Introduction
I think there are many deceptions out there but probably one of the greatest is the deception of the Jews believing that the Temple Mount including the famed Western Wall are actually part of the original Solomon’s Temple.
You might ask why that is important and the reason is that the end times are inextricably linked to the 3rd temple being built just before or during the end times. It is a place where we are watching for the first movement to take place by the final Two Witnesses at the beginning of the last seven years of tribulation. The Western Wall as pictured above is also a place where the Jews are watching and continuously praying because it is believed to be the closest point to the holy place. It is also known as the Wailing Wall because of the centuries of ongoing tears as the Jews yearn for the rebuilding of their beloved temple. At the Western Wall, the Jews are ready, faced towards the east because it is believed that the returning Messiah will come from the east through the eastern gate and they will be faced in that direction.1 It is believed that the current Golden Gate is that eastern gate. This Golden Gate has been sealed up since 1541 and the Ottoman Muslims have even tried to ensure that the Jewish Messiah will not return by placing a cemetery in front of this gate to prevent a Jewish Messiah from entering through. Even today the Temple Mount is a hotly contested piece of real estate and has much spiritual significance to Jews, Muslims, and Christians alike. But what if I told you that this was not actually the original site of Solomon’s Temple? And that is exactly what I believe to be true for a number of reasons.
Argument #1 – 10,000 stones
Firstly, Jesus in reply to a question by His disciples regarding the temple told them that their venerated temple would be totally destroyed with not one stone being left on another.2 So obviously today there are some 10,000 stones, some as large as a bus calculated as weighing as much as 250-300 tons. So how can that prophecy be true if there are thousands of stones still there? The answer is that this is not actually part of the original temple structure but in fact the foundation stones of Fort Antonia, the original fort constructed by the Romans for their 10th legion when overseeing their captives, the Jews, in the first century. The Romans under General Titus in AD 70, completely erased and razed to the ground the 2nd temple built by Herod but left their own fort which had to house a legion of soldiers and support staff (6000 soldiers + 4000 support staff). The 36-acre trapezium-shaped Temple Mount area is the perfect size to accommodate such a large number of people and is typical of the size of Roman forts at that time.
Argument #2 – City of David
Secondly, the Bible is quite clear that Solomon’s Temple was located in the old city of David. 2 Chronicles 3:1 tells us exactly where Solomon built the temple: It was on Mt. Moriah where the LORD appeared to David on the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite. The question is where was the original Mt. Moriah and Araunah’s threshing floor? 2 Chron. 5:2 gives us a hint that Solomon gave orders for the ark of the covenant to be brought up from the city of David. Where was the ark located? In the temple, in the holy of holies! Clearly in this verse, by implication, the temple was in the city of David. The old city of David has recently been discovered to be south of the Temple Mount some 600 or so meters to the south of the southern wall. You can actually visit it today and walk through Hezekiah’s tunnel which I have done twice. That brings me to my third point.
Argument #3 – Gihon Spring
The temple required “living” or running water for the operations of the sacrificial system with the blood of the sacrificed animals needing to be washed out by copious amounts of water but uncontaminated water was also needed for ceremonial duties as well. The first such duty was the anointing of Solomon as king at the Gihon Spring.3 It is only one of a dozen or so karstic siphon springs in the world which defies gravity and rises up hundreds of feet vertically twice a day. The actual word “Gihon” means gushing forth. At the present-day presumed location of the Jewish temple, there is no running water only “dead water” cisterns. I wouldn’t think that priests would walk a kilometre or so with water from the Gihon Spring in order to conduct the sacrifices. The Gihon Spring is the only freshwater spring within 8 km or so of Jerusalem. Interestingly, the “living” Gihon Spring is still running to this day albeit at a much lower rate of flow.
Argument #4 – Historians
Fourthly, many ancient historians including Eusebius and the Jewish Josephus record details about the temple and its area, the Gihon Spring, and the crescent-shaped mountain of the city of David as being consistent with a temple that was located in the old city of David and not its present-day presumed location where the Dome of the Rock is situated. Josephus records that the temple area was a raised square platform 600 x 600 feet in dimensions rising some 300 cubits (450 feet or 45 stories) above the Kidron Valley to the east. Makes sense when you think that the devil took Jesus to the highest point of the temple and tried to tempt Him to jump 45 stories and trust God in it.4 The point is that the true temple area as recorded by the eyewitness, Josephus, was only 600 feet square or 8 acres in an area not the 36 acres of the so-called Temple Mount.
The importance of the temple for the coming Two Witnesses
So why is all this important and what significance does this have for us today? Well, when the Two Witnesses appear on the scene at the beginning of the seven year tribulation period they begin by measuring out the temple area and the altar.5 This is more than likely so that the Jewish sacrificial system can recommence.6 But one would think that it would have to be at the correct location and many would be missing this by looking at instead, the Western Wall, the site of Fort Antonia. The Jews do not currently accept the City of David as being the location of the original temples of course because of the traditions and teachings of their Rabbis. So for the Jewish sacrificial system to take place again after 1960 years somewhere other than their temple mount, modern-day religious Jews say that it would take someone greater than their learned Jewish scholar ancestors for them to change their minds about the temple as testified below…
Conclusion
We need to be aware and watch the right place otherwise we might think that two guys measuring out an altar and temple area outside the walls of Jerusalem some 600 m or so to the south in a car park might be irrelevant. In the next few years, the hidden place of the ark of the covenant and the hidden location of the real Temple of Solomon might in fact be revealed.7 This could be of benefit too if the real location of the two prior Jewish temples are revealed because it would avoid a war with Muslims if the Old Testament sacrificial system was reinstated a few hundred metres to the south. It would be quite a distance from the Dome of the Rock thereby avoiding a possible war. Above is a possible view of what the original Solomon’s Temple may have looked like in relation to Fort Antonia according to Associates for Scriptural Knowledge (ASK) with the temple being on the left. I would advise in reading Ernest L. Martin’s book, “The Temples that Jerusalem Forgot” for further information on this subject. For an excellent video on the real location of the second temple see this presentation by Bob Cornuke below.
5 Responses
Any comments /thoughts Steve on the significance or otherwise of the red heifer(s)? Just a couple of days ago (15th Sep 2022) five “perfect” red heifers arrived in Israel from usa (see the temple institute web site) although all 5 must be a few months older yet before they qualify to have their final inspection before becoming the “purifying ashes”.
Yes, we Christians know that the perfect sacrifice has already been made on our behalf but for the Jews, many see this as a necessary step before any sacrificial system can be re-established.
It’s interesting also that many Jews also see this as an essential step in seeing the Messiah come (although we know for the second time not the first time)
Yeah I just watched a YouTube on this which is very interesting by Nelson Walters here. But of course end times buffs are getting very excited thinking this could mean that the Tribulation could start even in a week’s time at Rosh Hashanah 2022. As you know I think they are 7 years too early because why would it start at Year 5986 instead of 2029 which is Year 5993? Doesn’t make sense to me. Nelson also says that he believes that the red heifer is not necessarily needed to recommence the sacrificial system. But another important point that he made is that the sacrifices have to be at the right place-David’s altar (18:03 min mark). So while the red heifer might be one piece of the puzzle, I would tend to think it also needs to happen at the real Temple location (old city of David) not on the Temple Mount near the Dome of the Rock as currently held by the Jewish Temple Institute and most Jewish rabbis.
In Rev. 11:1 it seems like the Temple is already in existence when the Two Witnesses come to measure the worshippers. Therefore it’s possible that the sacrifices could restart even years earlier than the start of the last 70th week (Year 5993-6000) but the reaffirmed Old Testament covenant will definitely mark the start of Daniel’s 70th week (Dan. 9:27). Then the sacrifices will be stopped by the rising of the beast at the midpoint.
Something also that I have been thinking about is that the Two Witnesses may be involved in encouraging the rebuilding of the Temple just like Haggai encouraged Zerubbabel and Joshua to lead the people to finishing the 2nd Temple. These two are a type of the Two Witnesses in Zech. 4:1-14 and so the end times Two Witnesses may do the same thing-encourage the rebuilding of the Temple at the right place so that the sacrifices can actually occur at the true location of the altar of David.
I’ve often thought that it would be effectively impossible to build the temple on the dome site. This makes a lot of sense.
Isn’t the size of the original temple defined in the Old Testament anyway though, in 2 chronicles 3.3?; fairly clearly not the same as that huge area where the dome is.
BTW, you would think the Jews would get it right?
Great research and conclusion, Steve! Have read something along these lines, and believe it to be true.