The Miracles of the Messiah

The Fifth of the Significant Miracles in John – Walking on the Sea

The fifth significant miracle was that which took place on the Sea of Galilee at night. If the storm on the lake, as some of the old commentators suggest, was Satanic in origin, then here is another example of a challenge to Messiah.  Certainly, the sea in Scripture is connected typically with the abyss, the temporary place of confinement of demons. For example, the demons in Legion, the Gadarene, referred to it in their appeal to Messiah, “… they begged Him that He would not command them to go out into the abyss.”[1] Yet in that incident, although we have no indication of the ultimate intention of Jesus, they ended up in a watery prison. David, in considerable trouble, used the image of sinking into deep waters to describe his experience, “Save me, O God; for the waters are come in unto my soul.  I sink in deep mire, where there is no standing: I am come into deep waters, where the floods overflow me … Let not the waterflood overflow me, neither let the deep swallow me up, and let not the pit shut her mouth upon me”.[2] On the restless sea, there is no place to stand,–and because of our sins we will be engulfed.  “The devil will drag you under”, is the line from an old song.  Jesus was different.  The sinless, spotless, Son of God walked on water.  Moreover, He would not allow Satan to destroy His disciples: “Simon, Simon, listen! Satan has demanded to sift all of you like wheat, but I have prayed for you”.[3]  Moreover, when He entered the boat it was immediately at its destination!  Satan could neither divert the Messiah by offering Him the kingdom again, nor remove those disciples that He had taken under His care; “… of those You gave me I have lost none”.[4] The exception listed in Scripture is Judas, the son of perdition, who at that time was demon-possessed,[5] and later became Satan-possessed.[6]

In the miracle on the Sea of Galilee, the divine Son of God demonstrated again that He would thwart every attempt by Satan to drag Him down. The Devil, by threatening the lives of the disciples, was making a two-pronged attack.  First he tried to destroy the remnant that believed in Jesus as Messiah; and then, by the act of putting the lives of the disciples in jeopardy, he intended to lure Jesus on to the element most under his control, and most likely to accomplish his diabolical aim of bringing the Messiah down. Perhaps Satan, familiar with David’s prophetic prayer, hoped to bring Jesus to the need to pray it Himself: “Save me, O God, for the waters have threatened my life. I have sunk in deep mire, and there is no foothold; I have come into deep waters, and a flood overflows me”.[7]

Not only did Jesus walk on water, but He also stilled the storm, saved Peter from sinking beneath the waves, and brought the craft safe home. The multitude fed, Peter saved, the devil defeated, no wonder they, “worshipped Him, saying, You are certainly God’s Son”.[8]

Nevertheless, it cannot be overlooked that the Messiah in becoming a sin offering on Calvary, fully experienced all that David described: “I sink in deep mire, where there is no standing: I am come into deep waters, where the floods overflow me”.

The Sixth of the Significant Miracles in John – Healing the Man Born Blind[1]

This sixth significant miracle takes place on the Sabbath at the end of the feast of Tabernacles. The Messiah and His disciples had entered the Temple Mount when they saw a man with congenital blindness.   They were aware of the theology of the Rabbis who taught that being born blind was the judgement of God on the individual.  They claimed that this man’s condition was the result of personal sin, either his own or his parents.  The disciples asked: “Master, who did sin, this man, or his parents, that he was born blind?”[2]  The sin of the parents as the source of the judgement was based on verses from the Pentateuch, for example: “The Lord God … who keeps loving-kindness for thousands, who forgives iniquity, transgression and sin; yet He will by no means leave the guilty unpunished, visiting the iniquity of fathers on the children and on the grandchildren to the third and fourth generations,”[3] and: “The Lord is slow to anger and abundant in loving-kindness, forgiving iniquity and transgression; but He will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and the fourth generations.”[4]  

The Pharisees also taught that an individual had a good inclination and an evil inclination,[5] and that if the evil inclination had predominance in the womb, then it would be possible for the child to be born disadvantaged because of the judgement of God. The Rabbis further taught that since the infirmity was a judgement from God, only Messiah would be able to cure it.  Jesus responded to the disciples’ question with the assertion that the man’s blindness was not the result of a judgement on personal sin. God did not inflict blindness on this individual, but rather the opposite, He would be healed, to the glory of God.

For the blind man, the Messiah made a clay poultice out of dust and spit, and applied it to his eyes. He then instructed him to go to the pool of Siloam and wash away the mudpack.  When he washed, he was able to see clearly. The two ingredients of the poultice were dust and spittle.  Biblically, dust represents the Adamic man,[6] and to spit upon a man is to humiliate him, to count him worthless, to consider him unworthy of the courtesies of life. This was the condition of the blind beggar. Pharisaism counted him inconsequential. On the other hand, the means of his cure, the water from the pool of Siloam symbolically represented the Spirit of God.  This symbolism was at the heart of the ceremonies that took place during the week of the festival.

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[1] John 9.1-40

[2] John 9.1 ff

[3] Exod.34.7

[4] Numb.14.18

[5] cf. Berakhot 9.5.A (Mishnah)

[6] Gen.2.7, 3.19

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[1] Luke 8.31 (NASB)

[2] Ps.69.1,2,15 (KJV)

[3] Luke 22.31

[4] John  18.9

[5] John 6.70

[6] Luke 22.3; John 13.27

[7] Ps.69.1,2

[8] Matt.14.33

The Miracles of the Messiah (Continued)

The Fourth of the Significant Miracles in John – Feeding a Large Crowd[1]

The fourth of the miracles that John records is the feeding of the great crowd.  It is near the feast of the Passover when Jesus decided to supply the obvious need of many thousands of people by multiplying a few loaves and a few fish.  He also knew that His actions would bring the nation closer to a decision regarding His offer of the Messianic Kingdom. 

The crowd, in the Messiah’s eyes, were like a flock of sheep without a shepherd, and He viewed them with compassion.  They had been following the old shepherds, the Sanhedrists, whom Jesus later described as wolves.  Here, the Messiah presented Himself as their shepherd, in the tradition of Moses and David, former shepherds of the nation.  At that time, they were between two opinions. Should they follow the old shepherds, whom Jesus described as thieves and robbers, or should they follow the new shepherd of Israel.

The Messiah’s intention was twofold, the first part of which concerned His identity. He offered Himself as Messiah, the expected prophet, who like Moses would feed Israel in a wilderness; and as the son of David, the shepherd of Israel who would “feed Jacob his people, and Israel his inheritance”.[2]

The second element of His purpose was to provide training for His disciples who, in the course of time, would be shepherds themselves.  The ‘shepherd in training’ had first to learn that it is not the job of the sheep to find food for themselves, but the task of the shepherd to provide it for them. “You give them something to eat”,[3] is the principle. Here, away from any centres of population, there are no resources, save five loaves and two fish.  But they did have the Messiah’s benediction, which was enough to multiply their small repast into a giant picnic.  One day, Peter and his fellow apostles will be responsible for feeding the flock. At the post-resurrection miracle, where the Lord provided bread and fish for the disciples, the Messiah commissioned Peter: “feed my lambs”; “tend my sheep”; “feed my sheep”.[4] The responsibility of Peter and his fellow apostles would involve them distributing what Jesus Himself provided.

The initial response to the miracle once more demonstrated John’s consistent argument, that Jesus provided enough evidence to prove He was truly their Messiah.  The people said: “This is of a truth that prophet that should come into the world”.[5] They were ready there and then to take Him and make Him king, by force if necessary; but the Messiah with His special insight into the heart of man departed to be by Himself in the mountains. 

The identity of the prophet from Nazareth continued to be the centre of debate between the people and Jesus the following day.[6]  The doctrine of the teachers of Israel at that time was a doctrine of works, so they questioned the Lord: “What shall we do, that we might work the works of God?”  He directed them to the real issue: “This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent”.  Since they knew it was an appeal for them to accept His credentials as Messiah, true to their character, they asked for yet another miracle. They asked: “What sign will You perform then, that we may see it and believe You? What work will You do?”[7]  But the crowd had forgotten that the fathers of the wilderness generation had grumbled against God and God’s Deliverer, Moses, for providing such food.  The Messiah, however, had not: “Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and are dead”.   There is a double level of meaning here.  YHWH fed that generation of the nation miraculously, but because of their rebellion, He punished them. They were exposed to a plague of serpents.   Numbers 21 has the record of the event: “The people spoke against God and against Moses: Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no food and no water, and our soul loathes this worthless bread. So the Lord sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people; and many of the people of Israel died.”[8]  The Biblical account records the physical death of the rebels, and the teaching of the Scribes at that time suggested, nay asserted, that their rebellion lost them their spiritual privileges as children of Abraham.  The Mishnah states, “The generation of the wilderness has no portion in the world to come and will not stand in judgment, for it is written, “In this wilderness they shall be consumed and there they shall die”, (Num.14:35) the words of R. Aqiba”.^[9]  The thrust of the argument of Jesus is that the eternal destiny of His generation is in the balance.  He is offering Himself as the ‘Bread of Life’, and those that feed on Him will live forever!  He said, “Moses did not give you the bread from heaven, but My Father gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is He who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world… I am the bread of life”.[10]

In this way, the Messiah incorporated into His teaching an implicit warning to the nation, not to repeat the sin of the generation that came out of Egypt and reject the Bread of Life now offered, and the Father who sent it from heaven.   If Israel’s leaders reject their Messiah, then judgement will fall on this generation as it did on the wilderness generation.  On the other hand, those individuals that receive Jesus as Messiah will be able to feed on Him and enjoy every aspect of abundant life. This heavenly bread will feed both mind and spirit, whereas the manna fed only the body.  The manna fed the physical, not spiritual and lasted two days at most.  The life granted to those that receive Him as Messiah, would be spiritual rather than physical, eternal rather than temporal and heavenly rather than earthly. This means they were guaranteed satisfaction and resurrection.

They rejected His offer, “… because He said, I am the bread which came down from heaven.”  “… they said, Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know?”[11]  Moreover, those that rejected Him were not just those who had been undecided.  They also included those who had been His followers.  This teaching even offended many of His disciples, and the Lord speaks of unbelief and betrayal among them.  For Jesus knew from the beginning who they were that believed not, and who should betray Him. [12]  From that time many of His disciples went back, and walked no more with Him,[13] which disloyalty was also amongst the apostles, in the person of Judas: “Have not I chosen you twelve, and one of you is a devil?”[14] Jesus challenged them all, “Do you also want to go away?”[15]  Peter, speaking for the eleven, responded: “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. Also we have come to believe and know that You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”[16] This small band of men, therefore, represent the faithful remnant.

The feeding of the multitude showed Jesus as the incarnate God, who came from heaven.  He alone was able to say, “He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst. … For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me. This is the will of the Father who sent Me, that of all He has given Me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up at the last day”.^[17]

This event encapsulated the problem He faced. In this miracle, the crowd, impressed by the creative power of Jesus, wanted to make Him king, but on their own terms.    He did not fulfil their hopes in the way they expected.  He ‘departed’ from them,[18] physically illustrating the movement of the Messiah away from unbelieving Israel.

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[1] John 6.5-14

[2] Ps.78.70-72 (KJV)

[3] Matt.14.16

[4] John 21.15-17

[5] John 6.14

[6] John 6.28 ff

[7] John 6.30

[8] Numb.21.5,6

^[9] Sanhedrin 10.3.V.X (Mishnah)

[10] John 6.32-35

[11] John 6.41,42

[12] John 6.64

[13] John 6.66

[14] John 6.70

[15] John 6:67

[16] John 6.68,69

^[17]John 6.35-39

[18] John 6.15

The Miracles of the Messiah

The Third of the Significant Miracles in John – Healing a Disabled Man[1]

The third sign is the healing of a severely disabled man. It was in Jerusalem, the nation’s capital, and at the pool of Bethesda, near the sheep gate.  It was at the time of an un-named feast.  Whereas in the previous miracle those in need approached the Messiah, here with evident intent, He took the initiative.  Out of the crowd at the poolside, He selected a physical wreck of a man, and asked him if he wished to be healed. The Bible tells us that the waters of Bethesda had healing virtue at certain seasons.[2] The “certain seasons” were probably feast times.  So among the “multitude of those who were sick, blind, lame, and paralysed”[3] was this paralytic.   He responded to the stranger’s invitation by saying that the only resource, the healing waters, were out of his reach during the short time they were blessed.  Jesus permitted no further objections and healed him with the words, “take up your bed and walk”.[4]

Not knowing the identity of his benefactor, the now healthy Israelite climbed the Temple mount for the first time in nearly four decades, there to give thanks and praise to God for His beneficence. The merciful Messiah had given yet another person a new start, both physically and spiritually. Later that day, the One who not only had the power to loose from sin, but also to bind, found the man still in the Temple, and warned him, “Sin no more, lest a worse thing come upon you.”[5]

This sign, performed as it was in the nation’s capital, has somewhat of a national application.  The Sanhedrin had not yet published their decision, so Jesus offers, in Jerusalem, a further fingerpost sign. The cure at the poolside demonstrated that the ‘miqweh’, ‘the immersion pool’, ‘the fountain of living waters’, ‘the Hope of Israel’ Himself, was present to heal.[6] If they rejected Him they would be guilty of the same two sins as the generation that was taken into captivity: “they have forsaken me the fountain of living waters, and hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water”.^[7]

The long-term invalid was a man whose condition was the result of obdurate sin. He had been chronically ill and disadvantaged for 38 years.  This period of time reminds us of the generation which wandered in the wilderness for a further 38 years after God had found them guilty of ‘stiff-necked’ sin. If this sign is for the nation, then it must be a warning to those rebel leaders of the current generation.   The warning to the newly invigorated man contained the pregnant phrase, “lest a worse thing come upon you”.  Later, when Jesus was accused of being demon-possessed and formally rejected by the Sanhedrin, he told the leadership that a worse thing would come upon them.  Their condition would deteriorate by a factor of seven because of their rejection of His Messianic claim.[8]

The emphasis here is on the matter of sin.  The principles are: “the invalid is not healed until his sins are forgiven”,[9] and: “who can forgive sins, but God alone?”[10] At the pool of Bethesda, served by the fountain of Siloam, Jesus brings into focus the prophecy of Zechariah: “there shall be a fountain (wellspring) opened to the house of David and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem for sin and for uncleanness”.[11] 

This healing took place on the Sabbath, and the reaction of those that had political power was to persecute Jesus and conspire to kill Him. Their Messiah indicated that He had had no alternative but to follow His mission, obey His Father, and heal the invalid: “My Father is working until now, and I Myself am working”.^[12] The Sanhedrists were further incensed: “for this reason therefore the Jews were seeking all the more to kill Him, because He not only was breaking the Sabbath, but also was calling God His own Father, making Himself equal with God”.[13]

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[1] John 5.1-16

[2] John 5.4

[3] John 5.3

[4] John 5.8

[5] John 5.14

[6] Jer.17.13,14

^[7]Jer.2.13

[8] Matt.12.45

[9] Nedar 41.a; cf. James 5.15

[10] Mark 2.7; Luke 5.21

[11] Zech.13.1

^[12]John 5.17

[13] John 5.18

The Miracles of the Messiah

Chapter 6 (Continued) Authenticating Signs in John's Gospel

The Second of the Significant Miracles in John – Healing a Ruler’s Son[1]

The second sign that John records is the healing of the sick son of a royal official, a boy who was at the point of death. Jesus, located in Cana, was asked by a nobleman, to visit Capernaum to heal his son.  From the narrative it appears that this father was an Herodian, not merely a servant of Herod but one devoted to his family out of principles of submission and conscience. The Greek work basilikos suggests a man of high standing in the court of Herod. The reply of the Messiah to the Herodian’s request was: “unless you people see signs and wonders, you will by no means believe”.[2]  In this response, he was levelling a charge that not only applied to the Jews generally,[3] but to Herod’s court in particular.  Luke tells us that Herod himself rejoiced when Pilate sent Jesus to him: “for he had wanted to see Him for a long time, because he had been hearing about Him and was hoping to see some sign performed by Him”.[4]   The Herodian, now a distraught father, continued to plead: “Sir, come down before my child dies!” to which the Messiah responded, “Go your way; your son lives”.  The word of the Lord was accepted, the son was healed from that very hour, and both the nobleman and those of his household became believers in Jesus the Messiah. 

There are those that would identify this man with Chuza, the steward of Herod, whose wife became one of them that ministered of their wealth to the needs of the Messiah.[5]  Whether or not that was so, the Messianic message entered Herod’s palace through this healing, and thus the sign accomplished its purpose for a family, although its effect on the court of Herod was minimal. The opposition of Herod and his followers was obdurate to the end. Mark recorded two later incidents. “The Pharisees went out and immediately began conspiring with the Herodians against Him, as to how they might destroy Him”,[6] and “Then they sent some of the Pharisees and Herodians to Him in order to trap Him in a statement.”[7]  The Pharisees used the enmity of Herod as a political weapon, when they raised the question of divorce while Jesus was in his area of jurisdiction.[8]  The answer to this question got Jesus’ forerunner John imprisoned.

Capernaum, the location of this “second” sign, was the place where Jesus made His home during the time of His public ministry.  It was a place that saw many of His miracles, described by Jesus as “mighty works”, [9] and a place that received much blessing from His presence. Besides the royal official’s son, He healed the centurion’s servant there,[10] the paralytic who was carried by his four friends,[11] and Peter’s mother-in-law.[12]  Capernaum was one of the places where He healed “all who were sick and those who were demon-possessed”. To emphasise the point Mark records the scene: “The whole city was gathered at the door. Then He healed many who were sick with various diseases, and cast out many demons.”[13]

Yet, the people of Capernaum generally remained impenitent, and although privileged to see many mighty works of the Messiah, nevertheless rejected His Messianic claim. This failure to respond to His gracious ministry brought down upon them a heavy denunciation of judgement: “And you, Capernaum, who are exalted to heaven, will be brought down to Hades; for if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day.  But I say to you that it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment than for you”.^[14] Signs and wonders do not guarantee faith in Jesus. The sign of the prophet Jonah will repeat this truth. In Capernaum, in miniature, was seen what would happen nationally.   The generation to which Israel’s Messiah came, did not believe, in spite of the vast array of attesting signs, and as a result, suffered the judgement of God.

Jesus the Messiah, in His association with Capernaum, demonstrated His exceptional knowledge of the human heart when He knew, even at an early stage, that its citizens would reject Him.  Their opposition was in spite of the great swathe of miracles He performed and in spite of this extraordinary sign that He effected for a leading citizen of the town, a miracle that He executed at a distance of some miles. 

His prophetic utterance^[15] not only revealed great wisdom but also hinted that He would occupy the position of ‘Judge of all the earth’, [16] and would have authority to bar obdurate unbelievers from heaven and consign them to Hades.

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[1] John 4.46-54

[2] John 4.48

[3] 1 Cor.1.22

[4] Luke 23.8

[5] Luke 8.3

[6] Mark 3.6

[7] Mark 12.13

[8] Matt.19.3ff

[9] Matt.11.20

[10] Matt.8.5 ff

[11] Matt.9.2 ff

[12] Matt.8.14,15

[13] Mark 1.32-34

^[14]Matt.11.23,24

^[15]Matt.11.23,24

[16] Cf. John 5.22

Miracles of the Messiah (Chapter 6)

AUTHENTICATING MIRACLES IN JOHN’S GOSPEL – the Attesting SIGNS

While the attesting miracles in John are recorded that the ‘whoever’
might believe, they each have significance, either for the nation or the disciples, and sometimes for both. There are 17 references using the word ‘σημεiον’ (semeion) in John’s gospel – in the NKJV translated ‘sign’ each time.   They are 2.11; 2:18; 2:23; 3:2; 4:48; 4:54; 6:2; 6:14; 6:26; 6:30; 7:31; 9:16; 10:41; 11:47; 12:18; 12.37; 20.30.

John listed and described the attesting miracles so that the readers might believe.[1] For that reason, it is interesting to note that the miracle signs did not always accomplish that purpose when performed in the presence of others. John’s first reference that includes the word ‘semeion’ is 2.11, “This beginning of signs Jesus did in Cana of Galilee, and manifested His glory; and His disciples believed in Him”. Here, the sign for His disciples accomplished the stated purpose, “His disciples believed in Him”. The last verse that includes the ‘semeion’ (apart from the summary text) is 12.37, “But although He had done so many signs before them, they did not believe in Him.”[2]  Here, the signs for the general population and especially the leadership did not accomplish the designed objective.   “He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him. But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name.”[3]  These texts encapsulate two of the main points - there was more than enough evidence for the nation to believe – so many signs – but only a remnant did.

Now let us consider the miracles (signs) as recorded by John.  They are:

1.      Changing water into wine

2.      Healing a ruler’s son

3.      Healing a disabled man

4.      Feeding a large crowd

5.      Walking on the sea

6.      Healing the man born blind

7.      Raising a dead man

8.      The miraculous catch of fish

The First of the Significant Miracles in John – Changing Water into Wine[4]

John identifies the miracle at the wedding in Cana of Galilee as being the first.  Nevertheless, it appears from the words of the Messiah that it is out of chronological order. The grace of God permits it, but the real significance of the miracle applies to the end of His life.  This is why He said to His mother, “my hour has not yet come”.[5] 

The main facts are these.  Jesus and His disciples attended a wedding where they ran out of wine. When His mother brought this information to His attention, she expected Him to do something about it.  He commandeered the six giant water pots that held water for the ritual cleansing of the family and guests.  Each of the water pots held between twenty and thirty gallons.  The Messiah ordered the servants to fill them with water.  The servants filled them to the brim.  He changed this water into wine – the best wine, according to the governor of the celebrations.  John adds, “This beginning of signs Jesus did in Cana of Galilee, and manifested His glory; and His disciples believed in Him.”[6].

This first miracle demonstrates the seeds of the move from law to grace.  John had previously stated, “the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.”[7]  The water, which had been set aside for the rituals of purification, is a reminder of the legal requirements imposed on the population at that time.  The Pharisees wanted the general population to observe the rules of purification that the priests in the Temple obeyed. They were aiming to establish a kingdom of priests!  These champions of legalism were legislating joy out of the nation.  Jesus turned the water, symbolic of the ritual cleansing under the Mosaic covenant, into wine, the symbol both of the New Covenant,[8] where it represents the blood of the Messiah shed for sin, and the blessing under the Melchizedekian priesthood.[9]  In providing between 120 and 180 gallons of best wine it is also a physical illustration of the text, “I am come that you might have life and that more abundantly”.[10]

At a wedding feast, they formally drank several cups of wine.  The first was the cup of Terumah, which denoted that the virgin bride might have had a priest as a bridegroom.  (The Church’s bridegroom will be the High Priest of the order of Melchizedek).[11] The second cup was the cup of good news when they proclaimed and certified the virginity of the bride. (The Church is espoused to Christ as a chaste virgin).[12]  They pronounced the bridegroom’s blessing over the third cup, a blessing that was repeated every day of the feast.

At this wedding attended by Jesus and His disciples, the supply of wine ran dry.  Mary asked her son to address the problem. Jesus, as Messiah of Israel, rather than Mary’s son, responded to the challenge.

It is unlikely the wine ran out before they drank the cup of Terumah, because that took place at the beginning of the celebrations.  For the same reason, it is unlikely, that it was before the cup of good news.  It could be that the problem surfaced when the governor of the feast was preparing to pronounce another of the bridegroom’s blessings, or perhaps a blessing after the order of the customary sevenfold marriage blessing.[13]

Nowadays, the sevenfold marriage blessing is:

1.   You abound in blessings, Adonai our God, who created the fruit of the vine.

2.   You abound in blessings, Adonai our God, You created all things for Your glory.

3.   You abound in blessings, Adonai our God, You created humanity.

4.   You abound in blessings, Adonai our God, You made humankind in Your image, after Your likeness, and you prepared for us a perpetual relationship.  You abound in blessings, Adonai our God, you created humanity.

5.   May she who was barren rejoice when her children are united in her midst in joy. You abound in blessings, Adonai our God, who makes Zion rejoice with her children.

6.   You make these beloved companions greatly rejoice even as You rejoiced in Your creation in the Garden of Eden as of old. You abound in blessings, Adonai our God, who makes the bridegroom and bride to rejoice.

7.   You abound in blessings, Adonai our God, who created joy and gladness, bridegroom and bride, mirth and exultation, pleasure and delight, love, fellowship, peace and friendship.  Soon may there be heard in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem, the voice of joy and gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride, the jubilant voice of bridegrooms from their canopies and of youths from their feasts of song. You abound in blessings, Adonai our God, You make the bridegroom rejoice with the bride.

For blessings of joy very similar to these, Jesus provided the wine.  The One who was present in Cana was the Creator the fruit of the vine (blessing No.1), and created all things for His glory (blessing No.2). He created man (blessing No.3) in His likeness, and for a relationship (blessing No.4). He had rejoiced with Adam and Eve in Eden (blessing No.6), and wished to bless Zion (blessing Nos.5&7).  If they would receive Him they would have joy “up to the brim” – new wine!

The suggestion, that the symbolism of the provision of wine had more to do with the end of His ministry than the beginning, gains strength, when the wine that was drunk at the Passover meal is considered.  As at the wedding, wine plays a significant part in the symbolism of Passover.  Even the poorest Israelite must drink at least four cups of wine.[14] Jesus’s last meal before His execution was the Passover celebration. The first cup of wine at that meal had a double blessing pronounced over it.  The house of Hillel say, “He (the governor of the feast) says a blessing over the wine, and afterward he says a blessing over the day.”^[15] The House of Shammai say, “He says a blessing over the day, and afterward he says a blessing over the wine.”^[16]  The blessing over the wine was the same as that pronounced at the wedding.  When they drank the second cup of wine, the governor of the feast would recount the reasons for the celebration of Passover.[17]  The Passover meal itself, which included the roast lamb, was followed with a third cup of wine, the “cup of blessing”.[18]  This cup, “the cup after supper”, “the cup of blessing which we bless”,[19] is the one over which Jesus Messiah pronounced the words, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood, which is shed for you”.[20] At the drinking of the fourth cup they completed the singing of the Hallel.[21]  Matthew and Mark record: “After singing a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives”.[22]  Thus,

(i)                 Jesus began the celebration with the joy of thanksgiving with the first cup, ‘the cup of thanksgiving’.

(ii)              In connection with the drinking of the second cup, ‘the cup of redemption’ He recounted YHWH’s grace in redeeming Israel from bondage.

(iii)            The significance of the third cup, ‘the cup of blessing’ was redefined and given a new name, ‘the cup of the new covenant’.

(iv)             Jesus concluded the feast in the customary way.  He drank the fourth cup, ‘the cup of praise’, and sang the final part of the Hallel.

These cups were “mixed”,[23] that is, they contained both wine and water, which adds further significance to the sacrifice of the Messiah upon the cross, when “blood and water” poured from His side.[24]  Blood and water are the two ritual cleansing agents and were the two cleansing agents of leprosy! 

The timing of this first miracle is emphasised by John as “the third day”.[25]  The first day of this first week recorded by John is 1.19-28; the second day introduced by the phrase, “the next day”, is 1.29-34; the third day recorded as, “again the next day”, is 1.35-42; the fourth day, identified by the phrase, “the following day” is 1.43-51. It is on the third day after that, i.e. after the fourth day, that there was a marriage.  At the end of the first week in Genesis, the pre-incarnate Son of God attended a marriage between Adam and Eve. At the end of the first week that John records, the incarnate Son of God also attended a marriage!

Those attending the wedding were aware of the significance given to marriage in the T’nach.  It was customary, then as now, to reflect on the marriage that took place in the Garden of Eden, which God blessed by His presence. (See blessing No.6 above). Jesus used this occasion to reveal Himself to His disciples as the creator God, or as John puts it, Jesus, “manifested (revealed) His glory”, ^[26] that is made visible and known, the glory of God incarnate.   ‘Manifested’ or ‘revealed’ is a word to indicate a revelation - something hid, now visible.  It is the word that Jesus used in His high priestly prayer, when He asserted that He had disclosed to them the divine reality, the Name of God, “I have manifested Your name to the men whom You have given Me out of the world.” [27] No wonder John declared, “… the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory.”[28]

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[1] John 20.30

[2] John 12.37

[3] John 1.11,12

[4] John 2.1-11

[5] John 2.4

[6] John 2.11

[7] John 1.17

[8] Luke 22.20

[9] Gen.14.18

[10] John 10.10

[11] Heb.6.20

[12] 2 Cor.11.2

[13] Cf. The blessings in the Book of Customs, (based on the Yiddish Minhogimbukh) p.370,371

[14] Pesahim 10.1.C (Mishnah)

^[15] Pesahim 10.2.I.C (Mishnah)

^[16] Pesahim 10.2.I.B (Mishnah)

[17] Pesahim 10.4.II (Mishnah)

[18] Pesahim 10.7 III (Mishnah)

[19] 1 Cor.10.16

[20] Luke 22:20

[21] Pesahim 10.7 IV (Mishnah)

[22] Matt.26.30; Mark 14.26

[23] Pesahim 10.4 I; 10.4.II; 10.7.III (Mishnah)

[24] John 19.34

[25] John 2.1

^[26]John 2.11

[27] John 17.6

[28] John 1.14