The
history of the descendants of Abraham from Moses to Jesus is divided into
periods that reflect the temples of Yahweh – The Tabernacle of Moses, The First Temple and the Second Temple.
(1) When the
Israelites entered Canaan, they brought the Tabernacle of Moses with them and established to semi-permanently
at Shiloh (Joshua 18:1).
(2) When King David
conquered Jerusalem in 1010 BCE, he transferred the Ark of the Covenant to a tent-shrine in his new capital. In 960 BCE
Solomon built the First Temple and the
elements of the Tabernacle were incorporated
into it. The First Temple replaced
the Tabernacle as the place where
humans could approach the presence of Yahweh. The First Temple operated for 374
years until it was destroyed by the Babylonians in 586 BCE.
(3) The Second Temple began operations in 530
BCE under the authority of Cyrus the
Great, King of the Persian Empire. It would continue to operate until 70
CE, about 43 years after Jesus was crucified. It was destroyed by Roman armies.
During the 600 years it operated, it would be under the authorities of Persians,
Greeks, Maccabees, Herod the Great and the Romans.
Jesus
was born about two years before Herod died. Jesus lived all of his adult life
under the Roman rule. The primary obligations the Romans demanded from
foreigners were the payment of taxes and compliance with Roman laws. The Romans
pretty much left the rule of a nation up to its leaders, and that included the
operation of their temples as centers of cultic activities.
From
childhood until immediately before he was crucified by the Romans, Jesus
participated in rituals and feasts at the Temple, as did members of other Jewish
communities. Jesus taught at the Temple on numerous occasions, as did many
other Jewish teachers. The Temple clearly played a central role in shaping
Jewish thought.
A
topic that was very important to the Jewish people was making sure they understood
the requirements for correctly entering the Temple’s sacred space, especially approaching
as near as permitted to the Holy of Holies, the place where the presence of
Yahweh appeared. This was the only place on Earth a human could come that close
to Yahweh. Making sure his disciples approached the presence of Yahweh
correctly at the Temple was important to Jesus too. He addressed that subject in
his teachings.
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