Time to Talk “Temple”
Annual “memorial” days are important in many cultures. God created the Jewish people to be a people of remembrance when He gave them His Torah,[1] which includes seven feasts of the Lord.[2] Throughout the scriptures God calls His people to “Remember,” especially, “the LORD your God.”
Through the centuries additional days of celebration, such as Hanukkah, have been added to the Jewish calendar. One day in particular is not a day of celebration, but rather one of deep mourning: Tisha B’Av. The significant tragedies that have occurred to the Jewish people on the 9th of the month of Av are recalled. Among these are the bad report given by the spies to enter the Promised Land[3] and the issuing of the edict mandating the Jewish community’s expulsion from Spain in 1290.[4]
Most significantly, both Jewish temples were destroyed on Tisha B’Av. (The Babylonians destroyed the First Temple in 586 BCE; the Romans destroyed the Second Temple in 70 CE.) Today, in addition to fasting 25 hours, praying and reading Lamentations in the synagogue, observant Jews will not bathe or wear leather.[5]
Have you heard about the Third Temple that was destroyed? The story of the destruction and rebuilding of this Temple is not only significant for the Jewish people; it is the most significant event in human history – for all people!
In the Gospel of John, we read about an event in Jerusalem. Jesus drove out from the Temple area moneychangers and others doing business. He cried out, “Take these things away; stop making my Father’s House a place of business!” [6]
The leaders then questioned Jesus. They challenged Him to show a sign that demonstrates His authority to do this.[7]
Jesus responded, “Destroy this temple and in three days I will raise it up.
The Jewish leaders countered, “It took forty-six years to build this temple and will you raise it up in three days?” [8]
The Scripture’s explanation of Jesus’ statement is the reason it is time for us to “talk Temple.” “But He was speaking of the temple of His body. So when He was raised from the dead, His disciples remembered that He had said this; and they believed the Scripture and the word which Jesus had spoken.”[9]
Not only did Jesus boldly declare His death and resurrection with this statement, but He also said that “something greater than the Temple” was in their midst – specifically, He Himself.[10]
By way of background, in the Hebrew Scriptures we are first introduced to the word translated “Temple” in the story of a barren woman named Hannah. Sitting on a seat by the doorpost of the Temple, Hannah prayed for a child, whom she vowed she would give to the LORD for His service.[11]
The last time we hear a prophetic voice in Israel in Old Testament days is through the prophet Malachi. He says these striking words to Israel concerning the LORD coming to His Temple:
Behold, I am going to send My messenger, and he will clear the way before Me. And the Lord, whom you seek, will suddenly come to His temple; and the messenger of the covenant, in whom you delight, behold, He is coming,” says the Lord of hosts. [12]
This “messenger of the LORD” is most special in human history: the Messiah. He is prophesied not only to be a messenger of the covenant, but also a prophet like Moses[13] and a priest in the order of Melchizedek,[14] who will return to judge the nations.[15] He uniquely is the Son of God.[16]
Jesus came in fulfillment of these (and many other) prophecies. His body is the Temple destroyed in Israel and raised again in three days. He brings hope and salvation because He is also the messenger of the covenant, the New Covenant spoken of by the Prophet Jeremiah.[17]
The Messiah is spoken of from Genesis through the close of the Old Testament. In the Gospels He is revealed to be Jesus of Nazareth and is proclaimed throughout the New Testament to be the fulfillment of biblical prophecy.
In the Book of Revelation we find the last reference to a Temple where the New Jerusalem is described. Here we see the final connection of Messiah, the Lamb of God, to the eternal Temple:
“I saw no temple in it, for the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. 23 And the city has no need of the sun or of the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God has illumined it, and its lamp is the Lamb.” [18]
Written by Jeff, LIFE Staff
Would you like to know more about the One who is greater than the Temple and the provision He has made for your salvation? Contact us at office@lifeinmessiah.org.
If you already are a follower of Messiah Yeshua (Jesus), would you take time to pray for the Jewish people as they mourn the destruction of the first two Temples (this year on July 29 on the Western calendar)? Pray they will discover the joy that results from the “rebuilding of the Third Temple” as Jesus was raised from the dead on the third day.
Footnotes:
[1] Exodus chapters 19-20.
[2] Leviticus Chapter 23.
[3] Numbers 13.
[4] In 1492, the same Ferdinand and Isabella who funded Columbus in his New World expedition ordered a second expulsion of Spain’s Jewish population – two days before Tisha B’Av.
[5] This year the 9th of the Jewish month Av begins on the evening of July 29. For more details of how Tisha B’Av is observed, see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tisha_B%27Av.
[6] John 2:16.
[7] John 2:18.
[8] John 2:20.
[9] John 2:21-22.
[10] Matthew 12:6.
[11] We know that child to be Samuel, who became a priest, prophet, and judge in Israel. Samuel came by way of a special birth to a childless woman and was dedicated to the service of his heavenly Father. See 1 Samuel 1:9-11.
[12] Malachi 3:1.
[13] Deuteronomy 18:15.
[14] Psalm 110:4.
[15] Isaiah 11:2-4.
[16] Psalm 2.
[17] Jeremiah 31:31-34; Isaiah 42:1-7; Isaiah 49:1-8.
[18] Revelation 21:22-23