The Temples of God

Their Historical and Future Significance to Jews and Christians and All of Humanity

Toni C. Clark

• Publisher: Christian Faith Publishing, Inc.
• Year: 2022
• Print ISBN:
  9781685176426
• eBook ISBN:
  9781685176433
• Topic: Theology & Religion
• Subtopic: Religion

The temples of God are of profound historical and future significance to Jews, Christians, and all of humanity.

The original temple was in the Garden of Eden, created not by man's hands, but by God. After sin came to the Garden, Adam and Eve began the lineage of mankind and from their roots came Jacob's twelve sons and the Hebrew tribes. King David was a descendant of the tribe of Judah, and his son, Solomon, built an amazing temple in Jerusalem. It was where God's presence and glory would reside. God told Solomon he would reject the temple if he or his descendants did not live with righteousness. Solomon's temple was ultimately destroyed.

Following a tumultuous period of wars, the second temple was built in Jerusalem by the Jewish exiles returning from Babylon. It was not as ornate as the first, but its magnificence was prophesied—and then came the temple rebuild by Herod the Great. His role in mankind's history, including his violent kingship and the Massacre of the Innocents, fulfilled prophecy.

The birth of Jesus Christ and his death and resurrection also fulfilled prophecy. His activities in the second temple were profound—including his prediction of the destruction of Herod's temple and all of Jerusalem. The obliteration occurred in AD 70.

Mankind's history then passes through eras of wars and conquest, leading to the hope for a third temple. It will be built in Jerusalem just prior to the Tribulation. Like all the temples of the past, it is prophesied to be defiled and destroyed.

At the end of mankind's earthly history, the final temple will be built by God, after Jesus Christ's second coming—it will be glorious beyond imagination. Jesus will reside there, with his chosen people. Who is among the chosen?

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Chapter 5

Synagogue, Temple, and Church

There is a difference between a temple, a synagogue, and a church, yet they share some commonalities.

Synagogue

The word synagogue in Ancient Greek is συναγωγή, synagogē, meaning “assembly” or “bring together,” and in Hebrew beit knesset, “house of assembly” or beit tfila, “house of prayer.” In Yiddish, shul is also used to refer to the synagogue, and in modern times, the word temple is common among some Reform and Conservative Jewish congregations to refer to a synagogue. Spanish Jews call the synagogue an esnoga and Portuguese Jews call it a sinagoga. Persian Jews and some Karaite Jews use the term kenesa, which is derived from Aramaic, and some Mizrahi Jews use kenis for synagogue.

Any Jew or group of Jews can build or designate a synagogue. They are consecrated spaces used for the purpose of prayer, reading of the Tanakh, study, and assembly. A synagogue is not necessary for Jewish worship. Halakha, a collection of Jewish religious laws from the written and Oral Torah and based on biblical commandments, provides that communal Jewish worship can be carried out wherever ten Jews (a minyan) are gathered. Worship can also be carried out alone or with fewer than ten people assembled, but halakha considers certain prayers as communal prayers, and therefore, they may be recited only by a minyan. In terms of its specific ritual and liturgical functions, the synagogue does not replace the long-since destroyed Temple in Jerusalem.

Synagogues within dedicated buildings have a place for prayer (the main sanctuary) and may also have rooms for study, a social hall, and offices. Some have a separate room for Torah study called beth midrash, meaning “house of study.”

All four gospels in the New Testament report that Jesus visited and taught in the synagogues.

Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom, and healing every disease and sickness among the people. (Matthew 4:23)

They went to Capernaum, and when the Sabbath came, Jesus went into the synagogue and began to teach. The people were amazed at his teaching, because he taught them as one who had authority, not as the teachers of the law. (Mark 1:21)

They went to Capernaum and when the Sabbath came, Jesus went into the synagogue and began to teach. (Luke 4:31)

“Just as the living Father sent me and I live because of the Father, so the one who feeds on me will live because of me. This is the bread that came down from heaven. Your ancestors ate manna and died, but whoever feeds on this bread will live forever.” He said this while teaching in the synagogue in Capernaum. (John 6:57–59)

The synagogues of ancient times and those of today are a place for family and community to gather and give thanks. The Jewish people maintain traditions and celebrate holidays and events that started thousands of years ago.

Jewish Holidays and Festivals

Holiday and Festivals	Tradition
Shabbat	The day of rest and weekly observance of God’s completion of creation.
Rosh Hashanah	The Jewish New Year, the beginning of ten days of penitence or teshuvah culminating on Yom Kippur. Traditionally celebrated with sweet or round foods, such as apples and honey, and the blowing of the shofar (a hollowed-out ram’s horn) during religious services. A customary greeting is shanah tovah or “happy new year.”
Yom Kippur	The Jewish Day of Atonement—the most solemn day of the Jewish year devoted to fasting, prayer, and repentance.
Sukkot	Also called the Feast of Tabernacles. A week-long celebration of the fall harvest. This holiday also commemorates the time when the Hebrews dwelt in the Sinai wilderness on their way to the Promised Land.
Shemini Atzeret	Means the “eighth day of assembly,” and this holiday marks the end of Sukkot with an annual prayer for rain. The last portion of the Torah is read on this day.
Simchat Torah	Marks the end and the beginning of the annual Torah reading cycle. It is traditionally celebrated by dancing and singing songs of praise and gratitude.
Hanukkah	The eight-day festival of Hanukkah or “Festival of Lights” commemorates the miraculous victory of the Maccabees and rededication of the Temple in Jerusalem.
Tu B’Shevat	The Jewish “New Year of the Trees,” celebrated with observances that connect the people ...

Table of contents

• The Creation of the Beginning
• The History of Religion
• The Sacred Texts
• The Prophets
• Synagogue, Temple, and Church
• The Apostles
• The Original Temple
• The First Temple—Solomon’s Temple
• The Second Temple—Zerubbabel’s
• The Renovated Second Temple—Herod’s
• The Third Temple
• The Final Temple
• Who Will Be Saved?