The setup Although there’s a chapter break separating them, I think that the story covered in John 2:13-3:20 reads as one piece. Jesus had just busted up the temple courts and made a big splash in Jerusalem around passover, claiming to be able to rebuild the temple in three days, etc. I think that the cleansing of the temple is actually a preface to the story of Nicodemus. It sets up the circumstances of his visit, as does the statement that Jesus knew what was inside a man (John 2:25). That’s the opening statement to Nicodemus’ story. Jesus knew what was in his heart, and spoke to that, rather than to the surface of how he approached Jesus. Nicodemus: seeker or pharisee? John 3:1-2 Now there was a Pharisee, a man named Nicodemus who was a member of the Jewish ruling council. 2 He came to Jesus at night and said, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the signs you are doing if God were not w...