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The issue of where the Jewish temple stood has attracted both interest and controversy. Traditionally, the temple was said to have been at the location where the Dome of the Rock now stands. In modern times, various sites on the Temple Mount have been suggested.<ref name="dolphin">Dolphin, Lambert and Kollen, Michael, "[http://www.templemount.org/theories.html On The Location of the First and Second Temples in Jerusalem]."</ref> The idea that the temple was located outside the Temple Mount has also received attention, but is rejected by specialists as a fringe theory.<ref>Ruth Schuster and Ran Shapira, "[https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/were-there-jewish-temples-on-temple-mount-yes-1.5411705 Were There Jewish Temples on Temple Mount?]", ''Haaretz'', Jul 24, 2017.</ref> Archaeological digs on the Temple Mount are banned by the Waqf, making the issue difficult to resolve.

The issue of where the Jewish temple stood has attracted both interest and controversy. Traditionally, the temple was said to have been at the location where the Dome of the Rock now stands. In modern times, various sites on the Temple Mount have been suggested.<ref name="dolphin">Dolphin, Lambert and Kollen, Michael, "[http://www.templemount.org/theories.html On The Location of the First and Second Temples in Jerusalem]."</ref> The idea that the temple was located outside the Temple Mount has also received attention, but is rejected by specialists as a fringe theory.<ref>Ruth Schuster and Ran Shapira, "[https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/were-there-jewish-temples-on-temple-mount-yes-1.5411705 Were There Jewish Temples on Temple Mount?]", ''Haaretz'', Jul 24, 2017.</ref> Archaeological digs on the Temple Mount are banned by the Waqf, making the issue difficult to resolve.

Fortress Antonia, where Jesus was condemned by Pontius Pilate, was at a higher elevation than the temple, according to Josephus. In modern times, the Dome is the high point of the Temple Mount. If Antonia was located at what is now the Dome, that would place the temple at Al Kas fountain, which is midway between the Dome and al-Aqsa. This area was landscaped and flattened by Hadrian. If the temple was at this site, it is now under 17 meters of earth.<ref name="dolphin"/>

Fortress Antonia, where Jesus was condemned by Pontius Pilate, was at a higher elevation than the temple, according to Josephus. In modern times, the Dome is the high point of the Temple Mount. If Antonia was located at what is now the Dome, that would place the temple at Al Kas fountain, according to Tel Aviv architect Tuvia Sagiv. This location is midway between the Dome and al-Aqsa. This area was landscaped and flattened by Hadrian. If the temple was at this site, it is now under 17 meters of earth.<ref name="dolphin"/>

[[File:Tuvia_Sagiv,_Temple_Mount_in_Jerusalem_with_the_Hadrian_temple_of_Jupiter_in_Baalbek_in_Lebanon_overlaid.jpg|thumb|left|This drawing compares the design of the Temple to Jupiter in Baalbek to that of the Temple Mount in Jerusalem. Like the Temple to Jupiter in Jerusalem, it was built by Hadrian. If the design of the Jerusalem temple was similar, the site of the octogonal Dome of the Rock was once the hexagonal forecourt of Hadrian's temple.]]An alternative theory is based on the tradition that the temple was due west of the Golden Gate. This gate was built by Justinian in the sixth century and sealed off by Ottoman Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent in 1541. It was sealed because there is a tradition that the messiah will enter using this gate.<ref>As Jesus has already passed through, sealing the gate fulfills Ezekiel 44:2: ''And the LORD said to me, “This gate shall remain shut; it shall not be opened, and no one shall enter by it, for the LORD, the God of Israel, has entered by it. Therefore it shall remain shut"'' (ESV).</ref> If the location of this gate corresponds to the Herodian gate, that would put the temple at the Dome of the Spirits, which is just north of the Dome of the Rock. This structure is also called the Dome of the Tablets, so there is a tradition connecting it to the temple. It dates from the tenth century, so it could have been inspired by the location of Justinian's gate.<ref name="dolphin"/>

[[File:Tuvia_Sagiv,_Temple_Mount_in_Jerusalem_with_the_Hadrian_temple_of_Jupiter_in_Baalbek_in_Lebanon_overlaid.jpg|thumb|left|This drawing compares the design of the Temple to Jupiter in Baalbek to that of the Temple Mount in Jerusalem. Like the Temple to Jupiter in Jerusalem, it was built by Hadrian. If the design of the Jerusalem temple was similar, the site of the octogonal Dome of the Rock was once the hexagonal forecourt of Hadrian's temple. The drawing is by Tuvia Sagiv.]]An alternative theory promoted by physicist Asher Kaufman is based on the tradition that the temple was due west of the Golden Gate. This gate was built by Justinian in the sixth century and sealed off by Ottoman Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent in 1541. It was sealed because there is a tradition that the messiah will enter using this gate.<ref>As Jesus has already passed through, sealing the gate fulfills Ezekiel 44:2: ''And the LORD said to me, “This gate shall remain shut; it shall not be opened, and no one shall enter by it, for the LORD, the God of Israel, has entered by it. Therefore it shall remain shut"'' (ESV).</ref> If the location of this gate corresponds to the Herodian gate, that would put the temple at the Dome of the Spirits, which is just north of the Dome of the Rock. This structure is also called the Dome of the Tablets, so there is a tradition connecting it to the temple. It was built in the tenth century, by which time the Golden Gate was already at its present location. Hadrian more than doubled the size of the Temple Mount to allow it to encompass not only the grounds of the Jewish temple, but also Antonia to the north. So the gate could have been moved to the north in Hadrian's time.<ref name="dolphin"/>

==Jesus==

==Jesus==