Building the Third Temple in Jerusalem
Filed under Israel & The Jewish People, News on August 31st, 2009 by Marcus FrenchCBN reports on the Third Temple: [Link to Video]
Will we see the rebuilding of Solomon’s Temple in our own lifetime? What will the implications be on our prophetic expectation of an ingathering of Jews into the Kingdom prior to the Lord’s bodily appearing? Feel free to weigh in via comments below.
Tags: CBN, Islam, israel, Muslims, prophecy, Solomon's Temple, Temple Mount, Third Temple
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Yes, Armstrong being the cyclist, who came out of years of retirement to once more be a world class Tour De France rider—as motivated by a cancer awareness human service goal. The point being that as he made it to the top three riders’ shared winners’ podium in Paris this year, after a lull of retirement, so could Jerusalem change its current Temple Mount makeup due to a shift in political conditions possibility permitting a 3rd Temple. A sudden discovery of past Temple worship use objects there could compel such a result and rally Israel to move in such a way; or the gathering of the varied Temple objects from their varied placements in caves around ancient Palestine, by a clearer understanding reached of now cryptic worship object location maps left by observant Jewish survivors of the Roman armies of Titus after the destruction of Herod’s embellished second Temple could also offer a clear motivation (see the PBS series on the Temple observant survivors maps).
These times are different from past Monarch Temple eras for Jerusalem. Most semi-honorable forms of world government have changed in this Age of the Gentiles toward democratic ideals. It is understandable that such are considered the best expressions of human ideals, where Yeshua is absent from the earth at this time, other than being so regarded in his people by faith. I am uncertain why the third Temple then would need to be “Soloman’s Temple,” as placed on Moriah like a first time “God’s House” appointment–as such was honored directly by HaShem YHVH. Those unique conditions in Jewish realized history were not forwarded indeed for an historical godly realized intention and presence much past Soloman’s generation continually, other than as a growing hope of Messianic expectancy for what the Jewish Jerusalem Kings could not achieve. Although our Messiah, in his visitation lifetime, did refer to the Temple being in God, as the embellished second Temple became corrupted in its politics of self preservation and survival alliances Yeshua challenged what was ungodly by such corruption. Rebuilding the Temple now means the resolidification and outward construction of the unrealized longings of a chosen, then displaced people who past denied their own son of David, son of Man, son of God and Temple aware purposed destiny. God uniquely ordained Jewish self government with the guidance made by the Law, as reflected in suffering during a long forced retirement season of the chosen people set apart and away from that destiny.
With our present day hyperactive worldwide media coverage, a new Temple dedicated to the Lord would present an international focal point for comment on its phenomena and purpose. Its control then would also become a world consideration. The tensions over such control and the recognition of God’s existence seem given in the Revelation, chapter 11, for a future Jerusalem so disposed. The existence of God for the Temple’s establishment history would become a facet of its considered press coverage. The attraction for many might be its radically different approach to devotion and forgiveness of sin than other religions, or the justice limits known of world governments, such being established as a visible link from Jerusalem toward acknowledging a to be considered very existence of God; its reentry into world sight would place the purposes of atonement at stage center. Such a placement would announce that once set aside for thousands of years from the nations contemplation of the need for atonement of sin, and from what group the need for salvation stems. It offers Israel a central observance for religious continuity not realized today by the nations, or in the Jewish dispersion period into the nations.
Such an emergence of a central world placement, regarding religious observance and the creator God of Israel, would be in keeping with the present season of restoration of the Land and People of the Book in the chosen Nation. Chosen for what? That is God’s purposed call to holiness related to a Jerusalem Temple’s prophetic restoration is clear enough (where it is written after restoration of the people into the Land, as so today, He will “make them holy” for his purposes; this is apparently initially so with a Temple present, and without a foretold national repentance requirement which must accompany a future prophesied recognition and an acceptance as kinsman-deliverer of the true Messiah). Messiah announced in Mt. 12:6 someone greater than the Temple being in the Land for a season and reason. And He spoke over the standing Temple with a projected future sorrow now being changed by the existence of post modern Israel. Messiah had been dedicated and prophesied over by God’s waitful ministers at the Jerusalem Temple of God as a child, during what came to be called Haunnakka. He felt His effort as an adult worthy for cleansing the same Temple of merchandising, and he healed taught and declared the good news at the Temple (see Luke). This is where children praised him as the promised son of David, creating conflict and triggering jealousy among its religious-political gatekeepers (Mt. 21). He spoke of the Temple making its gold worship objects and treasury sacred, not vice versa (Mt. 23:17). Acknowledging the Jerusalem Temple’s clear connection to God, Messiah mentioned God dwelling “in it” by an indirect reference (vs. 21), as such was so considered by Him in that day during the beginning of the last seven decades of The second embellished Temple’s Jerusalem presence. The final seven decades too of the Land still holding its tribes Jewish presence and Temple were counting down to a soon promised desolation after the Messiah’s Resurrection.
The gatekeepers of the dwelling Temple Nation’s preferred human traditions corrupted its chosen purposes for these traditions sake. Yeshua spoke ill of those upholding these traditions and not so of the Temple ritual administering Priests, or the actual practices of the law or spirit of the Law, as such. He called the Temple “my Father’s house.” In its Courts He taught each morning to an expectant crowd in the days before his arrest. Later, after the Passion, Resurrection, Ascension, and 40 day teaching mission of the risen Messiah to his disciples, the first church and the Apostles would proclaim the good news of the Messiah, teach, and heal there. Numbers were added to the church daily there. Paul practiced the Jewish rituals of purification there after founding many Gentile churches among the nations. No permitted meeting there between worship of God and of idols occurs, unless as blasphemy. One can identify pagan practices as prevalent among the nations, even in certain religious references made among believers of the nations. So he of whom Gentile believers claim to be taught doctrine felt it important to honor Temple worship practices after founding the Gentile churches and after the Jerusalem conference of Acts 15. Why, after being obligated to salvation by grace through faith?
In the sense of God himself establishing the Temple, its priesthood, and Yeshua’s Kingly future in reference to Israel there, the Temple, and Jerusalem is a place of prayer for all nations: the Jerusalem Temple is to be unfettered from disregard of the God of creation, and set apart from Gentile paganism, including Islam’s pagan practices adopted from Saudi Arabian preexisting pagan religion (when Islam was asserted by the sword, and as it incorporated such practices into its own rituals and rough practices held in Arabian locations). The Jerusalem Temple’s chosen location and placement figured into the coming promises and atonement placement of Yeshua the Messiah.
Recall that John the Baptist’s father was honored by God when serving as a rotational Temple Priest, when and where he was given a supernatural revelation, and that revelation was given about his own son given in reference to establishing the nation’s leadership for repentance and a recognition of Yeshua as Messiah King. The Temple priesthood is considered by God then as an anointed ministry of the Nation, set in place by God’s own appointments in related history of the founding and purposes of that Priesthood. This differed from the unjust, self serving, and unmerciful traditions Yeshua took to task, in his ministry, words, and in the Sermon on the Mount. It seems obvious that the playing out of the limits of that Priesthood for achieving atonement permanency in light of the New Covenant now past made with (some of) Israel, will be by both a future fulfillment of Tenach Prophetic restored chosen Nation promise, and a leading to a need in the Nation for something more than the appointed system of ritualized religious practices.
What can a Temple achieve as to a prophetically appointed Israeli National righteousness and justice actualization for this era of a Jerusalem Temple? While a Temple is up and running its ministers have certain rights of life in relationship to it (1 Cor 9:13-14.), just as New Covenant ministers do in relationship to that covenant (with its Temple of residence in each believer). The need for the son of Man of Daniel, and promised son of David on the throne from the Temple Mount will prove to be regardful of the expectancy and end times experience called of God of the chosen Nation. Where the Holy Spirit is so active there is a hunger for knowing God. Where rooted history is in the Messianic expectation certain actions will be required for the chosen Nation’s acknowledgement of Him.
2nd Thessalonians 2nd chapter, the eleventh chapter of the Revelation given to John, and the 25th chapter of Matthew seem to point to an internationally media scrutinized drama being worked out in reference to a resurgent Jerusalem Temple as present and operant. This becomes so eventually for its future “King” being so identified with the intentions of God for its future functions for both Israel and the naations. Yeshua cited God’s Tenach established prophets of old intention for the Temple, where it is established, whereas “my house will be called a house of prayer for all nations” (opposed to a house of merchandise set up in God’s name. See Mk 11:16-17 and the Isaiah reference. Isaiah in its entirety is placed in the Shrine of the scroll, in Jerusalem, by the Nation created in a day in 1948). He displayed his authority over it’s calling and purpose in his cleansing of its unholy unrighteous merchandising as misrepresenting the elements of atonement and blessing. He declared there Himself being greater than David–whose son built the first Jerusalem Temple–as the promised Messiah and son of David (Mk 12:35-37). Yet He upheld the Nation’s coming judgment involving the demise of the second Temple era by future Roman hands (Mk. 13:2). What is now unclear is if related past desolations of the Temple fulfill Daniel’s prophecy which Yeshua upheld as being the desecration of the second Temple, and/or as to a future such desolating desecration occurrence of a third Temple (Mk. 13:14). Here he was discussing the Temple future in Jerusalem. It was to the second Temple courts the first church came for “continually” praising God, until eventually persecuted by religious observant to traditions Jews in Jerusalem. This must have been some conflict, for, thousands of believers in Yeshua gathered there in time.
Such a desolation of abomination attempting to replace its image of what is to be worshiped, for God’s dwelling in the Temple by and for His regard, is almost certainly as is/was to be erected in the Temple (the fact that the sun and moon have not changed their appearance as Yeshua predicted, and Revl. 11 has not yet occurred in reference to increased world attention on Jerusalem in tension with God’s witnesses active there was focused in prophetic conflict by Yeshua, and seems to point to such conflictual future occurrences; these are then prior to Yeshua’s return appearance). This too is where Yeshua taught and shared the gospel good news of his Kingdom (Lk. 20:1). And he placed his future return to the Mt. of Olives, on a hill opposite the Temple Mount, in the same manner which he left Jerusalem, as Lord over its own religious references.
The eons old history now challenging a people known as Jews to get on with the possibility of a new Temple have been: destruction of the second Temple by Roman power, genocide, the remaining peoples’ scattering into the nations, unacceptance and difficulty when residing thereafter among most nations, persecution (and perhaps judgement), attempted world annihilation of the Jewish race, and restoration of the Jewish State in 1948 (the year I was born). Yes, to be built as such with the symbols and resources active of the first two temples, but so, within an entirely different global interchange, information, and rapid communication era. The notions of human rights and self government too are new phenomena since the first two Temple periods. Eyes from around the world would then shift daily to Jerusalem with a kind of awaiting expectancy for what has been promised to King David’s throne eternal reign found now only in NT believers’ hope. This would conflict with those who see no purpose for God in human governance. This would aid the future consolation of Israel as has not been possible in and since two prior Temple eras. Likely too it would be controversial from hearts set outside the Jewish experience. A read of Michael Brown’s book OUR HANDS ARE STAINED WITH BLOOD can inform one why.
When in the video blurb Gershom Soloman speaks of hearing the voice of God in this respect, of building a Jerusalem Temple, complete with its priesthood, and being surrounded by angels after being run over by a tank in the Golan on the battlefield during Israel’s War of Independence, one has to consider what’s up. He speaks elsewhere of why his grandfather came in the 19th Century to Israel to set his sight on its restoration, and how he died at the hands of Islam opposing this vision. Dispensationalists, like it or not, there is a ring of truth when being in the presence of Gershom’s related words of personal testimony and calling. His calling is a Tenach prophetic mystery, not a NT prophetic revealed mystery. Today in Israel, he is both revered by some Israelis, and considered a nut by many others. What seems to be apparent is that the political and the lineage based Tenach spiritual calling–when respecting the unfulfilled written word–must merge into Israel’s immediate future. Many Christians, when asked by his group to contribute to such a Temple building effort say “why should I give for a monument to a coming antiChrist?” And many other NT believers contribute with great expectancy. It seems then that the God of Israel is a God of promise no matter what side of acceptance of Yeshua as the appointed Messiah one is now on. Gershom’s heart I believe is pure. He has the love of God and Tenach instruction within his soul. –Jabez Hart
All, The above was clarified in the course of a day in my prayer closet, alone with our Father. –Jabez
There is the strong possibility too that atonement will be the issue of the Two Witnesses of Revl. 11 (perhaps one so of the Tenach, one of the NT on this matter?); this may be especially so if the eventual outcome of the current thrusts for dealing with the Temple Mount are not simply as God ordained it to be. Like in the second Temple period, political compromises or modern traditions may circumvent a Tenach appointed Temple with a placement for religious purposes with other characteristics than the frist two held in relationship to its atoning functions. The Courts were the places for debate, teaching, gathering for the feasts and festivals, Holy Days, etc.–of Jews and of first church followers of the Way. The sanctuary(s) was (were) for the placement for the Ark of the Covenant, and for rotational duties of the tribes representative Priesthood, and the High Priest. Sacrifice was key to past Temples’ key mission for atonement. Nowhere was it acceptable in scripture for the Temple to have another central theme than sacrifices for appointed and elected atonement, hence, the merchandising for such became contrary to the spirit of the mission. The clear instruction for any sacrifice to be a pure offering, and costly to the person or group requesting it was important for individual and group sober and repentant reflection over these actions contemplated intent. The Temple too was stated by the Messiah as the “dwelling” of God, even during his Visitation. If a third Temple becomes an inclusive center for the varied historical reinterpretations of Judaism, without such atonement, this could lead to the two Witnesses, with power over rain, to be sent directly by HaShem to confront such humanistic priorities, as well as any other pagan occupancies of the Mount, where so.
HaShem has a way of permitting humans to do their thing, even in his Name, prior to raising up Prophets to proclaim the justice issues at hand when His Way is disregarded by such actions. He seems to then either confront directly gently (via New Covenant grace and truth comparisons), or directly emphatically (via Tenach issues of conformity to the Law which He ordained for the chosen Nation). We must soberly regard both of these revelations of the guidance of God as vital to the ourtworking of faith for both groups. The Commonwealth of Israel citizens of right and of adotion are looking from different perspectives on the central event of human and redemptive history shown in the appointed life, sacrifice, and affirmations of the Father of thr Messiah’s voice, actions in fulfillment of righteousness, and continuous mission since. New Covenant believers await the inclusion of the chosen Nation in its own permanent salvation for the Kingdom with anticipation. In Matthew 13:52 the unconverted closest Disciples are told to bring both the instruction and way of the Old and New into their own households. This is still our charge.
The implications of this are vast.
Islam was never spread by the sword, contrary to what Christians maintain. Show me a single document from the time that asserts that. Islam was spread by TRADE, and by the example of Muslims who led decent, honorable lives, and so convinced their UNBIASED, UNBIGOTED neighbors to follow their faith in the God of Abraham, the God that all three monotheistic religions (Jewish, Christian, Muslim) worship.
In fact, it is CHRISTIANS who have used violence to spread the Gospel of the Prince of Peace. When the people claiming to be the followers of Jesus conquered Jerusalem in the First Crusade in 1095, they put to death EVERY LIVING THING there, including the cats and dogs.
Jesus is considered a great prophet in Islam and his mother Mary is considered the holiest woman who ever lived. Perhaps you need to stop supporting Israel’s vicious, barbaric and genocidal war on Arabs, and start practicing “turning the other cheek,” something which Judaism doesn’t support. You are being led around the nose by people who would rather see the end of the human race (via depleted uranium, for instance) than give up their agenda for total domination of the Middle East.
I guess “Christians” feel guilty about all the pogroms they once instigated, though. When the Spanish Reconquista finish re-occupying Spain in 1492, they started persecuting the Jews, who had lived for hundreds of years in peace under Muslim rule.
The Jews had to practice their religion in secret, or flee to Muslim North Africa, where they were free once again to live in peace and practice Judaism.
Even Israelis like Abba Eban agree that was the case.
Noel Wythe,
I’m sure you’re quite serious about your post, but is it utterly contrary to the facts. With regard to Christianity, the Crusades stand out as an ugly exception to the historic pattern and, in any case, they had nothing to do with “spreading Christianity” as much as they had to do with retaking the “Holy Land.” (Just for the record, it is probable that the vast majority of the participants had never read a page of the Bible their entire lives. They were biblically illiterate and the exact opposite of what the New Testament calls a “Christian.”)
With regard to Islam, surely you must know the many Koranic texts which praise the advancement of Islam with force. Surely you must have heard of the Moorish conquest. Surely you have read some of the sound academic books that chronicle Islam’s often-bloody past (and present!).
Again, I assume your post is meant to be taken seriously, but as a statement of fact, it is completely fatuous.
Dear Dr. Brown,
Thank you for acknowledging that the Crusades were an
“exception” to an “historic pattern.” I honestly do not feel that they are, because today America is prosecuting the same war of genocide against Muslims in the Middle East. Now, the West and America use depleted uranium, white phosphorus, cluster munitions and all the other weapons in our arsenal instead of swords and lances, but the intent is the same. According to one Middle East expert (Dahr Jamail) ONE OUT OF TWO Iraqis is either wounded, dead or homeless as a result of our war ON that country.
Yes, I am very aware of what the Qur’an says about warfare on people who are in opposition to God. The Qur’ans instruct Muslims to make war only on those who are on opposition to God, and orders that they sue for peace if their opponents lay down their weapons. The Qur’an also forbids warring on the innocent and cutting down trees.
It is acceptable to me if you wish to insist that Muslims conform to some kind of code of behavior, but why then do you insist on a double standard and accept any kind of behavior for the followers of Jesus (or Moses)? To excuse Christians that have given CHRISTIANITY a bad name for their “often-bloody past (and present)” on the grounds that they are somehow ignorant of the teachings of Jesus Christ makes it impossible for the Muslim World to take CHRISTIANS seriously.
May God have mercy!
Noel Wythe
Noel,
I’ve been following Jesus for almost 38 years now, I have worked with Christians around the world on more than 100 overseas trips, and we have missionaries who have graduated from our school laboring day and night in more than 20 nations, and without exception, the Christians are the ones being persecuted, not doing the persecuting. As for America’s actions in Iraq, be they good or evil, what does that have to do with the New Testament and Christianity? Nothing!
So, I do hold Christians to the standards of the New Testament and point out that the Crusaders and their kind were not Christians in any sense of the word (using the NT itself to define what makes one a Christian), but unfortunately, many Muslims today and in the past justify their violent behavior based on the Quran — and they are NOT misinterpreting it when they do.
May I assume, then, that you herewith retract your erroneous statement that Islam never advanced by the sword? And are you willing to admit that Islam today and in the past has used the Quran to justify violent behavior in the name of Allah? (I’m sure you know that when Iraq and Iran went to war, both nations declared it a holy war — a jihad — and Iranian clerics held Qurans over the heads of the soldiers as they got on buses to ride into battle.)
I suggest that you spend a few days reading the many fine articles on http://www.jihadwatch.com, with many quotes from Muslim leaders worldwide confirming what I have written here.
The only point that you make with which I concur is that many people often do not see a genuine demonstration of Christianity because of the worldliness of professing Christians. Thankfully, however, around the world, a genuine Christian witness continues to come forth, which is one of the reasons that so many Muslims are now coming to faith in Jesus. Praise God for that!
And the relevance of the above to any restoration of eternal reference in Israel, and possibly of the Temple and what that may mean as to the end of the Age and coming ruling Messiah? Noel, you can feel your feelings for sure, but establishing their relevance to this topic is wanting. Thanks for bringing the negativity back to earth and under heaven, Dr. Brown.