John's placement of the Temple Incident at the first of Jesus' appearances in the Temple long puzzled me. Now I suggest this is because John was first preached to Jerusalem refugees following the disheartening (and disillusioning) destruction of the Temple and the laying waste of Jerusalem. John, himself traumatized, preached to disciples who had lost everything: their homes, their business, their synagogues, and contact with many other disciples. It is quite possible that the Gospel was put into writing in the 70's and later but setting its origin in the midst of turmoil offers new perspective. John's purpose was to shore up the disciples' trust in Jesus (translating pistis as trust rather that believe shifts from believing a concept to trusting the person). Hence John forgoes the birth stories to present Jesus as the creating Word, the Word made flesh. Throughout Jesus is clearly in charge, even of his trial before Pilate. I have presented several papers at SBL which I would be happy to share if requested. I welcome insights and constructive comments.
