Temple

Bridgeway Bible Dictionary

A temple was a house for a god, a place where the god dwelt and was worshipped. This was so in the case of the false gods that Israel’s neighbours worshipped ( 1 Samuel 5:2;  1 Samuel 31:10;  1 Kings 16:32;  2 Kings 5:18), and in the case of the one and only true God whom Israel worshipped ( Psalms 5:7;  Psalms 134:1;  Haggai 1:8-9;  Matthew 12:4;  John 2:16; cf.  1 Corinthians 6:19;  Revelation 11:19).

However, the true God, who is the eternal one and the creator of all things, cannot be contained in a building. The Israelite temple, like the tabernacle before it, was only a symbol of God’s presence. It symbolized that he dwelt among his people ( Exodus 25:8;  1 Kings 8:10-13;  Acts 7:48-50). God’s original plan for such a dwelling place was the tabernacle, which, being a tent, was a movable shrine that could be set up anywhere. This demonstrated to the people that God was not limited to one locality. The people were to remember this when they built their permanent temple in Jerusalem ( 2 Samuel 7:5-7;  Acts 7:44-46).

The site of the temple in Jerusalem was a piece of land that David had bought from a local farmer on the hill of Zion (Moriah) ( 2 Samuel 24:18;  2 Samuel 24:22-25;  2 Chronicles 3:1;  Psalms 74:2;  Psalms 78:68-69; cf.  Genesis 22:2). Each of the later temples was built on the same site, on top of the ruins of the previous temple. All three temples were based on the plan of the tabernacle, though they were larger and they included additional features.

Solomon’s temple

Fausset's Bible Dictionary

(See Jerusalem; Tabernacle.) David cherished the design of superseding the tent and curtains by a permanent building of stone ( 2 Samuel 7:1-2); God praised him for having the design "in his heart" ( 1 Kings 8:18); but as he had been so continually in wars ( 1 Kings 5:3;  1 Kings 5:5), and had "shed blood abundantly" ( 1 Chronicles 22:8-9;  1 Chronicles 28:2-3;  1 Chronicles 28:10), the realization was reserved for Solomon his son. (See Solomon.) The building of the temple marks an era in Israel's history, the nation's first permanent settlement in peace and rest, as also the name Solomon," man of peace, implied. The site was the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite, whereon David by Jehovah's command erected an altar and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings ( 2 Samuel 24:18-25;  1 Chronicles 21:18-30;  1 Chronicles 22:1); Jehovah's signifying by fire His acceptance of the sacrifice David regarded as the divine designation of the area for the temple.

"This is the house of the Lord God, and this is the altar ... for Israel" ( 2 Chronicles 3:1). "Solomon began to build the house of Jehovah at Jerusalem in Mount Moriah (Hebrew in the mount of the vision of Jehovah) where He appeared unto David in the place that David had prepared in the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite." Warren identifies the "dome of the rock" with Ornan's threshing floor and the temple altar. Solomon's temple was there in the Haram area, but his palace in the S.E. of it, 300 ft. from N. to S., and 600 from E. to W., and Solomon's porch ran along the E. side of the Haram area. The temple was on the boundary line between Judah and Benjamin, and so formed a connecting link between the northern and the southern tribes; almost in the center of the nation. The top of the hill having been leveled, walls of great stones (some 30 ft. long) were built on the sloping sides, and the interval between was occupied by vaults or filled up with earth.

The lower, bevelled stones of the wall still remain; the relics of the eastern wall alone being Solomon's, the southern and western added later, but still belonging to the first temple; the area of the first temple was ultimately a square, 200 yards, a stadium on each side, but in Solomon's time a little less. Warren makes it a rectangle, 900 ft. from E. to W., and 600 from N. to S. "The Lord gave the pattern in writing by His hand upon David," and "by His Spirit," i.e. David wrote the directions under divine inspiration and gave them to Solomon ( 1 Chronicles 28:11-19). The temple retained the general proportions of the tabernacle doubled; the length 60 cubits (90 ft.), the breadth 20 cubits (30 ft.):  1 Kings 6:2;  2 Chronicles 3:3. The height 30 cubits, twice the whole height of the tabernacle (15 cubits) measuring from its roof, but the oracle 20 cubits (double the height of the tabernacle walls, 10 cubits), making perfect cube like that of the tabernacle, which was half, i.e. ten each way; the difference between the height of the oracle and that of the temple, namely, ten cubits, was occupied by the upper rooms mentioned in  2 Chronicles 3:9, overlaid with pure gold.

The temple looked toward the E., having the most holy place in the extreme W. In front was a porch as broad as the temple, 20 cubits, and ten deep; whereas the tabernacle porch was only five cubits deep and ten cubits wide. Thus, the ground plan of the temple was 70 cubits, i.e. 105 ft., or, adding the porch, 80 cubits, by 40 cubits, whereas that of the tabernacle was 40 cubits by 20 cubits, i.e. just half. In  2 Chronicles 3:4 the 120 cubits for the height of the porch is out of all proportion to the height of the temple; either 20 cubits (with Syriac, Arabic and Septuagint) or 30 cubits ought to be read; the omission of mention of the height in  1 Kings 6:3 favors the idea that the porch was of the same height as the temple, i.e. 30 cubits . Two brazen pillars (Boaz "strength is in Him", and Jachin "He will establish"), 18 cubits high, with a chapiter of five cubits - 23 cubits in all - stood, not supporting the temple roof, but as monuments before the porch ( 1 Kings 7:15-22). The 35 cubits instead of 18 cubits, in  2 Chronicles 3:15, arose from a copyist's error (confounding yah = 18 with lah = 35 cubits).

The circumference of the pillars was 12 cubits or 18 ft.; the significance of the two pillars was eternal stability and the strength of Jehovah in Israel as representing the kingdom of God on earth, of which the temple was the visible pledge, Jehovah dwelling there in the midst of His people. Solomon ( 1 Kings 6:5-6) built against the wall of the house stories, or an outwork consisting of three stories, round about, i.e. against the longer sides and the hinder wall, and not against the front also, where was the porch. Rebates (three for the three floors of the side stories and one for the roof) or projecting ledges were attached against the temple wall at the point where the lower beams of the different side stories were placed, so that the heads of the beams rested on the rebates and were not inserted in the actual temple wall. As the exterior of the temple wall contracted at each rebate, while the exterior wall of the side chamber was straight, the breadth of the chambers increased each story upward. The lowest was only five broad, the second six, and the third seven; in height they were each five cubits.

Winding stairs led from chamber to chamber upward ( 1 Kings 6:8). The windows ( 1 Kings 6:4) were made "with closed beams" Hebrew, i.e. the lattice work of which could not be opened and closed at will, as in d welling houses ( 2 Kings 13:17). The Chaldee and rabbiical tradition that they were narrower without than within is probable; this would adapt them to admit light and air and let out smoke. They were on the temple side walls in the ten cubits' space whereby the temple walls, being 30 cubits high, out-topped the side stories, 20 cubits high. The tabernacle walls were ten cubits high, and the whole height 15 cubits, i.e. the roof rising five cubits above the internal walls, just half the temple proportions: 20 cubits, 30 cubits, 10 cubits respectively. The stone was made ready in the quarry before it was brought, so that there was neither hammer nor axe nor any tool heard in the house while it was building ( 1 Kings 6:7).

In the Bezetha vast cavern, accidentally discovered by tapping the ground with a stick outside the Damascus gate at Jerusalem, evidences still remain of the marvelous energy with which they executed the work; the galleries, the pillars supporting the roof, and the niches from which the huge blocks were taken, of the same form, size, and material as the stones S.E. of the Haram area. The stone, soft in its native state, becomes hard as marble when exposed to the air. The quarry is 600 ft. long and runs S.E. At the end are blocks half quarried, the marks of the chisel as fresh as on the day the mason ceased; but the temple was completed without them, still they remain attached to their native bed, a type of multitudes, impressed in part, bearing marks of the teacher's chisel, but never incorporated into the spiritual temple.

The masons' Phoenician marks still remain on the stones in this quarry, and the unique beveling of the stones in the temple wall overhanging the ravine corresponds to that in the cave quarry. Compare  1 Peter 2:5; the election of the church, the spiritual temple, in God's eternal predestination, before the actual rearing of that temple ( Ephesians 1:4-5;  Romans 8:29-30), and the peace that reigns within and above, in contrast to the toil and noise outside in the world below wherein the materials of the spiritual temple are being prepared ( John 16:33), are the truths symbolized by the mode of rearing Solomon's temple. On the eastern wall at the S.E. angle are the Phoenician red paint marks.

These marks cut into or painted on the bottom rows of the wall at the S.E. corner of the Haram, at a depth of 90 ft. where the foundations rest on the rock itself, are pronounced by Deutseh to have been cut or painted when the stones were first laid in their present places, and to be Phoenician letters, numerals, and masons' quarry signs; some are well known Phoenician characters, others such as occur in the primitive substructions of the Sidon harbour. The interior was lined with cedar of Lebanon, and the floors and ceiling with cypress (berosh; Kjv "fir" not so well). There must have been pillars to support the roof, which was a clear space of 30 ft., probably four in the sanctuary and ten in the hall, at six cubits from the walls, leaving a center aisle of eight cubits (Fergusson in Smith's Bible Dictionary.). Cherubim, palms, and flowers ( 1 Kings 6:29) symbolized the pure and blessed life of which the temple, where God manifested His presence, was the pledge.

The costly wood, least liable to corruption, and the precious stones set in particular places, suited best a building designed to be "the palace of the Lord God" ( 1 Chronicles 29:1). The furniture of the temple was the same mainly as that of the tabernacle. Two cherubim were placed over the ark, much larger than those in the tabernacle; they were ten cubits high, with wings five cubits long, the tips of which outstretched met over the ark, and in the other direction reached to the N. and S. sides of the house. Their faces turned toward the house ( 2 Chronicles 3:13), not as in the tabernacle ( Exodus 25:20) toward the mercy-seat. Instead of the one seven-branched candlestick ten new ones were made of pure gold, five for the right or N. side and five for the left side of the temple. So there were ten tables of shewbread ( 2 Chronicles 4:8;  2 Chronicles 4:19). Still the candlestick and the shewbread table were each spoken of as one, and probably but one table at a time was served with shewbread.

The ten (the world number) times seven (the divine number) of the golden candlestick = 70; and the ten times twelve (the church number) of the shewbread = 120, implying the union of the world and the Deity and of the world and the church respectively. (See Number.) The snuffers, tongs, basins, etc., were of pure gold. The brazen altar of burnt offering was four times as large as that of the tabernacle; 20 cubits on each side and in height, instead of five cubits ( 2 Chronicles 4:1). Between this and the temple door was the molten sea of ten cubits from brim to brim, 45 ft. round, holding 2,000 baths, i.e. 15,000 or 16,000 gallons of water (3,000 in  2 Chronicles 4:5 probably a copyist's error), supported by 12 oxen, three on each side (representing the 12 tribes). It was for the priests' washing, as the laver of the tabernacle. There were besides ten lavers, five on each side of the altar, for washing the entrails; these were in the inner ( 1 Kings 7:36) or higher ( Jeremiah 36:10) or priests' court, raised above the further off one by three rows of hewed stone and one of cedar beams ( 1 Kings 6:36;  2 Chronicles 4:9).

The great court or that of the people, outside this, was surrounded by walls, and accessible by brass or bronze doors ( 2 Chronicles 4:9). The gates noticed are the chief or E. one ( Ezekiel 11:1), one on the N. near the altar ( Ezekiel 8:5), the higher gate of the house of Jehovah, built by Jotham ( 2 Kings 15:35), the gate of the foundation ( 2 Chronicles 23:5), Solomon's ascent up to the house of Jehovah ( 1 Kings 10:5;  2 Chronicles 9:11;  2 Kings 16:18). Hiram, son of a Tyrian father and Hebrew mother, was the skilled artisan who manufactured the bronze articles in a district near Jordan between Succoth and Zarthan ( 1 Kings 7:13-14;  1 Kings 7:46;  2 Chronicles 4:16-17). Solomon dedicated the temple with prayer and thank offerings of 20,000 oxen and 120,000 sheep (1 Kings 8; 2 Chronicles 5 to 7). (See Solomon.) The ritual of the temple was a national, not a personal, worship. It was fixed to one temple and altar, before the Shekinah. It was not sanctioned anywhere else.

The Levites throughout the land were to teach Israel the law of their God; the particular mode was left to patriarchal usage and the rules of religious feeling and reason ( Deuteronomy 33:10;  Deuteronomy 6:7). The stranger was not only permitted but encouraged to pray toward the temple at Jerusalem; and doubtless the thousands (153,600) of strangers, remnants of the Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, and Jebusites, whom Solomon employed in building the temple, were proselytes to Jehovah ( 2 Chronicles 2:17;  1 Chronicles 22:2). (On its history (see Jerusalem.)'' Shishak of Egypt, Asa of Judah, Joash of Israel, and finally Nebuchadnezzar despoiled it in succession ( 1 Kings 14:26;  1 Kings 15:18;  2 Chronicles 25:23-24). After 416 years' duration the Babylonian king's captain of the guard, Nebuzaradan, destroyed it by fire ( 2 Kings 25:8-9). Temple of Zerubabel.

Erected by sanction of Cyrus, who in his decree alleged the command of the God of heaven ( Ezra 1:12), on the stone site ("the place where they offered sacrifices") and to reproduce Solomon's temple "with three rows (i.e. three stories) of great stones, and a row of new timber" (a wooden story, a fourth, called a talar: Josephus 11:4, 6; 15:11, section 1):  Ezra 6:3-12, comp.  1 Kings 6:36. The golden and silver vessels taken by Nebuchadnezzar were restored; the altar was first set up by Jeshua and Zerubbabel, then the foundations were laid (Ezra 3) amidst weeping in remembrance of the glorious former temple and joy at the restoration. Then after the interruption of the work under Artaxerxes I or Pseudo Smerdis, the temple was completed in the sixth year of Darius (chapter 6).(See Artaxerxes I; Ezra; Hagga; Jeshua; Joshua; Nehemiah; Darius.)

The height, 60 cubits ( Ezra 6:3), was double that of Solomon's temple. Josephus confirms this height of 60 cubits, though he is misled by the copyist's error, 120, in  2 Chronicles 3:4. Zerubbabel's temple was 60 cubits broad ( Ezra 6:3) as was Herod's temple subsequently, 20 cubits in excess of the breadth of Solomon's temple; i.e., the chambers all around were 20 in width instead of the ten of Solomon's temple; probably, instead of as heretofore each room of the priests' lodgings being a thoroughfare, a passage was introduced between the temple and the rooms. Thus the dimensions were 100 cubits long, 60 broad, and 60 high, not larger than a good sized parish church. Not merely ( Haggai 2:3) was this temple inferior to Solomon's in splendour and costly metals, but especially it lacked five glories of the former temple:

(1) the ark, for which a stone served to receive the sprinkling of blood by the high priest, on the day of atonement;

(2) the sacred fire;

(3) the Shekinab;

(4) the spirit of prophecy;

(5) the Urim and Thummim.

Its altar was of stone, not brass ( 1 Maccabees 4:45), it had only one table of shewbread and one candlestick. Antiochus Epiphanes profaned this temple; afterward it was cleansed or dedicated, a new altar of fresh stones made, and the feast of dedication thenceforward kept yearly ( John 10:22). But "the glory of this latter house was greater than of the former" ( Haggai 2:9) because of the presence of Messiah, in whose face is given the light of the knowledge of the glory of God ( 2 Corinthians 4:6;  Hebrews 1:2) as Himself said, "in this place is one (Greek 'a something greater,' the indefiniteness marking the infinite vastness whereby He is) greater than the temple" ( Matthew 12:6), and who "sat daily teaching in it" ( Matthew 26:55). The Millennial Temple at Jerusalem. (See Ezekiel 40-48.)

The dimensions are those of Solomon's temple; an inner shrine 20 cubits square ( Ezekiel 41:4); the nave 20 cubits by 40 cubits; the chambers round ten wide, including the thickness of the walls; the whole, with the porch, 40 cubits by 80 cubits; but the outer court 500 reeds on each of its sides ( Ezekiel 42:16), i.e. a square of one mile and one seventh, considerably more than the area of the old Jerusalem, temple included. The spiritual lesson is, the church of God, the temple of the Holy Spirit, hereafter to be manifested on earth, shall be on a scale far surpassing its present dimensions; then first shall Jehovah be worshipped by the whole congregation of the earth, led by Israel the leader of the grand choir. The temple of Herod had an outer court which with porticoes, measuring 400 cubits every way, was a counterpart on a smaller scale to the outer court of Ezekiel's temple and had nothing corresponding in Solomon's temple or Zerubbabel's. No ark is in it, for Jehovah the ark's Antitype shall supersede it ( Jeremiah 3:16-17;  Malachi 3:1).

The temple interior waits for His entrance to fill it with His glory ( Ezekiel 43:1-12). No space shall be within its precincts which is not consecrated; whereas in the old temple there was a greater latitude as to the exterior precincts or suburbs ( 2 Kings 23:11). "A separation" shall exist "between the sanctuary and the profane place"; but no longer the partition wall between Jew and Gentile ( Ephesians 2:14;  Ezekiel 42:20). The square symbolizes the kingdom that cannot be moved ( Daniel 2:44;  Hebrews 12:28;  Revelation 21:16). The full significance of the language shall not be exhausted in the millennial temple wherein still secular things shall be distinguished from things consecrated, but shall be fully realized in the post-millennial city, wherein no part shall be separated from the rest as "temple," for all shall be holy ( Revelation 21:10-12). The fact that the Shekinah glory was not in the second temple whereas it is to return to the future temple proves that Zerubbabel's temple cannot be the temple meant in Ezekiel (compare  Ezekiel 43:2-4).

Christ shall return in the same manner as He went up, and to the same place, Mount Olivet on the E. of Jerusalem ( Ezekiel 11:23;  Zechariah 14:4;  Acts 1:9-12). The Jews then will welcome Him with blessings ( Luke 13:35); His triumphal entry on the colt was the type ( Luke 19:38). As the sacrificial serrate at the tabernacle at Gibeon and the ark service of sacred song for the 30 years of David's reign, before separate ( 2 Samuel 6:17;  2 Chronicles 1:3-4; called "the tabernacle of David"  Amos 9:11-12;  Acts 15:16;  1 Chronicles 13:3;  1 Chronicles 16:37;  1 Chronicles 16:39), were combined in Solomon's temple, so the priestly intercessory functions of our High priest in heaven and our service of prayer and praise carried on separately on earth, during our Judaeo universal dispensation, shall in the millennial temple at Jerusalem be combined in perfection, namely, Christ's priesthood manifested among men and our service of outward and inward liturgy.

In the final new and heavenly Jerusalem on the regenerated earth, after the millennium, Christ shall give up the mediatorial and sacerdotal kingdom to the Father, because its purpose shall have been fully completed ( 1 Corinthians 15:24;  1 Corinthians 15:28); so there shall be no temple, "the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb shall be the temple" ( Revelation 21:22). Herod's temple (which was essentially the continuation of Zerubbabel's temple: compare  Haggai 2:9). (See Jerusalem.) Josephus gives the ground plan accurately; but the height he exaggerates. As the temple was prostrated by the Roman siege, there was no means of convicting him of error as to elevations. The nave was like Solomon's and still more Zerubbabel's; but surrounded by an inner enclosure, 180 cubits by 240 cubits, with porches and ten magnificent gateways; there was a high wall round the vast square with a colonnade of two rows of marble pillars, forming a flat roofed cloister, and on the S. side three rows, 25 ft. high.

Beyond this was an outer enclosure, 400 cubits or one stadium each way, with porticoes exceeding in splendour all the temples of the ancient world, supporting a carved cedar roof; the pavement was mosaic. Herod sought to rival Solomon, reconcile the Jews to his dynasty as fulfilling  Haggai 2:9 that the glory of the latter temple should be greater than that of the former, and so divert them from hopes of a temporal Messianic king (Josephus, Ant. 15:11 section 1,5; 20:9, section 7; B.J. 1:21, section 1): he employed 10,000 skilled workmen, and 1,000 priests acquainted with fine work in wood and stone; in one year and a half the temple was ready for the priests and Levites; in eight the courts were complete; but for the 46 years up to Jesus' ministry ( John 2:20) various additions were being made, and only in the time of Agrippa Ii the works ceased. The temple occupied the highest of terraces rising above one another; it occupied all the area of Solomon's temple with the addition of that of Solomon's palace, and a new part added on by Herod at the S.W. corner by artificial works; Solomon's porch lay along the whole E. side. Gentiles had access to the outer court.

The gates were: on the W. side, one to Zion, two to the suburbs, and one by steps through the valley into the other city. Two subterranean passages on the S. led to the vaults and, water reservoirs of the temple. On the N. one concealed passage led to the castle Antonia, the fortress commanding the temple. The only remains of Herod's temple in situ are the double gates on the S. side at 365 ft. distance from the S.W. angle. They consist of a massive double archway on the level of the ground, opening into a square vestibule 40 ft. each way. In the center of this is a pillar crowned with a Corinthian capital, the acanthus and the waterleaf alternating as in the Athenian temple of the winds, an arrangement never found later than Augustus' time. From the pillar spring four flat segmental arches. From the vestibule a double tunnel 200 ft. long leads to a flight of steps which rise to the surface in the court of the temple just at the gateway of the inner temple which led to the altar; it is the one of the four gateways on the S. side by which anyone arriving from Ophel would enter the inner enclosure.

The gate of the inner temple to which this passage led was called "the water gate":  Nehemiah 12:37 (Talmud, Mid. ii. 6). Westward there were four gateways to the outer enclosure of the temple (Josephus, Ant. 15:11, section 5). The most southern (the remains of which Robinson discovered) led over the bridge which joined the stoa basilica of the temple to the royal palace. The second was discovered by Barclay 270 ft. from the S.W. angle, 17 ft. below the level of the S. gate. The third was about 225 ft. from the N.W. angle of the temple area. The fourth led over the causeway still remaining, 600 ft. from the S.W. angle. Previously outward stairs ( Nehemiah 12:37;  1 Kings 10:5) led up from the western valley to the temple. Under Herod the causeway and bridge communicated with the upper city, and the two lower entrances led to the lower city, "the city of David."

The stoa basilica or royal porch overhanging the S. wall was the grandest feature of all (Josephus, Ant. 15: 11, section 5), consisting of the three rows of Corinthian columns mentioned above, closed by a fourth row built into the wall on the S. side, but open to the temple inside; the breadth of the center aisle 45 ft., the height 100; the side aisles 30 wide and 50 high; there were 40 pillars in each row, with two odd ones forming a screen at the end of the bridge leading to the palace. A marble screen three cubits high in front of the cloisters bore an inscription forbidding Gentiles to enter (compare  Acts 21:28). Ganneau has found a stone near the temple site bearing a Greek inscription: "no stranger must enter within the balustrade round the temple and enclosure, whosoever is caught will be responsible for his own death." (So Josephus, B. J. 5:2, Ant. 15:11, section 5.) Within this screen or enclosure was the flight of steps up to the platform on which the temple stood.

The court of the women was eastward (Josephus, B. J. 5:5, section 3), with the magnificently gilt and carved eastern gate leading into it from the outer court, the same as "the Beautiful gate" ( Acts 3:2;  Acts 3:11). "Solomon's porch" was within the outer eastern wall of the temple, and is attributed by Josephus (Ant. 15:11, section 3, 20:9, section 7; B.J. 5:5, section 1,3) to Solomon; the Beautiful gate being on the same side, the people flocking to see the cripple healed there naturally ran to "Solomon's porch." Within this gateway was the altar of burnt offering, 50 cubits square and 15 high, with an ascent to it by an inclined plane. On its south side an inclined plane led down to the water gate where was the great, cistern in the rock (Barclay, City of the Great King, 526); supplying the temple at the S.W. angle of the altar was the opening through which the victims' blood flowed W. and S. to the king's garden at Siloam. A parapet one cubit high surrounding the temple and altar separated the people from the officiating priests (Josephus, B.J. 5:5, section 6).

The temple, 20 cubits by 60 cubits, occupied the western part of this whole enclosure. The holiest place was a square cube, 20 cubits each way; the holy place two such cubes; the temple 60 cubits across and 100 E. and W.; the facade by adding its wings was 100, the same as its length E. and W. (Josephus, B. J., 5:5, section 4.) Warren (Athenaeum, No. 2469, p. 265) prefers the Mishna's measurements to Josephus' (Ant. 15:11, section 3), and assumes that the 600 ft. a side assigned by Josephus to the courts refer to orbits not feet, Josephus applied the 600 ft. of the inner court's length to the 600 cubits of the outer court. The E., W., and S. walls of the present Muslim sanctuary, and a line drawn parallel to the northern edge of the raised platform, eight cubits N. of the Golden gate, measuring respectively 1,090 ft., 1,138 ft., 922 ft., and 997 ft. (i.e. averaging 593 cubits), closely approach Josephus' 600.

Allow eight cubits for the wall all round, 30 for width of cloisters N., E., and W. sides, and 105 ft. for the S. cloister, and we have 505 cubits for inner sides of the cloisters, closely approaching the Talmudic 500 cubits. The Golden gate (its foundations are still existing) continues the double wall of the northern cloisters to the E., .just as Robinson's arch led from the southern cloisters to the W.; on this gate "was pourtrayed the city Shushan; through it one could see the high priest who burnt the heifer and his assistants going out to Mount Olivet." On the E. wall stood Solomon's porch or cloister (Josephus. Ant. 20:9, section 7). The temple's W. end coincides with the W. side of the raised platform, and its S. side was 11 ft. S. of the S. end of this same platform. Josephus states (Ant. 15:11, section 5; 20:8, section 11; B. J. 2:16, section 3) that king Agrippa built a dining room (overlooking the temple inner courts) in the palace of the Asmonaeaus, at the N. end of the upper city overlooking the xystus where the bridge (Wilson's arch) joined the temple to the xystus; it was the southern portion of the inner court that his dining room overlooked.

The altar stood over the western end of the souterrain, which was probably connected with the water system needed for the temple, and with the blood passage discovered at the S.E. angle of the Muslim sanctuary, and with the gates Mokhad, Nitzotz, and Nicanor (Ant. 15:11, section 6). Warren's plan of the temple is drawn from the Talmud. The Huldah gates answer to the double and triple gates on the S. side; the western gates are still in situ, that from the souterrain is the gate leading down many steps to the Acra. S. of this is the causeway still in, situated (except at Wilson's arch) over the valley N. of the xystus to the upper city along the first wall. The cubit assumed is 21 inches.

The Jews' "house was left desolate," according to Christ's prophecy, 37 years before the event; though Titus wished to spare it, the fury of his soldiers and the infatuation of the Jewish zealots thwarted his wish, and unconsciously fulfilled the decree of God; and fragments of old pottery and broken lamps now are found where the light of Jehovah's glory once shone, Hadrian, the emperor, in 130, erected on the site a temple to Jupiter Capitolinus. The apostate emperor Julian tried to rebuild the temple, Pottery Trade Marks. but was thwarted by balls of fire which interrupted the workmen. The mosque of Omar has long stood on the site of the temple in the S.W. of the Harem area. But when "the times of the Gentiles shall be fulfilled, "and when the Jews shall look to Jesus and say, "Blessed is He that cometh in the name of the Lord," the kingdom with its temple will come again to Israel ( Luke 13:35;  Luke 21:24;  Acts 1:6-7). (See Veil.)

Watson's Biblical & Theological Dictionary

the house of God; properly the temple of Solomon. David first conceived the design of building a house somewhat worthy of the divine majesty, and opened his mind to the Prophet Nathan, 2 Samuel 7; 1 Chronicles 17;  1 Chronicles 22:8 , &c. God accepted of his good intentions, but refused him the honour. Solomon laid the foundation of the temple, A.M. 2992, completed it in 3000, and dedicated it in 3001,  1 Kings 8:2; 2 Chronicles 5;  2 Chronicles 6:7 . According to the opinion of some writers, there were three temples, namely, the first, erected by Solomon; the second, by Zerubbabel, and Joshua the high priest; and the third, by Herod, a few years before the birth of Christ. But this opinion is, very properly, rejected by the Jews; who do not allow the third to be a new temple, but only the second temple repaired and beautified: and this opinion corresponds with the prophecy of  Haggai 2:9 , "that the glory of this latter house," the temple built by Zerubbabel, "should be greater than that of the former;" which prediction was tittered with reference to the Messiah's honouring it with his presence and ministry. The first temple is that which usually bears the name of Solomon; the materials for which were provided by David before his death, though the edifice was raised by his son. It stood on Mount Moriah, an eminence of the mountainous ridge in the Scriptures termed Mount Zion,  Psalms 132:13-14 , which had been purchased by Araunah, or Ornan, the Jebusite,  2 Samuel 24:23-24;  1 Chronicles 21:25 . The plan, and the whole model of this superb structure, were formed after that of the tabernacle, but of much larger dimensions. It was surrounded, except at the front or east end, by three stories of chambers, each five cubits square, which reached to half the height of the temple; and the front was ornamented with a magnificent portico, which rose to the height of one hundred and twenty cubits: so that the form of the whole edifice was not unlike that of some ancient churches, which have a lofty tower in the front, and a low aisle running along each side of the building. The utensils for the sacred service were the same; excepting that several of them, as the altar, candlestick, &c, were larger, in proportion to the more spacious edifice to which they belonged. Seven years and six months were occupied in the erection of the superb and magnificent temple of Solomon, by whom it was dedicated, A.M. 3001, B.C. 999, with peculiar solemnity, to the worship of the Most High; who on this occasion vouchsafed to honour it with the Shechinah, or visible manifestation of his presence. Various attempts have been made to describe the proportions and several parts of this structure; but as scarcely any two writers agree on this subject, a minute description of it is designedly omitted. It retained its pristine splendour only thirty-three or thirty-four years, when Shishak, king of Egypt, took Jerusalem, and carried away the treasures of the temple; and after undergoing subsequent profanations and pillages, this stupendous building was finally plundered and burnt by the Chaldeans under Nebuchadnezzar, A.M. 3416, or B.C. 584,  2 Kings 25:13-15;  2 Chronicles 36:17-20 .

After the captivity, the temple emerged from its ruins, being rebuilt by Zerubbabel, but with vastly inferior and diminished glory; as appears from the tears of the aged men who had beheld the former structure in all its grandeur,  Ezra 3:12 . The second temple was profaned by order of Antiochus Epiphanes, A.M. 3837, B.C. 163, who caused the daily sacrifices to be discontinued, and erected the image of Jupiter Olympus on the altar of burnt-offering. In this condition it continued three years, l Mac. 4. 42, when Judas Maccabaeus purified and repaired it, and restored the sacrifices and true worship of Jehovah. Some years before the birth of our Saviour, the repairing and beautifying of this second temple, which had become decayed in the lapse of five centuries, was undertaken by Herod the Great, who for nine years employed eighty thousand workmen upon it, and spared no expense to render it equal, if not superior, in magnitude, splendour, and beauty, to any thing among mankind. Josephus calls it a work the most admirable of any that had ever been seen or heard of, both for its curious structure and its magnitude, and also for the vast wealth expended upon it, as well as for the universal reputation of its sanctity. But though Herod accomplished his original design in the time above specified, yet the Jews continued to ornament and enlarge it, expending the sacred treasure in annexing additional buildings to it; so that they might with great propriety assert, that their temple had been forty and six years in building,  John 2:20 .

Before we proceed to describe this venerable edifice, it may be proper to remark, that by the temple is to be understood not only the fabric or house itself, which by way of eminence is called the temple, namely, the holy of holies, the sanctuary, and the several courts both of the priests and Israelites, but also all the numerous chambers and rooms which this prodigious edifice comprehended; and each of which had its respective degree of holiness, increasing in proportion to its contiguity to the holy of holies. This remark it will be necessary to bear in mind, lest the reader of Scripture should be led to suppose, that whatever is there said to be transacted in the temple was actually done in the interior of that sacred edifice. To this infinite number of apartments, into which the temple was disposed, our Lord refers,  John 14:2; and by a very striking and magnificent simile, borrowed from them, he represents those numerous seats and mansions of heavenly bliss which his Father's house contained, and which were prepared for the everlasting abode of the righteous. The imagery is singularly beautiful and happy, when considered as an allusion to the temple, which our Lord not unfrequently called his Father's house.

The second temple, originally built by Zerubbabel after the captivity, and repaired by Herod, differed in several respects from that erected by Solomon, although they agreed in others.

The temple erected by Solomon was more splendid and magnificent than the second temple, which was deficient in five remarkable things that constituted the chief glory of the first: these were, the ark and the mercy seat: the shechinah, or manifestation of the divine presence, in the holy of holies; the sacred fire on the altar, which had been first kindled from heaven; the urim and thummim; and the spirit of prophecy. But the second temple surpassed the first in glory; being honoured by the frequent presence of our divine Saviour, agreeably to the prediction of  Haggai 2:9 . Both, however, were erected upon the same site, a very hard rock, encompassed by a very frightful precipice; and the foundation was laid with incredible expense and labour. The superstructure was not inferior to this great work: the height of the temple wall, especially on the south side, was stupendous. In the lowest places it was three hundred cubits, or four hundred and fifty feet, and in some places even greater. This most magnificent pile was constructed with hard white stones of prodigious magnitude. The temple itself, strictly so called, which comprised the portico, the sanctuary, and the holy of holies formed only a small part of the sacred edifice on Mount Moriah, being surrounded by spacious courts, making a square of half a mile in circumference. It was entered through nine gates, which were on every side thickly coated with gold and silver; but there was one gate without the holy house, which was of Corinthian brass, the most precious metal in ancient times, and which far surpassed the others in beauty. For while these were of equal magnitude, the gate composed of Corinthian brass was much larger; its height being fifty cubits, and its doors forty cubits, and its ornaments both of gold and silver being far more costly and massive. This is supposed to have been the "gate called Beautiful" in  Acts 3:2 , where Peter and John, in the name of Christ, healed a man who had been lame from his birth. The first or outer court, which encompassed the holy house and the other courts, was named the court of the Gentiles; because the latter were allowed to enter into it, but were prohibited from advancing farther. It was surrounded by a range of porticoes, or cloisters, above which were galleries, or apartments, supported by pillars of white marble, each consisting of a single piece, and twenty-five cubits in height. One of these was called Solomon's porch, or piazza, because it stood on a vast terrace, which he had originally raised from a valley beneath, four hundred cubits high, in order to enlarge the area on the top of the mountain, and make it equal to the plan of his intended building; and as this terrace was the only work of Solomon that remained in the second temple, the piazza which stood upon it retained the name of that prince. Here it was that our Lord was walking at the feast of dedication,  John 10:23; and that the lame man, when healed by Peter and John, glorified God before all the people,  Acts 3:11 . This superb portico is termed the royal portico by Josephus, who represents it as the noblest work beneath the sun, being elevated to such a prodigious height, that no one could look down from its flat roof to the valley below, without being seized with dizziness; the sight not reaching to such an immeasurable depth. The south-east corner of the roof of this portico, where the height was the greatest, is supposed to have been the πτερυγιον , pinnacle, or extreme angle, whence Satan tempted our Saviour to precipitate himself,  Matthew 4:5;  Luke 4:9 . This also was the spot where it was predicted that the abomination of desolation, or the Roman ensigns, should stand,  Daniel 9:27;  Matthew 24:15 . Solomon's portico was situated in the eastern front of the temple, opposite to the mount of Olives, where our Saviour is said to have sat when his disciples came to show him the grandeur of its various buildings, of which, grand as they were, he said, the time was approaching when one stone should not be left upon another,  Matthew 24:1-3 . This outer court being assigned to the Gentile proselytes, the Jews, who did not worship in it themselves, conceived that it might lawfully be put to profane uses: for here we find that the buyers and sellers of animals for sacrifices, and also the money-changers, had stationed themselves; until Jesus Christ, awing them into submission by the grandeur and dignity of his person and behaviour, expelled them; telling them that it was the house of prayer for all nations, and was not to be profaned,  Matthew 21:12-13;  Mark 11:15-17 . Within the court of the Gentiles stood the court of the Israelites, divided into two parts, or courts; the outer one being appropriated to the women, and the inner one to the men. The court of the women was separated from that of the Gentiles by a low stone wall, or partition, of elegant construction, on which stood pillars at equal distances, with inscriptions in Greek and Latin, importing that no alien should enter into the holy place. To this wall St.

Paul most evidently alludes in  Ephesians 2:13-14 : "But now in Christ Jesus, ye, who sometimes were far off, are made nigh by the blood of Christ: for he is our peace, who hath made both one, (united both Jews and Gentiles into one church,) and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us;" having abolished the law of ordinances, by which, as by the wall of separation, both Jews and Gentiles were not only kept asunder, but also at variance. In this court was the treasury, over against which Christ sat, and beheld how the people threw their voluntary offerings into it, for furnishing the victims and other things necessary for the sacrifices,  Mark 12:41;  John 8:20 . From the court of the women, which was on higher ground than that of the Gentiles, there was an ascent of fifteen steps into the inner or men's court: and so called because it was appropriated to the worship of the male Israelites. In these two courts, collectively termed the court of the Israelites, were the people praying, each apart by himself, for the pardon of his sins, while Zacharias was offering incense within the sanctuary,  Luke 1:10 . Within the court of the Israelites was that of the priests, which was separated from it by a low wall, one cubit in height. This enclosure surrounded the altar of burnt- offerings, and to it the people brought their oblations and sacrifices; but the priests alone were permitted to enter it. From this court twelve steps ascended to the temple, strictly so called; which was divided into three parts, the portico, the outer sanctuary, and the holy place. In the portico was suspended the splendid votive offerings made by the piety of various individuals. Among other treasures, there was a golden table given by Pompey, and several golden vines of exquisite workmanship, as well as of immense size; for Josephus relates, that there were clusters as tall as a man. And he adds, that all around were fixed up and displayed the spoils and trophies taken by Herod from the barbarians and Arabians. These votive offerings, it should seem, were visible at a distance; for when Jesus Christ was sitting on the mount of Olives, and his disciples called his attention to the temple, they pointed out to him the gifts with which it was adorned,  Luke 21:5 . This porch had a very large portal or gate, which, instead of folding doors, was furnished with a costly Babylonian veil, of many colours, that mystically denoted the universe. From this the sanctuary, or holy place, was separated from the holy of holies by a double veil, which is supposed to have been the veil that was rent in twain at our Saviour's crucifixion; thus emblematically pointing out that the separation between Jews and Gentiles was abolished; and that the privilege of the high priest was communicated to all mankind, who might henceforth have access to the throne of grace through the one great Mediator, Jesus Christ,  Hebrews 10:19-22 . The holy of holies was twenty cubits square: into it no person was admitted but the high priest, who entered it once a year on the great day of atonement,  Exodus 30:10;  Leviticus 16:2;  Leviticus 16:15;  Leviticus 16:34;  Hebrews 9:2-7 .

Magnificent as the rest of the sacred edifice was, it was infinitely surpassed in splendour by the inner temple, or sanctuary. Its appearance, according to Josephus, had every thing that could strike the mind, or astonish the sight: for it was covered on every side with plates of gold; so that when the sun rose upon it, it reflected so strong and dazzling an effulgence, that the eye of the spectator was obliged to turn away, being no more able to sustain its radiance than the splendour of the sun. To strangers who were approaching: it appeared at a distance like a mountain covered with snow; for where it was not decorated with plates of gold, it was extremely white and glistening. On the top it had sharp-pointed spikes of gold, to prevent any bird from resting upon it and polluting it. There were, continues the Jewish historian, in that building, several stones which were forty-five cubits in length, five in height, and six in breadth. "When all these things are considered," says Harwood, "how natural is the exclamation of the disciples, when viewing this immense building at a distance: ‘Master, see what manner of stones' (ποταποι λιθοι , ‘what very large ones') ‘and what buildings are here!'  Mark 13:1 : and how wonderful is the declaration of our Lord upon this, how unlikely to be accomplished before the race of men who were then living should cease to exist! ‘Seest thou these great buildings? There shall not be left one stone upon another that shall not be thrown down.' Improbable as this prediction must have appeared to the disciples at that time, in the short space of about thirty years after it was exactly accomplished; and this most magnificent temple, which the Jews had literally turned into a den of thieves, through the righteous judgment of God upon that wicked and abandoned nation, was utterly destroyed by the Romans A.D. 70, or 73 of the vulgar era, on the same month, and on the same day of the month, when Solomon's temple had been razed to the ground by the Babylonians!"

Both the first and second temples were contemplated by the Jews with the highest reverence. Of their affectionate regard for the first temple, and for Jerusalem, within whose walls it was built, we have several instances in those Psalms which were composed during the Babylonish captivity; and of their profound veneration for the second temple we have repeated examples in the New Testament. They could not bear any disrespectful or dishonourable thing to be said of it. The least injurious slight of it, real or apprehended, instantly awakened all the choler of a Jew, and was an affront never to be forgiven. Our Saviour, in the course of his public instructions, having said, "Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up again,"

 John 2:19 , it was construed into a contemptuous disrespect, designedly thrown out against the temple; his words instantly descended into the heart of the Jews, and kept rankling there for some years; for, upon his trial, this declaration, which it was impossible for a Jew ever to forget or to forgive, was immediately alleged against him, as big with the most atrocious guilt and impiety; they told the court they had heard him publicly assert, "I am able to destroy this temple,"  Matthew 26:61 . The rancour and virulence they had conceived against him for this speech, was not softened by all the affecting circumstances of that wretched death they saw him die; even as he hung upon the cross, with triumph, scorn, and exultation, they upbraided him with it, contemptuously shaking their heads, and saying, "Thou that destroyest the temple, and buildest it in three days, save thyself! If thou be the Son of God, come down from the cross!"  Matthew 27:40 . It only remains to add, that it appears, from several passages of Scripture, that the Jews had a body of soldiers who guarded the temple, to prevent any disturbances during the ministration of such an immense number of priests and Levites. To this guard Pilate referred, when he said to the chief priests and Pharisees who waited upon him to desire he would make the sepulchre secure, "Ye have a watch, go your way, and make it as secure as ye can,"  Matthew 27:65 . Over these guards one person had the supreme command, who in several places is called the captain of the temple, or officer of the temple guard. "And as they spake unto the people, the priests and the captain of the temple and the Sadducees came upon them,"  Acts 4:1;  Acts 5:25-26;  John 18:12 . Josephus mentions such an officer.

American Tract Society Bible Dictionary

A building hallowed by the special presence of God, and consecrated to his worship. The distinctive idea of a temple, contrasted with all other buildings, is that it is the dwelling-place of a deity; and every heathen temple had its idol, but the true and living God dwelt "between the cherubim" in the Holy of Holies at Jerusalem. Hence, figuratively applied, a temple denotes the church of Christ,  2 Thessalonians 2:4   Revelation 3:12; heaven,  Psalm 11:4   Revelation 7:15; and the soul of the believer, in which the Holy Spirit dwells,  1 Corinthians 3:16,17   6:19   2 Corinthians 6:16 .

After the Lord had instructed David that Jerusalem was the place he had chosen in which to fix his dwelling, that pious prince began to realize his design of preparing a temple for the Lord that might be something appropriate to His divine majesty. But the honor was reserved for Solomon his son and successor, who was to be a peaceful prince, and like David, who had shed much blood in war. David, however, applied himself to collect great quantities of gold, silver, brass, iron, and other materials for this undertaking,  2 Samuel 1:1-25   7:1-29   1 Chronicles 22:1-19 .

The place chosen for erecting this magnificent structure was Mount Moriah,  Genesis 2:2,14   2 Chronicles 3:1 , the summit of which originally was unequal, and its sides irregular; but it was a favorite object of the Jews to level and extend it. The plan and the whole model of this structure was laid by the same divine architect as that of the tabernacle, namely, God himself; and it was built much in the same form as the tabernacle, but was of much larger dimensions. The utensils for the sacred service were also the same as those used in the tabernacle, only several of them were larger, in proportion to the more spacious edifice to which they belonged. The foundations of this magnificent edifice were laid by Solomon, in the year B. C. 1011, about four hundred and eighty years after the exodus and the building of the tabernacle; and it was finished B. C. 1004, having occupied seven years and six months in the building. It was dedicated with peculiar solemnity to the worship of Jehovah, who condescended to make it the place for the special manifestation of his glory,  2 Chronicles 5:1-7:22 . The front or entrance to the temple was on the eastern side, and consequently facing the Mount of Olives, which commanded a noble prospect of the building. The temple itself, strictly so called, which comprised the Porch, the Sanctuary, and the Holy of Holies, formed only a small part of the sacred precincts, being surrounded by spacious courts, chambers, and other apartments, which were much more extensive than the temple itself. It should be observed that the word temple does not always denote the central edifice itself, but in many passages some of the outer courts are intended.

From the descriptions which are handed down to us of the temple of Solomon, it is utterly impossible to obtain so accurate an idea of its relative parts and their respective proportions, as to furnish such an account as may be deemed satisfactory to the reader. Hence we find no two writers agreeing in their descriptions. The following account may give a general idea of the building.

The Temple itself was seventy cubits long; the Porch being ten cubits,  1 Kings 6:3 , the Holy place forty cubits,  1 Kings 6:17 , and the Most Holy place, twenty cubits,  2 Chronicles 3:8 . The width of the Porch, Holy, and Most Holy places was thirty cubits,  1 Kings 6:2; but the height of the porch was much greater, being no less than one hundred and twenty cubits,  2 Chronicles 3:4 , or four times the height of the rest of the building. The Most Holy place was separated from the Sanctuary by an impervious veil,  Luke 23:45 , and was perhaps wholly dark,  1 Kings 8:12 , but for the glory of the Lord which filled it. To the north and south sides, and the west end of the Holy and Most Holy places, or all around the edifice, from the back of the porch on one side, to the back of the porch on the other side, certain buildings were attached. These were called side chambers, and consisted of three stories, each five cubits high,  1 Kings 6:10 , and joined to the wall of the temple without. Thus the three stories of side chambers, when taken together, were fifteen cubits high, and consequently reached exactly to half the height of the side walls and end of the temple; so that there was abundance of space above these for the windows which gave light to the temple,  1 Kings 6:4 .

Solomon's temple appears to have been surrounded by two main courts: the inner court, that "of the Priests,"  1 Kings 6:36   2 Chronicles 4:9; and the outer court, that "of Israel;" these were separated by a "middle wall of partition," with lodges for priests and Levites, for wood, oil, etc.,  1 Chronicles 28:12 . The ensuing description is applicable to the temple courts in the time of our Lord.

The "court of the Gentiles" was so called because it might be entered by persons of all nations. The chief entrance to it was by the east or Shushan gate, which was the principal gate of the temple. It was the exterior court, and by far the largest of all the courts belonging to the temple, and is said to have covered a space of more than fourteen acres. It entirely surrounded the other courts and the temple itself; and in going up to the temple from its east or outer gate, one would cross first this court, then the court of the Women, then that of Israel, and lastly that of the Priests. This outmost court was separated from the court of the women by a wall three cubits high of lattice work, and having inscriptions on its pillars forbidding Gentiles and unclean persons to pass beyond it, on pain of death,  Acts 21:28   Ephesians 2:13,14 . From this court of the Gentiles our Savior drove the persons who had established a cattle-market in it, for the purpose of supplying those with sacrifices who came from a distance,  Matthew 21:12-13 . We must not overlook the beautiful pavement of variegated marble, and the "porches" or covered walks, with columns supported magnificent galleries, with which this court was surrounded. Those on the east, west, and north sides were of the same dimensions; but that on the south was much larger. The porch called Solomon's  John 10:23   Acts 3:11 , was on the east side or front of this court, and was so called because it was built by this prince, upon a high wall rising from the alley of Kidron.

The "court of the Women," called in Scripture the "new court,"  2 Chronicles 20:5 , and the "outer court,"  Ezekiel 46:21 , separated the court of the Gentiles from the court of Israel, extending along the east side only of the latter. It was called the court of the women because it was their appointed place of worship, beyond which they might not go, unless when they brought a sacrifice, in which case they went forward to the court of Israel. The gate which led into this court from that of the Gentiles, was "the Beautiful gate" of the temple, mentioned in  Acts 3:2,10; so called, because the folding doors, lintel, and side-posts were all overlaid with Corinthian brass. The worshipper ascended to its level by a broad flight of steps. It was in this court of the women, called the "treasury," that our Savior delivered his striking discourse to the Jews, related in  John 8:1-20 . It was into this court also that the Pharisee and the publican went to pray,  Luke 18:10-13 , and hither the lame man followed Peter and John, after he was cured- the court of the women being the ordinary place of worship for those who brought no sacrifice,  Acts 3:8 . From thence, after prayers, he went back with them, through the "Beautiful gate" of the temple, where he had been lying, and through the sacred fence, into the court of the Gentiles, where, under the eastern piazza, or Solomon's porch, Peter preached Christ crucified. It was in the same court of the women that the Jews laid hold of Paul, when they judged him a violator of the temple by taking Gentiles within the sacred fence,  Acts 21:26-29 .

The "court of Israel" was separated from the court of the women by a wall thirty-two and a half cubits high on the outside, but on the inside only twenty-five. The reason of which difference was, that as the rock on which the temple stood became higher on advancing westward, the several courts naturally became elevated in proportion. The ascent into this court from the east was by a flight of fifteen steps, of a semicircular form, and the magnificent gate Nicanor. On these steps the Levites stood in singing the "songs of degrees." The whole length of the court from east to west was one hundred and eighty-seven cubits, and the breadth from north to south, one hundred and thirty-five cubits. In this court, and the piazza which surrounded it, the Israelites stood in solemn and reverent silence while their sacrifices were burning in the inner court, and while the services of the sanctuary were performed,  Luke 1:8-11,21,22 .

Within this court, and surrounded by it, was the "court of the Priests;" one hundred and sixty-five cubits long and one hundred and nineteen cubits wide, and raised two and a half cubits above the surrounding court, from which it was separated by pillars and a railing. Within this court stood the brazen altar on which the sacrifices were consumed, the molten sea in which the priests washed, and the ten brazen lavers for washing the sacrifices; also the various utensils and instruments for sacrificing, which are enumerated in  2 Chronicles 4:1-22 . It is necessary to observe here, that although the court of the Priests was not accessible to all Israelites, as that of Israel was to all the priests, yet they might enter it for three several purposes: to lay their hands on the animals which they offered, or to kill them, or to wave some part of them.

From the court of the Priests, the ascent to the temple was by a flight of twelve steps, each half a cubit in height, which led into the sacred porch. Of the dimensions of this in Solomon's temple, as also of the Sanctuary and Holy of Holies, we have already spoken. It was within the door of the porch, and in the sight of those who stood in the courts immediately before it, that the two pillars, Jachiin and Boaz, were placed,  2 Chronicles 3:17   Ezekiel 40:49 .

The temple of Solomon retained its pristine splendor but thirtythree years, when it was plundered by Shishak king of Egypt,  1 Kings 14:25,26   2 Chronicles 12:9 . After this period it underwent sundry profanities and pillages from Hazael, Tiglath-pileser, Sennacherib, etc.,  2 Kings 12:1-21   16:1-20   18:1-37; and was at length utterly destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, B. C. 588, after having stood according to Usher, four hundred and twenty-four years, three months, and eight days.

After lying in ruins for fifty-two years, the foundations of the second temple were laid by Zerubbabel, and the Jews who had availed themselves of the privilege granted by Cyrus and returned to Jerusalem,  Ezra 1:1-4   2:1   3:8-10 . After various hindrances, it was finished and dedicated twenty-one years after it was begun, B. C. 515,  Ezra 6:15-16 . The dimensions of this temple in breadth and height were double those of Solomon's. The weeping of the people at the laying of the foundation, therefore,  Ezra 3:12-13 , and the disparaging manner in which they spoke of it, when compared with he first one,  Haggai 2:3 , were occasioned by its inferiority not in size, but in glory. It wanted the five principal things which could invest it with this: namely, the ark and mercy seat, the divine presence or visible glory, the holy fire on the altar, the urim and thummin, and the Spirit of prophecy. In the year B. C. 163, this temple was plundered and profaned by Antiochus Epiphanes, who ordered the discontinuance of the daily sacrifice, offered swine's flesh upon the altar, and completely suspended the worship of Jehovah. Thus it continued for three years, when it was repaired and purified by Judas Maccabaeus, who restored the divine worship, and dedicated it anew.

Herod, having slain all the Sanhedrim, except two, in the first year of his reign, B. C. 37, resolved to atone for it by rebuilding and beautifying the temple. This he was the more inclined to do, both from the peace which he enjoyed, and the decayed state of the edifice. After employing two years in preparing the materials for the work, the temple of Zerubbabel was pulled down, B. C. 17, and fortysix years before the first Passover of Christ's ministry. Although this temple was fit for divine service in nine years and a half, yet a great number of laborers and artificers were still employed in carrying on the outbuildings all the time of our Savior's abode on earth. His presence fulfilled the predictions in  Haggai 2:9   Malachi 3:1 . The temple of Herod was considerably larger than that of Zerubbabel, as that of Zerubbabel was larger than Solomon's. For whereas the second temple was seventy cubits long, sixty broad, and sixty high, this was one hundred cubits long, seventy broad, and one hundred high. The porch was raised to the height of one hundred cubits, and was extended fifteen cubits beyond each side of the rest of the building. All the Jewish writers praise this temple exceedingly for its beauty and the costliness of its workmanship. It was built of white marble, exquisitely wrought, and with stones of large dimensions, some of them twenty-five cubits long, eight cubits high, and twelve cubits thick. To these there is no doubt a reference in  Mark 13:1   Luke 21:5 : "And as he went out of the temple, one of his disciples saith unto him, Master, see what manner of stones, and what buildings are here!" Luke says, "goodly stones." See a description of the ornaments of one of its gates under Vine .

This splendid building, which rose like a mount of gold and of snow, and was once the admiration and envy of the world, has forever passed away. According to our blessed Lord's prediction, that "there should not be left one stone upon another that should not be thrown down,"  Mark 13:2 , the whole structure above ground was completely demolished by the Roman soldiers, under Titus, A. D. 70. The temple area is now occupied by two Turkish mosques, into which, until recently, neither Jew nor Christian was permitted to enter. Beneath the vast area of El-Haram still exist immense arched ways and vaults of unknown date; also a large and deep well, and other indications that the temple always possessed a copious and perennial supply of water, derived perhaps in part from Gihon by Hezekiah's aqueduct, and in part from Solomon's pools, and flowing off through the fountain of the Virgin and the pool of Siloam. In the outer walls of the present area are seen at several places stones of vast size, evidently belonging to the ancient walls. Near the southwest corner certain huge stones mark the beginning of an arch, a part of the stately bridge which anciently connected the temple are with Mount Zion; and a little north of this spot is the celebrated wailing-place of the Jews. See Wall.

In the time of the kings, a regular guard of Levites was always on duty at the temple,  1 Chronicles 26:1-32   2 Chronicles 23:19 . During the supremacy of the Romans there was a Roman garrison in the strong tower of Antonia, which, with its various courts and fortifications, adjoined the temple area on the north, and was connected with it by passages both above and under ground,  John 18:12   Acts 4:1   5:26   21:31-40 .

The utmost veneration and love were always cherished towards the temple by pious Jews,  Psalm 84:1-12 . All the people also, from various motives, gloried in it, many with a bigoted and idolatrous regard. Hence the charge of blaspheming the temple, which was found the most effectual means of enraging the populace against Christ and his followers,  Matthew 26:61   27:40   John 2:19,20   Acts 6:13   21:27-30 .

Baker's Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology

While the temple certainly has a history and integrity of its own, it was created by extension of the tabernacle and is associated with such diverse topics as a mountain and a city, the cosmos and a person's body, and God's glory and name. The biblical authors from Moses through Ezekiel and Haggai to John of Patmos never describe a complete temple, but offer a vision of what the temple was to be: the locus of the presence of God.

Offering a vision rather than a blueprint for the temple is in keeping with the inherent ambiguity of the concept "temple of the Lord, " for how can the transcendent deity be localized in a building? The vision is also in keeping with the function of temple as a symbol. The temple is indeterminate literally and figuratively.

The Preexistence of the Temple . The foundation for temple is laid in the Pentateuch. Already in the patriarchs we find the promise of God's presence: "Do not be afraid, for I am with you, I will bless you" ( Genesis 26:24 ). How and where will this presence be mediated?

Although various locales were deemed sacred by virtue of God's presence ( Genesis 32:30 ), patriarchal religion did not put much importance on sacred space or the cultic practices that typify Mosaic Yahwism. Nevertheless, in various forms of foreshadowing, we find the usual lines of continuity with later persons, events, institutions, and practices—Scripture's penchant for typology. Thus "Jerusalem, " where centralization of the cult eventually took place, figures prominently in two key texts that address "cultic" issues: in  Genesis 22 with the "binding" (sacrifice) of Isaac ("Moriah" cf.   2 Chronicles 3:1 ) and in  Genesis 14 with the tithe paid to Melchizedek.

With Mosaic Yahwism a change in perspective and practice occurs. God appears to the newly created covenantal community, a community formed by the exodus and, now at Sinai (which parallels Jerusalem as a place par excellence for "visions" of God), given an identity, including instructions where Yahweh's presencewith the full implication of both blessing and dangerwould be manifest ( Exodus 24-26;  33:12-17 ).

How would God's presence in the covenant community and ceremony be evident? Inevitably certain symbols were necessary (despite the aniconic nature of Mosaic Yahwism  Exodus 20:4 ). The symbols appeal to the senses, but not simply as "visual aids." The ark, cherubim, and the tent of the meeting become the institutional representations of the Lord's presence among his people. Here, in this place , Yahweh appears and makes his will known ( Exodus 33:7-11 ).

The tent of the meeting in the Pentateuch, and the priestly tabernacle, is not, however, a projection (or retrojection!) of the temple, but an independent dwelling reflecting the life of Israel prior to settlement and the centralization of worship. The tent is a "portable temple" of sorts, but not provisional nor simply a pattern; rather, the tent is a unique "dwelling."

With the ritual performances in the tabernacle/ temple complex, and the personnel and attendant appurtenances, we come to a theologically significant point about temple practice: coming into the presence of a holy God. In each change of location, vestment, instrument, or ritual act, with their various gradations of importance, the "needs" of the people and the holiness of God come together: I am holy, it is holy, you are (to be) holy.

The extensions and the symbolic associations began early in the canonical literature. As a commentary on the Torah, Deuteronomy expresses the presence of Yahweh in the cult devoid of some simplistic equation of Yahweh's presence constrained by the natural order of cause and effect by utilizing his alter ego, his "name, " as the manifestation of his transcendent reality. Even the ark itself is divested of its throne-like setting by its role as the "container" of the tablets of the law ( Deuteronomy 10:1-5 ). Yahweh is not seated on a throne like some dowager duchess.

The paradoxical and symbolic nature of the temple is thus seen as the author(s) construct the parameters of temple theology: the transcendent deity graciously appears before his holy people in the place of his choosing, a dwelling symbolically rich by virtue of its ability to generate varied metaphoric associations (fire, cloud, tent, ark, and most especially "name" in the Pentateuch).

The Construction of the Temple . The construction of the temple began with David to serve as, at least on sociopolitical grounds, a "media event" of divine support and favor. David, however, was deterred from completing the task. No doubt sociopolitical forces played their usual role in this. The biblical authors were not oblivious to these explanations ( 1 Kings 5:13-18 ), but characteristically pass theological judgment ( 1 Chronicles 22:8-9 ), or, more important, God himself divulges his feelings on the matter: "Did I ever say Why have you not built me a house of cedar'?" ( 2 Samuel 7:7 ). God does not require an immutable dwelling, but the metaphoric associations are kept open, even those of monarchal justification (i.e., a "house" like the house in which the monarch resides).

The "cedar house" is ultimately built. And in Solomon's great prayer of dedication the paradox of this dwelling is acknowledged once again by his classic statement: "But will God really dwell on earth? The heavens, even the highest heaven, cannot contain you. How much less this temple I have built!" ( 1 Kings 8:27 ). The paradox is softened by "quoting" the Deuteronomic "name" formula: "My Name shall be [in this place]" (v. 29). (This terminology underscores the point that the correspondence between God's presence and his "dwelling"tabernacle or templeis more "textual" than physical.) But what does the Lord think of this structure?

Solomon, like Bezalel before him with the building of the tabernacle, is described as having "wisdom." Unlike Bezalel, however, Solomon sends straightaway for supplies and instructions from Phoenician artisans. Moreover, a labor force is needed to complete the project, a force not unlike what the Israelites experienced in Egypt. Finally, Solomon is portrayed as the central figure in the planning and implementation of the project: "As for this temple that you are building " (  1 Kings 6:12 ). No editorial judgment from the author is forthcoming from these contrasts, but the reader is left with the impression that Solomon's project is equivocal before God.

The equivocal nature of the project is supported by the Lord's response to it in  1 Kings 9:3-5 . The Lord does hallow the place, but it is still Solomon's doing: "I have consecrated this temple which you have built" (v. 3). A clear stipulation is also attached: "if you walk before me " (v. 4; the sanctity of the place must be preserved, at the very least).

Responses to the Temple . What responses do we find in Scripture to the building of the temple beyond those found in the immediate context of it being built?

Rather than "going up" to the mountain of the house of the Lord to hear the word of the Lord, as in the eschatological visions of Isaiah and Micah (4:1-2), the Babylonians "descend" upon the temple to break down its wall and carry off the temple treasures. After centuries of covenant disloyalty, the Lord withdraws his presence from this place (  Ezekiel 10:18 ); in fact, he is driven from the temple because of the abominations of the people ( Ezekiel 8:6 ). This destruction could be seen as one of the contingencies of history except for the interpretations put upon it; the theologian of Lamentations states the destruction of the temple in unequivocal terms: "The Lord determined to tear down the wall of the Daughter of Zion" (2:8). The destruction is purposed by God because the people failed to live before him .

Reconstructing the Temple . High on the agenda of the postexilic community was the rebuilding of the temple. Indeed, it was not long before all their troubleswhich were manywere attributed to the disrepair, the virtual absence, of the dwelling of God ( Haggai 1:3-9 ). The question must surely be asked: Why? Why, after a stern critique by the prophets, an outmaneuvering in the wisdom tradition, and its abandonment by God and destruction, would the people rebuild this structure?

The most obvious and strongest answer is that the Lord commands its construction ( Ezra 1:2 ). But a further answer lies in the theological sophistication of the biblical authors themselves and in the power of this symbol to go beyond mere structure. The means for rebuilding temple theology are present in the preexilic theology itself, the selfsame theology that so thoroughly critiqued an overly literal-minded approach to the presence of God.

The temple was always symbolic, "textual" even before (and as much as) it was physical. To the extent that the metaphoric associations speak to the reality of our experience(s) before God, the symbol retains its power as a symbol . Although Jeremiah held little esteem for the ark/temple, he nevertheless prophesied that God's throne would be Jerusalem itself (3:17), and Torah would be written in their hearts (31:31-34). These extensions of the symbol are developed further in the New Testament ( Revelation 21:22-27 : "I did not see a temple in the city, because the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple Nothing impure will ever enter it." ). The relativizing of the temple and moral earnestness that we see in Jeremiah were precisely the points of the Deuteronomic theology that influenced the short-lived reforms of Josiah.

The most extensive view of the new temple comes from Ezekiel. The construction of the temple is once again more ideal than real. In Ezekiel's new temple a remarkable event takes place: water flows from the temple (in Jerusalem) with such abundance that it calls to mind the rivers of paradise (see also  Psalm 46:4;  Revelation 21:6 ).

The Songs of Zion in the Psalter are particularly rich in their celebration of the temple. With all their "sensuality"the reader is instructed to "behold" the beauty of the temple; walk about it; clap and shout; smell; bow down; and other sense-oriented activitiesthe Songs show that one is not to ponder the temple simply as a theological abstraction. The one who enters the temple not only receives spiritual blessings but material ones as well ( Psalm 36:7-9 ).

While we do not find much by way of extensions of this symbol, its paradoxical and metaphoric nature are everywhere testified to in what takes place in the life of the communicant. The most powerful statement of this sort comes in  Psalm 73 , where the psalmist cries out because his inherited beliefs are at odds with his personal experiences. Everything is "oppressive" (v. 16). "Till I entered the sanctuary of God " and what unfolds is a transformation of his character and his understanding of God. What happens in the sanctuary? It is, as it should be, unspecified. We are simply told at the end of the psalm that "as for me, it is good to be near God I will tell of all your deeds."

In sum, by building the temple and by extending the metaphoric associations with temple, a continuity between the pre- and postexilic community was established ( Ezra 1:7;  Haggai 2:9 ). For all the critique of the temple, in the final analysis, Yahweh takes pleasure in this place and it is a source of delight for those who assemble there ( Psalm 43:3-4;  65:4;  84:1 ).

Jesus, Paul, and Judaism . In Judaism the temple was the religious, cultural, and national center; indeed, the temple was a microcosm of the universe. The power of the temple as a symbol is especially seen in its ability to continue long after the temple building itself was destroyed in a.d. 70.

According to the Gospels, Jesus participated fully in the practices and ethos of the temple. Jesus' birth was announced in the temple ( Luke 1:17;  2:27-32 ), where he was also circumcised and studied with the rabbis as a lad ( Luke 2:46 ). Later, of course, Jesus taught in the temple himself ( John 7:14 ). It is not without significance that while Jesus is teaching in the temple precincts, he says, "If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me" ( John 7:37 ), and the next day offers forgiveness to the woman taken in adultery ( John 8:1-11 ). Blessing and forgiveness, priestly functions, are pronounced by Jesus in the shadow of the temple.

Jesus is not only a communicant and priest of sorts; he is also a prophet. Thus, when the temple practices are compromised, Jesus assails those who jeopardize the sanctity of the temple: "My house will be called a house of prayer But you have made it a den of robbers" ( Mark 11:17 ). They were not living before God . Jesus, while teaching in its precincts, preserves the sanctity of the temple by his ethical admonitions. Even the forgiven woman is told to sin no more ( John 8:11; see also  John 4:23 ).

In the cleansing of the temple we also find a development and extension of the metaphoric associations of temple. Jesus employs a wordplay equivocating on the term "body" to break the parochial thinking of his audience ( John 2:19 ). John characteristically points out the error of their literal-mindedness: "But the temple he had spoken of was his body" ( John 2:21 ). Thus, in Jesus' acts and words we see the temple once again as a place of holiness, of danger (words of judgment; Jesus's own death) as well as blessing, and further extensions of the symbol are generated.

Paul also makes the correspondence between the temple and body: "Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit?" ( 1 Corinthians 6:19; see also  Romans 12:1-2 ). Of course, the believer can be called the temple of God only because Christ himself is the temple and the believer participates in Christ (  1 Corinthians 3:9-17 ). The believer, like Paul himself, must be (cultically) pure in order to live in God's presence ( 2 Corinthians 2:17 ). If God can dwell in a holy place , by extension, he could dwell in a holy person!

After the destruction of the temple in a.d. 70, temple theology loses none of its living and healing power since the temple was always "beyond" its physical presence. A theology of temple answers the problem of how God's presence is mediated. Specifically, temple theology recognizes the importance of "sacred space." Its analogue is sacred timeSabbath, festivals, and appointed times of prayer. Humankind is oriented in time and space, thus Sabbath and temple testify to "eternity" beyond the confines of our usual orientation. Sabbath and temple redeem time and space.

Temple theology shows a high degree of theological sophisticationholding ambivalent attitudes/doctrines in tension, part of the mystery of faith, of paradox. Temple theology is most fruitful when it is functioning as a powerful symbol, with the ability to be fully grounded in (sacred) space and yet generate new metaphoric associationsa vision of life in the presence of the Lord. Even though the temple is both protological and eschatological, it is always grounded in the realities of our lives: it is a mere edifice, yet, Behold! Thy God.

Anthony J. Petrotta

See also Altar; Israel; Offerings And Sacrifices; Priesthood Priest; Tabernacle

Bibliography . B. Childs, Old Testament Theology in a Canonical Context  ; R. E. Clements, God and Temple  ; idem, Wisdom for a Changing World  ; R. H. Gundry, Soma in Biblical Theology  ; M. Haran, Temples and Temple Service in Ancient Israel  ; A. J. Heschel, Quest for God  ; A. F. Kirkpatrick, The Book of Psalms  ; M. E. Isaacs, An Approach to the Theology of the Epistle to the Hebrews  ; G. Josipovici, The Book of God  ; K. Koch, The Prophets: The Assyrian Period  ; C. Koester, The Dwelling of God  ; H. J. Kraus, The Theology of the Psalms  ; J. D. Levenson, Sinai and Zion  ; J. G. McConville, Law and Theology in Deuteronomy  ; W. McKane, Zaw 94 (1982): 251-66; D. H. Madvig, Nidntt, 3; R. Mason, Preaching the Tradition  ; C. Meyers, Ancient Israelite Religion  ; R. W. L. Moberly, The Old Testament of the Old Testament  ; J. Neusner, Wrong Ways and Right Ways in the Study of Formative Judaism  ; W. Nowottny, The Language Poets Use  ; D. A. Renwick, Paul, the Temple, and the Presence of God  ; J. Z. Smith, To Take Place  ; W. R. Smith, The Prophets of Israel and Their Place in History  ; idem, The Religion of the Semites  ; J. Soskice, Metaphor and Religious Language  ; N. T. Wright, The New Testament and the People of God .

People's Dictionary of the Bible

Temple. A place or building dedicated to religious worship. "God... dwelleth not in temples made with hands."  Acts 17:24. The word temple occurs in the A. V. about 200 times, generally referring to the one at Jerusalem. But the temple at Babylon is alluded to,  2 Chronicles 36:7;  Ezra 5:14; the temple of Diana at Ephesus,  Acts 19:27; the temple of God,  2 Corinthians 6:16, meaning the saints, and the temple in the Holy City—the New Jerusalem.  Revelation 21:22. The word specially designated the sanctuary of Jehovah at Jerusalem. There were three successive temples there; 1. Solomon's; 2. Zerubbabel's, known as the Second temple; 3. Herod's temple.

1. Solomon's Temple, was built on Mount Moriah, in the eastern part of Jerusalem, by Solomon, the king, as conceived and planned by his father David.  1 Chronicles 17:1. David gathered the materials and funds to build it—"an hundred thousand talents of gold, and a thousand thousand talents of silver; and of brass and iron without weight."  1 Chronicles 22:14. The silver and gold would be equal to from $2,000,000 to $4,000,000. Besides gold and silver, David collected immense quantities of "brass" (bronze or copper), iron, stone, timber, etc., and he secured skilful mechanics and artificers for every branch of the work.  1 Chronicles 22:1-19;  1 Chronicles 29:4;  1 Chronicles 29:7. He also furnished the design, plan, and location of the building; in all which he was divinely instructed.  1 Chronicles 21:1-30;  1 Chronicles 22:1-19;  1 Chronicles 28:11-19. There were 183,600 Jews and strangers employed on it—of Jews 30,000, by rotation 10,000 a month; of Canaanites, 153,600, of whom 70,000 were "bearers of burdens," 80,000 hewers of wood and stone, and 3600 overseers. The parts were all prepared at a distance from the site of the building, and when they were brought together the whole structure was erected without the sound of hammer, axe, or any tool of iron.  1 Kings 6:7. It required seven and one-half years to complete it in all its splendor, the glory of Jerusalem, and the most magnificent edifice in the world, b.c. 1005. Like the tabernacle, it had its front toward the east. All the arrangements of the temple were identical with those of the tabernacle, and the dimensions of every part exactly double those of the previous structure. It was 70 cubits long and 20 wide, and had in front a porch more than 200 feet high. All around the main structure there were attached to the north and south sides and at the west end certain buildings called side chambers,  1 Kings 6:10, three stories in height, which were much more extensive than the temple itself. The material was white stone: the woodwork of cedar, overlaid with fine gold; the floor of cedar, with planks of fir.  1 Kings 6:15. The holy of holies was a small square chamber, absolutely dark except by the light received through the entrance. In it were two huge golden figures, standing upright on their feet, on each side of the ark, which rested upon a protuberance of rough rock. Above the ark the wings of these cherubim met. The walls of the chambers which ran round the rest of the building were not allowed to lean against the outer walls of this sanctuary. The quarries of Solomon have been discovered under the present city of Jerusalem, near the Damascus gate. They are very extensive. The temple of Solomon stood 424 years; at times was allowed to fall into decay; was plundered by Shishak, king of Egypt, during the reign of Rehoboam.  1 Kings 14:25-26. After this it was frequently profaned and pillaged; was repaired by Joash,  2 Kings 12:5-14, and by Josiah,  2 Chronicles 29:3-9. Its destruction was prophesied by Jeremiah,  Jeremiah 7:2;  Jeremiah 7:14, and it was at last broken down and destroyed by the king of Babylon, and the nation itself carried Into captivity.  2 Kings 25:8-9;  2 Kings 25:13-17;  2 Chronicles 36:18-19, b.c. 586.

2. The Temple of Zerubbabel.— In b.c. 536 Cyrus the Persian king of Babylon gave permission to the Jews to return. Zerubbabel, as Jewish governor, and Joshua, the high priest, superintended the people in rebuilding the temple. Cyrus permitted and encouraged them to do this work.  Ezra 3:8. Owing to the opposition of their enemies, it was not, however, completed for 20 years, b.c. 515. The story of this long struggle and trouble is told in the book of Ezra. This second temple, though inferior in many respects to the first—having no ark, no mercy-seat, no visible revelation of the divine glory, no sacred fire, no Urim and Thummim, and no spirit of prophecy,  Ezra 3:12-13—still was in breadth and height, in almost every dimension, one-third larger than Solomon's.

3. Temple of Herod.— The temple of Zerubbabel after nearly 500 years had suffered much from wars, age, and decay, when Herod the Great, to secure the favor of the Jews, undertook to rebuild it. He began the work 20 years before the birth of Christ and completed the main building in one year and a half, and the adjoining buildings in eight years. But the work was not entirely ended till a.d. 64, under Herod Agrippa Ii. So the statement in  John 2:20 is correct. The building stood upon Mount Moriah, in an area which was 500 cubits square. Along the ramparts of the temple hill ran double cloisters or arcades, and there the money changers sat  Matthew 21:12. There were several courts about the temple which were upon different levels. The outer court, or court of the Gentiles, came first; then the court of the women, the court of Israel, the court of the priests, and then the temple itself. Between the first two came the "soreg" ("interwoven"), or "middle wall of partition."  Ephesians 2:14. It had 13 openings; upon it, at intervals, were stones with Greek inscriptions, threatening death to the Gentile who entered. A stone thus inscribed was discovered lately by an explorer in Palestine. The charge that Paul had brought such a Greek into the enclosure aroused the Jerusalem mob.  Acts 21:28. The court of Israel, 10 cubits by 135, was 15 steps higher up, and upon them the 15 Songs of Degrees— Psalms 120:1-7;  Psalms 121:1-8;  Psalms 122:1-9;  Psalms 123:1-4;  Psalms 124:1-8;  Psalms 125:1-5;  Psalms 126:1-6;  Psalms 127:1-5;  Psalms 128:1-6;  Psalms 129:1-8;  Psalms 130:1-8;  Psalms 131:1-3;  Psalms 132:1-18;  Psalms 133:1-3;  Psalms 134:1-3, inclusive—were sung. The musical instruments were kept there. It was merely a platform, and had no cloisters or columns. Only men especially purified could enter it. The court of the priests, or sanctuary, 135 by 176 cubits, was 2½ cubits higher than the court of Israel, the wall being 1 cubit high, with 3 steps above it On the wall there was a platform from which the priests blessed the people. The entrance of the temple was 20 cubits wide and 40 high. Over it hung the golden vine, supported, probably, by nails. The temple was of two stories; in the lower there were 38 chambers in three tiers; in the upper, none. The holy house was entered from the porch by a gate 20 cubits high and 10 broad, with double doors, opening out and in; before it hung a veil of equal width with the doors. Before the entrance to the holy of holies hung two veils or two curtains, 1 cubit apart, and, inasmuch as the opening of the outer curtain was upon the north, while the inner was on the south, no glimpse of the holy of holies could be obtained by any one but the high priest. The purification of Mary,  Luke 2:22, must have been near the gate Nicanor. The Child Jesus was found amid the doctors of the law in the temple courts.  Luke 2:46. The Beautiful Gate,  Acts 3:2, was one of the finest entrances to the temple. The castle of Antonia, from which, by a secret passageway, the Roman soldiery could be led down into the temple area to preserve order—as notably to rescue Paul,  Acts 21:31-32—was situated upon the northwestern corner of the outer cloister, and had four towers with a large interior space. Jesus foretold the destruction of the third temple: "There shall not be left here one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down."  Matthew 24:2;  Mark 13:2;  Luke 21:6. This prophecy was made about 30 a.d., and was fulfilled about 40 years afterward, by the Roman soldiers, who set the temple on fire and destroyed it in 70 a.d., although the Roman commander had given strict orders to have it preserved. About three centuries later, the emperor Julian attempted to rebuild it, but was prevented, for the terrific explosions that took place, as the workmen dug down for the foundations, caused them to throw away their implements, and the work was abandoned. See Milman's Hist. Christianity, iii. 27.

Up to quite recent times the Haram—as the enclosure containing the site of the temple is called, and where the mosques of Omar and el-Aksar now stand—was closed to all non-Mohammedans; but the pressure brought to bear after the Crimean war, 1856, was too great, and now travellers find little difficulty in gaining admittance.

The temple was a type of the Christian, for every Christian is a temple of the Holy Ghost.  1 Corinthians 3:16-17;  1 Corinthians 6:19;  2 Corinthians 6:16;  1 Peter 2:5. The temple seen by Ezekiel in vision is very fully described, and is supposed by some to be a figure of the actual temple. See  Ezekiel 40:1-49;  Ezekiel 41:1-26;  Ezekiel 42:1-20;  Ezekiel 43:1-27;  Ezekiel 44:1-31;  Ezekiel 45:1-25;  Ezekiel 46:1-24;  Ezekiel 47:1-23.

Hastings' Dictionary of the New Testament

The articles under this heading in Hasting's Dictionary of the Bible (5 vols) , Dict. of Christ and the Gospels , and Encyclopaedia Biblica make another description of the Temple and its services unnecessary. What is relevant here is an indication of the significance of the sanctuary and its ritualin apostolic Christianity.

1. Jewish Christians and the Temple. -St. Luke evidently attached much importance to the fact recorded at the end of his Gospel, that after the resurrection of Christ the apostles ‘were continually in the temple, blessing God’ ( Luke 24:53). Their assurance of Jesus’ Messiahship, proved by His victory over death, made no breach in the continuity of their Jewish faith and practice. It rather revealed to their minds a new wealth of meaning in the old ritual, and so fired themselves as worshippers with a new enthusiasm. A. C. McGiffert ( History of Christianity in the Apostolic Age , Edinburgh, 1897, p. 64f.) thinks that ‘it may fairly be supposed that the effect of their Christian faith was to make all of the early disciples more devout and earnest Jews than they had ever been.’ ‘We have distinct evidence that Christian Jews like other Jews frequented the temple, the sanctuary of the nation, and thereby maintained their claim to be Jews in the true sense’ (F. J. A. Hort, Judaistic Christianity , London, 1894, p. 45). After the baptism of fire on the Day of Pentecost they are found ‘continuing stedfastly with one accord in the temple’ ( Acts 2:46). Peter and John went up into the Temple at the hour of prayer ( Acts 3:1), and in the fulfilment of their commission as witnesses for Christ ( Acts 1:8) they found their best audiences in the Temple-courts. At the Beautiful Gate-either the Gate of Nicanor leading into the court of the Israelites or the Eastern Gate of the outer court-they moved the crowd by performing an act of healing in Christ’s name; and in Solomon’s Porch-the long colonnade in the east of the Temple area-Peter testified to the raising of the Prince of Life whom the rulers had in ignorance killed. It is significant that two apostles were arrested not by the religious, but by the secular authorities, i.e. the head of the Temple police (στρατηγὸς τοῦ ἱεροῦ) and the Sadducees ( Acts 4:1); and, if their freedom of speech was somewhat curtailed, this was not because of their attitude to the Temple and its services, which was evidently quite correct, but simply because they were said to be exciting the multitude and disturbing the peace. The reproof administered to them was as mild as their confinement was brief; and the Christian Jews, finding that they could not be excluded from the Temple precincts, continued to make Solomon’s Porch their ordinary rendezvous ( Acts 5:12). A second arrest of apostles followed, but the report has it that the angel who released them bade them go and speak in the Temple all the words of this life ( Acts 5:17-20), and accordingly they are again found standing there and teaching the people ( Acts 5:25). Until the appearance of Stephen created a new situation, the apostles were daily in the Temple, teaching and preaching Jesus as the Messiah. Against so strict and thoroughgoing Jews the guardians of the national religion, as embodied in the Temple and its cultus, had no ground of complaint, and the apostles on their side ‘could still cherish the hope that the nation at large might be brought to turn and bow the knee to its true Messiah’ (Hort, op. cit. , p. 45 f.). For the present the bearing of their teaching upon the Temple itself was but dimly, if at all, perceived, and wholly unexpressed.

2. Stephen and the Temple. -It was the protomartyr that brought Christianity into open conflict with Judaism. His attitude to the Temple has been variously understood. He was accused of speaking ‘blasphemous words against Moses, and against the law’ ( Acts 6:11), of ceasing not ‘to speak words against this holy place and the law’ (v. 13). C. von Weizsäcker ( Apostolic Age , Eng. translation, i.2 [London, 1897] 64) holds that his speech does not by any means refute the grounds of complaint. On the contrary, it is at least in part equivalent to a substantial justification of the doctrine complained of, since it declares at its close that the worship of God in this temple ‘made with hands’ had never been in accordance with the will of God. F. Spitta ( Die Apostelgeschichte , Halle, 1891, p. 105 f.) also thinks that the building of the Temple is represented by Stephen as an unauthorized and presumptuous act. Teaching of such a kind, however, would have brought Stephen into collision not only with the Hellenistic Jews, but with the whole body of Christians in Jerusalem. It seems much more likely that he made no theoretical attack upon the Mosaic Law, while his declaration that ‘the Most High dwelleth not in houses made with hands’ ( Acts 7:48-50) was so far from being new that it merely echoed the words of Solomon at the dedication of the first Temple ( 1 Kings 8:27). It was not the worship but the spirit of the worshippers that aroused his scornful indignation. Warning them, in the manner of the old prophets, that no amount of attention to outward ordinances could ever secure the favour of God, he demanded a spiritual as opposed to a mechanical religion. If he was in the habit of repeating Christ’s prediction of the destruction of the Temple at the Parousia-and this was probably what gave colour to the charges made against him-he interpreted that threat not as an abrogation of the Mosaic Law, but as a judgment upon the nation for its sin. The third Temple might fall as the first had fallen, and yet the Torah itself remain intact. ‘To call Stephen a forerunner of Paul, and to think of him as anticipating in any way Paul’s treatment of the Jewish law and his assertion of a free Gentile Christianity, is to misunderstand him’ (McGiffert, op. cit. , p. 89). For him, as for every other Jewish Christian in Jerusalem, the Law, without distinction of moral and ceremonial precepts, was ‘ordained of angels’; in his view the nation’s treatment of its prophets and its Messiah was the supreme proof that the Law had not been kept; and the burden of his preaching was a call to Jerusalem not to close her Temple and abolish her ritual, but to take the lead in a national repentance for a broken Law.

3. St. Paul and the Temple. -The recognition of the validity of a Christianity to which Jerusalem and the Temple were negligible quantities was the result of a protracted controversy in which St. Paul was the champion of freedom. For him the observance of the ancient ritual laws and traditions, which had so long been a matter of principle, becomes at last one of indifference. He is consequently accused of ‘teaching all the Jews which are among the Gentiles to forsake Moses’ ( Acts 21:21). This he never did, and, to prove that the charge was groundless, he was advised, during his last visit to Jerusalem, to conciliate the great mass of Christian Jews by performing the vow of a Nazirite in the Temple. Weizsäcker thinks that in the whole narrative of this episode ‘practically nothing is historical’ ( op. cit. , ii. [London, 1895] 14; but McGiffert holds ‘that Paul may well have done just what he is reported to have done’ ( op. cit. , p. 343). Had he been advised by James to prove that he habitually observed the Law as a matter of conscience, he could never have consented. But he had long been in the habit of identifying himself in things non-essential now with Jews and now with Gentiles in order that he might ‘win some of them’ ( 1 Corinthians 9:20), and the last instance of conformity was merely the most striking. What impression the object-lesson actually made upon the law-abiding Christian Jews for whom it was specially intended is not recorded; but it clearly had other results which were not anticipated, for the Jews rose in arms against St. Paul as a profaner of the Temple, and the Romans arrested him as a disturber of the peace.

4. St. James and the Temple. -James the Just, the Lord’s brother, represented two ideas-the continuance of the Church in union with the Temple, and the hope of the conversion of Israel. He was the acknowledged leader of those Christians who were zealous for the Law (ξηλωταὶ τοῦ νόμου,  Acts 21:20). If he conceded the principle of Gentile Christian freedom, he did it reluctantly. He was the staunch defender not only of the primacy but of the permanence of Judaic Christianity. After his martyrdom (Euseb. Historia Ecclesiastica (Eusebius, etc.) ii. 23) his spirit and ideal survived for a time, but the swift and dramatic evolution of events made the position of the Christian Church in the Jewish nation and under the Law more and more untenable. When the excitement of the conflict with Rome gradually became intense, and the inevitable crisis approached, the Christians found it necessary (about a.d. 67) to quit Jerusalem and migrate to the Hellenistic city of Pella, beyond the Jordan. Their hope of a Jewish national Church, centralized in the Temple and giving both law and gospel to mankind, had at least to be postponed. But in this instance postponement meant ultimate abandonment. In three years the Temple was destroyed, Jewish nationality shattered, and St. James’s theory of a hegemony of Judaic Christianity confuted by the remorseless logic of history. But a far higher ideal could then be realized. ‘The hour cometh, when neither in this mountain, nor in Jerusalem, shall ye worship the Father’ ( John 4:21). ‘And he showed me the holy city Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God.… And I saw no temple therein’ ( Revelation 21:10;  Revelation 21:22).

Literature.-A. Hausrath, History of the Nt Times , London, 1895, ii. 176 ff.; E. F. Scott, The Apologetic of the Nt , do., 1907, p. 78 ff.

James Strahan.

Vine's Expository Dictionary of NT Words

1: ἱερόν (Strong'S #2411 — Noun Neuter — hieron — hee-er-on' )

the neuter of the adjective hieros, "sacred," is used as a noun denoting "a sacred place, a temple," that of Artemis (Diana),  Acts 19:27; that in Jerusalem,  Mark 11:11 , signifying the entire building with its precincts, or some part thereof, as distinct from the naos, "the inner sanctuary" (see No. 2); apart from the Gospels and Acts, it is mentioned only in  1 Corinthians 9:13 . Christ taught in one of the courts, to which all the people had access. Hieron is never used figuratively. The Temple mentioned in the Gospels and Acts was begun by Herod in 20 B.C., and destroyed by the Romans in A.D. 70.

2: ναός (Strong'S #3485 — Noun Masculine — naos — nah-os' )

"a shrine or sanctuary," was used (a) among the heathen, to denote the shrine containing the idol,  Acts 17:24;  19:24 (in the latter, miniatures); (b) among the Jews, the sanctuary in the "Temple," into which only the priests could lawfully enter, e.g.,   Luke 1:9,21,22; Christ, as being of the tribe of Judah, and thus not being a priest while upon the earth ( Hebrews 7:13,14;  8:4 ), did not enter the naos; for  2 Thessalonians 2:4 see Note (below); (c) by Christ metaphorically, of His own physical body,   John 2:19,21; (d) in apostolic teaching, metaphorically, (1) of the Church, the mystical Body of Christ,  Ephesians 2:21; (2) of a local church,  1 Corinthians 3:16,17;  2 Corinthians 6:16; (3) of the present body of the individual believer,  1 Corinthians 6:19; (4) of the "Temple" seen in visions in the Apocalypse,  Revelation 3:12;  7:15;  11:19;  14:15,17;  15:5,6,8;  16:1,17; (5) of the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb, as the "Temple" of the new and heavenly Jerusalem,  Revelation 21:22 . See Sanctuary and Holy, B (b), par. 4.

 2 Thessalonians 2:4  Daniel 11:31 12:11 Matthew 24:15 Luke 11:51House

Vine's Expository Dictionary of OT Words

Hêykâl (הֵיכָל, Strong'S #1964), “palace; temple.” This word is indirectly derived from the Sumerian egal , “large house, palace,” and more directly from the Akkadian ekallu , “large house.” The influence of the Akkadian ekallu spread to the Northwest Semitic languages. In post-biblical Hebrew the meaning became limited to “temple.” The Hekhal Chlomo (“Temple of Solomon”) in modern Jerusalem signifies the building of Israel’s chief rabbinate, in absence of the temple. The word occurs 78 times from First Samuel to Malachi, most frequently in Ezekiel. The first usage pertains to the tabernacle at Shiloh (1 Sam. 1:9).

The word “palace” in English versions may have one of three Hebrew words behind it: hêykâl , bayit , or ‘armon . The Sumero-Akkadian meaning “palace” for hêykâl is still to be found in biblical Hebrew. The hekal with its 15 usages as “palace” refers to the palaces of Ahab (1 Kings 21:1), of the king of Babylon (2 Kings 20:18), and of Nineveh (Nah. 2:6). The “palace” was luxuriously decorated and the residents enjoyed the fulfillment of their pleasures; cf.: “And the wild beasts of the islands shall cry in their desolate houses, and dragons in their pleasant palaces: and her time is near to come, and her days shall not be prolonged” (Isa. 13:22). The psalmist compared beautiful girls to fine pillars in an ornate “palace”: “… That our sons may be as plants grown up in their youth; that our daughters may be as corner stones, polished after the similitude of a palace” (Ps. 144:12). Amos prophesied that the “songs of the palace” (Kjv, “temple”) were to turn to wailing at the destruction of the northern kingdom (Amos 8:3, Nasb).

Hêykâl with the meaning “temple” is generally clarified in the context by two markers that follow. The first marker is the addition “of the Lord”: “And when the builders laid the foundation of the temple of the Lord, they set the priests in their apparel with trumpets, and the Levites the sons of Asaph with cymbals, to praise the Lord, after the ordinance of David king of Israel” (Ezra 3:10). The second marker is a form of the word qodesh , “holy”: “O God, the heathen are come into thine inheritance; thy holy temple have they defiled; they have laid Jerusalem on heaps” (Ps. 79:1). Sometimes the definite article suffices to identify the “temple in Jerusalem”: “In the year that King Uzziah died I saw also the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, and his train filled the temple” (Isa. 6:1), especially in a section dealing with the “temple” (Ezek. 41).

The Old Testament also speaks about the heavenly hêykâl , the hêykâl of God. It is difficult to decide on a translation, whether “palace” or “temple.” Most versions opt in favor of the “temple” idea: “Hear, all ye people; hearken, O earth, and all that therein is: and let the Lord God be witness against you, the Lord from his holy temple” (Mic. 1:2; cf. Ps. 5:7; 11:4; Hab. 2:20). “In my distress I called upon the Lord, and cried to my God: and he did hear my voice out of his temple, and my cry did enter into his ears” (2 Sam. 22:7). However, since Scripture portrays the presence of the royal judgment throne in heaven, it is not altogether impossible that the original authors had a royal “palace” in mind. The imagery of the throne, the “palace,” and judgment seems to lie behind Ps. 11:4-5. “The Lord is in his holy temple, the Lord’s throne is in heaven: his eyes behold, his eyelids try, the children of men. The Lord trieth the righteous: but the wicked and him that loveth violence his soul hateth.”

The Septuagint has the words naos (“temple”) and oikos (“house; palace; dwelling; household”).

Hawker's Poor Man's Concordance And Dictionary

This word in Scripture, though generally made use of to express one and the same thing, namely, the house of God, hath various references in relation to the divine glory. There was no building in the church of God called the temple, until the one built by Solomon. Before those days the house appropriated for the worship of the Lord was called the tabernacle, or sanctuary. But when the Lord bad instructed his people by his servant Nathan the prophet, (see  2 Samuel 7:1-29) concerning the temple, we find Solomon, by the Lord's appointment, building this first temple on Mount Moriah. And independent of every other consideration, how blessedly did the very spot typify Christ, the true temple for the glory of Jehovah to be manifested in. This temple was begun somewhat about a thousand years before Christ, and took nine years in building. The desolation of Jerusalem by the king of Babylon at the captivity, brought on the desolation also of the temple, until it was totally destroyed in the eleventh year of Zedikiah, after it had stood amidst many ravages and injuries, from the plunder of the enemies of Israel, somewhat more than four hundred years.

During the captivity of Babylon the temple remained in ruins; but in the first year of Cyrus at Babylon, the Jews were permitted to return to Jerusalem, and to rebuild the temple of the Lord. And amidst much persecution and many interruptions, the people accomplished the purpose, and the second temple was completed at a period of somewhat more than five hundred years before the coming of Christ. I refer the reader to the prophecies of Haggai and Zechariah, and to the books of Ezra and Nehemiah, for the Scriptural account of this great event.

This second temple continued until the manifestation of the Lord Jesus Christ in substance of our flesh, thereby confirming and fulfilling the prophecy of  Haggai 2:9 "The glory of this latter house shall be greater than of the former, saith the Lord of hosts." And this was literally the case from the presence of Jesus, notwithstanding it had none of the five signs which Solomon's temple had, namely—1. The Urim and Thummim; 2. the ark of the covenant; 3. the fire upon the altar, which never went out; 4. the Shechinah, or manifestation of the Lord's presence: 5. the spirit of prophecy. When Jesus entered the temple, his presence became the sum and substance which all these signs did but faintly resemble and minister unto; and therefore confirmed Jehovah'S promise of the greater glory of the second, than of the first temple.

But the great object, the temple itself in both, and indeed in all other instances represented, was the person of Christ in his human nature; "for in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily." ( Colossians 2:9) Hence, therefore, as in the tabernacle in the wilderness, and in the temple at Jerusalem, the glory of the Lord was graciously manifested to the people to intimate the divine presence, so in the person of Christ Jesus, all that is visible it Jehovah did appear. See those sweet Scriptures in confirmation. ( John 2:19-21;  Ephesians 2:20-22) See Tabernacle.

King James Dictionary

Tem'Ple, n. L. templum.

1. A public edifice erected in honor of some deity. Among pagans, a building erected to some pretended deity, and in which the people assembled to worship. Originally, temples were open places, as the Stonehenge in England. In Rome, some of the temples were open, and called sacella others were roofed, and called oedes. The most celebrated of the ancient pagan temples were that of Belus in Babylon, that of Vulcan at Memphis, that of Jupiter at Thebes, that of Diana at Ephesus, that of Apollo in Miletus,that of Jupiter Olympius in Athens, and that of Apollo at Delphi. The most celebrated and magnificent temple erected to the true God, was that built by Solomon in Jerusalem.

In Scripture, the tabernacle is sometimes called by this name.  1 Samuel 1-3 .

2. A church an edifice erected among christians as a place of public worship.

Can he whose life is a perpetual insult to the authority of God, enter with any pleasure a temple consecrated to devotion and sanctified by prayer?

3. A place in which the divine presence specially resides the church as a collective body.  Ephesians 2 4. In England,the Temples are two inns of court, thus called because anciently the dwellings of the knights Templars. They are called the Inner and the Middle Temple.

Tem'Ple, n. L. tempus, tempora. The primary sense of the root of this word is to fall. See Time.

1. Literally, the fall of the head the part where the head slopes from the top. 2. In anatomy, the anterior and lateral part of the head, where the skull is covered by the temporal muscles.

Tem'Ple, To build a temple for to appropriate a temple to. Little used.

Easton's Bible Dictionary

 1 Samuel 1:9 John 2:19,21 1 Corinthians 3:16,17 Ephesians 2:21 Revelation 7:5 Acts 19:27

This word is generally used in Scripture of the sacred house erected on the summit of Mount Moriah for the worship of God. It is called "the temple" ( 1 Kings 6:17 ); "the temple [[[Rsv,]] 'house'] of the Lord" ( 2 Kings 11:10 ); "thy holy temple" ( Psalm 79:1 ); "the house of the Lord" ( 2 Chronicles 23:5,12 ); "the house of the God of Jacob" ( Isaiah 2:3 ); "the house of my glory" (60:7); an "house of prayer" (56:7;  Matthew 21:13 ); "an house of sacrifice" ( 2 Chronicles 7:12 ); "the house of their sanctuary" ( 2 Chronicles 36:17 ); "the mountain of the Lord's house" ( Isaiah 2:2 ); "our holy and our beautiful house" (64:11); "the holy mount" (27:13); "the palace for the Lord God" ( 1 Chronicles 29:1 ); "the tabernacle of witness" ( 2 Chronicles 24:6 ); "Zion" ( Psalm 74:2;  84:7 ). Christ calls it "my Father's house" ( John 2:16 ).

Wilson's Dictionary of Bible Types

 Psalm 27:4 (a) The presence of God is thus described and David wanted to live in that divine presence constantly, as though it were indeed the house of God.

 Psalm 29:9 (b) Probably David was referring both to the actual house of God at Jerusalem and also to the mystical Temple of God which is His people. Every child of God like every piece of the temple in some way represents the majesty, the glory, the beauty, and the usefulness into which we have been called by His grace. It is interesting to note the typology of the temple, for there is a splendid comparison between parts of the temple, and the individuals in the church of God.

 John 2:19 (a) The Lord is referring to His own body in which God dwelt. (See also  Matthew 26:61 and  Mark 15:29).

 1 Corinthians 3:16 (a) The church is called GOD's temple. It is a collection and an assembly of GOD's people. Therefore, it is the habitation of God through the Spirit. In this way it resembling the temple of the Old Testament. (See  Ephesians 2:21).

 1 Corinthians 6:19 (a) In the previous reference the whole church is compared to the temple, but in this passage the individual believer is compared to the temple. The Holy Spirit dwells in the church as a collection of GOD's people, and also in the individual because he is a child of God.

Webster's Dictionary

(1): ( n.) A contrivence used in a loom for keeping the web stretched transversely.

(2): ( n.) A place or edifice dedicated to the worship of some deity; as, the temple of Jupiter at Athens, or of Juggernaut in India.

(3): ( n.) The space, on either side of the head, back of the eye and forehead, above the zygomatic arch and in front of the ear.

(4): ( n.) The edifice erected at Jerusalem for the worship of Jehovah.

(5): ( n.) One of the side bars of a pair of spectacles, jointed to the bows, and passing one on either side of the head to hold the spectacles in place.

(6): ( n.) A building dedicated to the administration of ordinances.

(7): ( n.) A local organization of Odd Fellows.

(8): ( n.) Hence, among Christians, an edifice erected as a place of public worship; a church.

(9): ( n.) Fig.: Any place in which the divine presence specially resides.

(10): ( v. t.) To build a temple for; to appropriate a temple to; as, to temple a god.

Charles Buck Theological Dictionary

A public building erected for the purpose of religious worship.

Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature

Copyright StatementThese files are public domain. Bibliography InformationMcClintock, John. Strong, James. Entry for 'Temple'. Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature. https://www.studylight.org/encyclopedias/eng/tce/t/temple.html. Harper & Brothers. New York. 1870.

Kitto's Popular Cyclopedia of Biblial Literature

After the Israelites had exchanged their nomadic life for a life in permanent habitations, it was becoming that they should exchange also their movable sanctuary or tabernacle for a temple. There elapsed, however, after the conquest of Palestine, several centuries during which the sanctuary continued movable, although the nation became more and more stationary. It appears that the first who planned the erection of a stone-built sanctuary was David, who, when he was inhabiting his house of cedar, and God had given him rest from all his enemies, meditated the design of building a temple in which the ark of God might be placed, instead of being deposited 'within curtains,' or in a tent, as hitherto. This design was at first encouraged by the prophet Nathan; but he was afterwards instructed to tell David that such a work was less appropriate for him, who had been a warrior from his youth, and had shed much blood, than for his son, who should enjoy in prosperity and peace the rewards of his father's victories. Nevertheless, the design itself was highly approved as a token of proper feelings towards the Divine King (;; ). We learn, moreover, from 1 Kings 5, and 1 Chronicles 22, that David had collected materials which were afterwards employed in the erection of the temple, which was commenced four years after his death, about B.C. 1012, four hundred and eighty years after the Exodus from Egypt, and was about seven years in building. We thus learn that the Israelitish sanctuary had remained movable more than four centuries subsequent to the conquest of Canaan.

The site of the temple was on Mount Moriah, which was at first insufficient for the temple and altar, and therefore walls and buttresses were built in order to gain more ground by filling up the interval with earth. The hill was also fortified by a threefold wall, the lowest tier of which was in some places more than 300 cubits high; and the depth of the foundation was not visible, because it had been necessary in some parts to dig deep into the ground in order to obtain sufficient support. The dimensions of the stones of which the walls were composed were enormous; Josephus mentions a length of 40 cubits.

The workmen and the materials employed in the erection of the temple were chiefly procured by Solomon from Hiram, king of Tyre, who was rewarded by a liberal importation of wheat. Josephus states that the foundation was sunk to an astonishing depth, and composed of stones of singular magnitude, and very durable. Being closely mortised into the rock with great ingenuity, they formed a basis adequate to the support of the intended structure.

The temple itself and its utensils are described in 1 Kings 6, 7, and 2 Chronicles 3-4.

Divines and architects have repeatedly endeavored to represent the architectural proportions of the temple, which was 60 cubits long, 20 wide, and 30 high. The internal dimension of the 'holy' was 40 cubits long, 20 cubits wide, and 30 cubits high. The holy was separated from the 'holy of holies' by a partition, a large opening in which was closed by a suspended curtain. The holy of holies was on the western extremity of the entire building, and its internal dimensions formed a cube of 20 cubits. On the eastern extremity of the building was the porch, at the entrance of which stood the two columns called Jachin and Boaz, which were 23 cubits high.

The temple was also surrounded by three stories of chambers, each of which stories was five cubits high, so that there remained above, ample space for introducing the windows, which served chiefly for ventilation, as the light within the temple was obtained from the sacred candlesticks. The windows which are mentioned in , consisted probably of lattice-work.

It seems from the descriptions of the temple to be certain that the holy of holies was an adytum without windows. To this fact Solomon seems to refer when he spake, 'The Lord said that he would dwell in the thick darkness' .

From , we learn that the private dwellings of Solomon were built of massive stone. We hence infer, that the framework of the temple also consisted of the same material. The temple was, however, wainscoted with cedar wood, which was covered with gold. The boards within the temple were ornamented by beautiful carvings representing cherubim, palms, and flowers. The ceiling of the temple was supported by beams of cedar wood. The wall which separated the holy from the holy of holies probably consisted not of stone, but of beams of cedar. The partitions were probably in part reticulated, so that the incense could spread from the holy to the most holy.

The floor of the temple was throughout of cedar, but boarded over with planks of fir . The doors of the oracle were composed of olive-tree; but the doors of the outer temple had posts of olive-tree and leaves of fir (, sq.). Both doors, as well that which led into the temple as that which led from the holy to the holy of holies, had folding leaves, which, however, seem to have been usually kept open, the aperture being closed by a suspended curtain.

Within the holy of holies stood only the ark of the covenant; but within the holy were ten golden candlesticks, and the altar of incense (comp. the separate articles).

The temple was surrounded by an inner court, which in Chronicles is called the Court of the Priests, and in Jeremiah the Upper Court. This again was surrounded by a wall consisting of cedar beams placed on a stone foundation . Besides this inner court there is mentioned a Great Court . This court was also more especially called the court of the Lord's house . These courts were surrounded by spacious buildings, which, however, according to Josephus, seem to have been partly added at a period later than that of Solomon. From these descriptions we learn that the temple of Solomon was not distinguished by magnitude, but by good architectural proportions, beauty of workmanship, and costliness of materials. Many English churches have an external form not unlike that of the temple of Solomon.

There was a treasury in the temple, in which much precious metal was collected for the maintenance of public worship. The gold and silver of the temple was, however, frequently applied to political purposes, and the treasury was repeatedly plundered by foreign invaders. The sacred edifice was burned down by Nebuchadnezzar, B.C. 588, having stood since its commencement 417 or 418 years. Thus terminated what the later Jews called the first house.

Second Temple

In the year B.C. 536the Jews obtained permission from Cyrus to colonize their native land. Cyrus commanded also that the sacred utensils which had been pillaged from the first temple should be restored, and that for the restoration of the temple assistance should be granted (Ezra 1, 6; , sq.). The first colony, which returned under Zerubbabel and Joshua, having collected the necessary means, and having also obtained the assistance of Phoenician workmen, commenced in the second year after their return, B.C. 534, the rebuilding of the temple. The Sidonians brought rafts of cedar trees from Lebanon to Joppa. The Jews refused the cooperation of the Samaritans, who, being thereby offended, induced the King Artasashta (probably Smerdis) to prohibit the building. And it was only in the second year of Darius Hystaspis, B.C. 520, that the building was resumed. It was completed in the sixth year of this king, B.C. 516.

This second temple was erected on the site of the former, and probably after the same plan. The old men who had seen the first temple were moved to tears on beholding the second, which appeared insignificant in comparison with the first (; , sq.). It seems, however, that it was not so much in dimensions that the second temple was inferior to the first, as in splendor, and in being deprived of the Ark of the Covenant, which had been burned with the temple of Solomon.

Temple of Herod

Herod, wishing to ingratiate himself with the people, and being fond of architectural display, undertook not merely to repair the second temple, but to raise a perfectly new structure. As, however, the temple of Zerubbabel was not actually destroyed, but only removed after the preparations for the new temple were completed, there has arisen some debate whether the temple of Herod could properly be called the third temple.

The work was commenced in the eighteenth year of the reign of Herod; that is, about the year 734-735 from the building of Rome, or about twenty or twenty-one years before the Christian era. Priests and Levites finished the temple itself in one year and a half. The outbuildings and courts required eight years. However, some building operations were constantly in progress under the successors of Herod, and it is in reference to this we are informed that the temple was finished only under Albinus, the last procurator but one, not long before the commencement of the Jewish war in which the temple was again destroyed. It is in reference also to these protracted building operations that the Jews said to Jesus, 'Forty and six years was this temple in building' .

The whole of the structures belonging to the temple were a stadium square, and consequently four stadia (or half a Roman mile) in circumference. The temple was situated on the highest point, not quite in the center, but rather to the north-western corner of this square, and was surrounded by various courts, the innermost of which was higher than the next outward, which descended in terraces. The temple, consequently, was visible from the town, notwithstanding its various high enclosures. The outer court was called the mountain of the house, and had five principal gates. Annexed to the outer wall were halls which surrounded the temple. The Levites resided in these halls, and they seem likewise to have been used by religious teachers for the purpose of addressing their hearers. Thus we find that Jesus had there various opportunities for addressing the people and refuting cavillers.

Here also the first Christians could daily assemble with one accord . Within this outer court money-changers and cattle-dealers transacted a profitable business, especially during the time of Passover. The profaneness to which this money-changing and cattle-dealing gave rise caused the indignation of our Lord, who suddenly expelled all these traffickers from their stronghold of business (, sq.;;; ).

The holy of holies was entirely empty, but there was a stone in the place of the Ark of the Covenant, on which the high-priest placed the censer. Before the entrance of the holy of holies was suspended a curtain, which was rent by the earthquake that followed after the crucifixion.

The temple was situated upon the south-eastern corner of Mount Moriah, which is separated to the east by a precipitous ravine and the Kidron from the Mount of Olives, which is much higher than Moriah. On the south the temple was bounded by the ravine which separates Moriah from Zion, or the lower city from the upper city. Opposite to the temple, at the foot of Zion, were formerly the king's gardens, and higher up, in a south-westerly direction, the stronghold of Zion, or the city of David, on a higher level than the temple. The temple was in ancient warfare almost impregnable, from the ravines at the precipitous edge of which it stood; but it required more artificial fortifications on its western and northern sides, which were surrounded by the city of Jerusalem; for this reason there was erected at its north-western corner the tower of Antonia, which, although standing on a lower level than the temple itself, was so high as to overlook the sacred buildings, with which it was connected partly by a large staircase, partly by a subterraneous communication. This tower protected the temple from sudden incursions from the city of Jerusalem, and from dangerous commotions among the thousands who were frequently assembled within the precincts of the courts, which also were sometimes used for popular meetings. Under the sons of Herod, the temple remained apparently in good order, and Herod Agrippa, who was appointed by the Emperor Claudius its guardian, even planned the repair of the eastern part, which had probably been destroyed during one of the conflicts between the Jews and Romans of which the temple was repeatedly the scene (Antiq. xvii. 10). Many writers on the subject have adopted a style as if they possessed much information about the archives of the temple; there are a few indications from which we learn that important documents were deposited in the tabernacle and temple. Even in , we find that the book of the law was deposited in the Ark of the Covenant. , Hilkiah rediscovered the book of the law in the house of Jehovah. In , we find a bibliotheca or library mentioned, apparently consisting chiefly of the canonical books, and probably deposited in the temple. In Josephus it is mentioned that a book of the law was found in the temple. It appears that the sacred writings were kept in the temple. Copies of political documents seem to have been deposited in the treasury of the temple.

During the final struggle of the Jews against the Romans, A.D. 70, the temple was the last scene of the tug of war. The Romans rushed from the tower Antonia into the sacred precincts, the halls of which were set on fire by the Jews themselves. It was against the will of Titus that a Roman soldier threw a firebrand into the northern outbuildings of the temple, which caused the conflagration of the whole structure, although Titus himself endeavored to extinguish the fire.

The sacred utensils, the golden table of the show-bread, the book of the law, and the golden candlestick, were displayed in the triumph at Rome. Representations of them are still to be seen sculptured in relief on the triumphal arch of Titus. The place where the temple had stood seemed to be a dangerous center for the rebellious population, until, in A.D. 130, the Emperor Hadrian founded a Roman colony, under the name Ælia Capitolina, on the ruins of Jerusalem, and dedicated a temple to Jupiter Capitolinus on the ruins of the temple of Jehovah. Henceforth no Jew was permitted to approach the site of the ancient temple.

The Emperor Julian undertook, A.D. 363, to rebuild the temple; but after considerable preparations and much expense, he was compelled to desist by flames which burst forth from the foundations. A splendid mosque now stands on the site of the temple. This mosque was erected by the caliph Omar after the conquest of Jerusalem by the Saracens, A.D. 630.

International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

The inner court was extended westward by a second square of 100 cubits, within which, on a platform elevated another 6 cubits (9 ft.), stood the temple proper and its connected buildings ( Ezekiel 41:8 ). This platform or basement is shown by the measurements to be 60 cubits broad (North and and South) and 105 cubits long (East and West) - 5 cubits projecting into the eastern square. The ascent to the temple-porch was by 10 steps ( Ezekiel 40:49; Septuagint, the Revised Version margin). The temple itself was a building consisting, like Solomon's, of three parts - a porch at the entrance, 20 cubits (30 ft.) broad by 12 cubits (18 ft.) deep (so most, following the Septuagint, as required by the other measurements); the holy place or hēkhāl , 40 cubits (60 ft.) long by 20 cubits (30 ft.) broad; and the most holy place, 20 cubits by 20 ( Ezekiel 40:48 ,  Ezekiel 40:49;  Ezekiel 41:1-4 ); the measurements are internal. At the sides of the porch stood two pillars ( Ezekiel 40:49 ), corresponding to the Jachin and Boaz of the older Temple. The holy and the most holy places were separated by a partition 2 cubits in thickness ( Ezekiel 41:3; so most interpret). The most holy place was empty; of the furniture of the holy place mention is made only of an altar of wood ( Ezekiel 41:22; see Altar A , Iii, 7; B, Iii, 3). Walls and doors were ornamented with cherubim and palm trees ( Ezekiel 41:18 ,  Ezekiel 41:25 ). The wall of the temple building was 6 cubits (9 ft.) in thickness ( Ezekiel 41:5 ), and on the north, south, and west sides, as in Solomon's Temple, there were side-chambers in three stories, 30 in number ( Ezekiel 41:6; in each story?), with an outer wall 5 cubits (7 1/2 ft.) in thickness (

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Bibliography Information Orr, James, M.A., D.D. General Editor. Entry for 'Temple'. International Standard Bible Encyclopedia. https://www.studylight.org/encyclopedias/eng/isb/t/temple.html. 1915.