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Temple Mount in Jerusalem
Aerial view of the Temple Mount
General view of the Temple Mount
Southwest corner of Temple Mount
Introduction
The Temple Mount (Hebrew: Har haBáyit) or Noble
Sanctuary (Arabic: Haram esh‐Sharif) is a elevated
plateau in the Old City of Jerusalem rich with
history and religious importance. It is currently
governed by the Waqf, or Supreme Muslim
Religious Council.
Like many sites in Jerusalem, the Temple Mount is
sacred to Jews, Muslims and Christians. Originally,
it was the site of the great Temple of Jerusalem,
the holiest place in Judaism. For Muslims, it is the
site of the Prophet Muhammad's journey to
heaven described in the Qur'an. Finally, Christians
revere it as a place frequently visited by Jesus and
some believe it will play a major role in end‐time
events.
History
TheFirstTemple
In the 10th century BC, after King David captured
the city of Jerusalem and made it the capital of the
Israelites, he chose this high place as the site of a
great temple to house the Ark of the Covenant (2
Samuel 24:18‐25). Prior to this, the Ark had moved
among several sanctuaries, especially those of
Shechem and Shiloh. The construction project was
undertaken by David's son, King Solomon, and
completed in 957 BC.
The Temple's two main purposes were to house
the Ark of the Covenant and provide a place for
people to worship, so the Temple was a fairly small
building with a large courtyard. The courtyard
included a huge bronze basin for priestly ablutions
and was surrounded by storehouses. The Temple
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South wall of the Temple Mount by Al-Aqsa Mosque
Model of Herod's Temple
MModel of Herod's Temple close up
itself was a rectangular building oriented east and
made up of three parts: a porch (ʾulam); a main
room for services (hekhal, Holy Place); and the
devir, or Holy of Holies.
The Holy of Holies housed the Ark of the Covenant,
which was accompanied by two cherubim carved
of olive wood. It was also considered the dwelling
place of the Divine Presence (Shekhinah). So
sacred was this innermost sanctuary that it could
be entered only by the high priest on the Day of
Atonement (Yom Kippur).
The Temple of Jerusalem was an important center
of religious and national identity from the
beginning, but it became even more important
when Josiah (r.640–609 BC) abolished all other
sanctuaries and established Solomon's Temple as
the only acceptable place for sacrifice in the
Kingdom of Judah.
The First Temple was looted of its treasures ‐
including the Ark of the Covenant ‐ between 604
BC and 597 BC and totally destroyed in 587‐86 BC
by King Nebuchadnezzar II of Babylon.
(Incidentally, Nebuchadnezzar's palace gates can
be seen at the Pergamon Museum in Berlin.) The
Jews were deported to Babylonia between 586 and
582 in what is known as the Babylonian Exile.
TheSecondTemple
In 538 BC, the Persian king Cyrus II (who had
conquered Babylonia) allowed the Jews to return
to Jerusalem and rebuild the temple. This was
completed around 515 BC as a modest version of
the original, without the Ark or any other ritual
objects. But the Temple resumed its role as the
religious center of Judaism, with elaborate rituals
conducted by priests and Levites.
The next few centuries saw Jerusalem subjugated
to a number of foreign rulers. The Temple was
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Floor plan of Herod's Second Temple
FMe
Men praying at the Western Wall at night
respected by these (Persian and Hellenistic) rulers
until Antiochus IV Epiphanes, who plundered it in
169 BC and desecrated it in 167 BC, by
commanding that sacrifices be made to Zeus
inside. This sparked the Hasmonean revolt, after
which Judas Maccabaeus rededicated the Temple.
This event is still celebrated in the annual festival
of Hanukkah.
During the Roman era, Pompey entered (and
thereby desecrated) the Holy of Holies in 63 BC,
but left the Temple intact. In 54 BC, Crassus looted
the Temple treasury. The Temple's fortunes rose
again, however, with King Herod the Great of
Judea, who began to rebuild it in 20 BC. The
project was completed in 26 AD, after the birth of
Jesus.
Herod doubled the size of Temple Mount,
surrounding it with retaining walls and gates. The
Temple itself was enlarged and faced with large
white stones. A series of "courts" allowed access to
successively smaller groups of people: Jews and
Gentiles; Jews only; Jewish men only; and priests
only. Although it still lacked the Ark, the Temple
now housed the Scriptures and other Jewish
writings. It also became the headquarters of the
Sanhedrin, the Jewish court of law during the
Roman period.
JesusandtheTemple
According to the New Testament, the Temple of
Jerusalem played a significant role in the life of
Jesus. After his birth (around 4 BC), Jesus was
dedicated at the Temple in accordance with the
Law of Moses (Luke 2:22‐28). When he was a boy,
he impressed the Jewish teachers with his
knowledge (Luke 2:41‐52). Jesus was later tempted
by Satan to jump off the Temple to prove his status
(Matthew 4:1‐11, Mark 1:12‐13, and Luke
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South wall of Temple Mount, with ancient stones,
some as old as 20 B.C.
Signs warning of potholes and inaccessibility to Jews due to the
sacredness of the Temple area
4:1‐13) and he angrily overturned tables of
moneychangers during the "Cleansing of the
Temple" (Matthew 21:12, Mark 11:15‐19, Luke
19:45‐48, John 2:14).
DestructionoftheTemple
In 66 AD, a Jewish rebellion against Rome began
and culminated in the near‐complete destruction
of the Temple (and the entire city) by Titus on
August 10, 70 AD. This event is commemorated
(complete with a relief showing the looting of a
menorah by Roman soldiers) on the Arch of Titus
in Rome. All that remained was a portion of the
Western Wall, which is the focus of Jewish
pilgrimage in Jerusalem today. Ever since this
destruction, Jews around the world have
continued to cherish the hope that it will one day
be rebuilt.
This hope seemed to be realized after Simon Bar
Kochba led a major rebellion against the Romans
(132 AD). Jerusalem was liberated for three years,
during which reconstruction on the Temple
probably began. But in 135, Roman armies retook
Jerusalem and forbade Jews to enter the city.
Emperor Hadrian continued his construction of the
new Roman city (called Aeila Capitolina) and built a
Temple to Jupiter Capitolinus on the site of the
Temple.
ByzantinePeriod
Two centuries later, in 324, Emperor Constantine
destroyed Hadrian's pagan temple and built a
church in its place. Excavations at Al‐Aqsa Mosque
have uncovered an elaborate mosaic floor and
fragments of an elaborate marble chancel screen,
indicating that the Byzantine church was an
elaborate and important one.
Jewish hopes for rebuilding rose again briefly in
363, from a quite unexpected source ‐ the Roman
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Various buildings on the Temple Mount
The Dome of the Rock on Temple Mount
Another view on Temple Mount
emperor Julian "the Apostate." Julian rejected the
Christianity in which he had been raised, embraced
a form of Roman paganism, and enthusiastically
promoted the idea of rebuilding the Jewish
Temple. The project was funded by Julian himself
as well as donations from Jews around the world
and construction began almost immediately.
Tragically, however, as the site was cleared by
workers, "fearful balls of fire, breaking out near
the foundations, continued their attacks, till the
workmen, after repeated scorchings, could
approach no more: and he [the architect] gave up
the attempt" (Ammianus Marcellinus). Emperor
Julian died within the year and the project was
abandoned.
Early Christian authors record that some stones of
the Temple were still visible, although only
foundations remained. During the Byzantine
period, Jews were permitted to visit the Temple at
least once a year, on the anniversary of the
destruction in 70 AD. They would pour oil over a
stone, weep and tear their garments.
Jerusalem was a very holy city for Byzantine
Christians, but most of the focus was on sites
associated with the death and resurrection of
Christ, like the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. The
Temple Mount was mostly ignored and its stone
continued to be looted for use in other structures.
IslamicPeriod
In 614, Persian forces invaded Jerusalem,
slaughtering the inhabitants and destroying the
churches. Thus, Islamic historians record that when
the Muslims captured the city in 638, Caliph Umar I
found the Temple Mount completely destroyed
and began immediately to repair it. In 688‐91 the
fifth Umayyad caliph ʿAbd al‐Malik ibn Marwān
built the Dome of the Rock on the restored
platform.
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Al-Aqsa Mosque from northeast
View of the Western Wall from above
The women's section of the Western Wall
The Temple Mount in Jerusalem (specifically the
Al‐Aqsa Mosque) is regarded by Muslims as the
third holiest site outside the cities of Mecca and
Medina. The main reasons are these:
• Islam regards Abraham, David and Solomon
as prophets and reveres the Temple as one of
the earliest and most noteworthy places of
worship of God. (However, some Muslims
dispute that the Temple Mount is the site of
the Jewish Temple.)
• Verse 17:1 of the Qur'an speaks of the
Prophet's night journey to the "farthest
Mosque" (al‐masjid al‐Aqsa). The location is
not given in the Qur'an, but Muslim tradition
associates the site with the Temple Mount in
Jerusalem.
• The Prophet Muhammad originally
established Jerusalem as the qibla (direction
of prayer) before changing it to Mecca.
When the Crusaders briefly controlled Jerusalem
(1099‐1187, 1229‐39 and 1240‐44), Al‐Aqsa
Mosque on the Temple Mount was the
headquarters of the Templars. Their legacy can be
seen in the three Romanesque central bays of the
mosque's main facade.
ModernPeriod
The 20th and 21st centuries have been full of
turmoil for Jerusalem, with the city (and parts of
the city) claimed by various groups at various
times. The most significant event occurred in 1967,
when Israelis captured the West Bank, east
Jerusalem and the Old City from Jordan in the Six‐
Day War. Israel now claims all of Jerusalem is the
capital of the State of Israel, while Arabs and
international opinion reject the claim with regard
to East Jerusalem.
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The large stones of the Western Wall date from 20 BC
These turbulent events have not much changed
the state of affairs at the Temple Mount, however,
which continues to be administered by the Waqf,
or Supreme Muslim Religious Council. Access to
the Temple Mount is free and open to the public
and is a popular stop for tourists and pilgrims. In
general, Jews still do not enter the Temple Mount,
instead focusing their prayers and lamentations on
the famous Western Wall.
What’stoSee?
The Temple Mount covers 35 acres and can be
accessed by non‐Muslims through a gate next to the Western Wall. Signs at the entrance list strict rules for
visiting the site, including modest dress and no religious activity. Another sign, posted by the Chief
Rabbinate of Israel, warns: "According to the Torah it is forbidden for any person to enter the area of the
Temple Mount due to its sacredness." Devout Jews do not visit the Temple Mount, in case they might break
divine law by walking over the Holy of Holies or the area reserved for priests.
The location of the Temple has not been identified with certainty. Many scholars believe it stood on the
present site of the Dome of the Rock, but others haved proposed locations at the north or south end of the
platform. Today, the primary structures on and around the Temple Mount are these:
• Al Aqsa Mosque (720 AD). One of the oldest and most beautiful mosques in the world, located next
to the entrance to the Temple Mount.
• Dome of the Rock (691 AD). A splendid edifice covered with blue mosaic tiles and a gold dome. It
contains the rock from which Muhammad is believed to have ascended into heaven on his Night
Journey (Qur'an 17), which is also believed to be the site of Abraham's near‐sacrifice of Isaac
(Genesis 22).
• Dome of the Chain (13th century in current form). A smaller dome of uncertain purpose, with
beautiful decorations.
• Western Wall ‐ The retaining wall of Herod's Temple, this is the focus of an open‐air synagogue and is the
holiest Jewish site in the world.
• Islamic Museum ‐ focuses on Islamic architecture on the Temple Mount
• Solomon's Stables ‐ These underground chambers filled with pigeons are part of the substructure of the
Temple Mount constructed by Herod.