JOHN 2:18-20 NKJV

So the Jews answered and said to Him, “What sign do You show to us, since You do these things?”

Jesus answered and said to them, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.”

Then the Jews said, “It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and will You raise it up in three days?”

JOHN 2:18-20 NKJV

John 2:18 The Jews apparently refers to the religious authorities of Israel (1:19), who also understood that Jesus was representing Himself as the Messiah; therefore, they asked for a sign (1 Cor. 1:22).

John 2:19 Destroy this temple: Jesus was not talking about the physical building; He was referring to His body, as John emphasizes in v. 21. Jesus was speaking of His death. I will raise it up: Note that Jesus did not say, “I will build it again.” He was referring to His resurrection, three days after His death. The sign Jesus gave the Jews was the sign of His death and resurrection (Matt. 12:39; 16:4).

John 2:20 forty-six years: Herod began restoring the temple about A.D. 19. The work was not finished at the time of this conversation. In fact, it was not completed until around A.D. 64, under Herod Agrippa.