The temple

In short

There was only one (at a time), and it was in Jerusalem. Jews in 2021 may refer to synagogues as Temple Beth Something, but this is not biblical language. In the Bible, the temple is a single place (albeit one that was rebuilt a few times). Also, it is sometimes called “the house of the LORD.”

Why it is important

It replaced the tabernacle as the home of the Ark of the Covenant and the place of certain priestly worship. Without either the tabernacle or the temple, I don’t see how a Jew can obey the Torah.

What did the temple look like?

I added a picture. There is a jargon thing going on here that you should be aware of.

In my mind, the temple is a single building. But the Bible consistently uses “the temple” to refer to much more than that. For example, in Matthew 24:1, Jesus’ disciples pointed “out to him the BUILDINGS of the temple.” Modern Jews refer to it all as “the temple mount.” You can see that the region is hilly but the temple complex is on a plateau (I’m assuming a man-made one).

There is a single building in the middle that only priests could enter, and that’s what I call the temple. The concept is the same as the tabernacle – an inner room at the back called the “inner sanctuary, as the Most Holy Place” (1Ki 6:16,19), then a “nave” in the middle and a “vestibule” at the entrance (1Ki 6:3). Plus, an altar outside for sacrificing (burning) animals, and other items for preparation and worship.

Temple history

1. God never asked for a temple (2 Samuel 7:7); in fact, he seems to balk at the idea
2. Yet he agrees to David’s plea to build one. The twist? David himself will never get to see it; his son Solomon will have it built (2Sa 7:12-13).
3. Solomon builds it in seven years (2Ki 6), roughly 1000 BC
4. Solomon’s temple is destroyed in 586 BC (long after his death) by Babylon (2Ki 25:8-9)
5. The Jews go into captivity for 70 years
6. Jeshua and Zerubbabel rebuild the temple in 516 BC (Ezra 6:15); many infer that this temple is much smaller than Solomon’s (Ezra 3:12)
7. Not recorded in the Bible is when Herod “refurbished” this temple into a much, much larger one.
8. That temple was destroyed in AD 70, as prophesied by Jesus
9. For some reason, the last two temples are both referred to (collectively) as “the second temple.” The timeframe I outlined (516 BC to AD 70) is referred to as “The Second Temple Period” and Second Temple Judaism. All of that terminology is outside of the Bible, but it’s good to know when reading commentaries.