceptable time, O God, in the abundance of thy steadfast love answer me. With thy faithful help 14: rescue me from sinking in the mire; let me be delivered from my enemies and from the deep waters. 15: Let not the flood sweep over me, or the deep swallow me up, or the pit close its mouth over me. 16: Answer me, O LORD, for thy steadfast love is good; according to thy abundant mercy, turn to me. 17: Hide not thy face from thy servant; for I am in distress, make haste to answer me. 18: Draw near to me, redeem me, set me free because of my enemies! 19: Thou knowest my reproach, and my shame and my dishonor; my foes are all known to thee. 20: Insults have broken my heart, so that I am in despair. I looked for pity, but there was none; and for comforters, but I found none. 21: They gave me poison for food, and for my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink. 22: Let their own table before them become a snare; let their sacrificial feasts be a trap. 23: Let their eyes be darkened, so that they cannot see; and make their loins tremble continually. 24: Pour out thy indignation upon them, and let thy burning anger overtake them. 25: May their camp be a desolation, let no one dwell in their tents. 26: For they persecute him whom thou hast smitten, and him whom thou hast wounded, they afflict still more. 27: Add to them punishment upon punishment; may they have no acquittal from thee. 28: Let them be blotted out of the book of the living; let them not be enrolled among the righteous. 29: But I am afflicted and in pain; let thy salvation, O God, set me on high! 30: I will praise the name of God with a song; I will magnify him with thanksgiving. 31: This will please the LORD more than an ox or a bull with horns and hoofs. 32: Let the oppressed see it and be glad; you who seek God, let your hearts revive. 33: For the LORD hears the needy, and does not despise his own that are in bonds. 34: Let heaven and earth praise him, the seas and everything that moves therein. 35: For God will save Zion and rebuild the cities of Judah; and his servants shall dwell there and possess it; 36: the children of his servants shall inherit it, and those who love his name shall dwell in it. (Ps 69)

The verse quoted by the disciples in verse 17 is from Psalm 69. (b) It's significant because they connect this Messianic psalm with Jesus.

11. Why do the Jews ask for a "sign" in verse 18?
(a) In the Old Testament, the performing of a sign was indicative of possessing authority from God.

12. What does Jesus mean by "this temple" in verses 19-22? Do the disciples understand from Scripture that Jesus is going to rise from the dead?
(a) Jesus is referring to His Body. (b) The disciples did not understand this until after the Resurrection.

13. What does John's saying Jesus "knew what was in man" in verse 25? Read Jeremiah 17:9-10. How is what is said in Jeremiah connected to verses 23-25 in John's text?
(a) From the Book of the Prophet Jeremiah:

9: The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately corrupt; who can understand it? 10: "I the LORD search the mind and try the heart, to give to every man according to his ways, according to the fruit of his doings." (Jer 17:9-10)

That Jesus knows not only our deeds, but also our thoughts and intentions. (b) Given man's propensity for deception and corruption, Jesus knew not to place Himself in their care.

Disclaimer: I do not wish to present myself as an expert in either theology, history, or scriptural interpretation. I am merely someone who is attempting to answer the call of Christ. The ultimate authority and interpreter of scripture is our Holy Catholic Church. If at any point I deviate from the teachings of the Church, please correct me, alfredo@nevarez.net, as this is my shortcoming and in no way meant to be an expression of my views superceding those of the Church founded by Jesus Christ.

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Alfredo Nevarez
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