Epiphany #13 of 14: First Miracle #3 of 3.

           

“The first of his signs.”

(John 1:11)

Jesus’ miracles are called “signs” (Jn 1:11, 4:54). It did not seem to happen purposefully as a sign. That is, Jesus does not say, “Watch this sign!” He is hesitant. He doesn’t make a big deal about it. My guess is John, later (20:30), realizes that what happened at Cana of Galilee was a sign—a sign causing the disciples to believe; or, begin to believe, that Jesus really was the Anointed One.  It remains for us a sign pointing beyond itself. What else could the miracle of turning water into wine signify?

I’m wondering about those “six stone water jars… holding twenty or thirty gallons.” Jesus tells the servants to “Fill the jars to the brim.” That’s a lot of water turned to wine: 30 x 6 = 180 gallons. That’s a lot of trips to the well. If my math works (always questionable), it comes to near 1,000 bottles of wine; could that be? The quantity overflows, and the quality is the finest: “The best wine” (vs 10). That’s how the prophets spoke of the Messianic Age: “In that day sweet wine will flow from the hills” (Am 9:13 & Jl 3:18). Maybe it signifies that “That Day” has come.

Or, if we combine this first sign with the fourth sign when Jesus multiplied loaves of bread and spoke of himself as “the bread of life” (Jn 6:48); maybe it points us to the wine and bread of the Last Supper, or the wine and bread of our Lord’s Supper that we share to this day. Or, again, maybe the Cana miracle points beyond its self to that Great Wedding Feast that awaits us in Glory when we are gathered together for the Marriage Super of the Lamb (Rv 19:9). Because of the miracle at Cana of Galilee, every glass of wine we drink with joy and thanksgiving reminds us of Jesus and how he began his ministry among us by turning water into wine at the wedding in Cana of Galilee.