Two views of what Jesus meant by something greater than the temple is here
:
Jesus means himself. The priests serve the temple, but the disciples of Jesus serve the much greater Lord. Only God is greater than the temple, so Jesus is pointing to his divinity, as the Lord whose coming John had prophesied. If priests may work on the Sabbath for the temple sacrifices, then the disciples may all the more do so for the Lord himself.
Jesus means that if the temple could set aside the law of Sabbath rest for its servants, he as the Messiah has more right to do so for his disciples, for he is greater than the temple, because God dwells in Jesus in a greater way than in the temple (Matthew 26:61, Matthew 27:40; John 2:19–22). As there was no Sabbath rest for priests who served in the temple, so there is none for the disciples.
Interpretation 1:
In Matthew 12:6 Jesus was speaking of himself. David’s men served him as the anointed one and the priests serve the temple, but the disciples of Jesus serve a Lord who is even greater. Only God himself is greater than the temple, which means that in saying this, Jesus indirectly points to his divinity: he is the Lord whose coming John had prophesied. If the priests are permitted to work on the Sabbath because of the temple sacrifices, then the disciples may all the more do so for the sake of the Lord himself.1
Interpretation 2:
Jesus here in Matthew 12:6 teaches that if the temple could set aside the law of Sabbath rest for its servants, he as the Messiah has so much more right to do so for his disciples. For he is greater than the temple, because God now dwells in Jesus in a higher and fuller way than in the temple of the old covenant (see Matthew 26:61, Matthew 27:40; John 2:19–22). Just as there was no Sabbath rest for the priests who served in the temple, so now there is none for the disciples.2
5 Ou, n'avez-vous pas lu dans la loi que, les jours de sabbat, les sacrificateurs violent le sabbat dans le temple, sans se rendre coupables?