View source for Temple Mount

{{language box
|pic=Dome of the Rock Jerusalem.jpg
|hebrew=הר הבית
|hebrewr=Har ha-Bayit
|arab=الحرم القدسي الشريف
|arabr=al-Haram al-Qudsī ash-Sharīf (Noble Sanctuary)
}}The '''Temple Mount''', biblical [[Mount Moriah]], is a hill in the Old City of [[Jerusalem]]. It is the site of a temple where the ancient Israelites kept the [[Ark of the Covenant]]. King [[Solomon]] built the first temple at this site in 957 BC on a threshing floor purchased by his father David.<ref>{{bibleverse|2|Chronicles|3:1|ESV}}</ref> Solomon's temple was destroyed by King Nebuchadrezzar II of Babylonia in 587/586 BC.<ref>{{bibleverse|2|Kings|25:9|ESV}}</ref> It was rebuilt by [[Zerubbabel]] under King [[Cyrus]] of Persia in 515 BC<ref>{{bibleverse||Ezra|5:2-5|ESV}} and {{bibleverse||Ezra|6:3-5|ESV}}.</ref> and by King Herod of Judea in the first century BC.

When Jesus went to temple in the first century AD, he angrily overturned the tables of the money changers. The Roman commander Titus destroyed the temple in 70 AD during a Jewish revolt against Roman rule. Roman Emperor Hadrian built a Temple to Jupiter around 135. This temple was destroyed by Emperor Constantine in 325.

The [[Dome of the Rock]], an Islamic shrine, was built by the Umayyad Caliph Abd al-Malik in 691. The al-Aqsa Mosque was built about 710. As the site of Muhammad's ascension to heaven, the Temple Mount is considered to be the third holiest site in Islam. The Temple Mount is in East Jerusalem, which was ruled by Jordan, an Arab state, from 1948 until 1967. Although East Jerusalem was captured by the Israelis in the 1967 Arab-Israeli War, the Temple Mount is still managed by the Waqf, an Islamic religious authority  directed by Jordan.

Those among the Jews who ascend now days to the Temple Mount recite the verse in [[Deuteronomy]], 6:4 "Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one..." And some bow, as in Isaiah 27:13.<ref>[https://www.danielpipes.org/comments/287584 Arab-Islamist racism: "Palestinian" Authority is officially antisemitic - it has also a problem with the Bible.] DP, Oct 19, 2022.<font size=1> 
<blockquote>
Introduction:

An epithet began by the PA, using it on Jews  reciting the Biblical verse in Deuteronomy, 6:4 "Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one..."

Though Haredim, their Rabbis believe it's forbidden now days to ascend the mountain where the Temples stood and visit rather the Western Wall. However, those that are religious-Zionists and follow their masters that permit access, recite the above verse at the Temple Mount. (Some bow, as in Isaiah 27:13).

Upon those scenes, the PA and Hamas, etc. came up with the phrase as supposed "talmudic", which is false, as it is Biblical.

Since the "Palestinian" Arabs fear a backlash against openly demonizing the Bible, the Pallywood deceptive lying culture  chose that T word, since it can galvanize also Neo-Nazis, that old alliance with Islamists.

Not that it matters to these both extremists entities - that Haredi anti-Zionism is actually the Talmudic based.

(BTW the Bible is the source for the Talmud which interprets it [classic example is that 'An eye for an eye', the Talmud explains that it's not literal but monetary compensation], but this is not the point).

In order to vilify, the bigoted racist "Palestinian" leadership, typically, ironically, used the R word on its victims and its prayer. In other words, the Arab "Palestinian" entity claims the Bible is "racist"."

Since then, the "Palestinian" Authority recently had 'expanded' the anti-Semitic smear to include any prayers/locations, not even relating to the Temple Mount.
</blockquote>
[https://elderofziyon.blogspot.com/2022/10/the-palestinian-authority-is-officially.html The Palestinian Authority is officially antisemitic. It calls all Jewish prayer "racist Tal... rituals."], EoZ, October 16, 2022.</font></ref>


==Building under Herod==

The Jewish historian Josephus records that Herod rebuilt the temple at great expense:{{cquote|Accordingly, in the fifteenth year of his reign, Herod rebuilt the temple, and encompassed a piece of land about it with a wall, which land was twice as large as that before enclosed. The expenses he laid out upon it were vastly large also, and the riches about it were unspeakable. A sign of which you have in the great cloisters that were erected about the temple, and the citadel which was on its north side. The cloisters he built from the foundation, but the citadel he repaired at a vast expense; nor was it other than a royal palace, which he called Antonia, in honor of Antony.<ref>Flavius Josephus, ''The Wars of the Jews'', Book I, 21:1.</ref>}}

The Herodian temple took forty-six years to build.<ref>{{bibleverse||John|2:20|ESV}}.</ref> In the time of Jesus, Antonia was a Roman fortress. Like the temple, it was destroyed in 70 AD.

===Dimensions===
Josephus states that the Temple Mount was "six furlongs around, including Fort Antonia."<ref>Flavius Josephus, ''The Wars of the Jews'', Book V, 5:2.</ref> The temple and Antonia were both squares with sides of 1 furlong. A biblical furlong is 606.75 modern feet (185 meters).<ref>"[https://www.internationalstandardbible.com/F/furlong.html furlong]," ''International Standard Bible Encyclopedia,'' 1939, Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co.<br/>"[http://eastonsbibledictionary.org/1397-Furlong.php furlong]," ''Easton's Bible Dictionary'', 1897.</ref> So the dimensions Josephus gives correspond to 607 by 1,214 ft (185 by 370 m). The Temple Mount was enlarged by Hadrian in the second century. The modern dimensions are 1,020 ft (313 m) across the north, 1,530 ft (470 m) in the east, 910 ft (280 m) in the south, and 1,578 ft. (485 m) in the west. Thus the current Temple Mount is significantly larger in every dimension than the Herodian temple.

The [[Church of the Condemnation]], the traditional site of Antonia, is just north of the Temple Mount. That is to say, the location was selected without taking into account that Antonia was later incorporated into the Temple Mount.

The temple itself was 60 by 20 cubits in area and 40 cubits high. A cubit was 21.85 inches, so the building was 109 by 36 ft. (33 by 11 m).

In contrast to the Josephus, the Mishna gives dimensions of 500 cubits by 500 cubits (861 by 861 ft., 262.50 by 262.5 m).<ref>Mishna, Middoth 2: 1-2.</ref> The Mishna's description is suspiciously similar to Ezekiel's ideal temple and was written well after the Herodian temple no longer existed.<ref>{{bibleverse||Ezekiel|45:2|ESV}}.</ref> So it is less likely to be based on observation than is Josephus's.

==Location of the temple==
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. <blockquote>The preponderance of archaeological and historical evidence is overwhelming and the argument that there is 'no proof' of the Temples is a modern political artifact.</blockquote></ref> Archaeological digs on the Temple Mount are banned by the Waqf, making the issue difficult to resolve.

===Dome of the Rock===
In Jewish tradition, the rock is the "foundation stone." It is connected to creation,<ref>{{bibleverse||Job|38:4|ESV}}.</ref> the binding of Isaac,<ref>{{bibleverse||Genesis|22:2|ESV}} and {{bibleverse||Genesis|22:14|ESV}}.</ref> and to various other things.<ref>Kohler, Kaufmann, "[http://jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/4665-corner-stone Corner-Stone]," ''Jewish Encyclopedia'', 1906.<br/>See mishnas [https://www.sefaria.org/Sanhedrin.26b.5?ven=William_Davidson_Edition_-_English&lang=bi Sanhedrin 26b:5] and [https://www.sefaria.org/Yoma.54b.2?ven=William_Davidson_Edition_-_English&lang=bi Yoma 54b:2].</ref> In Isaiah and Psalms, the foundation stone is a metaphor for God's covenant with Israel.<ref>{{bibleverse||Isaiah|28:16|ESV}} and {{bibleverse||Psalms|118:22|ESV}}. The passage in Psalms was a favorite of the gospel writers. It was quoted in {{bibleverse||Matthew|21:42|ESV}}, {{bibleverse||Mark|12:10|ESV}}, {{bibleverse||Luke|20:17|ESV}}, and {{bibleverse||Acts|4:11|ESV}}.</ref>

The Bordeaux Pilgrim visited Jerusalem around 333. This was soon after Constantine destroyed the Temple of Jupiter that Hadrian built. The pilgrim referred to the rock as a "pierced stone":{{cquote|There are two status of Hadrian; not far from the statues is a pierced stone to the Jews comes every year and they anoint it and they lament with a groan and they tear their garments and then they withdraw.<ref>"[http://andrewjacobs.org/translations/bordeaux.html The Bordeaux Pilgrim (c. 333 C.E.) Translation by Andrew S. Jacobs]"</ref>}} This scene suggests a verse in Zechariah where Jews weep over, "him whom they have pierced."<ref>{{bibleverse||Zechariah|12:10|ESV}}.</ref>

After conquering Jerusalem, the Arabs built the Dome of the Rock in 691. The building was connected to the sanctuary in Jewish literature beginning with ''Pirke De-Rabbi Eliezer'', written shortly after 833.<ref>Friedlander, Gerald, ''Pirkê de rabbi Eliezer,'' Kegan Paul, Trench, Trubner & co. Ltd., London, 1916, p. 221. "[The Arabs] will fence in the breaches of the walls of the Temple and construct a building on the site of the sanctuary."</ref> During the Crusader period, Al-Aqsa was called Solomon's Temple while the Dome was the Temple of God.

[[File:Tuvia_Sagiv,_Temple_Mount_in_Jerusalem_with_the_Hadrian_temple_of_Jupiter_in_Baalbek_in_Lebanon_overlaid.jpg|thumb|left|The black lines represent the current Temple Mount, blue is Hadrian's Temple to Jupiter in Baalbek, Lebanon, and red is a possible plan for the Herodian temple. Like the Temple to Jupiter in Jerusalem, the Baalbek temple was built by Hadrian. If the design of the Jerusalem temple was similar, the site of the octogonal Dome of the Rock corresponds to that of the hexagonal forecourt of Hadrian's temple. Drawing by Tuvia Sagiv.]]

==Arab Islamic terror plots==
In 2025: 2 Arab citizens charged with planning terror attack on Temple Mount.
Indictment filed against 2 Galilee residents for contact with terrorist elements, planning a stabbing attack on the Temple Mount and attempting to join the Tulkarm Brigades.
The two Arab Israeli citizens, Nur Shabat, a resident of the village of Nahf, and Amir Kiwan, a resident of Deir al-Asad, had contact with a senior operative in the Tulkarm Brigades terrorist organization, and Nur Shabat also attempted to participate in terrorist activity within the organization. At the same time, he approached a number of other elements in an attempt to join the battalions operating in Judea and Samaria.<ref>Uzi Baruch, [https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/406755 2 citizens charged with planning terror attack on Temple Mount].
''INN'', Apr 11, 2025.<blockquote>
Indictment filed against 2 Galilee residents for contact with terrorist elements, planning a stabbing attack on the Temple Mount and attempting to join the Tulkarm Brigades.</blockquote>
</ref>

===al-Kas Fountain===
Fortress Antonia, where Jesus was condemned by Pontius Pilate, overlooked 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"/>

Writing in AD 400, Jerome says that in his day an equestrian statue of Hadrian stood over the Holy of Holies.<ref>Jerome, ''Commentary on Matthew 24.15'', AD 400. "the statue of the mounted Hadrian, which stands to this very day on the site of the Holy of Holies."</ref> Hadrian also built a Temple to Jupiter in Baalbek, Lebanon. The ruins of this temple still stand. If Hadrian's temple in Jerusalem followed a similar plan, this statute was at the site of the fountain.

===West side of al-Aqsa===
A trumpeting stone of the temple was found in 1968 near Robertson Arch near the southwest corner of Temple Mount. As the stone fell off the Western Wall in the first century, the discovery confirms that this wall, where today's Jews go to pray, was a part of the Herodian temple. If we follow the dimensions given by Josephus, the temple extended 1 furlong in both directions from the southwest corner. This would put the temple of the west side of al-Aqsa, according to Norma Robertson.

The Temple Mount was extended southward both by the Hasmoneans and by Herod. So the present southwestern area is unlikely to have been part of Solomon's Temple.<ref name=barton/> Based on digs just south of the southern wall, archaeologists believe that what is now al-Aqsa was the site of Herod's Royal Stoa. This was a government building along the south side of the Temple Mount that housed the bureaucracy and courts of the kingdom. Reused cedar timber from the Stoa was found in al-Aqsa.<ref>Reuven, Peretz, "[https://www.baslibrary.org/biblical-archaeology-review/39/3/3 Wooden Beams from Herod’s Temple Mount: Do They Still Exist?]", ''Biblical Archaeology Review'', 39:3, May/June 2013.</ref>

===Dome of the Spirits===
An alternative theory described by physicist Asher Kaufman is based on a saying in the Mishna that the temple was due west of the eastern gate. "One may not act irreverently or conduct himself flippantly opposite the eastern gate of the Temple Mount, which is aligned opposite the Holy of Holies," according to one mishna.<ref>[https://www.sefaria.org/Berakhot.54a.7?ven=William_Davidson_Edition_-_English&lang=bi Berakhot 54a:7]</ref> The current eastern gate, or Golden Gate, was built by Justinian in the sixth century. It was sealed off by Ottoman Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent in 1541. The sealing of the gate fulfills a prophesy by Ezekiel.<ref>{{bibleverse||Ezekiel|44:2|ESV}}.</ref> If the location of this gate corresponds to the Herodian gate, that would put the temple at the Dome of the Spirits (or Dome of the Tablets), which is 330 feet north of the Dome of the Rock. This site is sacred to the Sufi sect. The name "Dome of the Tablets" suggests that a tradition connected this site to the temple. But the dome was built in the tenth century, by which time the Golden Gate was standing at its current location.<ref name="dolphin"/>

==Jesus==
Several well-known episodes in the life of Jesus occurred at the Herodian temple. Mary brought Jesus to the temple forty days after he was was born.<ref>{{bibleverse||Luke|2:22-2:40|ESV}}.</ref> He returned as a 12-year-old to debate the Pharisees.<ref>{{bibleverse||Luke|2:41-52|ESV}}.</ref> During his ministry, Jesus visited the temple and was outrage by the sight marketers defiling it. He angrily overturned the tables of the money changers.<ref>{{bibleverse||Mark|11.15-19|ESV}}, {{bibleverse||Matthew|21.12-17|ESV}}, {{bibleverse||Luke|19:45-48|ESV}}, and {{bibleverse||John|2:13-25|ESV}}.</ref> In the temptation [[narrative]], the devil brought Jesus to the "pinnacle of the Temple" and challenged him to prove that he was son of the God by throwing himself off.<ref>{{bibleverse||Matthew|4:1-11|ESV}}; {{bibleverse||Luke|4:1-13|ESV}}, [[English Standard Version]]. '''Note:''' ''Other Bible quotes are from the same translation''.</ref>

According to Matthew: {{cquote|Jesus left the temple and was going away, when his disciples came to point out to him the buildings of the temple. But he answered them, “You see all these, do you not? Truly, I say to you, there will not be left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down.”<ref>{{bibleverse||Matthew|24:1-2|ESV}}.</ref>}} This prophesy was fulfilled with the destruction of the Herodian temple by Titus in 70 AD.

After Jesus appeared at Pentecost, believers began to meet at the temple.<ref>{{bibleverse||Acts|2:46|ESV}}.</ref>

===Christian Prophecy===
There are various prophecies that deal with the temple. In a letter to a Christian community in Thessalonica, Paul prophesied that the temple would be rebuilt and presided over by a "man of lawlessness": {{cquote|Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day [the day of the Lord] will not come, unless the rebellion comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, who opposes and exalts himself against every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God.<ref>{{bibleverse|2|Thessalonians|2:3-4|ESV}}.</ref>}}

Paul wrote this letter in 51-52 AD when the Herodian temple was still standing. The man of lawlessness is identified with the anti-Christ of John's letters.<ref>The term “anti-Christ” is used {{bibleverse|1|John|2:18|ESV}}, {{bibleverse|1|John|2:22|ESV}},{{bibleverse|1|John|4:3|ESV}}, and {{bibleverse|2|John|1:7|ESV}}.</ref> It is a construction parallel to "Son of Man," a phrase applied to Jesus in the gospels. There is a history of identifying this character with various political figures such as a Roman emperor, pope, or Napoleon. The ''[[Geneva Bible]]'', used by the Puritans and by Shakespeare, identifies the anti-Christ with Pope Boniface VIII (r. 1294-1303).<ref>''Geneva Bible'', Notes on Revelation 14:1. Boniface issued ''Unan Sanctum'' in 1302 in which he proclaimed papal supremacy over both the church and secular authority. "It is altogether necessary to salv. ation for every human creature to be subject to the Roman pontiff," it stated.</ref>

According to Paul, the [[Old Testament]] prophecies concerning the rebuilding of the temple were fulfilled by the coming of Jesus:{{cquote|Do you not know that you are God's temple and that God's Spirit dwells in you? If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy him. For God's temple is holy, and you are that temple.<ref>{{bibleverse|1|Corinthians|3:16-17|ESV}}.</ref>}} "The God who made the world and everything in it, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in temples made by man," according to Acts.<ref>{{bibleverse||Acts|17:24|ESV}}.</ref>

Revelation says that the messianic temple will be built in heaven, not on the Temple Mount: {{cquote|Then God's temple in heaven was opened, and the ark of his covenant was seen within his temple. There were flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, an earthquake, and heavy hail.<ref>{{bibleverse||Revelation|11:19|ESV}}.</ref>}}

The sacrifices of non-Jews' sacrifices were accepted in the Temples, according to the Talmud.<ref><blockquote>The Beis Hamikdash was meant to serve gentiles as well as Jews... Not only was the Beis Hamikdash a place where gentiles could pray and serve Hashem, it was also a place where they could offer korbanos ([''Talmud''], Zevachim 116b).</blockquote>("Bnei Noach and Korbanos." R. Yirmiyohu Kaganoff, Beit Midrash, yeshiva.co.)</ref> In the Herodian temple, there were signs on the balustrade to exclude non-Jews from the area around the Temple.<ref>"[http://www.livingwithfaith.org/blog/the-gentiles-and-the-temple The Gentiles and the Temple]," Dec. 11, 2019.</ref> The messianic temple will be for people of all nations. It will be presided over by a messiah, which should be understood simply as a position that combines the roles of high priest and king.

==Muhammad==
According to the Koran:{{cquote| Glory be to Him, who carried His servant [Muhammad] by night from the Holy Mosque [in Mecca] to the Further Mosque the precincts of which We have blessed, that We might show him some of Our signs. He is the All-hearing, the All-seeing.<ref>Koran 17:1, Arberry, A.J. ''The Koran Interpreted: A Translation'', 1996, Oxford World's Classics.</ref>}}This verse is conventionally interpreted (by Muslims) to mean that Mohammad was miraculously transported to a "Further Mosque," in Arabic ''al-Masjid al-ʾAqṣā'', as part of a one night journey in 621 and briefly ascended to heaven there. The phrase is properly understood as referring to the Temple Mount as a whole.<ref>"[http://www.islamicencyclopedia.org/islamic-pedia-topic.php?id=641 Masjid al-Aqsa]", ''Islamic Encyclopedia,'' Mon, 13 Oct, 2014.</ref> It is widely accepted as a vision or dream that Muhammed stated he had.<ref>
Tamar Mayer, ‎Suleiman A. Mourad, "Jerusalem: Idea and Reality," Routledge, (2008), p. 87:
<blockquote>
Most of those who asserted that Muhammad could have seen Jerusalem—making the connection between the Aqsa mosque and Jerusalem's Temple Mount area—admitted that the vision was in the form of a dream.</blockquote></ref>

The al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem is one of only three that are suggested as destinations for Islamic pilgrimage. The other two pilgrimage mosques are in Mecca and Medina.

In 2022, activists documented how the Jordanisn Waqf [Islamic managing body] dumps garbage on the holy site in front of where the Temple stood.<ref>[https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/358683 Jordanian Waqf dumps garbage on the Temple Mount], ''INN'', 
Aug 24, 2022.
<blockquote>The Bayadenu (In Our Hands - Returning to the Temple Mount Foundation) organization revealed today the continuing desecration of the Temple Mount (also called Har Habayit). Two weeks after Tisha B'Av and the commemoration of the destruction of the Temples, the desecration continues to grow.
After Beyadenu revealed that antiquities and Temple Mount stones are being destroyed and thrown away in clear view, they now disclose a new and dangerous phenomenon -- garbage trucks are transporting garbage around the Temple Mount and disposing of it at the site which, according to Jewish tradition, is considered the holiest spot within the Temple Mount, the Ezra- the area in front of the Holy of Holies.
In a video recording taken this morning, a Waqf garbage truck is seen dumping the trash without any interference from law enforcement that should be offering protection of the holy site for the State of Israel.</blockquote></ref>

==References==
<references/>

{{Arab-Israeli conflict}}
[[Category:Israel]]