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THE JERUSALEM TEMPLE
1.
Introduction
Solomon's Temple was destroyed
by the Babylonians in 586 BCE. After years in exile, King Darius allowed
some Jews to return to Judea in order to rebuild Jerusalem and the Temple,
but the Temple paled by comparison with the first Temple. The second
Temple underwent many partial renovations and even a complete dismantling
and rebuilding by Herod the Great until its destruction by the Romans
in 70. Unfortunately, information on the history of the second Temple
is not as complete as one would like. In 20-19 BCE, in the eighteenth
or the seventeenth year of his reign, Herod announced that he planned
to renovate the Temple (Ant. 15.11.1-2; 380-90 = War 1.21.1;
401). Actually, it seems that what he intended was its dismantling and
complete reconstruction, so that one could call it a new Temple; some
feared that Herod would pull down the old structures but would not be
able to rebuild them (Ant. 15. 388-89). Josephus records
Herod's speech to the people on the eve of his massive renovation project
(Ant. 15. 382-87); probably Josephus copied it from the court
archives.
In preparation to execute
his building project, Herod acquired a thousand wagons (with oxen) to
transport the stones from the quarry to the building site, hired 10,000
skilled workmen and trained 1,000 priests as masons and carpenters,
for only priests could build the Temple proper (Ant. 15.11.2;
389-90). The huge blocks of stone were fit into place by means of ramps
and pulleys (M. ben-Dov, In the Shadow of the Temple, 84). Herod's
Temple was under construction from c. 20/19 BCE until 63, just before
its destruction by the Romans, but most of the work was completed earlier
rather than later. Josephus says that the Temple proper (ho naos)
was completed after a year and a half, whereas the construction of the
stoa and the outer courts took eight years (Ant. 15.11.5-6; 420-21). The
rest of the time was spent finishing the task. He also claims that
during the time the Temple proper (ho naos) was under construction,
no rain fell during the day, but only at night, so as not to hinder
progress (Ant. 15.11.7; 425). The Roman historian Tacitus describes
the Temple as "possessing enormous riches," which is credible
since the Jews only had one Temple (Histories 5.8.1).
No one knows for certain what Herod's temple looked like in all its detail, nor its exact dimensions, but one can form a general idea of its layout from recent archaeological excavations (see M. ben-Dov, In the Shadow of the Temple), accounts of authors contemporary with Herod's Temple and from the Mishnah. The major literary sources are Josephus (War 5.5.1-8; 184-247; Ant. 15.11.5-7; 410-25) and the Mishnaic tractate Middot (m. Mid.), as well as other tractates. The problem is that the literary sources are all incomplete and somewhat contradictory at points; the Mishnah is suspect on some counts because it was written long after living memory of the Temple. In this study, where these sources diverge, either both are given as options or one of the two options is determined to be the most likely.
The Jerusalem Temple was situated on top of the Temple Mount, also known as Mt. Moriah. To the west of the Temple was the Tyropoeon valley and to the south and east was the Kidron valley, possible identical to the Hinnom valley (Gehinnom). The north provided easiest access to the Temple, since the approach from that direction was relatively level.
Josephus describes
the city as laying before the Temple as a "theater," by which he means
that the city was situated on the west and south sides of the Temple
in a sort of semi-circle (Ant. 15.410). Archaeological investigation
reveals that the outer wall of Herod's Temple In the Mishnah it is said that the Temple mount—the outer wall—was 500 cubits square (m. Mid. 2.1) (a cubit is c. 22 inches or 56.1 centimeters), and Josephus says that the east portico was 400 cubits long (Ant. 20.9.7; 221-22). Obviously there is a discrepancy between the archaeological and the literary evidence concerning the size of the Temple. (The Mishnah may base its measurements on Ezek 42:16-20, which specifies that the Temple should be 500 cubits square.) In another place, Josephus said the circumference of the outer walls was four stadia (stadion = c. 607 ft. or 184 m.) with each side being one stadion, which would make the outer courts a square (Ant. 15.401).
In Apion
2.8; 103-109, Josephus gives a brief description of the layout of
the Temple. He says that the Temple had four courts, each with
restrictions on who could enter. The outer court was open to
all, including non-Jews, except menstruating women. Into the
second court were allowed all Jewish men and menstrually clean Jewish
women. Beyond the second court was the third court into which
ritually pure Jewish men could enter. Finally the fourth court
was restricted to priests who were properly attired, which means essentially
priests who were on the job. Josephus also indicates that only the
High Priest dressed in his high priestly raiment could enter the sanctuary
(adytum), by which is meant the holy of holies. Similarly,
the Mishnah distinguishes degrees of holiness possessed by various
areas of the Temple: the Temple mount was holier that the city, whereas
the terrace surrounding the inner courts was holier than the Temple
mount. The court of women is holier than the terrace and the court
of the Israelites is holier than it. Finally, the court of the priests
is holier than all (m. Kelim 1.8-9).
It should also be noted that one ascended as one went up to the Temple
and, once in the Temple, moved upwards towards the sanctuary (War
5.1.1; 9-11). When they came to visit for festivals, some Jews in
the second-Temple period brought to Jerusalem second-tithe money,
ten percentage of their income after the first tithe was removed (see
Deut 14:22-26; Jub. 32:11 Tobit 1:7; Ant. 4.205; m.
Ma'aser Sheni). This meant that many Jews spent sizable sums of
money in the city, which no doubt included purchases of types of of
sacrifices that they themselves could eat (fellowship and peace offerings).
The outer courts
were surrounded by a high and thick wall. Josephus says that
The height
of the wall varied, but on the exterior to the south it extended more
than thirty meters above ground level (Sanders, Judaism,
Josephus describes
how the outer wall was constructed (Ant. 15. 397-400). The outer
walls were built around the base of the Temple mount, starting from
the lowest point; the blocks were fastened to one another with lead
(He also says that iron
According to
the Mishnah, one entered the Temple complex, surrounded by the outer
wall, through one of five gates, two on the south and one each other
side (m. Mid. 1.3);
To the south
of this pier, perpendicular to the archway, was uncovered the foundations
of a row of vaults that rose gradually from south to north; these
vaults supported a staircase connecting the street running along the
Tyropoeon Valley with the Temple.
A staircase
led to a walkway that ran along the top of the shops along the western
wall; it led to the two lower gates through which one entered into
the Temple underground.
The two sets
of southern gates are known as the two Huldah Gates, the double Huldah
gate and the triple Huldah gate. It seems that the southern gates became
the de facto main entrance to and exit from the Temple, because
they were the most used. A paved street seven meters wide ran along
the southern outer wall of the Temple in front of the Huldah gates for
a distance of 280 meters. Access to the both Huldah gates was by means
of staircases.
The staircase
in front of the double Huldah gate was 65 m. wide, while that in front
of the triple Huldah gate was 15 m. (The staircase in front of the
double Huldah gate alone still exists.) The risers on the steps are
low, between seven and ten inches, and the treads vary between twelve
and thirty-five inches, which forces a person to adopt an slow and
deliberate gate when using the staircase, as if in a procession. The
double Huldah gate served as an exit from the Temple, while the triple
Huldah gate was used as an entrance (m. Mid. 1.3; 2.2) (M.
ben-Dov, In the Shadow of the Temple, 113). The Mishnah
The eastern gate led to the Mount of Olives, whereas the gate on the north, the Tadi Gate, was not used (m. Mid. 2.1). There are the remains of an arch near the "seam" on the eastern wall, indicating that there used to be a entrance into the Temple at this point and that there was a street that ran under this arch parallel to the eastern wall (M. ben-Dov, In the Shadow of the Temple, 115-16). The area inside the outer walls is known as the outer courts or, as Josephus expresses, "the first court" (ho prôtos peribolos) (The Mishnah refers to the outer courts as the "Mount of the House"); the largest area within the outer court was to the south, then the east, then the north and finally the west (m. Mid. 2.1). It was paved with stones (War 5.11.2; 192-93). Any person who was ritually pure could enter into the outer courts.
The outer court
was surrounded by
With the exception
of those along the southern wall, each column was twenty-five cubits
high and made of a single piece of white marble; the ceiling of the
portico was lined with cedar. On the three sides of the outer court
the portico was thirty cubits wide (c. 30 x c. 18 inches = 45
feet or 30 x .5 m. = c. 15 m.) (War 5.11.2; 190). As indicated,
the portico on the south side of the
Around the
inner court was a partition separating the outer court from the
inner court. Josephus says that this partition was three cubits
high, whereas m. Mid. 2.3 says that it was only ten handbreadths
high, or almost half as high. This partition is called the soreg
in the Mishnah, which derives from the verb srg, which
means to interlace or plait, so that it seems to refer to some type
of lattice work, the implication possibly being that it was made
of wood. Josephus, however, calls this balustrade a druphaktos,
by which is meant a railing or balustrade, and says that it was
made of stone. So the two sources are divergent about the nature
of this partition. Since he was an eyewitness, Josephus' account
should be preferred. It is possible that the partition was a free-standing
structure, but it may also have formed the vertical extremity of
the terrace that lay beyond it. Regardless, it had warning signs
regularly spaced along it advising gentiles that entrance into the
inner court was forbidden on pain of death (War 5.193; m.
Mid. 2.3) (see also Josephus, War 6.124-26; Ant.
15. 417; Philo Leg. ad Gaium 212).
Beyond the soreg were stairs leading up to a terrace (called the chel in m. Kelim 1.8), ten cubits wide, which was bounded by the walls of the inner court. According to Josephus, there were fourteen steps leading up to the terrace, while the Mishnah states that there were only twelve steps (m. Mid. 2.3). The number in the Mishnah, however, is suspect because of the symbolic importance of the number twelve. Josephus explains that beyond the terrace lay other sets of five steps leading up to gates opening up into the inner courts (War 5.5.2; 196-97), but the Mishnah describes the terrace as bounded by the walls of the inner court with no additional steps (m. Mid. 2.3). On the exterior, the height of the wall (including the steps) separating the two courts was forty cubits, while on the inside it was twenty-five cubits, since the inner courts were elevated above the outer courts. According to the Mishnah, when Nisan 14 fell on the Sabbath (and carrying the sacrificed paschal offering out of the Temple was forbidden) the first group to offer the Passover remained in the outer court, the second group on the terrace surrounding the inner courts, inside of the soreg, whereas the last group waited where they sacrificed their lambs until sundown, when the Sabbath was concluded (m. Pesah. 5.10).
According
to Josephus, there were ten entrances into the inner courts, four
on the south, four on the north, one on the east and one leading
east to west from the Court of Women to the court of the Israelites,
called the Nicanor Gate (War 5.5.2; 198; m. Mid. 1.4). This
is confirmed by the Mishnah, for m. Sheqal. 6.3 and m.
Mid. 2.6 both indicate that there are four gates each on the
south and north sides of the inner courts, in addition to the Nicanor
Gate. According to m. Sheqal. 6.3 and m. Mid. 2.6,
on the south side, from west to east, are found the Upper Gate,
the Fuel Gate, the Firstling Gate and the Water Gate; on the north
side, from west to east, are located the Jeconiah Gate, the Offering
Gate, the Women Gate and the Song Gate. Only three of these gates
actually lead into the women's court from the outer courts, one
from the east (see below), the Song Gate from the north and the
Water Gate from the south. The gate to the east leading into the Court of Women may have been the Beautiful Gate (Acts 3:1-10) and was the principal entrance into the inner courts. (The inner courts were situated along an east-west axis, though the main entrance to the outer courts was from the south.) Women were required to enter through the north or south gates (War 5.5.2; 199). Like the other gates, they that were overlaid with silver and gold (War 5.5.3; 201). The Beautiful Gate led into the Court of Women, where all Jews could enter, except those who were ritually impure (Apion 2.8; 104). The walls of the Court of Women were lined by porticoes, thereby creating a corridor from east to west (War 5.5.2; 200); along the walls of the Court of Women were storage chambers where Temple property or perhaps private property was stored (War 5.5.2; 200). When Herod was on his death bed, Josephus says that some youths, at the instigation of their teachers Judas and Matthias, pulled down a golden eagle that Herod had erected over the great gate of the Temple as a dedicatory offering (Ant. 17.6.1-3; 151-63 = War 1.33.2-4; 649-55). The Temple gate referred to is probably the Beautiful Gate. In their view, the biblical prohibition against images justified their action. The youths responsible climbed onto the roof, lowered themselves and cut the image down with axes.
Somewhere among the chambers in the Court of Women was located the Temple treasury (gazophulakia), a place where money donated to the Temple or deposited privately was kept (War 5.5.2; 200; 6.5.2; 282; see Ant. 19.6.1; 294). According to the Mishnah there were located in the Temple thirteen horned-shaped depositories (shoparoth) designated for different types of offerings; people would deposit money in these depositories for different purposes (m. Sheq. 2.1; 6. 1, 5). It is probable that these thirteen depositories were located near the Temple treasury; the contents of these depositories were periodically emptied and stored in the Temple treasury. (The same name is used for these depositories as for the Temple treasury itself.) Probably, another name for the Temple treasury is "Storehouse of God" (tou theou thesauros) (see Ant. 17.10.2; 264; War 2.3.3; 50). Josephus relates how, when Archelaus was in Rome petitioning Augustus to confirm the last will of his father, Herod, a riot broke out in the Temple during the Festival of Weeks; Varus, proconsul of Syria, attempted to quell the disturbance. According to Josephus, the rioters climbed atop the porticoes surrounding the outer court and attacked the Roman legionnaires from above. In retaliation, the Romans burned the porticoes feeding the fire with combustible materials until the porticoes collapsed (Josephus says that the porticoes had some wooden components and even gold ornamentation). Pushing their way through the fire, the Romans made their way into the Temple treasury, which they proceeded to pillage (Ant. 17.10.2; 254-64 = War 2.3.2-3; 45-50). Josephus also says that when he was procurator of Judea, Pontius Pilate illegally expropriated funds from the Temple treasury to build an aqueduct (Ant. 18.3.2; 60-62 = War 2.9.4; 175-77).
According to the Mishnah, which may be correct, there were four unroofed chambers in the four corners of the Court of Women. One was the place where unclean priests inspected the firewood removing wood that was worm-eaten; another was the room where those taking the Nazarite vow would cut their hair and cook their peace-offerings. A third was the place where lepers would cleanse themselves before presenting themselves before the priest (see Lev 14; Mark 1:44). According to t. Neg. 8:9 and m. Neg. 14:8, the leper who came to the Temple for final cleansing would immerse himself in "the chamber of the lepers" (lshkth hmtswr'im). This means that there must have been a ritual bath (mikveh) in this chamber. The Mishnah seems to refer to this chamber as being one of the two chambers closest to the eastern (i.e., Beautiful) gate; if so, in addition to the inspection of lepers, this chamber was also used for women to be purified after childbirth (Lev 12) and for the carrying out the ordeal for the suspected adulteress (Num 5:5-31) (m. Sotah 1.5; m. Tamid 5.6) (How often the latter was done is not known.). The fourth of these chambers was the place where drink offerings and grain offerings were kept (m. Mid. 2.5). Also, according to the Mishnah, which again may be correct, there was an elevated gallery in the Court of Women, probably on top of the portico roof on the south, east and north sides. It was meant for women to use in order to keep men and women from commingling (m. Mid. 2.5).
The Court
of Women led into the Court of the Israelites via a curved staircase
of fifteen steps, which
led up to the Nicanor Gate (m. Mid. 1.4; 2.6). The Mishnah indicates that there were six chambers (lškwt) along the north and south sides of the Court of Priests, three on the north side and three on the south side, corresponding to the six gates, set aside for special purposes. On the north side there was the "Salt Chamber" where salt used for sacrifices was stored, the Parvah Chamber where the hides of the sacrifices were salted and the "Rinsing Chamber" where sacrifices were rinsed (probably the innards of sacrifices). On the south side, were located the "Wood Chamber," the function of which was forgotten, the "Diaspora Chamber," where the water supply for the Temple was controlled, and the "Gazith Chamber" (i.e., Hewn Stone Chamber) where the Sanhedrin used to meet to judge the priesthood (m. Mid. 5.3-4). Around the courtyard and between the gates there were porticos (War 5.200).
In the Court of Priests stood the altar, the ramp, the shambles, and
the laver among other things needed for sacrifice (War 5.5.6;
225; m. Mid. 3.1, 6; 5.2; m. Tamid 1.4). (There is also
a reference to the "Chamber of Utensils" in m. Tamid. 3.4.)
The sanctuary (hykl), consisting most importantly of the Holy Place and the Holy of Holies, was situated west of the Court of the Priests; to the west of the altar was a portico functioning as a propylaeum (an entrance or vestibule) to the building behind it (War 5.5.3; 206). (The Mishnah refers to this as the 'wlm [m. Mid. 3.7].) According to m. Mid. 4.7, the portico was called the "Chamber of the Slaughter-knives" because knives used for killing sacrificial animals were stored there. The entire sanctuary was wider in front and narrower behind (War 5.5.4; 207; m. Mid. 4.7 "like a lion"). The portico was 100 cubits across and 100 cubits high; the width of the building behind the portico was sixty cubits (War 5.5.4; 207; 5.5.5; 221); according to m. Mid. 4.7, from east to west, the sanctuary was 100 cubits. The exterior of the building was covered with gold so that it reflected the sunlight (War 5.5.6; 222); this part of the Temple was the most elevated so that the gold would be visible from afar off. There were golden spikes affixed to the roof of the sanctuary to keep birds from landing on it (War 5.5.6; 223-24; m. Mid. 4.6).
One ascended
twelve steps up to the portico into which one entered through a gate
with no doors; this entrance was seventy cubits high and twenty five
cubits wide (War 5.5.4; 208). (The Mishnah states the dimensions
of this entrance, however, as forty cubits high and twenty cubits
wide [m. Mid. 3.7].) Moving westward, one entered through
the portico into the Holy Place, where only priests could enter. There
were two doors fifty-five cubits high and sixteen wide, separating
the portico from the Holy Place, each covered with gold, and above
these were golden vines (War 5.5.4; 210; Ant. 15.9.2;
394; m. Mid. 3.8; see also Tacitus. Hist. 5.5).
These golden vines may have hung from free-standing columns on either
side of the doorway (Shanks, Jerusalem's Temple Mount, 95).
To the west
of the Holy Place lay the "shrine" (debir) or Holy
of Holies (qodesh qodashim) where only the High Priest could
enter once a year on the Day of Atonement;
There is some evidence that there were in fact two curtains, a cubit apart (half a meter), separating the Holy Place from the Holy of Holies (m. Yoma 5.1; see Heb 9:3). Philo explains that the outer curtain was called the "covering" (kalumma) whereas the inner curtain was called the "veil" (katapetasma) (Vita Mos. 2.101). To the north,
south and west sides of the sanctuary (the Holy Place and Holy of
Holies) (sixty cubits in height) were three stories of interconnected
In the north west corner of the Temple mount stood the Antonia citadel, a Roman garrison where the procurator resided when in Jerusalem; it was connected to the outer court of the Temple by an underground passage (Ant. 15.11.7; 424). This citadel was formerly called the baris (Heb. birah) (see Ant. 15.11.4; 403). There was an secret underground passage from the Antonia to the inner courts of the Temple (Ant. 15.11.7; 424). It seems also that there was access to the top of the outer walls of the Temple from the Antonia (War 2.15.6; 330; 6.2.9; 165).
3. Attitudes Towards the Temple in the Second-Temple Period Most Jews during the second Temple period recognized the Temple as a Jewish cultic center and made use of it, according to their interpretation of the biblical prescriptions. Evidence of this is the positive references to the Temple and its religious significance in Sirach, Letter of Aristeas and the writings of Philo of Alexander (Spec. Laws, 1.141-44; 66-345; Embassy 156). Some Jews
during the second-Temple period believed that the second Temple would
be replaced by a third, eschatological Temple. The author of Tobit,
writing sometime in the second century BCE, states that the Temple
rebuilt under Nehemiah will be replaced by a third Temple, built at
the final restoration of Israel to the land "according to what the
prophets of Israel have said" (Tobit 14.5). (Although many of the
Hebrew prophets foretell the rebuilding of the Temple, only Ezekiel
gives a detailed description [Ezek 40-48].) In a more polemical context,
the author of the Animal Apocalypse found in 1 Enoch affirms that
at the end God will remove the "old house" and replace it with a "new
house" (90.28-29). By house is meant either Temple or the city of
Jerusalem, which would include the Temple. The former Temple is said
to have been defiled (89.73). Likewise, in the Apocalypse of Weeks
in 1 Enoch, in the eighth week, the time of the eschaton, it is said
that there will be built "a house," i.e., Temple, for the Great King
forever. Presumably, the existing Temple is to be replaced. The Temple
Scroll found at Qumran distinguishes the present Temple from the eschatological
Temple yet to be built and destined to last forever (11QTemple 29.8-10)
(See also 4Q174 1; Jubilees 1.15-29; 25.21; Testament of
Benjamin 9.2; Sybilline Oracles 3.294, 702-20, 772-74;
5.414-33.) The Qumran sectarian community forbade its members from
entering or making use of the second Temple "during the age of wickedness"
(CD 6.11b-14). If it is a sectarian document, the Temple Scroll represents
a description of the Temple that is to replace the present defiled
one. It seems, however, that the community understood "the council
of the community," the ruling body of the community, as a temporary
replacement of the Temple. The council of the community is described
in terms befitting the Temple and said to provide atonement for the
community (1QS 8.5-8; 9.3-6).
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1.
Introduction
itself
was an irregular quadrangle: south wall = 280 m.; west wall = 485 m.;
north wall = 315 m.; east wall 460 m. The total circumference of
the temenos or sacred precincts, was 1,540 m., and the total
area = c. 144,000 sq. m. (M. ben-Dov, In the Shadow of the Temple,
77). These dimensions were large by ancient standards; most temples
in the ancient world were much smaller. Herod had the the old foundations
of the Temple removed (Ant. 15.391). Archaeological evidence
suggests, however, that he kept the eastern wall in tact, for there
is a "seam" visible near the southern corner of the eastern wall separating
the Herodian stonework and what is presumed to be the pre-Herodian eastern
wall. From the seam southward is thirty-two meters (out of a total of
460 meters) of Herodian wall, from which it may be inferred that Herod's
builders extended the outer wall this distance to the south (M. ben-Dov,
In the Shadow of the Temple, 101-103). There is also archaeological
evidence of an elaborate drainage system.
this
wall was the "greatest ever heard of," which, although exaggerated,
is not far from the truth (Ant. 15.11.3; 396). Parts of this
wall still survive today and have recently been excavated down to
their original ground level. Not surprisingly the stones used
were large, especially those used in the lower courses and the corners.
Josephus says that some of the stones were 40 cubits long (c. 20 m.)
and six cubits (c. 3 m.) high (War 5.5.1; 189; Ant.
20.9.7; 221); the largest stone found to date is 12 m. x 3 m. x 4
m., weighing c. 400 tons (M. ben-Dov, In the Shadow of the Temple,
88). The outer wall consisted of three rows of blocks and was
about five meters thick (M. ben-Dov, In the Shadow of the Temple,
90-91); the blocks were fitted together using the "dry construction"
method, which means that no mortar was used in the construction. Each
block had a "marginal dressing," meaning that each had a frame or
margin chiseled around its edge (M. ben Dov, In the Shadow of the
Temple, 96). The stones used are described by Josephus as
"hard and white" (lithoi leukoi te kai krataioi)
(Ant. 15.11.3; 392). According to Josephus, Roman battering
rams were unable to cause a breach in the outer western wall (War:
6.4.1; 220-22).
68).
In some places, the actual height of the wall is fifty meters, because
the foundation is twenty meters below ground level (M. ben-Dov, In
the Shadow of the Temple, 77, 92). (Josephus says that the
actual height of the wall in some places was as high as 300 cubits
(= c. 150 meters), but this seems to be in error; he is is correct,
however, in noting in general that, "The whole depth of the foundations
was not apparent; for they filled up a considerable part of the ravines,
wishing to level the narrow alleys of the town" [War, 5.188].)
On the top of the outer wall, there was probably a parapet on either
side, in order to allow people safe access to the top of the wall.
Josephus relates how once during a Passover celebration, a Roman soldier
standing on the exterior temple walls exposed himself to the Passover
crowds, thereby causing a riot. As a result a massacre ensued as the
Roman legionnaires attempted to restore order (Ant. 20.5.2;
104). 
clamps were used on the inside of the blocks to join them together,
giving the outer walls greater strength). When the wall reached the
designated height, the summit of the Temple mount was leveled off, and
fill was brought in to fill up the empty space between the walls and
the Temple mount, so that the outer walls functioned as retaining walls.
This provided a level surface for the Temple complex. Actually,
the empty space between the summit and the outer walls was not completely
filled in, for under the Temple complex towards the southeastern corner
of the Temple are three stories of vaulted chambers, what is known today
as "Solomon's Stables" (M. ben-Dov, In the Shadow of the
Temple, 91). The empty space underground reduced the pressure exerted
against the outer walls from within. These vaulted chambers were connected
to the Triple Huldah Gate passageway and supported the floor of the
Temple on the southeast side of the Temple complex. (see also m.
Para 3.3: "The Temple Mount and the Temple Courts had a hollow
space beneath them in case there was a grave in the depths"). Obviously
the outer wall would be almost impenetrable, especially since the Temple
was surrounded on three sides by ravines; only the access from the north
was relatively level. This explains why so frequently the Temple
was used as a citadel.
according
to m. Mid. 2.3 the gates were ten cubits wide by twenty cubits
high (c. five meters by ten meters). The gate on the west was known
as the Coponius (Kiphonus) Gate (m. Mid. 1.3), which may
correspond to what is today known as Barclay's Gate, named after the
American J.T. Barclay, who identified the remains of the lintel and
arch of this Herodian gate (M. ben-Dov, In the Shadow of the Temple,
116, 140-41). Contrary to the Mishnah, however, archaeological
evidence confirms that there was more than one gate on the west side,
bordering the Tyropoeon valley. Josephus says that there were four gates
leading into the Temple from the west (Ant. 15.11.5; 410). The
most southerly of these four gates was situated twelve meters north
of the southwest corner of the outer wall. In 1838, Edward Robinson
identified the remains of an archway, now known as "Robinson's
Arch," that once led to the place where this gate once stood;
the supporting pier for the western edge of this arch was uncovered
thirteen meters from the western wall. 
Josephus
may be describing this gate when he writes, "The last [gate] led to
the other part of the city, from which it was separated by many steps
going down to the ravine and from here up again to the hill" (Ant.
15.11.5; 410). It is clear both from Josephus' description and the
archaeological evidence that one used this staircase in order to enter
this southern most gate on the western side of Temple complex.
North of "Robinson's Arch"
and "Barclay's Gate," which is probably the Coponius Gate, is located
what is now known as "Wilson's Arch," named after
the man who explored it in the late 1860's. This structure probably
dates from the post-destruction period, but marks the location of
another western gate (M. ben-Dov, In the Shadow of the Temple,
169-78). The northernmost gate along the western wall may have
been situated at what is now known as "Warren's Gate," named
after its discoverer, Charles Warren, who led the British expedition
under the auspices of the Palestine Exploration Fund. 
What
is visible at present is the upper portion of a blocked-up gate, which
is probably a later Muslim reconstruction of a gate original to Herod's
Temple (The arched lintel of "Warren's Gate" dates from
the Muslim period, but the gate posts are probably from the second-Temple
period [M. ben-Dov, In the Shadow of the Temple, 145]). Josephus
describes how, during the siege of the Temple, Titus burned some of
the outer gates and how their silver plating melted to revealed a
wooden interior, which soon caught fire; this fire soon spread to
the porticoes (War 6.4.2; 232-35). On the outside of the outer
western wall of the Temple ran a street paved with stones; along the
eastern side of the street, adjacent to the outer western Temple wall
were many shops (see M. ben-Dov, In the Shadow of the Temple,
80, 114).
says,
"They entered from the right and exited to the left" (m.
Mid. 2.2). The staircase in front of the double Huldah gate was
wider than that in front of the triple Huldah gate in order to accommodate
the simultaneous exit of people from the Temple when ceremonies or
festivities ended and perhaps their lingering for the purpose of socializing.
Entrance into the Temple would be more staggered and so a more narrow
staircase sufficed. Both gates opened into highly-decorated tunnels
that led upwards into the outer courts (M. ben-Dov, In the Shadow
of the Temple, 136-37). As indicated, the passageway of the triple
Huldah gate was connected to the vaulted chambers beneath the southeastern
part of the Temple, what is now called "Solomon's stables," where
there were stalls for animals. Presumably, those entering the Temple
from the south could buy animals for sacrifice that were certified
as valid by the Temple authority. 
a portico adjacent to the inside of the walls (War 5.5.2; 191-93;
Ant. 15.11.5; 410-416) (A portico is a porch or walkway with
a roof supported by columns). The portico consisted of three rows
of columns, except along the southern wall where there were four rows
of columns (Acts 2:46). The outermost columns were pilasters, columns
set into the Temple wall (M. ben-Dov, In the Shadow of the Temple,
93). The portico consisting of four rows of columns on the south was
called the Royal Portico. Another one of these porticoes is called
Solomon's portico, which probably was situated along the east side
of the outer court (John 10:23; Acts 3:11; Acts 5:12). Josephus gives
an account of how Samaritans once during Passover scattered human
bones in the porticoes and throughout the Temple, when the priests
were accustomed to throwing open the gates of the temple after midnight;
this had the effect of ritually contaminating the Temple (Ant.
18.2.2; 29). 
Temple,
the Royal Portico, consisted of four rows of columns, thereby creating
three aisles; the two outer aisles were thirty feet (podes)
wide and over fifty-feet high, whereas the middle aisle was one and
half times wider than each of the outer aisles (i.e., forty-five feet
wide) and twice as high (100 feet high). (Josephus uses the "foot"
as a unit of measurement in this section rather than the cubit; this
foot is approximately equal to the English foot.) (This implies
that the columns used in the construction of the Royal Portico were
taller than those used in the other porticoes.) The wooden ceilings
of the Royal were decorated with carvings of different figures (Ant.
15.11.5; 413-17). Josephus says that there were 162 columns used in
the Royal Portico, each with an impressive Corinthian capital; each
of these columns was so wide that "it would take three men with outstretched
arms touching one another to envelop it" (Ant. 15.11.5; 413).
(Whether this was true for the columns used in the other porticoes
is not said.) According to War 5.11.2; 192, the total circumference
of the the stoa adjacent to the inner wall of the outer court was
six stadia (i.e., 6 x c. 607 feet or 184 m.), and in Ant.
15.11.5; 415, the length of the Royal Portico was one stadion
(c. 607 feet or 184 m.). (His other statement that each side of the
wall was one stadion conflicts with this.) These porticoes
are not mentioned in the Mishnah, possibly because these were
typically Greek architectural feature; but archaeologists have uncovered
parts of the columns used as part of the porticoes (Sanders, Judaism,
59). According to Josephus, if one stood on the roof of the
Royal portico and looked down into the Kidron valley one would become
dizzy, so great was the height (Ant. 15.11.5; 410). He also
relates how, during the Roman attack on the Jewish revolutionaries
who were in the Temple, some 6,000 women and children took refuge
on the top of the one remaining portico not yet on fire; without orders,
some Roman soldiers set fire to this portico, resulting in the deaths
of those who had taken refuge there (War 6.5.1 277-78; 6.5.2;
283-85).
There
is a discrepancy in the Mishnah, however, concerning the number
of gates leading into the inner courts. M. Mid. 1.4-5 says
that there were only seven gates, three on the south, three on the
north and one on the east. But m. Mid. 1.4-5 may refer only
to the gates on the north, south and east sides that lead into the
Court of the Priests or the Court of the Israelites (what Josephus
calls the "sacred [court]" and the "third court" Ant. 15.11.5;
419), omitting to mention that there were three more gates, one
on the north, one on the south and one on the east, each of which
leads into the woman's court. In addition, there is some disagreement
on the names of the gates in this parallel passage. According to
m. Mid. 1.4, the gates on the south were called the Fuel
Gate, the Firstling Gate and the Water Gate. These three names also
occur in m. Sheqal. 6.3 and m. Mid. 2.6. Only one
of the names of the three gates on the north side in m. Mid.
1.5, however, matches the names of the four northern gates mentioned
in m. Sheqal. 6.3 and m. Mid. 2.6: the Offering Gate.
The other two gates on the north side in m. Mid. 1.5 are
called the Light Gate and the [the Gate] of the Chamber of the Hearth.
With the exception
of the Nicanor Gate, these gates were thirty cubits high and fifteen
wide, and each had two doors and a gate room on either side. (In
Apion 2.8; 119, Josephus says that the gates were sixty cubits
high and twenty wide, which seems to be an exaggeration.)
The Nicanor Gate was forty-cubits wide and fifty cubits high. The
nine gate rooms (exedra) were thirty cubits wide, thirty
cubits deep and forty cubits high, each supported by two columns
(War 5.5.3; 202-203). Elsewhere, Josephus says that these
gate rooms had three rooms each (Ant. 15.11.5; 418). The
gate room of the Nicanor gate was probably larger in its dimensions.
According to m. Mid. 1.4 (see m. Mid. 2.6), the gate
room of the Nicanor Gate had two rooms, one on either side; one6
was called the Chamber of Phineas where the priest responsible for
the distribution of priestly raiment carried out his duties, while
the other room was used for the preparation of the meal-offering
cakes. In m. Mid. 1.6, [the Gate of] the Chamber of the Hearth
Gate is said to have four rooms used for different purposes. The
room to the southwest was the "Chamber of the Lamb Offerings," the
one to the southeast the "Chamber of Shewbread," the one to the
northeast the place where the Hasmoneans hid the defiled altar stones,
and the room to the northwest was a chamber which led down to the
"Chamber of Immersion," where priests would cleanse themselves ritually
when needed.
As
indicated, according to Josephus, this gate was larger than the other
nine gates (being fifty cubits high with doors forty cubits wide);
its doors were supposed to have been made of Corinthian bronze (War
5.201) and it took twenty men to open and close it (War 6.5.3;
293). The Levites would stand on these steps when they sang the Song
of Ascents (m. Mid. 2.6). One first entered into the Court
of Israelites, where only ritually pure Jewish men could enter (Ant.
15.11.5; 419). (According to Josephus, during the Roman attack on
the revolutionaries who had taken refuge in the Temple, the Nicanor
Gate opened of its own accord after having been closed and bolted
[War 6.5.3; 293-94].) Under the Court of the Israelites there
were chambers that opened out into the Court of the Women; these underground
rooms were used for storage equipment and musical instruments used
by the Levites (m. Mid. 2.6). According to the Mishnah, the
Court of the Israelites was 135 cubits wide and eleven cubits deep,
and was separated from the Court of the Priests by a low balustrade,
which was elevated above the Court of the Israelites by a few steps
(War 5.5.6; 226; m. Mid. 2.6). The Mishnah also claims
that the Court of Priests was 135 cubits wide and eleven cubits deep,
whereas the entire Temple Court (seemingly excluding the Court of
Women) was 135 cubits wide and 187 cubits deep (m. Mid. 2.6). If
true, then probably what is referred to as the Court of Priests ("Hall
of Priests") in m. Mid. 2.6 does not include the area in which
the altar is found, because the altar would seem to be too large to
fit comfortably into a space of eleven cubits; rather the eleven cubits
is probably a space separating the altar from the Court of Israelites
(see below).
According
to m. Mid. 3.1, the base of the altar was thirty-two cubits
square, rose one cubit from the ground and had a one cubit wide ledge
around it; on the base stood the altar itself, five cubits high with
a one cubit ledge around it. Josephus, who may be more credible, however,
indicates that the altar was fifteen cubits high and fifty cubits
square (War 5.5.6; 225). On each corner of the altar there
were four "horns." Leading up to the altar on the south side was a
ramp; on the west side of the ramp was a "cavity" where disqualified
bird offerings were thrown (m. Mid. 3.3). The Letter of
Aristeas describes a drainage system connected to the altar in
the pre-Herodian Temple for the purpose of washing away sacrificial
blood (89-90); since the Mishnah also refers to a system for the elimination
of sacrificial blood (m. Mid. 3.2), likely this indispensable
feature was retained in the Herodian Temple. According to m.
Mid. 3.2, at the southwest corner of the altar there were two
holes through which blood was flushed away by water into the Kidron
valley. Also at the same corner of the altar there was a pit covered
by a paving stone functioning as a lid; the paving stone had a ring
in it with which to remove it (m. Mid. 3.3). Priests probably
poured what remained of libations into this pit. According to Josephus,
there was a day set aside in the year for the people to bring an offering
of wood to be used for the altar (War 2.425). To the north
of the altar there were rows of rings affixed to the ground, which
were used in the slaughtering of animals. (It seems that the animal's
head was put into the ring to keep it immobile.) In the same
location was found the shambles ("House of Slaughter") where the animal
was killed and flayed (m. Mid. 3.5). To the south, between
the sanctuary portico and altar was situated the laver (m. Mid.
3.6). According to biblical prescription, priests would wash
their hands and feet in the laver before making sacrifices.
In front of the doors, but presumably not obscuring them, hung a tapestry
(War 5.5.4; 210). According to m. Yoma 3.10, Queen Helena
donated a golden lamp that hung over the entrance of the sanctuary
(hykl). In m. Mid. 4.1, it is specified that there were
actually two sets of two doors separating the Holy Place from the
portico; moreover, each of the four doors was a double door and would
fold back on itself (m. Mid. 4.1). To open both sets of doors,
a priest would enter through a small door on the north side of the
portico and make his way into a room that led to a corridor between
the two doors where he would open each set of doors; the smaller door
also provided access into the Holy Place (m. Mid. 4.2). One
could see through the entrance of the portico to the doors separating
the portico from the Holy Place (War 5.5.4; 208). In the Holy
Place stood the menorah, the incense altar, and the table of shewbread
(War 5.5.5; 217) (see Luke 1:5-25). In one of the bas-reliefs
of the arch of Titus, the table of shew-bread is depicted being carried
as part of the Temple plunder in a triumphal procession; also included
are trumpets, censers and the Menorah (see below).
Depicted
on one the bas-reliefs of the Arch of Titus in Rome is Titus'
soldiers carrying plunder from the Temple, which included the
menorah. The depiction is credible since the menorah was probably
still in Rome at the time when the arch was constructed. Josephus
describes the menorah as "made of gold but constructed on
a different pattern from those we use in ordinary life. Affixed
to a pedestal was a central shaft, from which there extended slender
branches, arranged trident-fashion, a wrought lamp being attached
to the extremity of each branch; of these there were seven, indicating
the honor paid to the number among the Jews" (War 7.148-50).
there
was nothing in the Holy of Holies (War 5.5.5; 219; m. Mid.
4.7). The fact that there was no image of God in the holy of
holies (or anywhere else in the Temple) was unusual in the ancient
world and was incomprehensible to non-Jews. In fact, Josephus explains
in some detail how, when he became emperor, Gaius (Caligula) ordered
Petronius, proconsul of Syria, to erect a statue of him as in the
sanctuary (naos) because he wanted the Jews to venerate him
as a god. Petronius protested and delayed, and Gaius died before Petronius
carried out the order, to the relief of all sensible people. (The
Jews did agree to offer two sacrifices daily for the benefit of Caesar
[Ant. 18.8.2-9; 261-309 = War 2.10.1-5; 184-203].) In
m. Yoma 5.2, it is explained that there was a stone called
"Foundation" (shetijah) three finger breadths high
in the Holy of Holies. A curtain separated the Holy of Holies from
the Holy Place (War 5.5.4; 212-13; 5..5.5; 219). Josephus describes
this curtain in some detail.
widowless
rooms, thirty-eight in all; access to these rooms was from the two
sides of the portico (War 5.5.5; 220-21). The Mishnah describes
these rooms and their functions in some detail. According to this
source, there were three stories of five rooms on the north and the
south; on the west side there were two stories of three rooms and
a third story of two rooms, for a total of thirty-eight rooms. These
rooms were connected to one one another on either side and above and
below. In addition, there was a winding staircase that led from the
lower northeast corner to the upper northwest corner; one then traveled
along a corridor on the west side moving south and, reaching the end,
one turned east and traveled along the south side until one reached
the entrance to the story above the sanctuary. From this upper story
one could ascend a ladder until one reached the roof. In the upper
story there were openings into the Holy of Holies from which workers
could be lowered facing the wall in order to make repairs (m. Mid.
4.3-5). The use to which the upper portion of the sanctuary
(forty cubits in height) was put is not known (War 5.5.5; 221). 
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