Difference between revisions of "Temple Mount"
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{{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</ref>}} | {{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</ref>}} | ||
| − | This ambiguous verse is conventionally interpreted to mean that Mohammad | + | This highly ambiguous verse is conventionally interpreted to mean that Mohammad was miraculously transported to a "Further Mosque," in Arabic ''al-Masjid al-ʾAqṣā'', as part of one night journey in 621 and briefly ascended to heaven there. The al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem is therefore one of only three that are designated for Islamic pilgrimage. The other two pilgrimage mosques are in Mecca and Medina. |
==Location of the Temple== | ==Location of the Temple== | ||
Revision as of 16:02, March 31, 2020
| Temple Mount | |
|---|---|
| |
| Arabic name | |
| Arabic | الحرم القدسي الشريف |
| Romanization | al-Haram al-Qudsī ash-Sharīf (Noble Sanctuary) |
| Hebrew name | |
| Hebrew | הר הבית |
| Romanization | Har ha-Bayit |
The Temple Mount, biblical Mount Moriah, is a hill in the Old City of Jerusalem. It is the former site of a Jewish temple built by King Solomon in the mid-tenth century BC. The temple was rebuilt by King Herod of Judea in the first century BC. When Jesus went to temple, 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 136. 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, al-Aqsa is considered to be the third holiest site in Islam. Although the Temple Mount was captured by the Israelis in the 1967 Arab-Israeli War, it is still managed by an Islamic religious authority called the Waqf.
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.[1] He returned as a 12-year-old to debate the Pharisees.[2] 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.[3] In the temptation narrative, the devil brought Jesus to the "pinnacle of the Temple" and challenged him to prove that he son of the God by throwing himself off.[4]
Muhammad
According to the Koran:
| “ | 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.[5] | ” |
This highly ambiguous verse is conventionally interpreted to mean that Mohammad was miraculously transported to a "Further Mosque," in Arabic al-Masjid al-ʾAqṣā, as part of one night journey in 621 and briefly ascended to heaven there. The al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem is therefore one of only three that are designated for Islamic pilgrimage. The other two pilgrimage mosques are in Mecca and Medina.
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.[6] The idea that the Temple was located outside the Temple Mount has also received attention, but is rejected by specialists as a fringe theory.[7] Archaeological digs on the Temple Mount are banned by the Waqf, making the issue difficult to resolve.
Prophecy
Various prophecies in the old and new testaments foresee the rebuilding of a Jewish temple. For example, in a letter to a Christian community in Thessalonia, Paul prophesied as follows:
| “ | 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.[8] | ” |
References
- ↑ Luke 2:22–2:40.
- ↑ Luke 2.41-52.
- ↑ Mark 11.15-19; Matt. 21.12-17; Luke 19.45-48; John 2.13-25.
- ↑ Matt. 4.1-11; Luke 4.1-13.
- ↑ Koran 17:1
- ↑ Dolphin, Lambert and Kollen, Michael, "On The Location of the First and Second Temples in Jerusalem."
- ↑ Ruth Schuster and Ran Shapira, "Were There Jewish Temples on Temple Mount?", Haaretz, Jul 24, 2017.
- ↑ 2 Thessalonians 2:3–4 (ESV).