Neville Goddard on John 2:13-17 - Mystical Bible Interpretation

Read John 2 in context

Scripture Focus

13And the Jews' passover was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem,

14And found in the temple those that sold oxen and sheep and doves, and the changers of money sitting:

15And when he had made a scourge of small cords, he drove them all out of the temple, and the sheep, and the oxen; and poured out the changers' money, and overthrew the tables;

16And said unto them that sold doves, Take these things hence; make not my Father's house an house of merchandise.

17And his disciples remembered that it was written, The zeal of thine house hath eaten me up.

John 2:13-17

Biblical Context

In John 2:13-17, Jesus finds the temple filled with merchants, drives them out, and proclaims that his Father's house must not become a marketplace; the disciples recall zeal for purity in God's dwelling.

Neville's Inner Vision

From the Neville vantage, the temple is not a stone building but your own life-conscience—the sanctuary where the I AM resides. The money-changers and sellers are beliefs and habits that barter away attention from the Presence, turning your inner state into a market of demands and appearances. When Jesus makes a scourge of cords, you may read that as the sudden discipline of awareness, the turning of the mind toward order, refusing to tolerate distraction within the sacred space of consciousness. The overturning of the tables is your decision to reset values: what you once treated as 'necessary' commerce within the temple is exposed as counterfeit and unworthy of the Father's dwelling. This is zeal—not anger at persons, but zeal for the integrity of your inner sanctuary. As you align with the Father within, you feel the temple’s cleansing as a clearing of false pictures, allowing the Presence to inhabit your awareness without substitute desires.

Practice This Now

Close your eyes and assume you are the temple; declare that the Presence dwells here as I AM. Visualize ejecting every belief that sells your attention, and feel the calm of a purified mind as the rightful abode of God.