The Old City and the Temple Mount
From ancient times, God said that He put His name in Jerusalem. Not only is the Hebrew "shin" inscribed in the landscape terrain of Jerusalem, but when Jesus returns, God's HIGHEST name, "Jesus" will be declared King of Kings in the Holy Mountains -from Mt of Olives to Mt. Zion and Mt. Moriah.
The Valley Hinnom: in Hebrew is GeHinnom, “Gehenna.” Gehenna became associated with eternal torment (the lake of fire) because detestable infant sacrifices to Molech took place there. Gehenna is translated “hell” in the KJV (Matthew 5:22, 29). Gehenna is the valley of slaughter that will be used in the future (end times) as a place of slaughter, flames, and punishment for the wicked. The Tyropoean Valley: This rugged valley separates Mount Moriah from Mount Zion and was spanned by bridges, most notably Zion Bridge, connecting the royal palace on Mount Zion to the Temple. A fragment of an arch of this bridge, called “Robinson's Arch”, was discovered by historian Edward Robinson in 1838. The Valley of Jehosphat/Kidron: The deep valley on the east side of the city was called the valley of the Kidron, or Jehoshaphat (GOD Judges), where the prophet Joel saw a futuristic vision where the nations of the world would be summoned for judgment. The place where these ravines met was called "Enrogel" or The Well of Joab (2 Sam 17:17). Also considered a possible site for the Psalmist reference to the "Valley of the Shadow of Death." During the Feast of Tabernacles at night, four enormous oil lamps burned in the Temple courtyard. Each lamp had four large bowls of oil on tall stands, with wicks made from worn-out garments of the priests. It is written that “there was not a courtyard in Jerusalem that did not reflect the light” (Mishnah, Sukkoth 5:3). The lights could be seen throughout Jerusalem; however due to the depth and angle, the Kidron Valley remained in shadow. The Kidron Valley has many burial sites, since many believe that the resurrection will begin there. For these reasons, it is said that the Kidron Valley was called the “Valley of the Shadow of Death,” as in Psalm 23:4. David likely wrote Psalm 23 when fleeing from his son, Absalom (a type of the False Messiah), across the Kidron Valley - 2 Samuel 15. Psalm 23 is likely a a prophetic reference to the Messiah, Yeshua, who was arrested at the Garden of Gethsemane, then brought to Jerusalem across the Kidron Valley. Yeshua likely prayed Psalm 23 at that moment.
It is interesting that the three valleys form the Hebrew letter “Shin.” The Shin represents God’s name as in “El Shaddai” (God Almighty). “Shaddai,” This is how God revealed Himself to the patriarchs in Exodus 6:2-3. The Shin likewise represents God’s name and character on Mezzuzot that are placed on doorposts as commanded in Deuteronomy 6:9: “And thou shalt write them upon the posts of thy house, and on thy gates.” Today a visitor can enter the Old City of Jerusalem by one of seven gates. Some gates were named by location. The Jaffa Gate faces West towards Tel Aviv and Joppa. The Damascus Gate is in the North wall where a traveler would enter if he had come from Galilee, the Golan Heights and Damascus. The Zion Gate is, logically, on Mt. Zion near the traditional Tomb of David and site of the Upper Room of the Last Supper. The Dung Gate faces South towards the Hinnom Valley where refuse from the city was dumped in former times into the Hinnom Valley. The Sheep Gate (or, St. Stephen's Gate, or Lion's Gate) is next to the sheep market, and so on. • The present walls around the Old City were built from 1537 to 1541 by Sultan Suleiman the
• The present walls around the Old City were built from 1537 to 1541 by Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent after the Ottoman conquest of Israel. At that time most of the ancient walls were reduced to rubble. Suleiman ordered that Jerusalem be fortified to protect its people against marauding Bedouins. The Golden Gate (Eastern Gate) opened directly onto the Temple Mount. Unlike the other gates, this was not built by the Turks. It was constructed in the seventh century over ruins dating back at least to Nehemiah (fifth century BCE) and possibly even to the time of Solomon. ○ the most important and most impressive gate in Jerusalem, and the only visible entrance to the city of Jerusalem from the East. This oldest of all the gates to the city was the only one not rebuilt by Suleiman the Magnificent in AD 1539-42. Monolithic stones in the wall just above ground have been identified as 6th Century BC masonry from the time of Nehemiah. ○ The pillars of the Golden Gate are said to be a gift of the Queen of Sheba to Solomon according to one ancient legend, but these would not be part of the present gate above the surface of the ground which is too recent. ○ During the Middle Ages, and for some years afterward, Jewish pilgrims to the Holy Land would walk all the way around the walls of Jerusalem. When they reached this gate, so close to the Temple Mount, they would stop and beseech the Almighty to show His people compassion. And that may be how the gate got its second name of Sha'ar Harahamim: Mercy Gate. ○ Closed: At the end of the First Temple period the eastern gate was closed (see Ezekiel XLIV, I. "Then he brought me back the way of the outer gate of the sanctuary which looketh toward the east; and it was shut.")
Eastern Gate: during the Second Temple period (Nehemiah III, 29) A causeway supported by arches ran from the gate across the Kidron Valley, and was known as the Causeway of the Heifer, since the High Priest used this way to reach the Mount of Olives where the ritual burning of the Red Heifer took place, to purify the pilgrims with its ashes (Parah 111, 6; Shekalim IV, 2).
○ The Mercy Gate, is the most beautiful of all the gates of Jerusalem. It is approached
○ The Mercy Gate, is the most beautiful of all the gates of Jerusalem. It is approached from within the Temple Mount by twenty-two stairs, which lead into a magnificent entrance, decorated with unusually intricate carvings of acanthus leaves, which appear to be moving. The gateroom is a hall with six domes supported by huge marble pillars. On the east side of the hall are two gateways, now blocked up, beautifully decorated on the outside. It is to be hoped that this magnificent gate will again served its original purpose, making possible pilgrimages to the Temple Mount from the Mount of Olives.
○ Golden or Beautiful: The ancient Eastern gate to Jerusalem could be the one mentioned as the "Beautiful Gate" in Acts 3:2,10. The term Golden Gate may have been derived from the Latin Vulgate version of the Bible: "In the earliest Greek New Testament, the word for 'beautiful' is oraia. When Jerome translated the New Testament into Latin in the 4th Century he changed the Greek oraia into the similar sounding Latin aurea, rather than to the Latin word for 'beautiful.' So the Latin Vulgate text read 'Golden Gate' instead of 'Beautiful Gate.'" ○ A Place of Judgment: The Golden Gate has long interested many Muslims, most Jews and Christians as the place of the Last Judgment. Historically, judgments were rendered in the gates of the city (Gen. 19:1, 23:10, for instance).
Some Muslims place Allah's final judgment at this location. Muslims also expect Jesus to return to our world at the end of the age to participate in the final judgment. Muslims compare the final judgment of mankind to the crossing of a narrow knife blade which stretches from a mountain (the Mount of Olives is often mentioned in Arab legend) to the "gate of heaven." This knife-edged bridge evidently spans the Kidron Valley - as did an ancient stone bridge in Roman times. Jews expect the Messiah to come through the Golden Gate. Zechariah 14:4-5 clearly states that the Messiah of Israel will return to Jerusalem from the summit of the Mount of Olives and then surely proceed into Jerusalem from the East, in the direction of the Golden Gate.
Christians have for centuries associated the Golden Gate with Palm Sunday and also with the Second Advent (Luke 19:35-38). Christians believe it will be Jesus Christ who will conduct that final judgment. ○ Burial Ground: - adherents to all three faiths have wanted to be buried as close as possible to the Golden Gate. The assumption was that the dead in the immediate vicinity would be the first to be raised. This is one reason for the many Muslim, Christian, and Jewish graves on the Eastern slopes of the Temple Mount, in the Kidron Valley, and on the Western slopes of the Mount of Olives. The Golden Gate faces the Mount of Olives and is the oldest continuous Jewish cemetery in the world. The popularity of this cemetery derives from its proximity to the Golden Gate, through which Jews believe that the Messiah will pass when he enters Jerusalem. And, of course when the dead are resurrected and return to the city, they want to be first in line to follow him in. Muslim rulers knew about this Jewish tradition, and they sealed the gate permanently shut. But they were afraid this might not be enough. So, aware that the Messiah would be of priestly lineage and unable to come anywhere near a
the Messiah would be of priestly lineage and unable to come anywhere near a cemetery, Muslims began burying their dead in front of the gate. The Muslim cemetery is strategically placed before the gate to desecrate and deter Jews from coming near that area: â—‹ Judgment & Mercy: the Messianic association with the Golden Gate - which clearly symbolizes both judgment and mercy because of the Arabic names attached to the gate. Some scholars have noted that the double gates of repentance and mercy contrast not only Law and Grace but are reminders of the two bronze pillars, Jachin, "in his counsel" and Boaz, "by his strength" which stood in the front of the First Temple. James 2:13 notes that God is just, but that his mercy "triumphs" over judgment. According to James, although God is just and must judge the world with equity and impartiality, the mercy of God is a greater and higher attribute of the God of the Bible. He is ready to forgive all who seek him, and his mercy abounds. Damascus Gate market, this area of the city is the hub of east Jerusalem commerce, and Damascus Gate is the loveliest of all entrances to the Old City. As you walk around the walls, you will find them topped by continuous crenelations tooth-like projections. It is only here at Damascus Gate that they are replaced by decorative statuettes. Called Sha'ar Shechem in Hebrew, the gate faces north, and in the past a road led directly to Nablus (Shechem) and from there to Damascus. In Arabic, it is called Bab al-Amud - Gate of the Pillar - because in Roman times a giant column topped with a full statue of the Emperor Hadrian stood in the center of its inner plaza. During the Byzantine period, this was known as St. Stephen's Gate for, according to Christian tradition, the martyr Stephen was dragged out of the city through this gate and stoned to death somewhere on the other side of today's road. There is a small entrance to the right of the gate below today's street level. Flanked by two massive, broken columns, it was part of a monumental triple victory arch built in 135 after Emperor Hadrian crushed the Bar Kochba Revolt and turned Jerusalem into the Roman city called Aelia Capitolina.
Flower Gate, which was added in 1875. The original Turkish entrance is on the side, where you will see the flower decoration that may have given this gate one of its names. A few centuries ago, pilgrims who mistook a fancy Muslim house for Herod's Palace gave the entrance yet another name: Herod's Gate.
Lions' Gate, where the lions on both sides probably gave rise to the legend about Suleiman and his dream. A careful look will reveal, however, that the "lions" are really panthers - the emblem of a 13th-century Muslim conqueror named Baybars. This is where Israeli paratroopers broke into the city during the Six Day War.
Dung Gate, which leads to the Western Wall. For thousands of years, residents of the city took their trash out through this gate, which offered easy access to an even better refuse site in the valley below. Some people believe the name derives, instead, from the horrid smell of tanners tanning their hides.
Zion Gate, which leads to the Jewish Quarter and stands between Mount Zion inside the walls of the Old City, and the portion of Mount Zion that was left outside. The gate's scarred exterior, riddled with bullet holes, offers mute witness to a battle that could have changed the course of Israeli history during the War of Independence. Although Israeli forces conquered Mount Zion on the night of May 18th and broke the Jordanian siege of the Jewish Quarter, the following night most of the soldiers were withdrawn. And the handful of exhausted Jewish defenders that remained could not hold out against the might of the Jordanian army. Less than two weeks later, on May 28, the Jewish Quarter was forced to capitulate to the Arab Legion and the Old City fell to the Jordanians. Just before a ceasefire was scheduled to make the situation permanent, Israel made a last-ditch attempt to break into the Old City. Continue about 100 meters to reach a large cone and a concrete slab inscribed with the date 18.7.1949. Soldiers lugged a 150-kilogram homemade cone-shaped bomb up Mount Zion stretcher-style, and set it down against the wall. Although the bomb caused a deafening explosion, it only scratched the surface. Jerusalem was doomed to remain a divided city for the next 19 years. Jaffa Gate: Just past a tower built on Hasmonean and Herodian ruins, you will see 2,000-year-old steps that probably led to Herod's palace. What makes this theory so logical is the Herod family tomb located across the valley to your left and above Yemin Moshe.
New Gate, built at the end of the 1880s to make it easier to travel between Old Jerusalem and the Christian institutions built across the street. Until 1967, when Jerusalem was reunited, the road from here to Damascus Gate was strewn with twisted barbed wire and remnants from scorched armored vehicles. This was the border between Israel and Jordan called No-Man's Land. Divisions of the Old City The Jewish Quarter lies in the southeastern sector of the walled city, and stretches from the Zion Gate in the south, along the Armenian Quarter on the west, up to the Cardo in the north and extends to the Western Wall and the Temple Mount in the east. • The quarter has had a rich history, with a nearly continual Jewish presence since the eight century B.C.E. In 1948 its population of about 2,000 Jews was besieged, and forced to leave en masse. The quarter had been completely sacked by the Arabs, with ancient synagogues destroyed. • The quarter remained under Transjordanian control until its capture by Israeli paratroops in the Six-Day War of 1967. The quarter has since been rebuilt and settled, and has a population of 2,348 (as of 2004), and many large educational institutions have taken up residence. • Before being rebuilt, the quarter was carefully excavated under the supervision of Hebrew University archaeologist Nahman Avigad. The archaeological remains, on display in a series of museums and outdoor parks, to visit which tourists descend two or three stories beneath the level of the current city, collectively form one of the world's most accessible archaeological sites. The Armenian Quarter is the smallest of the four quarters of the Old City. • Although the Armenian people are Christians, the Armenian Quarter is distinct from the Christian Quarter. Despite the small size and population of this quarter, the Armenians and their Patriarchate remain staunchly independent and form a vigorous presence in the Old City. • After the 1948 Arab-Israeli War, the four quarters of the city came under Jordanian control. Jordanian law required Armenians and other Christians to “give equal time to the Bible and Qur'an” in private Christian schools, and restricted the expansion of church assets. • The 1967 war is remembered by residents of the quarter as a miracle, after two unexploded bombs were found inside the Armenian monastery. The Armenians smuggled food to the Jews during the bombing of the Jewish Quarter. • Today more than 3,000 Armenians live in Jerusalem, 500 of them in the Armenian Quarter. Some are temporary residents studying at the seminary or working as church functionaries. The Patriarchate owns the land in this quarter as well as valuable property in West Jerusalem and elsewhere. • In 1975, a theological seminary was established in the Armenian Quarter. After the 1967 war, the Israeli government gave compensation for repairing any churches or holy sites damaged in the fighting, regardless of who caused the damage.
sites damaged in the fighting, regardless of who caused the damage. The Christian Quarter is situated in the north-western corner of the Old City, extending from the New Gate in the north, along the western wall of the Old City as far as the Jaffa Gate, along the Jaffa Gate - Western Wall route in the south, bordering on the Jewish and Armenian Quarters, as far as the Damascus Gate in the east, where it borders on the Muslim Quarter. The quarter contains the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, one of Christianity's holiest places.
The Muslim Quarter is the largest and most populous of the four quarters and is situated in the northeastern corner of the Old City, extending from the Lions' Gate in the east, along the northern wall of the Temple Mount in the south, to the Damascus Gate route in the west. Its population was 22,000 in 2005. Like the other three quarters of the Old City, the Muslim quarter had a mixed population of Jews as well as Muslims and Christians until the riots of 1929. Today 60 Jewish families live in the Muslim Quarter, and a few yeshivot are located there. Tower of David, actually a minaret from a mosque built for Muslim troops in the 14th century, now bursts into view in all its glory. The wide road leading into the city is new, and was prepared especially for the visit of Emperor Wilhelm II in 1898. Ottoman rulers breached a gap in the wall that connected Jaffa Gate with the Citadel, plugged up the adjacent moat and created a second and wider point of entry suitable for the emperor and his extensive entourage. Exit through the smaller, original gate, from which a road once led directly to Jaffa. The 16th-century Arabic inscription over the entrance gives Suleiman's name, the year of construction and the following words: "there is no God but Allah and Abraham is his friend." That's why the Sultan's name for this entrance was Bab al-Khalil, the Gate of the Friend.
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The Western Wall of the Temple Mount The Western Wall is a one quarter mile long retaining wall that today forms the western boundary of the Temple Mount. A 185 foot section that is exposed is an open air prayer area, Ha Kotel - known in earlier times as the Wailing Wall. The Western Wall was not part of either Temple. Rather it was one of the four retaining walls that surrounded the Temple Mount supporting the platform on which the Temple formerly stood. It was built by Herod the Great in order to enlarge the Temple Mount so that he could enlarge the worship area, beautify it and add more buildings to the Temple complex. When the Romans destroyed the Temple in AD 70 they left standing most of the retaining walls to commemorate the magnitude of their victory. It is the only remaining portion of the
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walls to commemorate the magnitude of their victory. It is the only remaining portion of the Second Temple. About fifty percent of the Western Wall is below ground at the present plaza level. The Tyropoean Valley in the vicinity of Robinson's arch has been filled to great depth over the years, (that is, not far from the Southwest corner of the Temple Mount wall). To the left as one faces the wall only the tops of huge gigantic arches are exposed above ground. Robinson's Arch is named after the discoverer who noted the significance of the arch. A staircase built by Herod led up from the Tyropoean Valley (just west of the Ophel - City of David) to this arch and gate to the temple mount. The poor of Jerusalem lived in this crowded valley. The main street through the city led under the arch. Wilson's Arch (also named after it's modern discoverer), was built by the Hasmoneans (the priestly rulers from the Maccabeen Revolt) to connect the upper city (where they lived) to the temple mount. It seems that they didn't like the idea of crossing the poor section of town to get to the temple. Wilson's Arch is located further to the left of Robinson's Arch. About 40 feet to the left (south) of Robinson's Arch is The Pinnacle of the Temple (the southwest corner of the temple mount). The Pinnacle, where Jesus was believed to have been tempted by the devi,l (Matthew 4:1-11) has been traditionally associated with the south-eastern corner of the Temple Mount because of the great height above the Kidron Valley below. The recent discovery on an inscribed stone at the south-west corner indicated that corner was "the place of trumpeting" (blowing of the Shofar) has raised the possibility that the second temptation of Jesus took place there. Eusebius (Ecclesiastical History, 2:23) tells us that James the Just, brother of Jesus and pastor of the early Christian church in Jerusalem was martyred by being thrown down from the pinnacle of the temple mount. He survived the fall and was then stoned, praying for forgiveness for his persecutors as he died.
Paratroopers at the Wall: Following Israel's victory during the 1967 Six-Day War, the Western Wall came under Israeli control. Yitzchak Rabin, fifth Prime Minister of Israel, described the moment Israeli soldiers reached the Wall: ”There was one moment in the Six-Day War which symbolized the great victory: that was the moment in which the first paratroopers - under Gur's command - reached the stones of the Western Wall, feeling the emotion of the place; there never was, and never will be, another moment like it. Nobody staged that moment. Nobody planned it in advance. Nobody prepared it and nobody was prepared for it; it was as if Providence had directed the whole thing: the paratroopers weeping - loudly and in pain over their comrades who had fallen along the way, the words of the Kaddish prayer heard by Western Wall's stones after 19 years of silence, tears of mourning, shouts of joy, and the singing of "Hatikvah". (David Rubinger's photo of Israeli soldiers after the capture of the Wall during the Six-Day War)
The Southern Wall of the Temple Mount • The late Benjamin Mazar and Meir Ben Dov cleared the Southern Wall and surrounding area in recent decades exposing late Islamic palaces, and the bedrock and original steps leading onto the Temple Mount from the City of David which is to the South (and much lower in elevation). Three groups of gates (closed) may be seen in the southern wall. The Single Gate, 100 feet from the south-east corner, probably dates from the Crusaders and was repaired by the Mamelukes. The Triple Gate, about 275 feet from the SE corner, is at the site of one of the two pairs of Huldah Gates of the Second Temple. The Double Gate, south of El-Aksa mosque is the second pair of the Huldah Gates (Mishnah Middot 1:3). During the Second Temple period these two gates divided the Temple Mount into three almost equal sections. The interior of these gates and their openings onto the Temple Mount have long been closed to visitors by the Muslims. Southern Steps The western flight of stairs leading to the main entrances of the Temple Mount was 200 feet wide. • Excavators uncovered the easternmost part of this staircase with its alternating long and short steps. Some suggest that the fifteen long steps may have been one of the locations where pilgrims sang the fifteen Psalms of Ascent (120-34) as they went up to worship. Others say that the steps were alternated to inspire dignity…no running or you would trip. Harry's thoughts: These are the steps Jesus would have ascended to enter the temple!
Harry's thoughts: These are the steps Jesus would have ascended to enter the temple! Pray for the peace of Jerusalem… Psalm 122:1 "I was glad when they said to me, “Let us go to the house of the Lord!” Psalm 126 1 When the Lord restored the fortunes of Zion, we were like those who dream. 2 Then our mouth was filled with laughter, and our tongue with shouts of joy; then they said among the nations, “The Lord has done great things for them.” 3 The Lord has done great things for us; we are glad. 4 Restore our fortunes, O Lord, like streams in the Negeb!
5 Those who sow in tears shall reap with shouts of joy! 6 He who goes out weeping, bearing the seed for sowing, shall come home with shouts of joy, bringing his sheaves with him. The Dedication of the Temple 2 Chronicles 7:21-22 "My eyes and my heart will be there for all time… 21 And at this house, which was exalted, everyone passing by will be astonished and say, ‘Why has the Lord done thus to this land and to this house?’ 22 Then they will say, ‘Because they abandoned the Lord, the God of their fathers who brought them out of the land of Egypt and laid hold on other gods and worshiped them and served them. Therefore he has brought all this disaster on them.’
All aspects of the temple were designed to represent Christ, the image of God, HE dwells in us…are the living stones of the temple of the Holy Spirit… a living sacrifice! Church of St. Anne & Pool of Bethesda: a beautiful 12th-century Crusader church, erected over the traditional site of the birthplace of Anne (Hannah), the mother of Mary. It is an excellent example of Romanesque architecture. Saint Anne's acoustics, designed for Gregorian chant, are so perfect that the church is virtually a musical instrument to be played by the human voice. Pilgrim groups come to sing in the church throughout the day, only religious songs are permitted. The church's acoustics are most amazing when used by a soprano or a tenor solo voice.
Personal Note: this was Mom's favorite moment on the trip. As we came near the church we could hear the strains of Amazing Grace coming from inside. As we drew closer we realized that the tune was familiar but we could not understand the words. We waited our turn outside and a group of Nambian believers excited the church and waved and smiled as we passed. (We saw them many times in different locations) She said she thought that would be like heaven… where every nation and tribe retain their ethnicity and uniqueness but are joined into the culture of Christ and become "one people"!
The church is right next to the Bethesda Pool, believed to be the site where Jesus healed a paralytic (John 5:1-15). In his gospel account, John describes such a pool, surrounded by five covered colonnades. Until the 19th century, there was no archaeological evidence for the Pool of Bethesda, so skeptics used this as proof that John’s account was written by some later zealot who didn’t have eyewitness knowledge of Jerusalem or an actual pool called Bethesda. Today, there’s really no question that archaeologists have uncovered the actual Pool of Bethesda where Jesus healed the invalid. The colonnades were visible to John at the time of Jesus, but the pool probably didn’t appear sunken and surrounded by walls like it does today.
First Century Street: This street was fully uncovered in the mid-1990s and dates to the decades before the city's destruction by the Romans in 70 A.D. • The street is 10 meters wide and was paved with large slabs up to a foot thick. The street was covered with massive stones pushed down by the Romans; only part of the street has been cleared by the excavators. • Matthew 24:1-2 "Jesus left the temple and was going away, when his disciples came to point out to him the buildings of the temple. But he answered them, “You see all these, do you not? Truly, I say to you, there will not be left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down.” This 40 ton cornerstone in the SW corner of the temple mount retaining wall, above this newly uncovered street, is roughly the same size as the vertical stones at Stonehenge in England
Jerusalem's Ophel (City of David) Excavations and Davidson Center The Concept was to preserve and enhance the remains of the ancient structure in a way that would set it apart from the modern construction. Innovative technology enabled the use of light materials, such as wood, glass and steel, contrasting the massiveness of the ancient stone walls. The descending ramps are constructed of steel and wood, large areas are walled with glass and steel roofs hover above the ancient walls. Roman Cardo: a Colonnade of western portico with the remains of shops hewn into bedrock which formed the main north‐south street in Jerusalem at the time from the Demascus Gate to the Temple Mount and from there to the Ophel (City of David) (Mural above from the Davidson Center) • Norman Arches were later Crusade additions to the Cardo • In Latin Cardo means "axis"; and with the Decamanus, it formed the main streets and focal axes of the typical Roman city plan. Such streets also existed in Roman Aelia Capitolina, the city of Jerusalem rebuilt by Hadrian. • It was Constantine, who changed its name back to Jerusalem 200 years later. • The gate, the square with the pillar, and the Cardo are depicted in detail on the Madaba Mosaic Map Madaba Mosaic Map depicts Jerusalem with the Nea Church, which was dedicated on the 20th of November, 542 AD. Buildings erected in Jerusalem after 570 AD are absent from the depiction, thus limiting the date range of its creation to the period between 542 and 570 AD.
The mosaic was made by unknown artists, probably for the Christian community of Madaba, which was the seat of a bishop at that time.
The map is one of the most accurate depictions of what Byzantine Jerusalem and other parts of the Holy Land looked like, and where numerous landmarks were situated. • The map is oriented towards the east rather than north with Jerusalem at the center. • In the Jerusalem portion, the Cardo can be seen extending in a straight line southward from the Damascus Gate. The gate is very clearly marked and given special emphasis be ing the primary entrance to the chity at the time. The plaza and Hadrian's column can be plainly seen in the map, thus giving the gate its name in Arabic to this day, Bab El‐Amud or “The Gate of the Column”.
King Hezekiah's Wall This is a portion of the wall in Jerusalem that Hezekiah built in preparation for Judah's rebellion against Assyria. The remains of this wall was discovered by Avigad in the Jewish Quarter of the Old City in 1970. It is about 23 feet thick and still stands up to 10 feet tall. ď ˝ It is believed that Hezekiah built this wall to enclose the western part of Jerusalem, including the Pools of Siloam. Prior to this wall, only The Ophel and the temple mount was inside the city walls. This is an important archaeological site, since it remapped the Biblical period city, whose boundaries were not known prior to these excavations. This wall and the Siloam Tunnel was built in preparation for an attack by Assyria because Hezekiah refused to pay tribute to Sennacherib, the king of Assyria. These building activities are mentioned in 2 Chronicles 32:3-5 and 2 Kings 20:20. The Chronicler seems to praise Hezekiah for these works. But, some scholars believe Isaiah to be rebuking him in Isaiah 22:9-11 because he destroyed houses to fortify the wall and because he didn't give credit to those whose work he built upon when he built the reservoir for the waters from the Siloam Tunnel.
The name of the wall was used in a later time in the history of the city, when Nehemiah returns from the Babylonia exile and rebuilds the wall and the first phase of the second temple. He built the city in a smaller scale, but on the west section he reuses the Hezekiah "broad wall", as written in the Bible (Nehemiah 3 8): "...and they fortified Jerusalem unto the broad wall". According to most scholars, this broad wall is at this site - what remained from the first temple era. Golden Menorah: Constructed by the Temple Institute and based on extensive research, this golden menorah is appropriate for use in the Third Temple. Over two meters in height and plated with 43 kg (95 lbs) of gold, this menorah is the first such constructed since the destruction of the Temple. This menorah is on display in the Jewish Quarter. This is intended to replace the 2nd temple menorah which was lost but memorialized in the The Triumphal Arch of Titus in Rome to commemorate the capture and sack of Jerusalem in 70 ad which effectively terminated the Jewish War begun in 66 (although the Romans did not achieve complete victory until the fall of Masada in 73).
Fiddler on the Roof playing "If I were a rich man" by the golden menorah
Tour of the Temple Mount
Virtual Tour of the Temple Mount: The 10-minute high definition computer-generated film is more realistic-looking than most advanced computer graphics. The compilation of the film, as well as the virtual tour of the Temple Mount (www.archpark.org.il) took two years to complete. Local archeologists worked with computer experts from the University of California in Los Angeles; the computer footage can be updated if archeologists uncover something else of interest. Malka explains that if there had been enough finds from the First Temple Period (c.960 - 586 BCE), the film would have started at that point. However, since most of the discoveries in the area date from the Roman Period, the excavations and the Visitor's Center emphasize that era. "In the future, we hope to include other periods of interest,"
Mount Moriah The Lord had appeared to David at the threshing floor of the Jebusite and this is the exact spot where David instructed his son Solomon to build the house of the Lord, at Mount Moriah. This was also the place in Hebrew history were Abraham bound his son Isaac upon an altar in order to sacrifice him according to the word of the Lord, but an angel of the Lord held back his hand when he drew the knife, for this was only a test of Abraham's obedience and a wonderful picture of God's plan of redemption with the sacrificing of His own Son, the Jewish Messiah Jesus Christ. Today in 2003 Mount Moriah, the top of the Temple hill, is where the Mosque of Omar, more correctly, the Dome of the Rock, now stands. The Arabs call it the Sakhrah Rock. It is a strangely shaped mass of rock, protruding 10 feet above the ground, and is about 50 feet in diameter. It is believed to be the actual site of the altar of burnt offering in Solomon's Temple. Jews, Christians, and Muslims, according to tradition have regarded it as "the stone of foundation," the Foundation Rock of which the Jews claim that it was the precise site of the Holy of Holies of Solomon's Temple and the place where God’s Schekinah glory appeared between the Cherubim, above the Ark of the Covenant and the Mercy Seat.
Columns excavated from what is believed to be Solomon's Portico at one time the boundary of the temple compound on the east. • This porch was the length of the women's court, approximately 150 feet long, forming at that time, the eastern boundary of the temple area. • With deep valleys on the west and east of the threshing floor that King David had purchased, Solomon had to come up with some pretty ingenious ideas to increase the top of the mount. We can see that work today but it is hard to recognize because it is
top of the mount. We can see that work today but it is hard to recognize because it is buried deep beneath a now flat surface of the temple mount, which is many times larger then what was there in Solomon's time. John 10:23 and Jesus was walking in the temple, in the colonnade of Solomon. Acts 3:11-12 "While he [Lame Beggar] clung to Peter and John, all the people, utterly astounded, ran together to them in the portico called Solomon's Portico. And when Peter saw it he addressed the people‌ Acts 5:12 Now many signs and wonders were regularly done among the people by the hands of the apostles. And they were all together in Solomon's Portico.
The sacred rock over which the Dome of the Rock is built was considered holy before the arrival of Islam. Jews believed, and still believe, the rock to be the very place where Abraham prepared to sacrifice Isaac (Muslims believe Ishmael was chosen son). In addition, the Dome of the Rock is believed by many to stand directly over the site of the Holy of Holies of both Solomon's Temple and Herod's Temple. Closed Eastern Gate which will be opened from the Mount of Olives giving CHRIST the KING HIS RIGHTFUL access to the temple mount