Model of Jerusalem at the time of Jesus

This huge model is pretty amazing. It's of the entire city, to scale and with correct topography etc. 

Here is a closeup of just a piece of the temple, admittedly the most important piece, the inner court, holy place and holy of holies. Even a model is breathtaking.

No wonder the religious leaders scoffed when Jesus said, "Destroy this temple and in three days I will raise it up." They thought he spoke of the real temple (which miracle he could perform if he wished). But, of course he spoke of his body, which he would give as a ransom for many, but not without the most intense physical, psychological and spiritual suffering imaginable.

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The Western/Wailing Wall

The morning was spent exploring inside and outside the old city (the 14 stations of the cross on the Via Dolorosa, a number of churches, the bazaar, the new Temple Archaeology center, to name a few).

The Western Wall and other original remains of the temple (rubble from General Titus' sacking of the temple, and the original steps that Jesus walked on), were the highlights for me. This city has so much history from its first settlement in 3500 BC to when Abraham almost sacrificed Isaac on Mt Moriah (the temple mount) through to Jesus' trial and crucifixion to the destruction of Jerusalem (which Jesus predicted) to the Byzantine, Muslim, Crusader, Ottoman, British Mandate and now Reconstituted Israeli periods. Perhaps no one single piece of real estate in the world has been fought over as much or had such significance in world affairs as this little city of Jerusalem. I can't wait to grab 3 or 4 books on it to read right away, and come back for a month sometime just to explore and learn.

Our guide took us to the synagogue area which connects to the wall to the left of the photo above. Men and boys were praying, touching the wall, reading Torah and studying the commentaries of the rabbis (photo to the right). We had to put a yarmulke on our heads to be able to go to the wall and pray. In the photo below, men are putting on teffilin (phylacteries: Scripture bound to their left arms and foreheads in small leather boxes).

It was an incredibly moving experience praying at this wall which was part of the temple in Jesus' day. My prayer was that these people who have been chosen by God, but have rejected His Son and the salvation He offers, might have the blinders taken off. In this country of over seven million wonderful people, it is estimated that there are probably only 4000-5000 genuine followers of Christ in the whole nation. Our guide can cite New Testament events, passages and theology with great precision, but at the end of the day, it's just a quaint belief system to him. Incredibly sad.

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Rubble From Roman Destruction of the Temple

How deserted lies the city,

once so full of people!

How like a widow is she,

who once was great among the nations!

She who was queen among the provinces

has now become a slave.

Bitterly she weeps at night,

tears are upon her cheeks.

Among all her lovers

there is none to comfort her.

All her friends have betrayed her;

they have become her enemies.

After affliction and harsh labor,

Judah has gone into exile.

She dwells among the nations;

she finds no resting place.

All who pursue her have overtaken her

in the midst of her distress.

In the days of her affliction and wandering

Jerusalem remembers all the treasures

that were hers in the days of old.

When her people fell into enemy hands,

there was no one to help her.

Her enemies looked at her

 and laughed at her destruction.

- Lamentations 1:1-3;7 (when Babylon destroyed the temple & city)

In that day the Root of Jesse wil stand as a banner for all peoples; the nations will rally to him, and his place of rest will be glorious.

In that day the Lord will reach out his hand a second time to reclaim the remnant that is left of his people from Assyria, from Lower Egypt, from Upper Egypt, from Cush, from Elam, from Babylonia, from Hamath and the islands of the sea.

He will raise a banner for the nations

and gather the exiles of Israel;

he will assembe the scattered people of Judah

from the four corners of the earth.

Promise of Return from the Diaspora, Isaiah 11:10-12

Gold Minorah overlooking the Temple Mount & the Mount of Olives
ready for Messiah's return

First View of the Holy City

We make the long drive up to Jerusalem. When they talk about "going up to Jerusalem" it makes a whole lot more sense to me now. It's a 4000 foot climb from the lowest point on earth to the most significant city on earth. No wonder there is a whole section in the psalms titled "Songs of Ascents" (Psalms 120-134) which recount going up to Jerusalem and the temple to worship God.

After going through a checkpoint with armed guards, we arive in the Holy City.



We drive up to Mt Scopus and this is the gorgeous scene before us:

Our guide breaks out the wine and leads us through a brief ceremony performed when one arrives in the Holy City. Kind of like communion. But no bread, and definitely no Jesus. Though when I look at the famous city for the first time, I can't help but think primarily of Him. We say a few Hebrew phrases. And look out on the city with awe.

Those who trust in the Lord are like Mount Zion,
which cannot be shaken but endures forever.
As the mountains surround Jerusalem,
so the Lord surrounds his people
both now and forevermore.
(Psalm 125:1,2 - A song of Ascents)

The Six Day War Restores the Western Wall of the Temple to Jews

IDF (Israeli Defense Forces) capture the temple area:

"Israeli officials flooded the city. It was a pilgrimage. Even the most worldly spoke of it in religious terms--how they stood before the Wall, which was covered in flowers, which was breathing, soft like skin, which was bleeding, wet with tears. A mad moment at the end of a mad age. Yitzhak Rabin wrote a prayer on a piece of paper and shoved it between the stones. Whoever does this is talking to history, worshipping the past. 'It was the peak of my life,' he said. 'For years I secretly harbored the dream that I might play a role in restoring the Western Wall to the Jewish people. Now that dream had come true, and I wondered why I, of all men, should be so privileged.' He gave a speech:

The sacrifices of our comrades have not been in vain. The countless generations of Jews murdered, martyred and massacred for the sake of Jerusalem say to you, Comfort yet, our people, console the mothers and fathers whose sacrifices have brought about redemption. - Rich Cohen, Israel is Real, 268.

I rejoiced with those who said to me,

'Let us go up to the house of the Lord.'

Our feet are standing in your gates, O Jerusalem.

Jerusalem is built like a city

that is closely compacted together.

That is where the tribes go up,

the tribes of the Lord,

to praise the name of the Lord

according to the statutes given to Israel.

There the thrones for judgment stand,

the thrones of the house of David.

Pray for the peace of Jerusalem:

'May those who love you be secure.

May there be peace within your walls

and security within your citadels.'

For the sake of my brothers and my friends,

I will say, 'Peace be within you.'

For the sake of the house of the Lord our God,

I will seek your prosperity.

- Psalm 122 - A Song of Ascents