Mark 11:15

ἤρξατο ἐκβάλλειν. The work would take some time and He began it at once. He refused to begin to teach in the presence of such a scandal, and in order to be thorough He treated buyers as being as offensive as sellers. In the true text ([2628][2629][2630][2631][2632] ἀγοράζοντας has the art. The buyers as a class are driven out with the sellers. This market was in the Court of the Gentiles. It was not a common market, but one for the sale of all that was required for the sacrifices and the ritual of the Temple. The Temple-tax (Matthew 17:24) might not be paid with heathen coins, and the same rule would apply to offerings to the treasury (Mark 12:41). Hence the opening for money-changers. The market was sanctioned by the hierarchy, who had a share of the profits, and near the time of the Passover business would be brisk. To a pilgrim, coming to Jerusalem full of awe in anticipation of the unique sanctity of the Temple, the shock of finding himself in the hubbub and contentious bargaining of a bazaar must have been distressing. It is said that at Mecca pilgrims are fleeced in a similar way.

[2628] Codex Sinaiticus. 4th cent. Discovered by Tischendorf in 1859 at the Monastery of St Katharine on Mount Sinai. Now at St Petersburg. The whole Gospel, ending at Mark 16:8. Photographic facsimile, 1911.

[2629] Codex Alexandrinus. 5th cent. Brought by Cyril Lucar, Patriarch of Constantinople, from Alexandria, and afterwards presented by him to King Charles I. in 1628. In the British Museum. The whole Gospel. Photographic facsimile, 1879.
[2630] Codex Vaticanus. 4th cent., but perhaps a little later than א. In the Vatican Library almost since its foundation by Pope Nicolas V., and one of its greatest treasures. The whole Gospel, ending at Mark 16:8. Photographic facsimile, 1889.

[2631] Codex Ephraemi. 5th cent. A palimpsest: the original writing has been partially rubbed out, and the works of Ephraem the Syrian have been written over it; but a great deal of the original writing has been recovered; of Mark we have Mark 1:17 to Mark 6:31; Mark 8:5 to Mark 12:29; Mark 13:19 to Mark 16:20. In the National Library at Paris.

[2632] Codex Regius. 8th cent. An important witness. At Paris. Contains Mark 1:1 to Mark 10:15; Mark 10:30 to Mark 15:1; Mark 15:20 to Mark 16:20, but the shorter ending is inserted between Mark 16:8 and Mark 16:9, showing that the scribe preferred it to the longer one.

τῶν κολλυβιστῶν. “The rate of exchange,” κόλλυβος (Cic. Verr. ii. 3, Att. xii. 6), was sometimes as high as 10 or 12 per cent. Jn uses κερματισταί also, “dealers in small change,” κέρματα.

τὰς καθέδρας. The change from “tables” to “seats” is not accidental. Overturning the tables of money-changers caused spilling of the coins. Overturning the tables of dove-sellers would have caused suffering to the birds; so here He overturned the seats and told the sellers to remove the cages. Syr-Sin. has “tables” in both places. See on John 2:16.

τὰς περιστεράς. “The doves” (R.V.); those which were required for the purification of women (Luke 2:22 f.) and other offerings (Leviticus 12:8; Leviticus 14:22; Leviticus 15:14; Leviticus 15:29).