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[[File:moneychange.jpg|right|259px|thumb|What was the significance of the string whip in the political arena at that time?<Br>What was the real story behind the [[moneychangers]]?<Br>Was it an act of violence or was [[Jesus]] just doing his job as king of Judea according to David protecting the "[[tables]]" of [[welfare]] so that they did not become a "[[snare]]"?<Br>What is the meaning of [[Mammon]] and why is there a [[righteous]] an [[unrighteous mammon]]?<Br>Was he tipping  over [[tables]] or was he turning the ''[[treasury]]'' of that government back over to the people? <Br> ]]

== Moneychangers ==


The moneychangers were not involved in nickel and dime purchases where you could tip over a table and send change rolling on the floor like you see in the movies or imagine in Sundayschool. 

A Greek word for “[[moneychangers]]” was ''kollubistes''<Ref name="kollubistes">{{2855}}</Ref> which was a reference to ''bankers''. Many of the [[temples]] of that time were involved in some form of banking like the [[Temple of Diana]] in [[Ephesus]] which was the [[world]] bank of its day. They had secure vaults or [[golden calf|golden statues]] which were used as [[reserve funds]]. These temples were depositories of gold as [[money]] or like we saw in Egypt a [[commodity money]], like grain. Because religion was often about caring for the needy of society the [[social welfare]] of societies was provided through their [[temples]]. This was true in the times of [[Cain]]'s city [[city-state]], [[Nimrod]]'s cities of [[Babylon]], [[Sumer]] and its  [[Goddess]] of the [[Turtledove]] and of course the walled city of [[Sodom]].

[[Abraham]], [[Moses]], and of course [[Jesus]] the [[Christ]] also provided for the needy of society but it was the ''means and the method'' that made them a [[peculiar people]]. They also did not need vaults nor  [[golden calf|golden statues]] to hold the treasure for their society for it was held in the purse by every member of nation in [[free assemblies]].

Even before stone [[temples]] there was need for many men to manage the [[heave offering]]s<Ref name="porterheave">{{porterheave}}</Ref> coming to the tabernacle and they were called [[porters]] in the days of Samuel and David who could discharge them as High priest or King.

Those collecting the funds often clipped a piece of a coin for their share.<Ref> “kollubistes, (i.q. a. a small coin, cf. Clipped; b. rate of exchange, premium), a money-changer, banker: [[Matthew 21|Mt.xxi. 12]]; [[Mark 11|Mk. Xi]]. 15; [[John 2|Jn.ii]]. 15.” Thayer’s Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament, page 353.</Ref> 

''Kollubistes'' is not the only word to describe these gatekeepers such as ''kermatistes''.<Ref name="kermatistes">{{2773}}</Ref> which was a composed of the Greek word ''kerma''<Ref name="kerma">{{2772}}</Ref> used in reference to a small coin which actually comes from ''keiro''<Ref name="keiro">{{2751}}</Ref>  meaning ''to sheer'' as in shearing a sheep.  or “clipped amount”.  

The [[porters]] or [[moneychangers]] were holders of these lucrative offices on the ''left hand side'' of the Judean government that had come down to those days from the original Israelite [[Republic]] set up by [[Moses]] and his [[Church in the wilderness]].

Over the centuries the national government shifted from the principles of that free [[Republic]] under God. Like [[Rome]] they were doing the business of government differently. The [[Temples]] were government buildings providing government services. Originally, both [[Rome]] and Israel depended on [[freewill offerings]] or [[sacrifice]] called [[Corban]] to provide for the needy of their society. But people were offered a new deal where everyone would be compelled to pay their fair share if they were registered with the temple. [[John the Baptist]] was preaching something different than the [[Corban]] of the [[Pharisees]] and [[Herod]]. [[Rome]] had been setting up similar systems at leas since [[Polybius]].


=== Cleansing ===


In the original [[Tens]] the power of the purse of government was in the hands of the people since the [[Golden calf]]. That Golden statue was a form of [[idolatry]]<Ref name="Isidolatry">{{Isidolatry}}</Ref> because it was [[one purse]] and a national [[treasury]] which in many ''city-state''s it would be called a [[Reserve fund]] like what had been in [[Egypt]] and was meant to bind the people?

The people often chose rulers who [[exercise authority]]<Ref name="exauth">{{exauth}}</Ref> to do the job of establishing a [[social welfare]] for the people. They were to insure the honesty of those who performed the charitable [[care]] of society in areas of health, education and welfare of the people and for the people. 

The people were the overseers of the public trust through their [[votive]] offerings. There was no one called the [[Pontifex Maximus]], no "[[benefactor]] who [[exercise authority|exercised authority]]"<Ref name="exauth">{{exauth}}</Ref> until they signed up with [[Herod]] and his temples along with the [[Pharisees]] and their ''"[[corban]] which made the word of God to none effect"''. 

But also men were chosen by the people through a network set up in patterns of [[tens]] where [[Tithing|tithes]] were paid to men of peace like  [[Melchizedeck]] and [[Abraham]]. This was not only the pattern of the [[Church in the wilderness]] but it was [[commanded]] by Christ.

Kings like David were overseer of the ''[[Porters]] of the temple'' and of course if Jesus was the [[Christ]] or Messiah he too was a king who would have that power.

{{cleansing}}

All this may seem knew and strange to people who have forgotten that Israel was a government and Jesus came to take the kingdom from those who had sat in the seat of Moses<Ref>Matthew 21:43 Therefore say I unto you, The kingdom of God shall be taken from you, and given to a nation bringing forth the fruits thereof.</Ref> and [[appoint]] it to those who would bear fruit,<Ref>Luke 22:29  And I appoint unto you a kingdom, as my Father hath appointed unto me;</Ref> which he did. It may help to reexamine what we have come to believe is the meaning of [[Religion]] and what made [[Pure Religion]] pure?

Those in charge could take a portion for their labor. These commissioned moneychangers took a portion of the collected contributions of the people in the form of a commission. This commission had grown to become what we would call a large share or porterhouse cut.


===  The Tribute ===

The [[tribute]] could exceed 7,600,000 denarii in that one month. The money-changers were allowed to charge a silver meah, or about one-fourth of a denar. Their cut on this one event could be 950,000 denarii, worth more than $9,000,000 today. “Thus the immense offerings … to the Temple passed through the hands of the moneychangers.”<Ref> New Unger’s Bible Dictionary</Ref> 

Understanding who the money-changers were as government officials and what it meant to be fired from their lucrative commissioned position in the national treasury brings the motivation of crucifying Jesus into a new and revealing light. 

<blockquote>''“All these [which were] chosen to be porters in the gates [were] two hundred and twelve. These were reckoned by their genealogy in their villages, whom David and Samuel the seer did ordain in their set office.” ([[1 Chronicles 9]]:22)''</blockquote>

Jesus walked into the national bank, the ''gazophulakion'' or “the royal treasury,” and by laying a ''string whip''<Ref name=schoinos>The Bible says Jesus made this whip or scourge of ''schoinos'' which was "a rush, bulrush" material. That material would only produce a small  "cord" made of rush fibers. On the other hand a Roman scourge, also called the "flagrum" or "flagellum" was a short whip made of two or three leather (ox-hide braids) thongs or ropes connected to a handle. It could have knots or objects tied to it to increase damage and pain. The small cord made from bulrushes would not only be fragile but virtually harmless. It had long been a symbol of kings and their authority to make determinations and was even used to measure length or sizes of fields(see image of Egyptian rulers). A "schoinos" measures 4.605 miles.</Ref> across their shoulders, according to the ancient tradition of His kingly office, simply fired these corrupt employees. As King, He was able to turn over their lucrative appointments to more worthy officers elected by the people, who now supported His reign as King by the thousands.<Ref>  [[Acts 2]]:41,  “...three thousand souls.” “...men was about five thousand.” </Ref> The people had again been taught the ancient ways by men like John, Jesus, and His faithful followers, who had been demonstrating the way of God, making it straight again.

=== The king's discretion ===

The king had appointed these offices from the elected choices of the people. They were not elected as we often think of elections today, but were reckoned by their genealogy, which dealt with their family units, or “generations” which gathered together in [[Tens]]. They were not to hold this office by inheritance or by their lineage. Nor by the kings discretion alone.

The word “villages” is normally translated “court” and is based on their positions as servants of the [[tens]] and hundreds. Even though David and Samuel ordained them to their set offices, they had no authority to elect them. The king and high priest, as overseers, could reject those holding their specific positions, but they could not appoint their own cohorts, loyal crowd, nor cronies.


=== Whip and the crook ===

[[File:pharaoh2.jpg|right|200px|thumb|A sheep crook (heka) and flail (nekhakha) were used in Egyptian culture. They were symbols of a ruling judge and an insignia of pharaonic authority. The shepherd's crook stood for kingship to appoint officer or taskmaster and the nekhakha or whip was to flail the chaf from the wheat<Ref name=schoinos></Ref> were symbols of kings and pharaohs with their power to hire and fire public servants.]]

The people would reaffirm their network of [[Tens]] at the feast of [[Pentecost]]. Without perfect people, it could not be a perfect system; but it was a godly balance under the [[Perfect law of liberty]] for those who lived by [[love]] in [[hope]] rather than [[force]] and greed. There was separation of Church and State, meaning that the giving of charity and the enforcement of law did not mix. There was a balance of power in the hands of the people.

<blockquote>''“And Jesus sat over against the treasury, and beheld how the people cast money into the treasury: and many that were rich cast in much.” ([[Mark 12]]:41)''</blockquote>

Jesus was the king and had been observing the practices in the ''public treasury''<Ref> ''Gazophulakion'' a repository of treasure, especially of public treasure.</Ref>  for some time. The words ”over against” were from ''katenanti'', which was a metaphor meaning “before one, i.e. he being judge”. He had already begun to instruct men within the royal treasury in John 8. There are a number of misconceptions concerning what is taking place and where it all took place within that text.

=== Set and appoint ===

<blockquote>''“Jesus…came again into the temple, and all the people came unto him; and he sat down, and taught them." ([[John 8]]:2)''</blockquote>

There are numerous words translated into “set” in the New Testament including ''kathemai'', ''epitithemi'', ''paratithemi'', ''histemi'', ''duno'', ''anakeimai'', ''anapipto'' among others, but the words “sat down” in [[John 8]]:2 is ''kathizo'', which is defined, “to set, appoint, to confer a kingdom on one.”<Ref> 2523 kathizo another (active) form for 2516; AV-sit 26, sit down 14, set 2, be set 2, be set down 2, continue 1, tarry 1; 48 1) to make to sit down 1a) to set, appoint, to confer a kingdom on one 2) intransitively </Ref> 

From the book [[TKC|Thy Kingdom Comes]]

To understand how the Church handles things like banking accounts, we need to understand the full purpose, function, and nature of the Church. In the days of Rome, just as today, the transfer of funds from one place to another produced a need for what has become known as Banks. In Herod’s Temples the Royal Treasury stored large capital reserves managed by the ministers for the benefit of the people. The tables of the money changers were actually a part of this national “bank”<Ref>  The word for “table” of the moneychangers which Jesus overthrew is the same word for “bank” in [[Luke 19]]:23 In the Greek today the word trapezia still means bank. Bank is from the Italian banca meaning bench.     </Ref>or royal treasury,<Ref>  Gazophulakion a repository of treasure, especially of public treasure.    </Ref> even receiving a compelled offering.<Ref>  Salome- Alexandra (about 78 BC), that the Pharisaical party carried an enactment by which the Temple tribute was to be enforced at law. Alfred Edersheim’s book The Temple. See [[TKC|Thy Kingdom Comes]], The Hasmonean Appeal.    </Ref>

Things in the [[Kingdom of God]] had changed since the day of [[Moses]] and not always for the better.

<blockquote>''“These words spake Jesus in the treasury, as he taught in the temple: and no man laid hands on him; for his hour was not yet come.” ([[John 8]]:20)''</blockquote>

The word ''treasury'' is from gazophulakion, meaning “the royal treasury” and “guarded vault or chamber.” It contained millions of dollars in silver, deposited in large chests which held the collected contributions of the citizenry for the running of the government, and to support the common [[welfare]].

== From Sumer to Diana ==

From [[Sumer]] to Diana there ere sustems that made captives of the people.

Even [[Temple of Diana|Diana’s temple]] at [[Ephesus]] was nothing more than a world bank built by the commitment of over 127 different nations who deposited funds in their vault. It was the most secure depository in all the Mediterranean, and also invested in lucrative commercial and social enterprises on an international basis.

Ephesus, and the temples of [[Herod]] under the administration of the [[Pharisees]] and Sadducees, indulged in [[Covetous Practices|practices]] which Moses and Jesus opposed. As the Messiah, He spoke against the [[Corban]] of the [[Pharisees]] with its social entitlements and compelled offerings. They were storing up silver and gold within a central government<Ref>  [[Deuteronomy 17]]:17 “... neither shall he greatly multiply to himself silver and gold.”    </Ref> to provide the [[benefits]] of social security, but allowed an exercising authority over the people in the gathering of those contributions and the filling of the [[Corban|treasury]]. 

=== Central Treasury ===

This consolidation of funds and the ability to compel the sacrifices of the people centralized power, tempted and corrupted the ministers, and subverted the word of God by taking away the charitable choice exercised by a free people. 

<blockquote>''“And Jesus sat over against the treasury, and beheld how the people cast money into the treasury: and many that were rich cast in much.” ([[Mark 12]]:41)''</blockquote>

Jesus, the anointed King, was setting policy for the repository of the ''public treasury''. The words ‘over against’ were from ''katenanti'' meaning “before one i.e. he being judge”. He was instructing men within the royal treasury in John 8. “Jesus … came again into the temple, and all the people came unto Him; and he sat down, and taught them.” There are many words in the Bible translated into ‘set’ but in [[John 8]]:2, “sat down,” which is from “kathizo,” meant: “to set, appoint, to confer a kingdom on one.”<Ref>  kathizo another (active) 1) to make to sit down 1a) to set, appoint, to confer a kingdom on one 2) intransitively    </Ref>

These are specific words of authority.

Jesus desired [[charity]] and forbade [[Benefactors|benefactors]] who exercised authority. When there were serious needs among the people during Claudius’ reign, instead of calling upon Caesar,  it was the Church<Ref>  [[Acts 11]]:28 “And there stood up one of them named Agabus, and signified by the Spirit that there should be great dearth throughout all the world: which came to pass in the days of Claudius Caesar. Then the disciples, every man according to his ability, determined to send relief unto the brethren which dwelt in Judaea: Which also they did, and sent it to the elders by the hands of Barnabas and Saul.”    </Ref> who provided assistance to the people by way of the ministry of Barnabas and Saul.<Ref>  [[Deuteronomy 19]]:15 “... at the mouth of two witnesses, or at the mouth of three witnesses, shall the matter be established.    [[Luke 10]]:1 After these things the Lord appointed other seventy also, and sent them two and two before his face into every city and place, whither he himself would come. [[Matthew 11]]:2 Now when John had heard in the prison the works of Christ, he sent two of his disciples, [[Luke 19]]:29 And it came to pass, when he was come nigh to Bethphage and Bethany, at the mount called [the mount] of Olives, he sent two of his disciples,”</Ref>

=== Firing the taxman ===

So the firing of the ''moneychangers'' was the job of the king and his use of a ''string whip''<Ref name=schoinos></Ref> made it public. New men would take their position at [[Pentecost]] but under the [[Fervent Charity]] taught by [[John the Baptist]] and Jesus. To regain their power over the [[One purse]] of the nation they would have remove Christ before [[Pentecost]]. Now you know why they rushed to crucify Christ. Like most [[Socialist]]s they did not believe in charity but [[covet]]ed their neighbor's goods.

The [[Church]]'s service to the living body of Christ in the modern [[world]] must be as real as that Church of the first century. We must be as concerned about other congregations as we are about our own in an effective and world-wide way. We must come together and attend to the {{Weightier matters}}

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