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Destruction Of The Temple

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Model of Second Temple of Jerusalem, originally in the Holyland Hotel, located since 2006 at the Israel Museum in Jerusalem

The Temple of Jerusalem is, according to the Bible, the religious building built by the Israelites to house the Ark of the Covenant. It was destroyed and rebuilt several times.

All details concerning the construction of the temple was located in the first book of Kings in the Bible. King David was divinely informed that the burden of building a house for the Lord would return to its progeny (2 Samuel 7), this promise was fulfilled with his son Solomon , who in 1 Kings 5, shall undertake the construction following the instructions of Eternal. That Hiram, king of Tyre, which has provided the cedar and cypress necessary to Solomon , as well as gold and labor to build the Temple, in exchange for food.

Summary

1 successive temples according to the Bible
2 Archaeological Data on the Temple of Jerusalem
3 Architecture of the Bible
4 The Temple of Jerusalem and the three great monotheistic
5 References

/ / Temples successive according to the Bible

The First Temple or was built, according to the Bible, by King Solomon (in the ^tenth century BC. ). It was completely destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar II in 587 BC. AD

The Second Temple was built in the back of the captivity of the Jews to Babylon , to -536. It was completed on March 12 -515.

Huldah doors in the south wall

The Temple of Herod was a massive expansion of the Second Temple, including a renovation of the Temple Mount. It was begun by Herod the Great to -19. This Temple was destroyed by Titus in 70 , he remains today as a vestige that the retaining walls built by Herod the esplanade and the remnants of arches that allow access to the esplanade.

Further information: Head of Jerusalem (70) and the Western Wall.

The Western Wall Wailing Wall says is part of the retaining wall west. Only 7 levels of the stones of the Western Wall are Herodian period, however, the 4 levels are higher after the conquest of Jerusalem by the Arabs.

The usual term of the Wailing Wall is referring to the pilgrims coming to mourn the destruction of the Temple and the exile of the Jewish people. But the cries are no longer appropriate since the restoration of the State of Israel, and the name Western Wall is the appropriate word because it is the exact translation of the Hebrew Hamaaravi Kotel, and this wall is actually the west wall of the Temple destroyed by the armies of Titus in 70 AD.

Dion Cassius , who died about 325, in his account of the Revolt of Bar Kokhba , speaks of the ruins of the monument of Solomon ^{Archaeological Data on the Temple of Jerusalem Archaeological Data on the First Temple}

We have no archaeological data on the Temple of Solomon. The very name of King Solomon appears nowhere at the time of his reign, in the archaeological record of the Middle East. However, as the house of David (that is to say his dynasty) is mentioned on the stele from Tell Dan , archeology does not question the existence of Solomon's kingdom with Jerusalem as its capital. Only the extent of this realm poses a real problem. The most recent analysis of the population of Jerusalem , made from the statement of the location of graves and their dating, suggests that the Jerusalem of Solomon , like David , was the size of a mountain village located at the site of what is called the City of David. If Solomon did build a temple in Jerusalem, he certainly was not a big building.

The first archaeological evidence proving the existence of a Temple in Jerusalem is indirect. At three sites, the fortress of Arad , Tel Beer Sheva and Lachish , it was found that places of worship in activity -800 (equipment for the sacrifices) are desecrated in -700. This proves that the desire not to have decentralized places of sacrifice, determination proclaimed in the Bible, is actually practical -700. This practice, in turn, shows clearly that there is a central Temple in Jerusalem around 700 BC, though no trace remains of the building material. At the time of Hezekiah , Jerusalem has become an important city and it is quite logical that a large proportion of the Temple will be in operation.

Traces of this writing, construction of the Second Temple

Between -800 and -700 there is a rapid development of writing, which accompanies the literacy of the population. Under Hezekiah (-715, -687), the tunneling of Siloam, commemorated by an inscription carved into the rock, is mentioned in the Bible, this now leaves a paper trail and the biblical stories will now have a clear historical basis. This is not the case when the Bible writers describe a mythical past where writing did not exist in Israel: neither the narrative of the Exodus , nor the conquest of Canaan , nor those of reigns of David and Solomon have a precise historical foundation.

Jerusalem, with its First Temple, destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar II in -586. A portion of the population - according to one fourth that excavations can estimate - was exiled to Babylon. But Babylonia collapsed under the attack of Cyrus II , founder of the Persian Empire, which frees prisoners -538 and allows reconstruction of the Temple in Jerusalem. The High Priest Joshua , returning from exile, led the building of the Second Temple, which ends in -516 by Israel Finkelstein. Sources beyond the Bible thus confirm, in essence, the biblical narrative.

The Temple of Herod

Main article: Temple of Herod.

Herod the Great makes huge development work, building "the Roman" an immense esplanade: the hill of origin is encircled by a massive retaining wall, the inner surface completely leveled and filled with backfill. Construction begins in 19 BC and lasted about 7 years, 100,000 men were employed, but work was not fully completed until 63 CE. Only 7 years later, during the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 , the Romans razed completely. The emperor Hadrian rebuilt the city. The construction of a temple dedicated to the Roman god Jupiter Capitoline, the site of the ancient temple of Herod, causing the revolt led 132 to 135 by Bar-Kochba. Following the crushing of the revolt, Hadrian renamed the city Aelia Capitolina Colonia. He built pagan temples on the pilgrimage. Jews are banned from the city for nearly two centuries. In ^the fourth century Constantine's mother, Helena , visited Jerusalem and Christian holy sites identified , where churches are built.

In 638 Jerusalem was conquered by armies from Arabia. "Your lives will be saved, your assets protected, your churches met as long as you pay the toll," said the Caliph Omar . Of Herod's Temple , destroyed by the Romans 568 years ago, there were only the Wailing Wall , which is respected in the construction of the Al-Aqsa Mosque , built on the ruins of the Jewish temple.

Architecture of the Bible

Reconstruction of the Temple of Herod

The structure of the Temple of Solomon and the precious materials used are described in particular in the first Book of Kings (6.1 to 22). The prototype of this temple is the portable device protecting the Ark of the covenant as described in the Pentateuch. This model will be taken to the Second Temple.

The Temple has a concentric structure, with both the public and the parties still more sacred and still more rarely accessible. In the sanctuary of the Temple, the " Holy of Holies , is kept with the Ark of the Covenant, within the Tables of the Law (stones engraved with the text of the Ten Commandments sent by God to Moses on Mount Sinai during the Exodus , the rod of Aaron (brother of Moses) would have germinated and a jar containing the manna in the desert).

The temple also includes portals, altars (perfumes, animal sacrifices), pools of ablution.

The Temple of Jerusalem and the three great monotheistic

Judaism

The destruction of the Second Temple and the end of the sacrifices and the priesthood has marked a crucial step in the formation of "Judaism" as we know it today with a public practice of religion, not sacrificial but centered on the Book (worship synagogue ), in addition the family worship.

The Kotel or Western Wall said the Wailing Wall , a place of prayer and pilgrimage since the destruction of the Second Temple, has become since 1967 as a synagogue wide open, with a section for men and a section reserved for women.

For the most part, religious Jews refrain from setting foot on the Temple Mount , site of the Temple, to avoid putting his foot on the sacred site of the Holy of Holies. Indeed, the Temple Mount is considered the first shrine of Judaism (with the tomb of the Patriarchs ).

A possible reconstruction of the Temple, the Third Temple is prepared and promoted by some groups and challenged by other streams of Judaism. This issue is related to the messianic expectation. Reconstruction had been attempted by the emperor Julian the Apostate , but it was ruined by an earthquake, we ready to Napoleon a similar intention.

Christianity

The Temple is mentioned in the New Testament : Jesus Christ was presented as ritually eldest son , it went on pilgrimage with Mary and Joseph (episode of "recovery in the Temple," Jesus child talking to Doctors) , chased in stores , mourned its destruction in advance .

The Temple was part of evidence adduced at the trial of Jesus . In his Passion , according to the Gospels , the curtain of the Temple was torn at the time of Christ's death .

The apostles continued to frequent the Temple after the Resurrection .

When Jerusalem became a Christian city, the site of the temple, ruined, was left in the state, but according to some, a church "Sainte-Marie-la-Neuve", commemorating the Presentation of Jesus in the Temple, was built in edge of the plaza and will be destroyed by Muslims who built the mosque at the same place Al-Aqsa. This view seems abandoned since the ^nineteenth century .

The Crusaders have set their King Baudouin ^I.. Then, the Templars have converted chieftain and head home to their order. They did build a church, with sloping roofs and not on the terrace. Jerusalem was their capital and it is from the Temple of Jerusalem that this order of chivalry took the Christian name of Order of the Temple (1129-1312).

While recognizing the site of the temple a holy place, the Christianity makes no claim to this place. The "center of the world" no longer Christian in Jerusalem Temple, but a point, materialized (called "Compass" or "Omphalos") in the church of Saint Sepulchre , halfway between Golgotha and the chapel the Tomb. More fundamentally, each is called "Temple of the Holy Spirit" and the presence of "material" the most perfect of God is, for Catholics and Orthodox in the Eucharist.

Some evangelical Christian groups support the American Jewish groups promoting the construction of a Third Temple.

Islam

Mosque Al-Aqsa in 1900. Built on the Temple Mount, it looks the same since 1218 and is one of the holiest mosques of Islam.

The Temple Mount, as it appeared in 1910

According to the Quran, the Temple construction was begun by the Prophet Dawud and completed by his son, Souleymane. Souleymane was built using the jinn who were under his command. It is a tribute to his father that he finished the work.

The Al-Aqsa ("distant") is one of the main holy places of Islam (after the mosque in Mecca and of Madinah ). Between 1969 and 1983, the dome of the Al-Aqsa was covered by aluminum anodization, which gave it a silvery appearance. In 1983, for the sake of authenticity, he has restored his original coating of lead, dark gray.

Mohammed has visited, and he directed ( Imam ) the prayer with all the prophets and messengers that Allah had sent to earth from Adam. It is also the place from which he flew to heaven, through the 7 heavens, the winged horse Buraq , so that Allah honor him by making him see some of its wonders, who ordered him during this visit to the prayer 5 times a day. This trip is known among Muslims through Isra and Miraj or the Night Journey.

The Dome of the Rock , covered with a golden dome, is one of the most famous monuments of Jerusalem.

The qibla , the direction of Muslim prayer was oriented toward Jerusalem at the beginning of the prophethood of Mohammed , before being permanently changed by Allah to Mecca in order to test the faith of believers.

The Quran never mentions Jerusalem explicitly. However, a common interpretation, one of his verses designate the city as the place of the Night Journey of Muhammad : "Glory to Him that night, took His servant Muhammad ( Muhammad ), the Al-Haram (in Mecca ) to Al-Aqsa Mosque ("distant") (in Jerusalem ) whose surroundings We have blessed, to show him some of Our Signs. It is he, really, which is the audit, the Seer "( Surah 17 : Al-Isra (The Night Journey ), verse 1).

Finally, some Islamic scholars, the site of the Temple of Jerusalem is linked to the end of time, or more precisely the return of Jesus as the Jewish Nazarenes believed that the Arabs have served as surrogates in order to retake Jerusalem Jesus son of Mary will return by the "Golden Gate", the name of ^the 8th gate of Jerusalem (now bricked up) which overlooks the Temple Mount and faces the Mount of Olives. Scales of the Last Judgement (religion) will be suspended from the gantry surrounding the Dome of the Rock.

References

Notes

Roman History , 69, 14
See The Invention of the Holy Cross , according to the Golden Legend
(see here )
Luke 2.22-40
Luke 2.41-52
John 2.1 "-22 and parallels in the Synoptics
Luke 19.41-44
Mk 14:58
15.38 Mc and parallel synoptic
Luke 24.53
(en) Moshe Gil , A History of Palestine, 634-1099. Cambridge and New York: Cambridge University Press, 1992. This work is partially available on Google books , page 441