Joh 10:24 | KingComments | STEP | The Feast of the Dedication of the temple is not a feast prescribed by Yahweh to His people anywhere in the Old Testament. It is a human institution in remembrance of a renewed dedication of the temple by Judas the Maccabee in the year 164 BC, after its desecration by Antiochus Epiphanes. This feast is celebrated two months after the Feast of Booths. The Feast of Booths is celebrated in autumn and the Feast of the Dedication is in winter. The fact that it is mentioned here that it is winter is not meant just to inform us about the time of year. Much more, the reference to winter is of symbolic significance to indicate how cold the hearts of God’s people and especially the religious leaders are. The Lord is not there to celebrate this feast. He does not submit Himself to traditions of people. He still walks freely, despite all the attempts of the religious leaders to eliminate Him. He stands in the portico of Solomon reminding us of the glory days of Israel and also of the great wisdom that Solomon possessed. In spite of his great wisdom, those days of glory did not last long. That was because Solomon, and the people with him, became unfaithful to Yahweh . Now here is Someone Who is greater than Solomon and Who cannot be unfaithful. While the Lord walks there, the Jews approach Him again. They gather around Him and ask Him now to say plainly if He is the Christ. They pretend that He is always keeping them in suspense about it. As if He hasn’t been clear enough yet. They are not really curious about it, but they want to hear words that give them a weapon to denounce Him, both to the people and to the Romans. The Lord simply reminds them that He has given abundant testimony of Who He is. We heard that in John 5, 7 and 8, but they did not believe His words . His works in John 5, 6 and 9 bear the same character as His words. All His works come from the Father and testify of Who He is, but they have not believed His works either. He says unequivocally that their unbelief is the great obstacle. His testimonies in words and works are powerful enough, but they do not hear or see them. That is because there is no connection with Him, they still belong to the fold of Israel and not to His sheep. He does not only tell the truth about Himself but also about them. He clearly tells them where they stand.

‏ John 10:24

Why the Jews Do Not Believe

The Feast of the Dedication of the temple is not a feast prescribed by Yahweh to His people anywhere in the Old Testament. It is a human institution in remembrance of a renewed dedication of the temple by Judas the Maccabee in the year 164 BC, after its desecration by Antiochus Epiphanes. This feast is celebrated two months after the Feast of Booths. The Feast of Booths is celebrated in autumn and the Feast of the Dedication is in winter. The fact that it is mentioned here that it is winter is not meant just to inform us about the time of year. Much more, the reference to winter is of symbolic significance to indicate how cold the hearts of God’s people and especially the religious leaders are.

The Lord is not there to celebrate this feast. He does not submit Himself to traditions of people. He still walks freely, despite all the attempts of the religious leaders to eliminate Him. He stands in the portico of Solomon reminding us of the glory days of Israel and also of the great wisdom that Solomon possessed. In spite of his great wisdom, those days of glory did not last long. That was because Solomon, and the people with him, became unfaithful to Yahweh. Now here is Someone Who is greater than Solomon and Who cannot be unfaithful.

While the Lord walks there, the Jews approach Him again. They gather around Him and ask Him now to say plainly if He is the Christ. They pretend that He is always keeping them in suspense about it. As if He hasn’t been clear enough yet. They are not really curious about it, but they want to hear words that give them a weapon to denounce Him, both to the people and to the Romans.

The Lord simply reminds them that He has given abundant testimony of Who He is. We heard that in John 5, 7 and 8, but they did not believe His words. His works in John 5, 6 and 9 bear the same character as His words. All His works come from the Father and testify of Who He is, but they have not believed His works either.

He says unequivocally that their unbelief is the great obstacle. His testimonies in words and works are powerful enough, but they do not hear or see them. That is because there is no connection with Him, they still belong to the fold of Israel and not to His sheep. He does not only tell the truth about Himself but also about them. He clearly tells them where they stand.