E
Elizabeth
Guest
[Illuminati, Freemason, Lucifer, satan, 666, NWO, Skull and Bones]
Subject: REBUILDING THE JEWISH TEMPLE
Title: The New World Order Files
Author: David Allen Rivera
ENDTIME BIBLE STUDY
There is a school of thought that believes that only the Messiah can
rebuild the Temple, because He would be the only one who knows the
actual location of its foundation. This sentiment is the official
position of the Israeli government. However, there is some evidence that
seems to indicate that the Temple will be rebuilt prior to the return of
Jesus.
The Antichrist will sign a seven-year protectionary treaty with Israel,
but will break it halfway through when he causes the sacrifices to be
discontinued (Dan. 9:27, Dan. 12:11), so that he will be able to take
"his seat in the Temple of God, displaying himself as being God (2
Thessalonians /2/:4, see also Rev. 11:1)." Matthew 24:15 refers to this
area as the "holy place." This seems to indicate that the Temple will
already be in existence by this time.
Moses prophesied that Israel would be punished twice. The first was 430
years of captivity in Egypt, and the second was 70 years of slavery
under the Babylonians. After that, three things were foretold: the
Jewish nation would be reborn in Palestine, they would repossess old
Jerusalem, and they would rebuild their ancient Temple on its original
site. In 1948, the nation of Israel was established; in 1967, they took
complete control of the city of Jerusalem; which leaves only one
prophecy unfulfilled, and that is the rebuilding of the Jewish Temple.
Amos 9:11 says: "In that day will I raise up the tabernacle of David
that is fallen, and close up the breaches thereof; and I will raise up
his ruins, and I will build it as in the days of old..."
Prior to the construction of the Temple, God made His divine presence
known in a miqdash ("holy place"), which was a temporary structure known
as the Tabernacle, that was erected in various locations around Israel,
such as Shiloh, Bethel, Dan, Gilgal, Mizpah, and Hebron. This continued
until the Israelites became united, both politically and spiritually,
which took place when David conquered Jerusalem, thus creating a central
location for their civil government and religious worship. When David
realized the big difference between his own house, and the fact that the
Ark was protected only by a tent (2 Sam. 7:12), he knew that he had to
build a house of God, which according to the Davidic Covenant (2 Sam.
7:4-17), seems to indicate that the site chosen would be a permanent
location.
In the 24th chapter of 2 Samuel, it is recorded how David counted his
men to see if his army was going to be of sufficient military strength.
Because he didn't trust God for his victory, so the Lord sent a
destroying angel that brought a plague against the people of Jerusalem.
David built an altar and made peace offerings to the Lord. This area on
Mount Moriah (Mount Zion), was the site where God tested Abraham's faith
by commanding him to sacrifice his son Isaac, and was known as the
threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite. David purchased the land in 990
BC, and in 960 BC, King Solomon began construction of the sacred Temple,
which was to provide a shelter for the Ark of the Covenant, the most
sacred object in Israel. It took a workforce of 200,000 men seven years
to complete this magnificent edifice, with funds gathered by David in a
royal treasury. It was destroyed in 586 BC by Babylonian invaders.
The Persians conquered the Babylonians, and Cyrus, the Persian king,
allowed 50,000 Jews to return to Jerusalem in 538 BC. In 537 BC, under
the direction of King Cyrus, Zerubabbel (a descendant of King David),
supervised a contingent of Phoenician workers who laid the foundation
stones for the second Temple. All the Temple vessels had been returned,
the altar built, and the sacrifices resumed. Opposition by the
Samaritans (descendants of Israelite and Assyrian intermarriage) in the
north, who had a temple at Mount Gerizim, caused construction to be
discontinued until 520 BC, when Darius, the Persian king, instituted
taxes to pay for its construction. The Temple was dedicated sometime
between 516-514 BC. Another Persian king, Artaxerxes, appointed a Jew
named Nehemiah as governor of Jerusalem, and he repaired the walls to
protect the Temple, and began rebuilding the city.
Judea soon came under the control of the Greeks (Alexander the Great);
and the Egyptian Greeks (or Ptolemies), who allowed governorship by the
high priests. A third ruler, a Syrian Greek (Seleucid) known as
Antiochus IV (Epiphanes), who sided with the Jewish faction known as the
Hellenists, appointed a high priest who initiated pagan worship in
opposition to the Orthodox faction. An attack in 170 BC killed many
Jews, and again Temple treasures were taken. Antiochus desecrated the
Temple by sacrificing a pig on the altar, placing a pagan idol in the
Holy of Holies, and burning copies of the Torah. An Orthodox priest
named Mattathias Maccabee ("the hammerer") began a revolt, which ended
in 164 BC when his third son, Judas took control of Jerusalem, purified
the Temple, and resumed the daily offerings. However, their control
ended in 63 BC when Rome invaded.
Over the years, the condition of the building declined, and around
20-19 BC, Herod the Great undertook the restoration of the Temple in
order to win the favor of the Jews. Most of the construction was
completed within ten years, although minor restoration work continued
until 64/ /AD. The rebuilt Temple, known as the Temple of Herod, was
twice as high, and much wider. During this period of Roman rule, an
imperial sacrifice had to be offered to the emperor, in addition to the
traditional Jewish sacrifice. This came to an end in 66 AD, when
Eleazar, the son of a captain of the Temple, initiated an uprising of
Jewish zealots, which brought the Tenth Legion from Rome. They failed to
defeat the Jewish freedom fighters and a massive revolt ensued, which
resulted in Judea being returned to the control of the Jews. Emperor
Nero then sent Vespasian, Rome's best military leader, and his army, to
end the rebellion. By 69 AD, Rome regained control of all Judea, except
for Jerusalem. Vespasian, who became the new emperor, gave his son Titus
the task of securing Jerusalem. A military operation was launched which
ended in 70 AD, when the Temple was set on fire by the Roman Tenth
Legion (consisting of 80,000 men) under Titus, who pried the Temple
apart stone by stone, and threw them into the valley southeast of
Jerusalem. A portion of the Western Wall (Kotel Maarabi), known as the
Wailing Wall, was left standing by the Romans as a symbol of how
powerful they were. Titus later returned to Rome with some of the Temple
treasure.
When Constantine died in 361, his nephew, Flavius Claudius Julianus,
the last emperor of Rome (361-363), ruled for 19 months, and attempted
to reinstate paganism, and emperor worship. Although he had grown up
under the teachings of Eusebius, Bishop of Cesarea, he turned away from
those teachings, and pushed for religious tolerance. His hatred of
Christianity drove him to return Jerusalem back to the Jews, to restore
Jewish law, and to advocate the rebuilding of the Jewish Temple. He
freed them from taxes, and gave his support for the reestablishment of
animal sacrifices, but he was told that the Jews no longer practiced the
ritual because they had no Temple. Julian appointed Alypius of Antioch
to oversee its building, while the governors of Syria and Palestine were
instructed to assist. Workmen cleared the debris, and work was begun in
363. When they tried to dig into the foundation, an earthquake occurred,
which ignited pockets of natural gas underground, causing fires and
explosions, destroying all the stones, wood and metal which were being
stored on the site. A number of workers were killed. This was taken as a
divine sign that the Temple was not to be rebuilt at that time, and
construction was halted after Julian died in the battle against the
Persians. After the return to power by the Christian Roman Emperors, the
idea was forgotten.
The Church of the Holy Sepulchre, was built on higher ground in 326 by
Byzantine Christians during Constantine's rule, on the traditional site
(according to Catholics) of Jesus' crucifixion, burial and resurrection.
Across from the Temple Mount, it was actually intended to symbolically
replace the Temple, which is why its layout is reminiscent of the
Temple. As a way of offending Jews, the condition of the Temple area was
allowed to deteriorate and was even used as a repository for human waste
and other refuse.
In 614, the Persians broke through Byzantine defenses, and with the
help of the Jews, defeated Heraclius. Chosroes II, the Persian King,
placed a Jew named, ironically, Nehemiah, as the governor of the city,
and gave them permission to rebuild the Temple. Although it is believed
that the sacrifices were resumed, no construction was initiated. About
fifteen years later, Heraclius returned to take over the city, building
an octagonal church on the site. After the death of Muhammed (570-632),
his follower Omar (Umar Abu Ibn el-Khattab, or Umar I) became Caliph,
taking over Jerusalem in 638, with the help of his Islamic army. In
643-44/ /he built a wooden mosque on the Temple site, which stood for
44/ /years. In 687, Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan, the 10th Caliph, began work
on the Qubbat as-Sakhra or the Dome of the Rock (also known as the
Mosque of Omar), which was completed in 691.
The Mosque was built to rival the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, showing
its religious claim on the city by symbolizing the ideology of their new
faith, and to be a protection for the rock believed to be the threshing
floor purchased by David. No Islamic tradition was connected to the
site. Even the Quran (Surah V, v. 21), the Islamic holy scripture,
states that the Jews have a historic claim on the land. However, the
event known as the "Night Journey of Muhammad" (or "hijrah"), when he
fled from Mecca to Medina, was connected to Jerusalem, because it
mentioned al-Aqsa, which is the name of the Mosque south of the Dome of
the Rock. LinguisticaIly, "al-aqsa," when it is translated, means "far
corner," and could very well refer to Mecca. Therefore, the Temple Mount
is said to be the rock where Muhammed received his instructions from
God, and ascended into Heaven. Some historians believe that the story
was concocted during the rule of Umayyad prince, al-Walid I (705-715) to
raise the funds necessary to build the al-Aqsa Mosque into an edifice
comparable to the Dome of the Rock.
From 1099-1187, the Crusaders occupied Jerusalem, and the Dome of the
Rock became a Christian church, while the al-Aqsa Mosque became the
headquarters of the Knights Templar. When Jerusalem was overthrown by
the Muslim leader Saladin (Salanad-Din), the Temple Mount complex,
containing both the Dome of the Rock and the al-Aqsa Mosque, which is
referred to as the Haram ash-Sharif, became the third holiest site in
the Islamic faith (after Mecca and Medina), even though all prayers are
directed toward Mecca.
Today, the obstacle for rebuilding the Temple, is the Islamic holy
site, the Dome of the Rock. It is maintained that the Arabs have had a
claim on it for 5,000 years, and that there was never a Jewish temple on
that area. The Israeli Antiquities Authority, and most Israeli
archaeologists agree that this traditional location was the site of the
Temple. In 1967, even though Israel captured East Jerusalem during the
Six-Day War, a month later, as a gesture of peace and cooperation,
Israeli Defense Minister Moshe Dayan returned control of the Temple
Mount back to the Wakf (Islamic authority). It was later reported that
he had an underlying fear that the ground would be razed to make way for
the rebuilding of the Temple.
Only the tip of the huge rock, on the summit of Mt. Moriah, juts up
into the center of the Dome of the Rock. It is unclear whether the rock
was the sacrificial altar, or the Holy of Holies where the Ark was
placed, but the presence of drain holes bored into the surface, which
leads to a cave below the Mosque, may indicate that it was the area of
the Temple used for sacrifices. The purpose of the holes was for the
blood from animal sacrifices to runoff into a canal which carried the
fluids out of the complex. This would place the Holy of Holies in an
area which slopes downward, and creates a conflict with archaeological
evidence and historical tradition.
There is some support for the idea that the rock was the foundation
stone for the Holy of Holies. The argument for this is based on the
assumption that one of the Temple gates, known as Warren's Gate (which
was beneath the Gate Babel-Mat'hara, and up to 1967 was the location of
an Arab latrine), opened directly in front of the Holy of Holies. In
1867, Charles Warren found an ancient gate to the Temple Mount, and
since then, the entire Western Wall, and a tunnel running along it,
called the Rabbinic Tunnel, was discovered and excavated by 1986; along
with four other entrances, by Israel's Ministry of Religious Affairs and
the Western Wall Heritage Foundation. The Western Wall of the Temple,
left standing by Rome as a symbol of their authority, was part of the
retaining wall which was erected to support the immense platform which
held the Temple.
In March, 1979, where excavations were being done at the Western Wall,
a story was circulated, that a workman, digging with his fingers, 80
feet below the existing floor, discovered the Arch of King Solomon from
the original Temple, which led to the Holy of Holies. The archway of
stone was constructed with a special mortar containing broken glass, as
per God's instructions. Tests taken of the glistening mortar indicated
that it was produced during that period. They would not break through
the Wall, because according to the Law, only a Jew from the tribe of
Levi, and the family of Aaron, can enter the Holy of Holies.
In July, 1981, Rabbi Meir Yehuda Getz, chief rabbi of the Western Wall,
while building a new synagogue behind the Western Wall, investigated
water emanating from the Wall, and discovered a great hall (26' wide X
98' high x 82' long) behind a former cistern which contained an arch,
believed to be one of the entrances to the Temple. It turned out to be
the gate discovered by Warren, which led to the Temple court, and was
the closest gate to the Holy of Holies. A group of ten men, some from
the Ateret Cohanim Yeshiva, began clearing the hall, working their way
toward the Holy of Holies. If the Rock was the foundation stone of the
Holy of Holies, then tradition holds that beneath this stone there is a
chamber created by Solomon which was later used to hide the Ark. Getz
believes that this secret chamber contains the Ark, the table, and the
menorah. After breaking down another wall, the Muslim authorities were
made aware of what was going on, and the Arabs instigated a riot which
led to the excavation site being shut down. A wall was placed over the
entrance to the tunnel, and was later reinforced with another wall of
steel and plaster, which in 1992 was redone to give it an appearance of
natural rock. Rabbi Schlomo Goren believes that they came within 300
feet of this room, and rumors have circulated that Getz saw the Ark,
which he denied, saying that the area is under water. Getz said: "The
treasures of the First Temple are under the Mount, and we know exactly
where they are..."
There was an unsubstantiated report that there is a lower cave, blocked
by a slab, which was discovered in 1911. It had been alleged that the
Crown of David, the Sword of Solomon, the Ark of the Covenant, the
Tables of the Law, and a large amount of gold was discovered there,
having been hidden by the priests when the Temple was destroyed. It is
believed that these articles were removed, and their whereabouts are
unknown.
The Israelis have been kept from rebuilding, or even doing much
archaeological excavation because of their strained relationship with
the Arabs, and because the Moslems fear that such excavations would
weaken the structure of the Mosque. Others would argue that it's because
any significant archaeological discoveries on the site would prove
Israel's ancient claim to the Mount. Because of the lack of any
substantial information, there is even a lot of doubt as to where on the
Temple Mount the sanctuary was actually located.
Father Bellarmino Begatti, A Franciscan researcher, published a report
in 1979, that based on measurements and information in ancient
documents, the Temple was located on the southern end of the Mount
between the Dome of the Rock, and the al-Aqsa Mosque, and seems to be
supported by the existence of underground reservoirs and tunnels.
Dr. Ze'ev Yeiven, and Dr. Asher Kaufman believe that Arab construction
on the northern end exposed an ancient wall near the Dome of the Rock,
which is believed to be the eastern wall of the Temple's Court of Women.
Of particular interest is an exposed area of rock in an open area of the
Mount, about 330 feet north of the Dome of the Rock, which is covered by
a small building (cupola), known as the Qubbat el-Arwah (Dome of the
Spirits), which is on an east-west alignment with the Eastern Gate and
the Mount of Olives. It is also called the Qubbat el-Alouah (Dome of the
Tablets), because it is believed that this was the location of the Holy
of Holies in the original Temple, where the Ark of the Covenant was
placed. If this is true, that means that the Temple can be rebuilt
without disturbing the Arab site, because the Mosque, which takes up an
area of 34 acres, would actually be separated from most of the Temple
foundation by many feet of rubble. Proponents of this theory claim they
have identified the area on the Mount of Olives which was used for the
sacrifice of the Red Heifer, which further indicates that the Temple was
not on the site of the Dome of the Rock.
Some Orthodox Jews believe that before the Temple can be rebuilt, both
the Dome of the Rock and the al-Aqsa Mosque would have to be removed,
because their presence defiles the sacred ground.
Before the Six-Day War, a quarter-page ad appeared in the _Washington
Post_, seeking aid for the rebuilding of the Temple. They have been
selling bonds to finance its building since 1948. The document known as
the "Temple Scroll," which was part of the Dead Sea Scrolls found at
Qumran, give distinct instructions concerning the construction of the
Temple, and a group known as the Ne'emanei Har Habayit (Faithful of the
Temple Mount) commissioned a model of the Temple to be built. It has
been reported that the cornerstones are already cut and ready. Harvey A.
Smith, a Jewish Assemblies of God minister, wrote in his book, that they
have the biggest and heaviest stones cut, and secretly placed under the
Temple Mount behind Warren Gate. The Temple music has even been deciphered.
After the Six-Day War, Israel Eldad, a noted historian who was
interviewed by _Time_ magazine, said: "We are at the stage where David
was when he liberated Jerusalem. From that time until the construction
of the Temple by Solomon, only one generation passed. So it will be with
us."
In December, 1970, a special school called "Yeshiva Avodas Hakodesh"
founded by Rabbi Hirsh Ha-Cohen (Cohens have been identified as the
descendants of the priests in the original Jewish temple), was
established to train students from the tribe of Levi in the ancient
ritual of animal sacrifice. It was dedicated during the Feast of
Dedication (Chanuka). Only students who can trace their lineage back to
Aaron can be admitted. Motti Dan (Ha-Cohen), who is said to be a
descendent of the priestly line, studied all the rules in regard to the
Temple service, and established the "Ateret Cohanim Yeshiva" in the
1970's as a religious school to educate and train others, of similar
descent, for the priesthood.
In 1978, Hebrew University began offering a two-year course in the
restoration of animal sacrifice, including all methods and Old Testament
requirements. The first class graduated on June 1, 1980, and among their
graduation exercises, was to perform the ancient rite of animal
sacrifice. An episode of "60 Minutes" in March, 1985, in a segment
called "One Step in Heaven," indicated that rabbinical students in
Jerusalem were studying the Jewish rites of animal sacrifice under Rabbi
Shlomo Goren, the former Chief Rabbi of the Israeli Defense Forces, who
had said in a November, 1981 _Newsweek_ interview that the secret of the
location of the Ark would be revealed just prior to the third Temple
being built. The animal sacrifices will resume when the Temple is rebuilt.
The Institute for Talmudic Commentaries, run by Rabbi Nahman Kahane (a
descendent of the priestly line), which is located in the Young Israel
Synagogue, is involved in the study of the Temple rituals and
ceremonies, and have been involved in research to catalog all known
cohanim (priests) in Israel. The Atara L'yoshna ("(restoring) the crown
to its original (form)"), a branch of Kahane's group, has established a
Study and Tourist Center near the Western Wall, where they have models
of the Tabernacle, the two original Temples, the new Temple, the Ark of
the Covenant, a menorah, as well as other Temple implements.
A group called the Temple Mount Faithful (or the Temple Mount and Eretz
Yisrael Faithful Movement), started by Gershon Salomon, a professor of
Oriental Studies at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem, sought to take
sole control of the Temple Mount to rebuild the Temple. It was a
reactionary movement to protest the move by Moshe Dayan, the Israeli
Defense Minister, who allowed the Muslims to maintain control of the
Temple Mount area in 1967. He went to court in 1987 with claims by
physicist Dr. Asher Kaufman, and archaeologist Dan Bahat, that the Arabs
were destroying valuable archaeological evidence from the first and
second Temples. The group has also made attempts to lay a special 4-ton
cornerstone on the Mount.
The Temple Institute was founded in Israel, in 1988, by Rabbi Israel
Ariel, who in 1967, was the first paratrooper to reach the Western Wall.
_Time_ magazine printed a two-page article on the group in October,
1989, and ABC-TV's news show "20/20" televised a segment on them. On
October 18, 1989, the first bi-annual Conference on Temple Research was
held. This joint venture between the Temple Institute and the Ministry
of Religious Affairs brought together rabbis, scientists, archaeologists
in an attempt to better coordinate their efforts in making the Temple a
reality.
Outside the Temple Institute, a sign in Hebrew reads: "Exhibition of
Temple Vessels" (while a sign in English says "Treasures of the
Temple"). Based on years of research, historical tradition and the
Scriptures, the Temple Institute has produced the actual items which
will be used in the Temple when it is rebuilt. Many of the 103 items
which were used in the original Temple have been produced, or are in
various stages of fabrication, including the gold crown of the high
priest, the Temple garments, a copper washbasin to be used for
purification purposes, incense utensils, and silver trumpets to beckon
worshippers to the Temple. In the planning stages was the breastplate of
the high priest, which will contain twelve gemstones; and the gold
electroplated menorah which will contain 94.6 pounds of gold, giving it
an estimated value of $10 million.
In January, 2003, the President of Israel, Moshe Katzav, asked the
Prime Minister of the Vatican, Cardinal Angelo Sudano about what Temple
treasures were in the possession of the Vatican, and to prepare a list
of them.
Before Temple services can be legally reinstated according to Biblical
Law, a ritual cleansing must be performed which involves the sacrifice
of the Red Heifer (Numbers 19:1-22). The ceremony has only been
performed seven times. The priest would sacrifice an unblemished,
unbroken Red Heifer, after which the remaining ashes were collected and
added to the ashes of the next sacrifice. It took place on the western
slope of the Mount of Olives, within sight of the Holy of Holies. The
ashes were then sprinkled upon the waters of a large cistern under the
Temple to prepare them to be used as the water of purification to
cleanse sin and defilement. The last sacrifice occurred in 70 AD, prior
to the destruction of the Temple, after which the ashes were secretly
buried. This ritual cleansing would have to be performed on the Temple
Mount in order to reinstate Temple worship as commanded by the Laws of God.
Originally kept in a containment building near the Eastern Gate,
archaeological excavations have been initiated to find the ashes, which
according to the "Copper Scroll" found at Qumran, were buried in a
container made of clay, and dung from the Red Heifer. If they can not be
located, the Temple Institute, on the belief that the tradition of the
"ashes of continuity" is a mistranslation, maintains that the original
ashes are not necessary. In October, 1989, the Chief Rabbi of Israel
dispatched a team of scientists to Sweden to purchase the frozen embryos
of a particular breed of red heifers in order to impregnate a heifer in
Israel and breed an animal that would fulfill the scriptural
requirements. However, the latest report is that a herd of red Angus
cattle have been discovered in Mississippi, and a group of these have
been sent to Israel for later use.
Vendyl Jones, a former Baptist minister turned archaeologist in 1977,
said to be the inspiration for the creation of the fictional movie
character Indiana Jones (though producers Steven Spielberg and George
Lucas deny it), while searching in Jericho area caves for the Ark of the
Covenant, found a clay jar containing a unique incense oil which dated
back to the time of the second Jewish Temple, and contained the five
ingredients the Bible identified as being part of the oil used to anoint
kings. One of these ingredients was an oil called afars'mon, which was
taken from the sap of the rare balsam tree that grew near Jericho at a
wadi known as Ein Gedi, near the area of Qumran. The oil was very rare,
and when Rome invaded the Qumran community before 70 AD, the Essenes
burned the only known grove of these balsam trees, which are now
considered extinct.
This special anointing oil is listed in the Copper Scroll, and in 1988,
using the clues given there, a worker, Benny Ayers, who was with a group
of Christian archaeologists and volunteers (including Dr. Gary Collett
and Dr. Nathan Meyers), under the direction of Dr. Joseph Patrich from
the Hebrew University's Institute of Archaeology, found an ancient clay
container wrapped in palm leaves, in a hole three feet deep, on the
floor of a cave adjacent to the one where Vendyl Jones would later
discover some incense. Professor Ze'ev Aisenshtat and Dorit Aschengrau
at the laboratory of Hebrew Univeristy's Casali Institute of Applied
Chemistry, used Carbon-14 dating and said that the oil was put in the
container during the first century, and is believed to be the anointing
oil that was used in the Temple. The oil's chemical composition was
such, that one drop placed in water, turned it a milky white, just as
ancient documents indicated. The substance was given to the Chief Rabbi
of Israel, and it will be used to anoint the Messiah when he returns.
Chief Rabbi Isaac Herzog believes that the dye used to achieve the
blue-colored thread on the Temple garments (Numbers 15:37-40), comes
from the Segulit snail, which because of its scarcity, is very
expensive. According to the Talmud (Menahot 44a),/ /Israel is inundated
every 70 years with these snails. In October, 1990, they were found in
large numbers on the Mediterranean beaches of Israel.
In April, 1992, Jones announced that on the floor of a cave, north of
Qumran, at the Wadi Jafet Zaben, he discovered about 900 pounds of a
reddish-colored material which was tested by the Weizmann Institute of
Science, and found to be the remnants of a special mixture of incense
believed to be used in the Temple service. Jones felt that this was one
of the items listed in the Copper Scroll. However, the Temple Institute
believes that since the incense was not found in a container, it had
been improperly prepared and disposed of, and thus is not acceptable for
use.
Little by little, all the elements seem to be coming together in
preparation for the day when the Temple will be rebuilt. The closer we
come to that reality, the opposition to it increases within certain
religious circles. The destruction of the second Temple in 70 AD,
according to some Christian leaders, indicated that the Jews were being
punished for rejecting Jesus as the Messiah, and that Judaism was being
usurped by Christianity, which had become the new temple of God. They
feel that because He spiritually dwells within all who believe and
follow His teachings, the rebuilding of the Temple would be a denial of
Jesus' atonement for our sins on the cross, which eliminated the
necessity of Temple sacrifice. This sort of theological debate is
pointless, because the Bible plainly eludes to the existence of the
Temple in the last days, regardless of how right or wrong it is.
Now bear in mind, I have been told by Milt Maiman, that to fulfill the
prophecy, the Temple doesn't have to be rebuilt. Just as the Tent of the
Tabernacle was originally used to house the Ark, it could again be
erected on the Temple grounds, and used for Temple observances.
So, when you turn on the 6 o'clock news, and you see that Israel has
put up the Tent, or that construction on the Temple has begun, know that
this is one of the major events in the prophetic timetable, and that the
end is near.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
"I don't bring God into my life to -- to, you know,
kind of be a political person."
--- Adolph Bush,
interview with Tom Brokaw aboard
Air Force One, April 24, 2003
Subject: REBUILDING THE JEWISH TEMPLE
Title: The New World Order Files
Author: David Allen Rivera
ENDTIME BIBLE STUDY
There is a school of thought that believes that only the Messiah can
rebuild the Temple, because He would be the only one who knows the
actual location of its foundation. This sentiment is the official
position of the Israeli government. However, there is some evidence that
seems to indicate that the Temple will be rebuilt prior to the return of
Jesus.
The Antichrist will sign a seven-year protectionary treaty with Israel,
but will break it halfway through when he causes the sacrifices to be
discontinued (Dan. 9:27, Dan. 12:11), so that he will be able to take
"his seat in the Temple of God, displaying himself as being God (2
Thessalonians /2/:4, see also Rev. 11:1)." Matthew 24:15 refers to this
area as the "holy place." This seems to indicate that the Temple will
already be in existence by this time.
Moses prophesied that Israel would be punished twice. The first was 430
years of captivity in Egypt, and the second was 70 years of slavery
under the Babylonians. After that, three things were foretold: the
Jewish nation would be reborn in Palestine, they would repossess old
Jerusalem, and they would rebuild their ancient Temple on its original
site. In 1948, the nation of Israel was established; in 1967, they took
complete control of the city of Jerusalem; which leaves only one
prophecy unfulfilled, and that is the rebuilding of the Jewish Temple.
Amos 9:11 says: "In that day will I raise up the tabernacle of David
that is fallen, and close up the breaches thereof; and I will raise up
his ruins, and I will build it as in the days of old..."
Prior to the construction of the Temple, God made His divine presence
known in a miqdash ("holy place"), which was a temporary structure known
as the Tabernacle, that was erected in various locations around Israel,
such as Shiloh, Bethel, Dan, Gilgal, Mizpah, and Hebron. This continued
until the Israelites became united, both politically and spiritually,
which took place when David conquered Jerusalem, thus creating a central
location for their civil government and religious worship. When David
realized the big difference between his own house, and the fact that the
Ark was protected only by a tent (2 Sam. 7:12), he knew that he had to
build a house of God, which according to the Davidic Covenant (2 Sam.
7:4-17), seems to indicate that the site chosen would be a permanent
location.
In the 24th chapter of 2 Samuel, it is recorded how David counted his
men to see if his army was going to be of sufficient military strength.
Because he didn't trust God for his victory, so the Lord sent a
destroying angel that brought a plague against the people of Jerusalem.
David built an altar and made peace offerings to the Lord. This area on
Mount Moriah (Mount Zion), was the site where God tested Abraham's faith
by commanding him to sacrifice his son Isaac, and was known as the
threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite. David purchased the land in 990
BC, and in 960 BC, King Solomon began construction of the sacred Temple,
which was to provide a shelter for the Ark of the Covenant, the most
sacred object in Israel. It took a workforce of 200,000 men seven years
to complete this magnificent edifice, with funds gathered by David in a
royal treasury. It was destroyed in 586 BC by Babylonian invaders.
The Persians conquered the Babylonians, and Cyrus, the Persian king,
allowed 50,000 Jews to return to Jerusalem in 538 BC. In 537 BC, under
the direction of King Cyrus, Zerubabbel (a descendant of King David),
supervised a contingent of Phoenician workers who laid the foundation
stones for the second Temple. All the Temple vessels had been returned,
the altar built, and the sacrifices resumed. Opposition by the
Samaritans (descendants of Israelite and Assyrian intermarriage) in the
north, who had a temple at Mount Gerizim, caused construction to be
discontinued until 520 BC, when Darius, the Persian king, instituted
taxes to pay for its construction. The Temple was dedicated sometime
between 516-514 BC. Another Persian king, Artaxerxes, appointed a Jew
named Nehemiah as governor of Jerusalem, and he repaired the walls to
protect the Temple, and began rebuilding the city.
Judea soon came under the control of the Greeks (Alexander the Great);
and the Egyptian Greeks (or Ptolemies), who allowed governorship by the
high priests. A third ruler, a Syrian Greek (Seleucid) known as
Antiochus IV (Epiphanes), who sided with the Jewish faction known as the
Hellenists, appointed a high priest who initiated pagan worship in
opposition to the Orthodox faction. An attack in 170 BC killed many
Jews, and again Temple treasures were taken. Antiochus desecrated the
Temple by sacrificing a pig on the altar, placing a pagan idol in the
Holy of Holies, and burning copies of the Torah. An Orthodox priest
named Mattathias Maccabee ("the hammerer") began a revolt, which ended
in 164 BC when his third son, Judas took control of Jerusalem, purified
the Temple, and resumed the daily offerings. However, their control
ended in 63 BC when Rome invaded.
Over the years, the condition of the building declined, and around
20-19 BC, Herod the Great undertook the restoration of the Temple in
order to win the favor of the Jews. Most of the construction was
completed within ten years, although minor restoration work continued
until 64/ /AD. The rebuilt Temple, known as the Temple of Herod, was
twice as high, and much wider. During this period of Roman rule, an
imperial sacrifice had to be offered to the emperor, in addition to the
traditional Jewish sacrifice. This came to an end in 66 AD, when
Eleazar, the son of a captain of the Temple, initiated an uprising of
Jewish zealots, which brought the Tenth Legion from Rome. They failed to
defeat the Jewish freedom fighters and a massive revolt ensued, which
resulted in Judea being returned to the control of the Jews. Emperor
Nero then sent Vespasian, Rome's best military leader, and his army, to
end the rebellion. By 69 AD, Rome regained control of all Judea, except
for Jerusalem. Vespasian, who became the new emperor, gave his son Titus
the task of securing Jerusalem. A military operation was launched which
ended in 70 AD, when the Temple was set on fire by the Roman Tenth
Legion (consisting of 80,000 men) under Titus, who pried the Temple
apart stone by stone, and threw them into the valley southeast of
Jerusalem. A portion of the Western Wall (Kotel Maarabi), known as the
Wailing Wall, was left standing by the Romans as a symbol of how
powerful they were. Titus later returned to Rome with some of the Temple
treasure.
When Constantine died in 361, his nephew, Flavius Claudius Julianus,
the last emperor of Rome (361-363), ruled for 19 months, and attempted
to reinstate paganism, and emperor worship. Although he had grown up
under the teachings of Eusebius, Bishop of Cesarea, he turned away from
those teachings, and pushed for religious tolerance. His hatred of
Christianity drove him to return Jerusalem back to the Jews, to restore
Jewish law, and to advocate the rebuilding of the Jewish Temple. He
freed them from taxes, and gave his support for the reestablishment of
animal sacrifices, but he was told that the Jews no longer practiced the
ritual because they had no Temple. Julian appointed Alypius of Antioch
to oversee its building, while the governors of Syria and Palestine were
instructed to assist. Workmen cleared the debris, and work was begun in
363. When they tried to dig into the foundation, an earthquake occurred,
which ignited pockets of natural gas underground, causing fires and
explosions, destroying all the stones, wood and metal which were being
stored on the site. A number of workers were killed. This was taken as a
divine sign that the Temple was not to be rebuilt at that time, and
construction was halted after Julian died in the battle against the
Persians. After the return to power by the Christian Roman Emperors, the
idea was forgotten.
The Church of the Holy Sepulchre, was built on higher ground in 326 by
Byzantine Christians during Constantine's rule, on the traditional site
(according to Catholics) of Jesus' crucifixion, burial and resurrection.
Across from the Temple Mount, it was actually intended to symbolically
replace the Temple, which is why its layout is reminiscent of the
Temple. As a way of offending Jews, the condition of the Temple area was
allowed to deteriorate and was even used as a repository for human waste
and other refuse.
In 614, the Persians broke through Byzantine defenses, and with the
help of the Jews, defeated Heraclius. Chosroes II, the Persian King,
placed a Jew named, ironically, Nehemiah, as the governor of the city,
and gave them permission to rebuild the Temple. Although it is believed
that the sacrifices were resumed, no construction was initiated. About
fifteen years later, Heraclius returned to take over the city, building
an octagonal church on the site. After the death of Muhammed (570-632),
his follower Omar (Umar Abu Ibn el-Khattab, or Umar I) became Caliph,
taking over Jerusalem in 638, with the help of his Islamic army. In
643-44/ /he built a wooden mosque on the Temple site, which stood for
44/ /years. In 687, Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan, the 10th Caliph, began work
on the Qubbat as-Sakhra or the Dome of the Rock (also known as the
Mosque of Omar), which was completed in 691.
The Mosque was built to rival the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, showing
its religious claim on the city by symbolizing the ideology of their new
faith, and to be a protection for the rock believed to be the threshing
floor purchased by David. No Islamic tradition was connected to the
site. Even the Quran (Surah V, v. 21), the Islamic holy scripture,
states that the Jews have a historic claim on the land. However, the
event known as the "Night Journey of Muhammad" (or "hijrah"), when he
fled from Mecca to Medina, was connected to Jerusalem, because it
mentioned al-Aqsa, which is the name of the Mosque south of the Dome of
the Rock. LinguisticaIly, "al-aqsa," when it is translated, means "far
corner," and could very well refer to Mecca. Therefore, the Temple Mount
is said to be the rock where Muhammed received his instructions from
God, and ascended into Heaven. Some historians believe that the story
was concocted during the rule of Umayyad prince, al-Walid I (705-715) to
raise the funds necessary to build the al-Aqsa Mosque into an edifice
comparable to the Dome of the Rock.
From 1099-1187, the Crusaders occupied Jerusalem, and the Dome of the
Rock became a Christian church, while the al-Aqsa Mosque became the
headquarters of the Knights Templar. When Jerusalem was overthrown by
the Muslim leader Saladin (Salanad-Din), the Temple Mount complex,
containing both the Dome of the Rock and the al-Aqsa Mosque, which is
referred to as the Haram ash-Sharif, became the third holiest site in
the Islamic faith (after Mecca and Medina), even though all prayers are
directed toward Mecca.
Today, the obstacle for rebuilding the Temple, is the Islamic holy
site, the Dome of the Rock. It is maintained that the Arabs have had a
claim on it for 5,000 years, and that there was never a Jewish temple on
that area. The Israeli Antiquities Authority, and most Israeli
archaeologists agree that this traditional location was the site of the
Temple. In 1967, even though Israel captured East Jerusalem during the
Six-Day War, a month later, as a gesture of peace and cooperation,
Israeli Defense Minister Moshe Dayan returned control of the Temple
Mount back to the Wakf (Islamic authority). It was later reported that
he had an underlying fear that the ground would be razed to make way for
the rebuilding of the Temple.
Only the tip of the huge rock, on the summit of Mt. Moriah, juts up
into the center of the Dome of the Rock. It is unclear whether the rock
was the sacrificial altar, or the Holy of Holies where the Ark was
placed, but the presence of drain holes bored into the surface, which
leads to a cave below the Mosque, may indicate that it was the area of
the Temple used for sacrifices. The purpose of the holes was for the
blood from animal sacrifices to runoff into a canal which carried the
fluids out of the complex. This would place the Holy of Holies in an
area which slopes downward, and creates a conflict with archaeological
evidence and historical tradition.
There is some support for the idea that the rock was the foundation
stone for the Holy of Holies. The argument for this is based on the
assumption that one of the Temple gates, known as Warren's Gate (which
was beneath the Gate Babel-Mat'hara, and up to 1967 was the location of
an Arab latrine), opened directly in front of the Holy of Holies. In
1867, Charles Warren found an ancient gate to the Temple Mount, and
since then, the entire Western Wall, and a tunnel running along it,
called the Rabbinic Tunnel, was discovered and excavated by 1986; along
with four other entrances, by Israel's Ministry of Religious Affairs and
the Western Wall Heritage Foundation. The Western Wall of the Temple,
left standing by Rome as a symbol of their authority, was part of the
retaining wall which was erected to support the immense platform which
held the Temple.
In March, 1979, where excavations were being done at the Western Wall,
a story was circulated, that a workman, digging with his fingers, 80
feet below the existing floor, discovered the Arch of King Solomon from
the original Temple, which led to the Holy of Holies. The archway of
stone was constructed with a special mortar containing broken glass, as
per God's instructions. Tests taken of the glistening mortar indicated
that it was produced during that period. They would not break through
the Wall, because according to the Law, only a Jew from the tribe of
Levi, and the family of Aaron, can enter the Holy of Holies.
In July, 1981, Rabbi Meir Yehuda Getz, chief rabbi of the Western Wall,
while building a new synagogue behind the Western Wall, investigated
water emanating from the Wall, and discovered a great hall (26' wide X
98' high x 82' long) behind a former cistern which contained an arch,
believed to be one of the entrances to the Temple. It turned out to be
the gate discovered by Warren, which led to the Temple court, and was
the closest gate to the Holy of Holies. A group of ten men, some from
the Ateret Cohanim Yeshiva, began clearing the hall, working their way
toward the Holy of Holies. If the Rock was the foundation stone of the
Holy of Holies, then tradition holds that beneath this stone there is a
chamber created by Solomon which was later used to hide the Ark. Getz
believes that this secret chamber contains the Ark, the table, and the
menorah. After breaking down another wall, the Muslim authorities were
made aware of what was going on, and the Arabs instigated a riot which
led to the excavation site being shut down. A wall was placed over the
entrance to the tunnel, and was later reinforced with another wall of
steel and plaster, which in 1992 was redone to give it an appearance of
natural rock. Rabbi Schlomo Goren believes that they came within 300
feet of this room, and rumors have circulated that Getz saw the Ark,
which he denied, saying that the area is under water. Getz said: "The
treasures of the First Temple are under the Mount, and we know exactly
where they are..."
There was an unsubstantiated report that there is a lower cave, blocked
by a slab, which was discovered in 1911. It had been alleged that the
Crown of David, the Sword of Solomon, the Ark of the Covenant, the
Tables of the Law, and a large amount of gold was discovered there,
having been hidden by the priests when the Temple was destroyed. It is
believed that these articles were removed, and their whereabouts are
unknown.
The Israelis have been kept from rebuilding, or even doing much
archaeological excavation because of their strained relationship with
the Arabs, and because the Moslems fear that such excavations would
weaken the structure of the Mosque. Others would argue that it's because
any significant archaeological discoveries on the site would prove
Israel's ancient claim to the Mount. Because of the lack of any
substantial information, there is even a lot of doubt as to where on the
Temple Mount the sanctuary was actually located.
Father Bellarmino Begatti, A Franciscan researcher, published a report
in 1979, that based on measurements and information in ancient
documents, the Temple was located on the southern end of the Mount
between the Dome of the Rock, and the al-Aqsa Mosque, and seems to be
supported by the existence of underground reservoirs and tunnels.
Dr. Ze'ev Yeiven, and Dr. Asher Kaufman believe that Arab construction
on the northern end exposed an ancient wall near the Dome of the Rock,
which is believed to be the eastern wall of the Temple's Court of Women.
Of particular interest is an exposed area of rock in an open area of the
Mount, about 330 feet north of the Dome of the Rock, which is covered by
a small building (cupola), known as the Qubbat el-Arwah (Dome of the
Spirits), which is on an east-west alignment with the Eastern Gate and
the Mount of Olives. It is also called the Qubbat el-Alouah (Dome of the
Tablets), because it is believed that this was the location of the Holy
of Holies in the original Temple, where the Ark of the Covenant was
placed. If this is true, that means that the Temple can be rebuilt
without disturbing the Arab site, because the Mosque, which takes up an
area of 34 acres, would actually be separated from most of the Temple
foundation by many feet of rubble. Proponents of this theory claim they
have identified the area on the Mount of Olives which was used for the
sacrifice of the Red Heifer, which further indicates that the Temple was
not on the site of the Dome of the Rock.
Some Orthodox Jews believe that before the Temple can be rebuilt, both
the Dome of the Rock and the al-Aqsa Mosque would have to be removed,
because their presence defiles the sacred ground.
Before the Six-Day War, a quarter-page ad appeared in the _Washington
Post_, seeking aid for the rebuilding of the Temple. They have been
selling bonds to finance its building since 1948. The document known as
the "Temple Scroll," which was part of the Dead Sea Scrolls found at
Qumran, give distinct instructions concerning the construction of the
Temple, and a group known as the Ne'emanei Har Habayit (Faithful of the
Temple Mount) commissioned a model of the Temple to be built. It has
been reported that the cornerstones are already cut and ready. Harvey A.
Smith, a Jewish Assemblies of God minister, wrote in his book, that they
have the biggest and heaviest stones cut, and secretly placed under the
Temple Mount behind Warren Gate. The Temple music has even been deciphered.
After the Six-Day War, Israel Eldad, a noted historian who was
interviewed by _Time_ magazine, said: "We are at the stage where David
was when he liberated Jerusalem. From that time until the construction
of the Temple by Solomon, only one generation passed. So it will be with
us."
In December, 1970, a special school called "Yeshiva Avodas Hakodesh"
founded by Rabbi Hirsh Ha-Cohen (Cohens have been identified as the
descendants of the priests in the original Jewish temple), was
established to train students from the tribe of Levi in the ancient
ritual of animal sacrifice. It was dedicated during the Feast of
Dedication (Chanuka). Only students who can trace their lineage back to
Aaron can be admitted. Motti Dan (Ha-Cohen), who is said to be a
descendent of the priestly line, studied all the rules in regard to the
Temple service, and established the "Ateret Cohanim Yeshiva" in the
1970's as a religious school to educate and train others, of similar
descent, for the priesthood.
In 1978, Hebrew University began offering a two-year course in the
restoration of animal sacrifice, including all methods and Old Testament
requirements. The first class graduated on June 1, 1980, and among their
graduation exercises, was to perform the ancient rite of animal
sacrifice. An episode of "60 Minutes" in March, 1985, in a segment
called "One Step in Heaven," indicated that rabbinical students in
Jerusalem were studying the Jewish rites of animal sacrifice under Rabbi
Shlomo Goren, the former Chief Rabbi of the Israeli Defense Forces, who
had said in a November, 1981 _Newsweek_ interview that the secret of the
location of the Ark would be revealed just prior to the third Temple
being built. The animal sacrifices will resume when the Temple is rebuilt.
The Institute for Talmudic Commentaries, run by Rabbi Nahman Kahane (a
descendent of the priestly line), which is located in the Young Israel
Synagogue, is involved in the study of the Temple rituals and
ceremonies, and have been involved in research to catalog all known
cohanim (priests) in Israel. The Atara L'yoshna ("(restoring) the crown
to its original (form)"), a branch of Kahane's group, has established a
Study and Tourist Center near the Western Wall, where they have models
of the Tabernacle, the two original Temples, the new Temple, the Ark of
the Covenant, a menorah, as well as other Temple implements.
A group called the Temple Mount Faithful (or the Temple Mount and Eretz
Yisrael Faithful Movement), started by Gershon Salomon, a professor of
Oriental Studies at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem, sought to take
sole control of the Temple Mount to rebuild the Temple. It was a
reactionary movement to protest the move by Moshe Dayan, the Israeli
Defense Minister, who allowed the Muslims to maintain control of the
Temple Mount area in 1967. He went to court in 1987 with claims by
physicist Dr. Asher Kaufman, and archaeologist Dan Bahat, that the Arabs
were destroying valuable archaeological evidence from the first and
second Temples. The group has also made attempts to lay a special 4-ton
cornerstone on the Mount.
The Temple Institute was founded in Israel, in 1988, by Rabbi Israel
Ariel, who in 1967, was the first paratrooper to reach the Western Wall.
_Time_ magazine printed a two-page article on the group in October,
1989, and ABC-TV's news show "20/20" televised a segment on them. On
October 18, 1989, the first bi-annual Conference on Temple Research was
held. This joint venture between the Temple Institute and the Ministry
of Religious Affairs brought together rabbis, scientists, archaeologists
in an attempt to better coordinate their efforts in making the Temple a
reality.
Outside the Temple Institute, a sign in Hebrew reads: "Exhibition of
Temple Vessels" (while a sign in English says "Treasures of the
Temple"). Based on years of research, historical tradition and the
Scriptures, the Temple Institute has produced the actual items which
will be used in the Temple when it is rebuilt. Many of the 103 items
which were used in the original Temple have been produced, or are in
various stages of fabrication, including the gold crown of the high
priest, the Temple garments, a copper washbasin to be used for
purification purposes, incense utensils, and silver trumpets to beckon
worshippers to the Temple. In the planning stages was the breastplate of
the high priest, which will contain twelve gemstones; and the gold
electroplated menorah which will contain 94.6 pounds of gold, giving it
an estimated value of $10 million.
In January, 2003, the President of Israel, Moshe Katzav, asked the
Prime Minister of the Vatican, Cardinal Angelo Sudano about what Temple
treasures were in the possession of the Vatican, and to prepare a list
of them.
Before Temple services can be legally reinstated according to Biblical
Law, a ritual cleansing must be performed which involves the sacrifice
of the Red Heifer (Numbers 19:1-22). The ceremony has only been
performed seven times. The priest would sacrifice an unblemished,
unbroken Red Heifer, after which the remaining ashes were collected and
added to the ashes of the next sacrifice. It took place on the western
slope of the Mount of Olives, within sight of the Holy of Holies. The
ashes were then sprinkled upon the waters of a large cistern under the
Temple to prepare them to be used as the water of purification to
cleanse sin and defilement. The last sacrifice occurred in 70 AD, prior
to the destruction of the Temple, after which the ashes were secretly
buried. This ritual cleansing would have to be performed on the Temple
Mount in order to reinstate Temple worship as commanded by the Laws of God.
Originally kept in a containment building near the Eastern Gate,
archaeological excavations have been initiated to find the ashes, which
according to the "Copper Scroll" found at Qumran, were buried in a
container made of clay, and dung from the Red Heifer. If they can not be
located, the Temple Institute, on the belief that the tradition of the
"ashes of continuity" is a mistranslation, maintains that the original
ashes are not necessary. In October, 1989, the Chief Rabbi of Israel
dispatched a team of scientists to Sweden to purchase the frozen embryos
of a particular breed of red heifers in order to impregnate a heifer in
Israel and breed an animal that would fulfill the scriptural
requirements. However, the latest report is that a herd of red Angus
cattle have been discovered in Mississippi, and a group of these have
been sent to Israel for later use.
Vendyl Jones, a former Baptist minister turned archaeologist in 1977,
said to be the inspiration for the creation of the fictional movie
character Indiana Jones (though producers Steven Spielberg and George
Lucas deny it), while searching in Jericho area caves for the Ark of the
Covenant, found a clay jar containing a unique incense oil which dated
back to the time of the second Jewish Temple, and contained the five
ingredients the Bible identified as being part of the oil used to anoint
kings. One of these ingredients was an oil called afars'mon, which was
taken from the sap of the rare balsam tree that grew near Jericho at a
wadi known as Ein Gedi, near the area of Qumran. The oil was very rare,
and when Rome invaded the Qumran community before 70 AD, the Essenes
burned the only known grove of these balsam trees, which are now
considered extinct.
This special anointing oil is listed in the Copper Scroll, and in 1988,
using the clues given there, a worker, Benny Ayers, who was with a group
of Christian archaeologists and volunteers (including Dr. Gary Collett
and Dr. Nathan Meyers), under the direction of Dr. Joseph Patrich from
the Hebrew University's Institute of Archaeology, found an ancient clay
container wrapped in palm leaves, in a hole three feet deep, on the
floor of a cave adjacent to the one where Vendyl Jones would later
discover some incense. Professor Ze'ev Aisenshtat and Dorit Aschengrau
at the laboratory of Hebrew Univeristy's Casali Institute of Applied
Chemistry, used Carbon-14 dating and said that the oil was put in the
container during the first century, and is believed to be the anointing
oil that was used in the Temple. The oil's chemical composition was
such, that one drop placed in water, turned it a milky white, just as
ancient documents indicated. The substance was given to the Chief Rabbi
of Israel, and it will be used to anoint the Messiah when he returns.
Chief Rabbi Isaac Herzog believes that the dye used to achieve the
blue-colored thread on the Temple garments (Numbers 15:37-40), comes
from the Segulit snail, which because of its scarcity, is very
expensive. According to the Talmud (Menahot 44a),/ /Israel is inundated
every 70 years with these snails. In October, 1990, they were found in
large numbers on the Mediterranean beaches of Israel.
In April, 1992, Jones announced that on the floor of a cave, north of
Qumran, at the Wadi Jafet Zaben, he discovered about 900 pounds of a
reddish-colored material which was tested by the Weizmann Institute of
Science, and found to be the remnants of a special mixture of incense
believed to be used in the Temple service. Jones felt that this was one
of the items listed in the Copper Scroll. However, the Temple Institute
believes that since the incense was not found in a container, it had
been improperly prepared and disposed of, and thus is not acceptable for
use.
Little by little, all the elements seem to be coming together in
preparation for the day when the Temple will be rebuilt. The closer we
come to that reality, the opposition to it increases within certain
religious circles. The destruction of the second Temple in 70 AD,
according to some Christian leaders, indicated that the Jews were being
punished for rejecting Jesus as the Messiah, and that Judaism was being
usurped by Christianity, which had become the new temple of God. They
feel that because He spiritually dwells within all who believe and
follow His teachings, the rebuilding of the Temple would be a denial of
Jesus' atonement for our sins on the cross, which eliminated the
necessity of Temple sacrifice. This sort of theological debate is
pointless, because the Bible plainly eludes to the existence of the
Temple in the last days, regardless of how right or wrong it is.
Now bear in mind, I have been told by Milt Maiman, that to fulfill the
prophecy, the Temple doesn't have to be rebuilt. Just as the Tent of the
Tabernacle was originally used to house the Ark, it could again be
erected on the Temple grounds, and used for Temple observances.
So, when you turn on the 6 o'clock news, and you see that Israel has
put up the Tent, or that construction on the Temple has begun, know that
this is one of the major events in the prophetic timetable, and that the
end is near.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
"I don't bring God into my life to -- to, you know,
kind of be a political person."
--- Adolph Bush,
interview with Tom Brokaw aboard
Air Force One, April 24, 2003