Joh 2:1-10 | KingComments | STEP | John, the author of this Gospel, here speaks of “the third day”. By this he can mean the third day after the Lord’s coming to Galilee or also the third day after the Lord’s conversation with Nathanael at the end of the previous chapter. Earlier he spoke several times about “the next day” ( ). The fact that John speaks about this each time not only has a historical meaning, but above all a prophetic meaning. In these days that follow one another, we can see an order of successive periods, each with a special characteristic. In each of these periods the Lord Jesus is central, but each time He is seen in a different relationship and glory. The first time there is talk of “the next day” ( ) this day is preceded by a day That day can be called the first day, a day that is dominated by the preaching of John ( ). Also, something precedes that first day and that is what is written in the first part of John 1 ( ). That part is a general introduction to the whole Gospel. It is about the Word that is eternal and has become flesh and thus entered the world, connecting eternity with time and life on earth. As soon as that is the case, the testimony of John the baptist sounds. John the baptist is bound to the Old Testament, but his coming closes that period ( ). It is about Him Who comes after him. He points to Him “the next day” ( ) as the Lamb of God Who takes away the sin of the world and testifies of Him that He is the Son of God ( ). That is a stand-alone testimony about the Person and work of Christ, the results of which extend to all eternity. The subsequent “next day” ( ) Christ becomes the point of attraction for believers ( ). We can relate this to the time in which we live and in which the Lord Jesus, through the Holy Spirit, forms the church and connects her to Himself. This may be experienced when believers gather around Him ( ). On yet another ”next day” ( ) we hear the testimony of Nathanael. In this testimony, Nathanael confesses that the Lord Jesus is the Son of God and the King of Israel. Thus Nathanael, as a God-fearing Israelite, got to know Him from Psalm 2 ( ). Nathanael is a picture of the believing remnant of Israel that will acknowledge Him as Son of God and King of Israel. This will happen when He returns to His people Israel after the period of the church to fulfill the long-promised blessing for that people. Then and finally, John 2 speaks of “the third day” ( ). The third day in scripture often speaks of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus and thus the introduction of a new order of affairs. Here we see Christ in the realm of peace, where He brings blessing and joy to His people and through them to the whole earth. That is why John, in connection with the “third day”, speaks of a wedding. It is an illustration of the ”greater things” which the Lord has spoken of in the last verse of the previous chapter ( ). The fact that it is a blessing in which the people of Israel will also participate can be seen from the mention that “the mother of Jesus” was also there. For Christ was born of Israel ( ). Besides the general blessing for the whole earth there is also a special blessing for Israel. That blessing can only come when this people, i.e. a believing remnant, will have converted to Him. In connection with that conversion there is also talk of a ”third day” ( ).

‏ John 2:1-10

A Wedding on the Third Day

John, the author of this Gospel, here speaks of “the third day”. By this he can mean the third day after the Lord’s coming to Galilee or also the third day after the Lord’s conversation with Nathanael at the end of the previous chapter. Earlier he spoke several times about “the next day” (Jn 1:29 ; 35 ; 43). The fact that John speaks about this each time not only has a historical meaning, but above all a prophetic meaning. In these days that follow one another, we can see an order of successive periods, each with a special characteristic. In each of these periods the Lord Jesus is central, but each time He is seen in a different relationship and glory.

The first time there is talk of “the next day” (Jn 1:29) this day is preceded by a day That day can be called the first day, a day that is dominated by the preaching of John (Jn 1:19-28). Also, something precedes that first day and that is what is written in the first part of John 1 (Jn 1:1-18). That part is a general introduction to the whole Gospel. It is about the Word that is eternal and has become flesh and thus entered the world, connecting eternity with time and life on earth. As soon as that is the case, the testimony of John the baptist sounds. John the baptist is bound to the Old Testament, but his coming closes that period (Mt 11:13). It is about Him Who comes after him.

He points to Him “the next day” (Jn 1:29) as the Lamb of God Who takes away the sin of the world and testifies of Him that He is the Son of God (Jn 1:29-34). That is a stand-alone testimony about the Person and work of Christ, the results of which extend to all eternity.

The subsequent “next day” (Jn 1:35) Christ becomes the point of attraction for believers (Jn 1:35-42). We can relate this to the time in which we live and in which the Lord Jesus, through the Holy Spirit, forms the church and connects her to Himself. This may be experienced when believers gather around Him (Mt 18:20).

On yet another ”next day” (Jn 1:43) we hear the testimony of Nathanael. In this testimony, Nathanael confesses that the Lord Jesus is the Son of God and the King of Israel. Thus Nathanael, as a God-fearing Israelite, got to know Him from Psalm 2 (Psa 2:6-7). Nathanael is a picture of the believing remnant of Israel that will acknowledge Him as Son of God and King of Israel. This will happen when He returns to His people Israel after the period of the church to fulfill the long-promised blessing for that people.

Then and finally, John 2 speaks of “the third day” (Jn 2:1). The third day in scripture often speaks of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus and thus the introduction of a new order of affairs. Here we see Christ in the realm of peace, where He brings blessing and joy to His people and through them to the whole earth. That is why John, in connection with the “third day”, speaks of a wedding. It is an illustration of the ”greater things” which the Lord has spoken of in the last verse of the previous chapter (Jn 1:50-51).

The fact that it is a blessing in which the people of Israel will also participate can be seen from the mention that “the mother of Jesus” was also there. For Christ was born of Israel (Rom 9:4-5). Besides the general blessing for the whole earth there is also a special blessing for Israel. That blessing can only come when this people, i.e. a believing remnant, will have converted to Him. In connection with that conversion there is also talk of a ”third day” (Hos 6:1-2).

No Wine

As we see in the other Gospels, the Lord Jesus is regularly invited somewhere and often accepts the invitation. Here He is invited to the wedding together with the disciples He gathered around Himself in the previous chapter. Here we find a nice clue for all weddings of believers. Marriage is a matter instituted by God (Gen 2:24; Mt 19:4-5; Eph 5:30-32) which only then comes to its full value and unfolding when there is a wedding, i.e. when it is celebrated in the presence of the Lord Jesus and the believers. It is an acknowledgment of His institution of marriage and a request for His blessing on it.

By the way, it seems that the Lord has been invited here, but that He has not been particularly noticed. He is One of the other guests and that is a place that does not suit Him. Where He is, He should be given first place.

At some point there is a lack of wine. This is a disaster for a wedding, because it means the end of the joy of which the wine is a picture (Jdg 9:13; Psa 104:15). The mother of the Lord Jesus notices this and reports it to her Son. She knows that He can provide for that need.

The Lord reprimands His mother with an answer that shows that she wants Him to act prematurely. Possibly her mother’s feelings also play a role, which argues that this is a good opportunity for her Son to make Himself known. He does not, however, let Himself be guided by natural inclinations, which, incidentally, are good and appropriate. He is God Who knows perfectly what is the right time to act in all matters.

He reprimands His mother in an appropriate manner. She must wait for the hour or the moment He determines. In this way He indicates that the hour of His glorification has not come yet. First will come the hour in which He will surrender Himself to suffer and die (Jn 7:30 ; Jn 8:20 ; Jn 12:27). Only after this the hour of His glorification will come (Jn 12:23 ; Jn 13:1 ; Jn 17:1).

We see in His reprimand of Mary a clear proof of how misplaced the veneration of Mary is. She too was a fallible person, no matter how privileged she was to be the mother of the Lord Jesus. She needed the redemption He brought about on the cross just like any other human being.

Mary did not resist the reprimand of her Son. She understood it and accepted it as justified. This can be seen from her words to the servants. Her confidence in Him remained unshaken. She knows that He will give outcome, but in His time. That is why she instructs the servants to do everything He says.

These are the last words we have from Mary in the Bible. Every word of the sentence “whatever He says to you, do it” can be emphasized.

1. ‘Whatever’ means: whatever it may be.

2. ‘He’ is the Lord Jesus, the Commander, Who speaks.

3. ‘Says’ refers to the words He speaks.

4. ‘To you’ is everyone who is addressed personally.

5. ‘Do’ is to execute what He says.

6. ‘It’ or ‘that’ should be done and not anything else; not acting as one sees fit.

The Lord Turns Water Into Wine

There are six stone waterpots. They have been placed there so that the guests can comply with the Jewish rules for purification. The contents of the waterpots vary from two to three gallons, or two or three times thirty-nine liters. The Lord gives the order to fill the waterpots with water. It seems that they are empty.

This symbolically shows that according to the Jewish practice of purification no purity is to be expected toward God. The Lord in other Gospels strongly condemns the outer purity pursued by the Jewish purification practices (Mt 15:1-9; Mk 7:1-16). People who adhere to an outward ritual make themselves important. They lack true joy because there is no fellowship with Christ. Only He can change those hollow, dead rituals by the water He gives and which He turns into wine.

The Lord’s command is obeyed and the waterpots are filled to the brim with water. It is good to respond to the Lord’s command with the utmost obedience. Then the blessing is also greatest. We can also see that He always gives commands that people can fulfill, and that He then does what people cannot do. In the same way He commands people to remove the stone lying against the tomb of Lazarus, after which He calls Lazarus to life (Jn 11:39 ; 43).

After the waterpots have been filled with water, He says to draw out of the waterpots and bring it to the headwaiter. This man is responsible for the progress of the feast. He is therefore in a pickle about the situation and is most interested in a solution. They bring what they have drawn out from the waterpots to the headwaiter. Then it turns out that the Lord has turned the water into wine. He has done so without any special word or action.

It is a beautiful picture of how joy enters a person’s life. First, a man must be purified by the Word of God – of which the water is a picture (Jn 13:5-11 ; Jn 15:3; Eph 5:26). This happens when he sees himself as a sinner in the light of God’s Word, confesses his sins, and believes in the Savior Jesus Christ. The result is joy. This will also happen with the recreation of heaven and earth for the realm of peace. When purified by judgment, general joy can come on earth.

The headwaiter tastes the water that the servants bring him. He does not taste water, but wine. When the servants draw out the water from the waterpots, it is still water, but when the headwaiter tastes it, he tastes wine. Christ, by His power, has created a wonder that no one has seen happening, but the results of which are enjoyed by those who taste it.

After His Divine omniscience with Nathanael (Jn 1:49), the Lord here shows His Divine omnipotence. Anyone can ‘taste’ His omnipotence, but only those who ‘do whatever He says you to do’ can see Who is behind these acts of omnipotence. The headwaiter does not know where the wine comes from. He only enjoys the result. The servants however do know where the wine comes from. After all, they filled the waterpots with water and then draw some out. But they don’t know how the water turned into wine.

The headwaiter does not ask the servants how they got this good wine, but calls the bridegroom. He concludes without further investigation that the bridegroom is responsible for this state of affairs. He does not think of a wonder and certainly not of the Lord Jesus, but has his own natural explanation. This is how unbelieving people react to everything they experience. They see creation, but the Son of God is denied as the origin.

The Lord’s actions are not like those of humans. People first want the good, and when they have exhausted their possibilities for the good, they go to a lesser quality. With Him it is the other way around. He keeps the good for later. For faith that is a great encouragement. The believer may know that there is fullness of joy in the presence of the Lord (Psa 16:11). Christ Himself went a way of suffering, seeing the joy He would enjoy at the end of that way (Heb 12:2). It is also a great encouragement for people in deep misery. The Lord brings every person who calls to Him from the depths to the greatest height.