1 AND the third day there was a marriage in Cana of Galilee; and the mother of Jesus was there:
2 And both Jesus was called, and his disciples, to the marriage.
3 And when they wanted wine, the mother of Jesus saith unto him, They have no wine.
4 Jesus saith unto her, Woman, what have I to do with thee? mine hour is not yet come.
5 His mother saith unto the servants, Whatsoever he saith unto you, do it.
6 And there were set there six waterpots of stone, after the manner of the purifying of the Jews, containing two or three firkins apiece.
7 Jesus saith unto them, Fill the waterpots with water. And they filled them up to the brim.
8 And he saith unto them, Draw out now, and bear unto the governor of the feast. And they bare it.
9 When the ruler of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and knew not whence it was: (but the servants which drew the water knew;) the governor of the feast called the bridegroom,
10 And saith unto him, Every man at the beginning doth set forth good wine; and when men have well drunk, then that which is worse: but thou hast kept the good wine until now.
11 This beginning of miracles did Jesus in Cana of Galilee, and manifested forth his glory; and his disciples believed on him.
12 After this he went down to Capernaum, he, and his mother, and his brethren, and his disciples: and they continued there not many days.
13 And the Jews’ passover was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem,
14 And found in the temple those that sold oxen and sheep and doves, and the changers of money sitting:
15 And 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;
16 And said unto them that sold doves, Take these things hence; make not my Father’s house an house of merchandise.
17 And his disciples remembered that it was written, The zeal of thine house hath eaten me up.
18 Then answered the Jews and said unto him, What sign shewest thou unto us, seeing that thou doest these things?
19 Jesus answered and said unto them, Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.
20 Then said the Jews, Forty and six years was this temple in building, and wilt thou rear it up in three days?
21 But he spake of the temple of his body.
22 When therefore he was risen from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this unto them; and they believed the scripture, and the word which Jesus had said.
23 Now when he was in Jerusalem at the passover, in the feast day, many believed in his name, when they saw the miracles which he did.
24 But Jesus did not commit himself unto them, because he knew all men,
25 And needed not that any should testify of man: for he knew what was in man.

1And the third day there was a mariage in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Iesus was there.

2And both Iesus was called, and his disciples, to the mariage.

3And when they wanted wine, the mother of Iesus saith vnto him, They haue no wine.

4Iesus saith vnto her, Woman, what haue I to doe with thee? mine houre is not yet come.

5His mother saith vnto þe seruants, Whatsoeuer he saith vnto you, doe it.

6And there were set there sixe water pots of stone, after the maner of the purifying of the Iewes, conteining two or three firkins apeece.

7Iesus saith vnto them, Fill the water pots with water. And they filled them vp to the brimme.

8And hee saith vnto them, Drawe out now, and beare vnto the gouernor of the feast. And they bare it.

9When the ruler of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and knew not whence it was, (but the seruants which drew the water knew) the gouernor of the feast called the bridegrome,

10And saith vnto him, Euery man at the beginning doth set foorth good wine, and when men haue well drunke, then that which is worse: but thou hast kept the good wine vntill now.

11This beginning of miracles did Iesus in Cana of Galilee, and manifested forth his glory, and his disciples beleeued on him.

12 After this hee went downe to Capernaum, hee and his mother, and his brethren, and his disciples, and they continued there not many dayes.

13 And the Iewes Passeouer was at hand, & Iesus went vp to Hierusalem

14And found in the Temple those that sold oxen, and sheepe, and doues, and the changers of money, sitting.

15And when he had made a scourge of small cordes, he droue them all out of the Temple, and the sheepe & the oxen, and powred out the changers money, and ouerthrew the tables,

16And said vnto them that sold doues Take these things hence, make not my fathers house an house of merchandize.

17And his disciples remembred that it was written, The zeale of thine house hath eaten me vp.

18 Then answered the Iewes, and said vnto him, What signe shewest thou vnto vs, seeing that thou doest these things?

19Iesus answered, and said vnto them, Destroy this temple, and in three dayes I will raise it vp.

20Then said the Iewes, Fourty and six yeres was this Temple in building, and wilt thou reare it vp in three dayes?

21But he spake of the temple of his body.

22When therefore hee was risen from the dead, his disciples remembred that hee had said this vnto them: and they beleeued the Scripture, and the word which Iesus had said.

23 Now when hee was in Hierusalem at the Passeouer, in the feast day, many beleeued in his Name, when they saw the miracles which he did.

24But Iesus did not commit himselfe vnto them, because he knew al men,

25And needed not that any should testifie of man: for hee knew what was in man.

 

1 On the third day there was a wedding in Cana in Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. 2 Jesus and his disciples were also invited to the wedding. 3 When the wine ran short, the mother of Jesus said to him, "They have no wine." 4 (And) Jesus said to her, "Woman, how does your concern affect me? My hour has not yet come." 5 His mother said to the servers, "Do whatever he tells you." 6 Now there were six stone water jars there for Jewish ceremonial washings, each holding twenty to thirty gallons. 7 Jesus told them, "Fill the jars with water." So they filled them to the brim. 8 Then he told them, "Draw some out now and take it to the headwaiter." So they took it. 9 And when the headwaiter tasted the water that had become wine, without knowing where it came from (although the servers who had drawn the water knew), the headwaiter called the bridegroom 10 and said to him, "Everyone serves good wine first, and then when people have drunk freely, an inferior one; but you have kept the good wine until now." 11 Jesus did this as the beginning of his signs in Cana in Galilee and so revealed his glory, and his disciples began to believe in him. 12 After this, he and his mother, (his) brothers, and his disciples went down to Capernaum and stayed there only a few days. 13 Since the Passover of the Jews was near, Jesus went up to Jerusalem. 14 He found in the temple area those who sold oxen, sheep, and doves, as well as the money-changers seated there. 15 He made a whip out of cords and drove them all out of the temple area, with the sheep and oxen, and spilled the coins of the money-changers and overturned their tables, 16 and to those who sold doves he said, "Take these out of here, and stop making my Father's house a marketplace." 17 His disciples recalled the words of scripture, "Zeal for your house will consume me." 18 At this the Jews answered and said to him, "What sign can you show us for doing this?" 19 Jesus answered and said to them, "Destroy this temple and in three days I will raise it up." 20 The Jews said, "This temple has been under construction for forty-six years, and you will raise it up in three days?" 21 But he was speaking about the temple of his body. 22 Therefore, when he was raised from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this, and they came to believe the scripture and the word Jesus had spoken. 23 While he was in Jerusalem for the feast of Passover, many began to believe in his name when they saw the signs he was doing. 24 But Jesus would not trust himself to them because he knew them all, 25 and did not need anyone to testify about human nature. He himself understood it well.  

v 1,2. Either three days after the call of Philip or the third day of John’s series, Jesus, His mother and His disciples attended a wedding (of relative, friend?) in Cana, north of Nazareth. John was the only one of the four Gospel writers in attendance.
v 3-5 For marriage customs and reason for shortage of wine see John 02 a.  Till now there had been no miracles, but she knew:  1 He was Son of God prophesied         2 He  must “be about my Father’s business  3 John called Him “Lamb of God”  4 Holy Spirit had descended on Him. So she thought He could do what  He chose. After all, He was the oldest son and had been head of the home and ran the carpenter shop after Joseph died. Jesus was not rude calling her “Woman”. That was a title of respect to honored women then, she also had to learn to wait upon God’s will and timing. He was bound by ministry, not family requests, and His goal was the cross.
v 6-8. At nine gallon to a firkin, these jars kept outside for purification would have held 27 gal. each. Only some disciples, servants and possibly Mary knew what Jesus did. Had others known, they would not have drunk from purification jars.
v 9-11. Poorer wine was usually served when the supply ran low, but this fermented wine tasted the best.  Some take this to indicate Christianity is better than Judaism. The miracle of water to wine established Christ Lord of elements, creation. The disciples didn’t understand Jesus’ mission, but they had faith in Messiah.
v 12. Jesus established His base at Capernaum, but they did not stay there long now, as it was about time to go to Jerusalem to the Passover.
v 13-17. This was the first cleansing of the temple, early in His ministry. The second was in the week of crucifixion. Of course the merchants are not in the temple itself, but in the Royal Stoa, or portico, the long porch which opens directly onto the Court of the Gentiles. Sacrificial animals were needed by travelers, as well as a means to exchange their foreign coins for acceptable temple coinage. However, this should have been done in surrounding markets, not in the temple complex, and dealers should not have charged exorbitant prices. Mal. 3:1c-3 foretold the cleansing of the temple. Ps. 69:9 indicates Christ’s zeal here will lead to His death. Men were angry at His disruption as well as calling God, “Father”.
v 18,19. Probably religious leaders and merchants both asked for a sign of His authority to do what He did. He had already established His credentials and final proof would be resurrection. As He frequently did to those who opposed Him, He spoke in terms they would have to search for meaning. He spoke of them destroying the temple of His body at crucifixion, but in Mk. 8:31 He would be killed and rise in three days. This was misconstrued at His trial in Matt. 26:60,61, and at the cross, Mt. 27:40.
v 20,21. This was just a phase of building, the whole complex until AD 63.
v 22. The disciples did not understand Jesus’ words either, until after resurrection.
v 23-25. This was the first Passover since Jesus began His ministry. The second was in Jn. 6:4 and the third in 11:55; 12:1 and 13:1. Jesus knew these people just believed He was a great healer, but they didn’t really get saved. He wanted to be known as their Savior, not a miracle worker. In His omniscient character, Jesus knew what was in the heart of every person.

Marriages At the Time of Christ

In the old Jewish culture, some fathers needed money and arranged a marriage deal while their girls were still small. They were either given a substantial down payment or were paid in full at the time. Others made arrangements much later. In some arranged cases, girls objected because there was no romance or love, but they were bluntly told, “Your responsibility is to bear children. Love can come later.” Some young men found a girl of their choice, and asked their parents to make a deal for her. 
When girls reached the age that certain feminine cycles began, the mothers would whisper to a gossiper, that her daughter had become reproductively mature. Soon all the mothers in town knew it, then their sons could come asking to court. The girl’s father would check into their financial and job position first, and privilege to court was almost equal to a proposal. Then the fathers worked out a financial deal.
The following Sabbath morning before going to the Synagogue, the girl’s long hair was unbound, as required before the betrothal announcement. At the synagogue the Torah was brought out and both fathers read some words from the law. The rabbi called up the groom and said “-------- the son of   --------- desires the hand of -------- daughter of ----------. If any here present have just cause to question this union, let him come forth now and make it  known.” If no objection was raised the closing blessing was given.
After the service everyone was invited to the home of the bride’s parents for a sumptuous meal, spread out on hastily prepared, make shift tables. Some ladies lent a hand with the food, while others were kept busy shooing off small children, who kept darting in for a pickled olive, stuffed date, or one of the tiny smoked fish. When the feast was completed, the bride’s father invited everyone to come back in so many days for the betrothal ceremony, which was frequently held in time of full moon.
Their house was scrubbed and much baking done before the evening of the ceremony, and the bride’s parents welcomed guests at the door. After a brief greeting of Shalom, the guests went directly to where the young couple were standing, and giving her lavish compliments, they laid gifts at her feet. There were baskets and jugs, bolts of cloth and all kinds of household utensils.
At last the scribe and rabbi stepped forward to begin the ceremony, and the rabbi asked the groom, “Have you a token to give to the bride that this covenant is made?”
“Yes.” And he removed from the purse in his girdle the fifty denarius required by law, and placed them in her hands. (This would be about 2 months wages.)
The rabbi asked, “And have you other gifts?”
Again he nodded assent and gave a gift, first to her mother, then her father.  A poor man would then place a simple gold band on the bride’s arm. Wealthy would give more. The scribe wrote out the terms of the contract. Then the ceremony was finalized, by the groom vowing to honor and provide for the bride in the manner of Jewish husbands, and that his property would be hers, forever. Though the wedding might not take place for a year, the only way the marriage could be dissolved would be by divorce, and that action could only be taken by the man.  From this point on, if he died, she would be a widow, and if she died, he would be a widower. The consummation of the marriage would not take place until the actual wedding day, although occasionally, some over anxious couple violated this. This was accepted as legally right, but morally wrong, and they were looked upon with understanding, mingled with reproach. 
Now, children were allowed to dash forward for all kinds of sweet treats and nuts. This was not just a fun time for the youngsters, but to symbolize that the bride had kept herself sweet, only for the groom. At this point, he would pull the betrothal veil over her face. The price being paid, her face belonged to him, and he was her shield.
When we receive Christ as our Savior, we are betrothed to Him. 1 Cor. 6:19, 20.... “ye are not your own For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's.” (That is, we must keep ourselves sweet for Him.)
For Christ’s part as a shield,  Ps 28:7 “The LORD is my strength and my shield;”
Since the groom’s parents were responsible for the wedding feast, the betrothal feast was the final, big commitment by the parents of the bride, and there was feasting,  wine, music and dancing, till the full moon was high in the sky.
The guests finally left, but before the groom left, he would tell the bride in effect, John 14:2,3 .... “I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.”
He couldn’t tell her when he would come back, because he didn’t know. No one else knew. He could not come back until his father gave his approval of the bridal chamber the groom was building. If he wanted to, the father could keep him sanding and polishing for a long time. So she just had to watch and be ready. Similarly, when the disciples asked Jesus, Mt. 24:3 “When shall these things be and what shall be the sign of thy coming?” He answered, v. 36, “But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only.” There might be some signs of activity  that the groom was about to come. Jesus is preparing a place for us, and there are signs of His coming. Mt 25:13 “Watch therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh.” These things are in regard to the Second Coming at the end of the Great Tribulation, but since the Rapture comes first, we need to be ready.
According to custom, the groom often came in the night, with the only warning  a shout from a nearby hill, and his attendant would blow a trumpet ( 1 Thess. 4:16) “For the Lord Himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the arch angel, and the trump of God...” He would come like a thief, and her family would pretend to protest, but he would catch his bride away, her bridesmaids following with lighted lamps. Sometimes some of the bridesmaids, very unwisely, were not ready for the groom to come and did not have enough oil for their lamps. By the time they could find oil at that time of night, it was too late, and they would end up shut out of the marriage.  ( Matt. 25:1-13) 
Wealthy parents of a groom provided a wedding garment for those who came to the wedding. To not wear it would be an insult. They would be cast out. (Mt. 22:11-14)
When a groom took his bride into the bride chamber, he would remove her veil etc., and he would see her just as she was, in all her beauty. But any imperfections which she may have concealed before, are now fully exposed. This compares to the Judgment Seat of Christ. When we stand before Him, all our deeds will be fully exposed. For those things beautiful, works where we honored Him, we will receive a reward. However, He will also see some things in our lives which we may have hidden from others. For those we will suffer loss of reward, which we could have had. This is not a judgment of our sins, it is a judgment of our works, whether we will be rewarded or whether we will suffer loss. (1 Cor. 3:13-15 “Every man's work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man's work of what sort it is. If any man's work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward. If any man's work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire.”)
One thing is very comforting to know. We have the promise found in 1 John 3:2,3.  “Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is. And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure.”
Ordinarily, after the groom had taken his bride into the bride chamber, wedding guests would be gathered for a feast, and waiting. The groom’s best friend would stand outside the door of the bedroom until the groom came and told him that the marriage had been consummated. This was without any shame, embarrassment or frivolity. The friend would then tell the guests, and they would call out in unison from Ruth 4:11,12. “The Lord make the woman who has come into your house like Rachel and Leah, which two did build the house of Israel, and may your house be enlarged by the seed which the Lord will give thee of this young woman.” Then the feast began.
While feasting went on, the bride and groom would remain in their room seven days. A war could go on outside, but nothing would disturb them. (Might this compare to the Church being with Christ in the place he has prepared for us, during the seven year Tribulation?) When the couple came out, she would not be just a bride, but a wife, Rev. 19:7 “Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honor to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready.”)
This feast was a marriage feast, but the Wedding Supper would follow, after the groom and his wife joined them. You can see that these feasts lasted for days, and it would be very easy for them to run out of wine, as they did when Jesus performed His first miracle at Cana, Jn. 2:1-11. 
Some point out that Old Testament saints, which would include John the Baptist, are not resurrected until the end of the Tribulation, and they would certainly be at the Wedding Supper. That means that it would not take place until the start of the Millennium. This sounds logical, but there is considerable disagreement on this.
When all these things were done, the father might give the son a piece of land or part of a business. However, if he was a well to do land owner, he would give the son a kingdom of his own to manage. This might well compare to Christ taking over as King of His own Kingdom in the Millennium.