But Jesus was speaking about the temple of His body.
Parallel translations
- WEB But he spoke of the temple of his body.
- KJV But he spake of the temple of his body.
- NKJV But He was speaking of the temple of His body.
- NASB But He was speaking about the temple of His body.
- NLT But when Jesus said “this temple,” he meant his own body.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
John explains that Jesus was speaking of the temple of His body. The true meaning of Jesus' words points to His resurrection.
Overview
The Evangelist clarifies that the 'temple' Jesus referred to was His own body, which would die and rise. This interpretation, understood fully only after the resurrection (v. 22), reveals Jesus Himself as the place where God meets humanity. He is the true temple, fulfilling and surpassing the building made with hands.
Cross-references & the web
Theme
- The Temple & God's Presence"He was speaking about the temple of his body."
Cross-references · 9
- 1 Cor 6:19Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own;
- 1 Cor 3:16Do you not know that you yourselves are God’s temple, and that God’s Spirit dwells in you?
- Heb 8:2and who ministers in the sanctuary and true tabernacle set up by the Lord, not by man.
- Col 2:9For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity dwells in bodily form.
- Col 1:19For God was pleased to have all His fullness dwell in Him,
- Eph 2:20–22built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus Himself as the cornerstone.
- 2 Cor 6:16What agreement can exist between the temple of God and idols? For we are the temple of the living God. As God has said: “I will dwell with them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they will be My people.”
- John 1:14The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the one and only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.
- 1 Pet 2:4–5As you come to Him, the living stone, rejected by men but chosen and precious in God’s sight,
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Christ at the center
John declares him plainly: the eternal Word made flesh, the Lamb of God, the great 'I AM' — bread, light, door, shepherd, way, truth, life, resurrection — that you may believe and have life in his name.
How John 2:21 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.