Cana

In the Bible

In the New Testament, Cana appears only in the Gospel of John, where it is always called "Cana of Galilee."

• John 2:1–11: When the wine ran out at a wedding feast, Jesus turned the water in six stone jars into wine. John calls this event "this beginning of miracles," that is, the first sign. In John, a sign is a miracle that reveals who Jesus is. The text records that through this event Jesus "manifested forth his glory; and his disciples believed on him" (Wedding at Cana).
• John 4:46–54: When Jesus came to Cana again, a royal official who lived in Capernaum came and begged him to heal his dying son. At the very hour Jesus said, "Go thy way; thy son liveth," the son, who was far away, was healed. The text calls this "the second miracle," that is, the second sign.
• John 21:2: The disciple Nathanael is identified as being from Cana in Galilee.

The Old Testament book of Joshua mentions Kanah, a town on the border of the tribe of Asher (Joshua 19:28), as well as the "river Kanah" (Joshua 16:8; 17:9). In Korean Bibles these names are spelled the same as Cana, but both are regarded as places distinct from Cana of Galilee. Cana should also be distinguished from the similarly named Canaan.

Background

Cana is thought to have been a small Galilean village not far from Nazareth. The first-century Jewish historian Josephus is also known to mention a village called Cana in Galilee. The name is often explained as related to the Hebrew word for "reed," though this explanation is not certain.

Scholars disagree about its exact location. There are two leading candidates. One is the modern town of Kafr Kanna, a short distance northeast of Nazareth, where commemorative churches visited by pilgrims stand. The other is the archaeological site of Khirbet Qana, farther to the north.

The stone jars used at the wedding feast were set there "after the manner of the purifying of the Jews" (John 2:6). Such vessels were used in the Jewish practice of the time for the ritual washing of food or hands.

Significance in Scripture as a Whole

The Gospel of John arranges Jesus' miracles as seven signs, and the first two of them both took place in Cana. Cana is therefore read as the setting in which Jesus' public ministry begins. The transformation of water meant for ritual purification into good wine is often interpreted as the beginning of something new that surpasses the old order, with appeal to the words "thou hast kept the good wine until now" (John 2:10). Some interpreters also connect it with the Old Testament use of abundant wine as an image of the joy of the messianic age.

Interpretation and Points of Debate

• Marriage and the wedding rite: There is a tradition of reading Jesus' attendance at the wedding feast as evidence that he honored marriage. The event is also mentioned in the marriage service of the Anglican Book of Common Prayer tradition.
• The role of Mary: The Catholic Church has a tradition of linking Mary's request to Jesus with Mary's intercession on behalf of others. Protestants generally focus on Jesus' word and the revelation of his glory. Interpretations also differ on the meaning of the passage in which Jesus addresses Mary as "Woman" and replies, "mine hour is not yet come" (John 2:4).
• The wine: In Korean church discussions of alcohol and tobacco, differing claims are made about whether this wine was fermented. Most commentaries regard it as the ordinary wine of the time, while some regard it as unfermented grape juice.
• Stories outside the text: Accounts that the bridegroom was the disciple John, or that the wedding was that of a relative of Jesus' family, are later traditions and do not appear in the text. Identifying Nathanael with Bartholomew is likewise a traditional conjecture. The epithet "Canaanite" in Simon the Canaanite is widely held to derive from an Aramaic word meaning "zealot" rather than from the place-name Cana.

In the Korean Church

The account of the wedding at Cana is frequently used in sermons at wedding services. In ordinary preaching it is also often treated under themes such as "the grace that turns water into wine" and "the servants who obeyed the word." Itineraries for Holy Land pilgrimages commonly include a visit to the commemorative churches at Kafr Kanna.