A Study of John's Gospel

John 2:1-5: Woman, My Hour Has Not Yet Come

We might also note that while Mary, the mother of Jesus is mentioned, Joseph, the earthly (though not biological) father of Jesus is not mentioned. It is very likely Joseph had died by this time, perhaps years earlier. This would also explain why Jesus had remained at home, working in Nazareth to support His mother and siblings until they were old enough to support their mother and themselves. He may have had other reasons for waiting to begin His ministry, but this is at least one possible and practical one.

During the wedding celebration the wine ran out. While not life and death, this was a serious problem. To run out of wine at a wedding was a grievous social error, and it would have dishonored, shamed and followed the married couple for many years. Everyone would have long remembered how they ran out of wine at their wedding. It was the obligation of the host to provide good hospitality, and that meant ensuring there was enough food and drink for everyone. The fact that they ran out of wine is an indication they were likely poor and could only afford to make the bare minimum arrangements for the wedding. There could even have been more than social disgrace involved. In the ancient Near East there was the potential of legal damages being pursued against a host who failed to provide adequately at a wedding. So, this seemingly small inconvenience was a very big deal for multiple reasons.

Having become aware of this problem, Mary, the mother of Jesus told Him, "They have no wine." Jesus knew this was more of a request than a simple statement of fact, which is why He responds the way He does. But why did Mary present this problem to Him with the implied request of a supernatural intervention? Mary had been holding onto a promise for the entire 30 years of Jesus' earthly life up to this point. By the Holy Spirit she miraculously conceived and gave birth to Jesus, but there would have many people skeptical of this fact. She had to live everyday with the sideways glances and overheard snippets of gossip about her Son who was supposedly conceived by the Spirit of God and promised to be the Savior of the world. While Mary's conscience was clear, she would have had to endure many rumors, shame and guilt falsely applied to her because many would have doubted the validity of the story surrounding the birth of Jesus.

But now, she may have thought the promises she had held onto and treasured in her heart (Luke 2:51) for so long were about to be made evident and she would be vindicated in the eyes of judgmental neighbors and others who doubted the circumstances surrounding Jesus' birth. It would be reasonable to assume she thought the time was near for Him to reveal His identity because as we have read, John the Baptist, had declared Him to be the Lamb of God, baptized Him, and many saw the Holy Spirit descend on Him like a dove with the voice of God the Father in heaven declaring audibly that Jesus was His Son in whom He was well pleased. He had started to gather a following and some of His followers accompanied Him to this very wedding, so, it is entirely understandable that Mary thought perhaps now was the time for Him to reveal His identity with a supernatural act. I do not think she was asking Him to specifically turn water into wine, but she was definitely stating the problem to Him, with no obvious natural solution, with the implication that she desired His supernatural intervention.

Jesus answers her in a way we might not have expected though, and His response is significant. He said to her, "Woman, what does this have to do with me? My hour has not yet come." First, the word "Woman" is not a disrespectful term. While we lack a perfect equivalent for the term in English, a closer translation that communicates the respect given in this address would be the word "Lady" or "Madam." This was not petulant, indignant or rude from Jesus, but it is important that He said "Woman" instead of "Mother." The reason for this is that Jesus wanted to accentuate the fact that the nature of their relationship was about to change as He began His public ministry. While she was His mother, she needed to start relating to Him as Lord. The mother-son dynamic they had as she raised Him was about to change. Jesus was and is primarily the Son of God, co-equal with God the Father. Essentially Jesus was saying, "I will not do this because you told me to. I must first consult with my Heavenly Father." This signaled the change in their relationship where Mary must relate to Him, as we all do, first and foremost as Lord. We do not command Him or presume upon His graces. We humbly request of Him and submit to His good and perfect will. We would also not be reckless to assume that Jesus next prayed to the Father, and then acted based on His perfect understanding of and conformity to the Father's will (John 5:30).

Mary might have erred slightly in her presumption, but it is admirable that she did not persist in this error. She immediately understood His meaning, and left it in His hands as she commanded the servants to do whatever He told them to. In doing this she demonstrated trust that He would handle the situation in His own way and for His own reasons. This is important because there are church traditions which point to this first miracle of Jesus as being a result of Mary's request, but, with respect to those who hold to those traditions, I believe we can see here in the text that is not true. She did present the problem to Him, as we all do with our problems, but He clearly drew a line between them with His response. His loving and respectful response made it clear He would do nothing according to the will of man, and would only act according to the will of the Spirit, that is, the will of God the Father. His response makes it clear the performing of this miracle had nothing to do with the mother-Son relationship and everything to do with the Heavenly Father-Son relationship.

In this instance Mary models for us that we are to go directly to God in prayer. We do not go through prayers to Mary, other "Saints" or priests. Their requests have no more weight than ours. As Jesus said in John 14:6, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." Through Jesus Christ we have been granted direct access to God, and we are to go directly to Him in prayer to confess our sin, receive grace and mercy, and present all of our requests to Him, even requests for wine at a wedding. No matter is too small to bring to Him. He is sovereign over every atom in time and space, and He cares about every single aspect of our lives. It is good for us to go to Him directly in prayer, and it is good for us not to deify other human beings who approached Him in this same way.

Jesus also said, "My hour has not yet come." The phrase "my hour" is often used in John's gospel for the death of Jesus, but that is not what is referred to here. "Hour" or "ōra" in Ancient Greek refers to any specific time. In this case Jesus is clearly referring to the specific time in which He will reveal His Deity and Messiahship by the use of miracles.

Lastly, while the recorded words of Mary are few, they all point to the Lordship of Jesus. Her words glorify God, and never herself. She makes no claims to deity and never calls for herself to be worshiped or prayed to, which is obviously in direct contrast with Jesus' claims to deity and calls to worship and follow Him. Here she says, "Do whatever he tells you." And these are words of wisdom everyone should follow. When Jesus says He is the way, truth and life, and no one comes to the Father except through Him, we should heed His words to only come to the Father through Him. And when Mary, a follower of Jesus says to do whatever He tells us to, we should listen. And that includes listening to the words of Christ to worship and pray to Him alone. Mary knew this, and even a very brief study of her words recorded in the gospel will affirm this.

"To deliberately go through Mary to get to Jesus is to regard Jesus as hardhearted, and Mary as tenderhearted. This concept "is totally alien from the Bible. It comes from mother-son ideas prevalent in pagan religions." (Barnhouse)

"The recorded words of Mary are few; these particular words have an application beyond the immediate occasion which called them forth." (Bruce)

Application (How does this change how I think, act and pray?):

From this passage we learn to think of Jesus as God and Man who is to be welcomed into every occasion of life, including joyful ones. He does not detract from the fun, He enhances it. We should think of Him and only Him as Lord and bring our requests directly to Him knowing He will act in accordance with His good and perfect will. We do not go to Him through priests or saints, because by the shedding of His blood we have been cleansed and granted direct access to God the Father, and every Christian has been made a priest to God (Revelation 1:6, 5:10).

Self Reflection:

Do I view Jesus as my source of joy and therefore invite Him into every occasion of life?

What does it tell me about the character of God that He still prioritized attending a wedding at the beginning of His ministry which He knew would end in brutal execution and glorious resurrection?

Do I understand that in Christ I have personally been granted direct access to God to confess and repent of sin, present my requests, and to receive grace and mercy in time of need?

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