The Second Temple () was the

Temple in Jerusalem The Temple in Jerusalem, or alternatively the Holy Temple (; , ), refers to the two religious structures that served as the central places of worship for Israelites and Jews on the modern-day Temple Mount in the Old City of Jerusalem. Accord ...

that replaced Solomon's Temple, which was destroyed during the Babylonian siege of Jerusalem in 587 BCE. It was constructed around 516 BCE and later enhanced by

Herod the Great Herod I or Herod the Great () was a History of the Jews in the Roman Empire, Roman Jewish client king of the Herodian kingdom of Judea. He is known for his colossal building projects throughout Judea. Among these works are the rebuilding of the ...

around 18 BCE, consequently also being known as Herod's Temple thereafter. Defining the

Second Temple period The Second Temple period or post-exilic period in Jewish history denotes the approximately 600 years (516 BCE – 70 CE) during which the Second Temple stood in the city of Jerusalem. It began with the return to Zion and subsequent reconstructio ...

and standing as a pivotal symbol of

Jewish identity Jewish identity is the objective or subjective sense of perceiving oneself as a Jew and as relating to being Jewish. It encompasses elements of nationhood, "The Jews are a nation and were so before there was a Jewish state of Israel" "Jews are ...

, it was the basis and namesake of

Second Temple Judaism Second Temple Judaism is the Judaism, Jewish religion as it developed during the Second Temple period, which began with the construction of the Second Temple around 516 BCE and ended with the Siege of Jerusalem (70 CE), destruction of Jerusalem in ...

. The Second Temple served as the chief place of worship, ritual sacrifice (''

korban In Judaism, the (), also spelled or , is any of a variety of sacrificial offerings described and commanded in the Torah. The plural form is , , or . The term primarily refers to sacrificial offerings given from humans to God for the pur ...

''), and communal gathering for the Jewish people, among whom it regularly attracted pilgrims for the Three Pilgrimage Festivals:

Passover Passover, also called Pesach (; ), is a major Jewish holidays, Jewish holiday and one of the Three Pilgrimage Festivals. It celebrates the Exodus of the Israelites from slavery in Biblical Egypt, Egypt. According to the Book of Exodus, God in ...

Shavuot (, from ), or (, in some Ashkenazi Jews, Ashkenazi usage), is a Jewish holidays, Jewish holiday, one of the biblically ordained Three Pilgrimage Festivals. It occurs on the sixth day of the Hebrew month of Sivan; in the 21st century, it may ...

, and

Sukkot Sukkot, also known as the Feast of Tabernacles or Feast of Booths, is a Torah-commanded Jewish holiday celebrated for seven days, beginning on the 15th day of the month of Tishrei. It is one of the Three Pilgrimage Festivals on which Israelite ...

. In 539 BCE, the Persian conquest of Babylon enabled the

Achaemenid Empire The Achaemenid Empire or Achaemenian Empire, also known as the Persian Empire or First Persian Empire (; , , ), was an Iranian peoples, Iranian empire founded by Cyrus the Great of the Achaemenid dynasty in 550 BC. Based in modern-day Iran, i ...

to expand across the

Fertile Crescent The Fertile Crescent () is a crescent-shaped region in the Middle East, spanning modern-day Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine, and Syria, together with northern Kuwait, south-eastern Turkey, and western Iran. Some authors also include ...

by annexing the

Neo-Babylonian Empire The Neo-Babylonian Empire or Second Babylonian Empire, historically known as the Chaldean Empire, was the last polity ruled by monarchs native to ancient Mesopotamia. Beginning with the coronation of Nabopolassar as the King of Babylon in 626 BC a ...

, including the territory of the former

Kingdom of Judah The Kingdom of Judah was an Israelites, Israelite kingdom of the Southern Levant during the Iron Age. Centered in the highlands to the west of the Dead Sea, the kingdom's capital was Jerusalem. It was ruled by the Davidic line for four centuries ...

, which had been annexed as the Babylonian province of Yehud during the reign of the Babylonian king

Nebuchadnezzar II Nebuchadnezzar II, also Nebuchadrezzar II, meaning "Nabu, watch over my heir", was the second king of the Neo-Babylonian Empire, ruling from the death of his father Nabopolassar in 605 BC to his own death in 562 BC. Often titled Nebuchadnezzar ...

, who concurrently exiled part of Judah's population to Babylon. Following this campaign, the Persian king

Cyrus the Great Cyrus II of Persia ( ; 530 BC), commonly known as Cyrus the Great, was the founder of the Achaemenid Empire. Achaemenid dynasty (i. The clan and dynasty) Hailing from Persis, he brought the Achaemenid dynasty to power by defeating the Media ...

issued the "

Edict of Cyrus The Edict of Cyrus usually refers to the biblical account of a proclamation by Cyrus the Great, the founding king of the Achaemenid Persian Empire, in 539 BC. It was issued after the Persians conquered the Neo-Babylonian Empire upon the fall of ...

" (sometimes identified with the Cyrus Cylinder), which is described in the

Hebrew Bible The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;"Tanach"
. '' return to Zion in Ezra–Nehemiah, marking the resurgence of Jewish life in what had become the self-governing Persian province of Yehud. The reign of the Persian king

Darius the Great Darius I ( ; – 486 BCE), commonly known as Darius the Great, was the third King of Kings of the Achaemenid Empire, reigning from 522 BCE until his death in 486 BCE. He ruled the empire at its territorial peak, when it included much of West A ...

saw the completion of the Second Temple, signifying a period of renewed Jewish hope and religious revival. According to the biblical account, the Second Temple was originally a relatively modest structure built under the authority of the Persian-appointed Jewish governor

Zerubbabel Zerubbabel ( from ) was, according to the Hebrew Bible, a governor of the Achaemenid Empire's province of Yehud Medinata and the grandson of Jeconiah, penultimate king of Judah. He is not documented in extra-biblical documents, and is considered ...

, who was the grandson of the penultimate Judahite king Jeconiah. In the 1st century BCE, Herod's efforts to transform the Second Temple resulted in a grand and imposing structure and courtyard, including the large edifices and façades shown in modern models, such as the

Holyland Model of Jerusalem The Holyland Model of Jerusalem, also known as Model of Jerusalem at the end of the Second Temple period () is a 1:50 scale model of the city of Jerusalem in the late Second Temple period. The model, designed by Michael Avi-Yonah, was moved from ...

in the

Israel Museum The Israel Museum (, ''Muze'on Yisrael'', ) is an Art museum, art and archaeology museum in Jerusalem. It was established in 1965 as Israel's largest and foremost cultural institution, and one of the world's leading Encyclopedic museum, encyclopa ...

. The

Temple Mount The Temple Mount (), also known as the Noble Sanctuary (Arabic: الحرم الشريف, 'Haram al-Sharif'), and sometimes as Jerusalem's holy esplanade, is a hill in the Old City of Jerusalem, Old City of Jerusalem that has been venerated as a ...

, where both Solomon's Temple and the Second Temple stood, was also significantly expanded, doubling in size to become the ancient world's largest religious sanctuary. In 70 CE, at the height of the First Jewish–Roman War, the Second Temple was destroyed by the Roman siege of Jerusalem, resulting in a cataclysmic shift in

Jewish history Jewish history is the history of the Jews, their Jewish peoplehood, nation, Judaism, religion, and Jewish culture, culture, as it developed and interacted with other peoples, religions and cultures. Jews originated from the Israelites and H ...

. The loss of the Second Temple prompted the development of

Rabbinic Judaism Rabbinic Judaism (), also called Rabbinism, Rabbinicism, Rabbanite Judaism, or Talmudic Judaism, is rooted in the many forms of Judaism that coexisted and together formed Second Temple Judaism in the land of Israel, giving birth to classical rabb ...

, which remains the mainstream form of Jewish religious practices globally.

History

Construction under the Persians

The accession of

of the

in 559 BCE made the re-establishment of the city of Jerusalem and the rebuilding of the Temple possible. Some rudimentary ritual sacrifice had continued at the site of the first temple following its destruction. According to the closing verses of the second book of Chronicles and the books of Ezra and Nehemiah, when the Jewish exiles returned to Jerusalem following a decree from Cyrus the Great ( Ezra 1:1– 4, 2 Chronicles 36:22– 23), construction started at the original site of the altar of Solomon's Temple. These events represent the final section in the historical narrative of the Hebrew Bible. The original core of the book of Nehemiah, the first-person memoir, may have been combined with the core of the

Book of Ezra The Book of Ezra is a book of the Hebrew Bible which formerly included the Book of Nehemiah in a single book, commonly distinguished in scholarship as Ezra–Nehemiah. The two became separated with the first printed Mikraot Gedolot, rabbinic bib ...

around 400 BCE. Further editing probably continued into the Hellenistic era. Based on the biblical account, after the return from Babylonian captivity, arrangements were immediately made to reorganize the desolated Yehud Province after the demise of the Kingdom of Judah seventy years earlier. The body of pilgrims, forming a band of 42,360, having completed the long and dreary journey of some four months, from the banks of the

Euphrates The Euphrates ( ; see #Etymology, below) is the longest and one of the most historically important rivers of West Asia. Tigris–Euphrates river system, Together with the Tigris, it is one of the two defining rivers of Mesopotamia (). Originati ...

to Jerusalem, were animated in all their proceedings by a strong religious impulse, and therefore one of their first concerns was to restore their ancient house of worship by rebuilding their destroyed Temple. On the invitation of

, the governor, who showed them a remarkable example of liberality by contributing personally 1,000 golden darics, besides other gifts, the people poured their gifts into the sacred treasury with great enthusiasm. First they erected and dedicated the altar of God on the exact spot where it had formerly stood, and they then cleared away the charred heaps of debris that occupied the site of the old temple; and in the second month of the second year (535 BCE), amid great public excitement and rejoicing, the foundations of the Second Temple were laid. A wide interest was felt in this great movement, although it was regarded with mixed feelings by the spectators. The Samaritans wanted to help with this work but Zerubbabel and the elders declined such cooperation, feeling that the Jews must build the Temple unaided. Immediately evil reports were spread regarding the Jews. According to Ezra 4:5, the Samaritans sought to "frustrate their purpose" and sent messengers to

Ecbatana Ecbatana () was an ancient city, the capital of the Median kingdom, and the first capital in History of Iran, Iranian history. It later became the summer capital of the Achaemenid Empire, Achaemenid and Parthian Empire, Parthian empires.Nardo, Do ...

and Susa, with the result that the work was suspended. Seven years later,

, who allowed the Jews to

return Return may refer to: In business, economics, and finance * Return on investment (ROI), the financial gain after an expense. * Rate of return, the financial term for the profit or loss derived from an investment * Tax return, a blank document or t ...

to their homeland and rebuild the Temple, died, and was succeeded by his son Cambyses. On his death, the "false Smerdis", an impostor, occupied the throne for some seven or eight months, and then Darius became king (522 BCE). In the second year of his rule the work of rebuilding the temple was resumed and carried forward to its completion, under the stimulus of the earnest counsels and admonitions of the prophets Haggai and Zechariah. It was ready for consecration in the spring of 516 BCE, more than twenty years after the return from captivity. The Temple was completed on the third day of the month Adar, in the sixth year of the reign of Darius, amid great rejoicings on the part of all the people, although it was evident that the Jews were no longer an independent people, but were subject to a foreign power. The Book of Haggai includes a prediction that the glory of the Second Temple would be greater than that of the first. While the Temple may well have been consecrated in 516, construction and expansion may have continued as late as 500 BCE. Some of the original artifacts from the Temple of Solomon are not mentioned in the sources after its destruction in 586 BCE, and are presumed lost. The Second Temple lacked various holy articles, including the

Ark of the Covenant The Ark of the Covenant, also known as the Ark of the Testimony or the Ark of God, was a religious storage chest and relic held to be the most sacred object by the Israelites. Religious tradition describes it as a wooden storage chest decorat ...

containing the Tablets of Stone, before which were placed the pot of manna and Aaron's rod, the Urim and Thummim (divination objects contained in the ), the holy oil and the sacred fire. The Second Temple also included many of the original vessels of gold that had been taken by the Babylonians but restored by

. No detailed description of the Temple's architecture is given in the Hebrew Bible, save that it was sixty cubits in both width and height, and was constructed with stone and lumber. In the Second Temple, the

Holy of Holies The Holy of Holies ( or ''Kodesh HaKodashim''; also ''hadDəḇīr'', 'the Sanctuary') is a term in the Hebrew Bible that refers to the inner sanctuary of the Tabernacle, where the Shekhinah (God in Judaism, God's presence) appeared. According ...

(') was separated by curtains rather than a wall as in the First Temple. Still, as in the

Tabernacle According to the Hebrew Bible, the tabernacle (), also known as the Tent of the Congregation (, also Tent of Meeting), was the portable earthly dwelling of God used by the Israelites from the Exodus until the conquest of Canaan. Moses was instru ...

, the Second Temple included the Menorah (golden lamp) for the ', the Table of Showbread and the golden altar of incense, with golden censers.

Rededication by the Maccabees

Following the conquest of

Judea Judea or Judaea (; ; , ; ) is a mountainous region of the Levant. Traditionally dominated by the city of Jerusalem, it is now part of Palestine and Israel. The name's usage is historic, having been used in antiquity and still into the pres ...

Alexander the Great Alexander III of Macedon (; 20/21 July 356 BC – 10/11 June 323 BC), most commonly known as Alexander the Great, was a king of the Ancient Greece, ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia (ancient kingdom), Macedon. He succeeded his father Philip ...

, it became part of the

Ptolemaic Kingdom The Ptolemaic Kingdom (; , ) or Ptolemaic Empire was an ancient Greek polity based in Ancient Egypt, Egypt during the Hellenistic period. It was founded in 305 BC by the Ancient Macedonians, Macedonian Greek general Ptolemy I Soter, a Diadochi, ...

of Egypt until 200 BCE, when the Seleucid king Antiochus III the Great of Syria defeated Pharaoh Ptolemy V Epiphanes at the Battle of Paneion. In 167 BCE,

Antiochus IV Epiphanes Antiochus IV Epiphanes ( 215 BC–November/December 164 BC) was king of the Seleucid Empire from 175 BC until his death in 164 BC. Notable events during Antiochus' reign include his near-conquest of Ptolemaic Egypt, his persecution of the Jews of ...

ordered an altar to

Zeus Zeus (, ) is the chief deity of the List of Greek deities, Greek pantheon. He is a sky father, sky and thunder god in ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, mythology, who rules as king of the gods on Mount Olympus. Zeus is the child ...

erected in the Temple. He also, according to

Josephus Flavius Josephus (; , ; ), born Yosef ben Mattityahu (), was a Roman–Jewish historian and military leader. Best known for writing '' The Jewish War'', he was born in Jerusalem—then part of the Roman province of Judea—to a father of pr ...

, "compelled Jews to dissolve the laws of the country, to keep their infants un- circumcised, and to sacrifice swine's flesh upon the altar; against which they all opposed themselves, and the most approved among them were put to death." These anti-Jewish persecutions provoked the Maccabean Revolt, led by

Judas Maccabeus Judas Maccabaeus or Maccabeus ( ), also known as Judah Maccabee (), was a Jewish priest (''kohen'') and a son of the priest Mattathias. He led the Maccabean Revolt against the Seleucid Empire (167–160 BCE). The Jewish holiday of Hanukkah ("Ded ...

and his brothers from the priestly Hasmonean family. After several years of guerrilla warfare, the

Maccabees The Maccabees (), also spelled Machabees (, or , ; or ; , ), were a group of Jews, Jewish rebel warriors who took control of Judea, which at the time was part of the Seleucid Empire. Its leaders, the Hasmoneans, founded the Hasmonean dynasty ...

succeeded in driving out the Seleucid forces from Jerusalem. In 164 BCE, they recaptured the Temple Mount, removed the pagan altar, and undertook the purification and rededication of the Second Temple. This event is the origin of the Jewish festival of

Hanukkah Hanukkah (, ; ''Ḥănukkā'' ) is a Jewish holidays, Jewish festival commemorating the recovery of Jerusalem and subsequent rededication of the Second Temple at the beginning of the Maccabean Revolt against the Seleucid Empire in the 2nd ce ...

, which begins on the 25th of

Kislev Kislev or Chislev (Hebrew language, Hebrew: , Hebrew language#Modern Hebrew, Standard ''Kīslev'' Tiberian vocalization, Tiberian ''Kīslēw''), is the third month of the civil year and the ninth month of the ecclesiastical year on the Hebrew c ...

. The earliest accounts of the holiday appear in the Books of the Maccabees, which both associate it with the 25th of Kislev—either as the date when sacrifices resumed following the cleansing of the Temple (according to '' 1 Maccabees''), or as the date of the cleansing itself (according to '' 2 Maccabees'').

Hasmonean dynasty and Roman conquest

There is some evidence from archaeology that further changes to the structure of the Temple and its surroundings were made during the Hasmonean rule.

Salome Alexandra Salome Alexandra, also ''Shlomtzion'', ''Shelamzion'' (; , ''Šəlōmṣīyyōn'', "peace of Zion"; 141–67 BC), was a regnant queen of Judaea, one of only three women in Jewish historical tradition to rule over the country, the other tw ...

, the queen of the Hasmonean Kingdom appointed her elder son

Hyrcanus II John Hyrcanus II (, ''Yohanan Hurqanos''; died 30 BCE), a member of the Hasmonean dynasty, was for a long time the Jewish High Priest in the 1st century BCE. He was also briefly King of Judea 67–66 BCE and then the ethnarch (ruler) of J ...

as the high priest of Judaea. Her younger son

Aristobulus II Aristobulus II (, ''Aristóboulos'') was the Jewish High Priest and King of Judea, 66 BCE to 63 BCE, from the Hasmonean dynasty. Family Aristobulus was the younger son of Alexander Jannaeus, King and High Priest, and Salome Alexandra. After ...

was determined to have the throne, and as soon as she died he seized the throne. Hyrcanus, who was next in the succession, agreed to be content with being high priest. Antipater, the governor of Idumæa, encouraged Hyrcanus not to give up his throne. Eventually, Hyrcanus fled to Aretas III, king of the Nabateans, and returned with an army to take back the throne. He defeated Aristobulus and besieged Jerusalem. The Roman general

Pompey Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus (; 29 September 106 BC – 28 September 48 BC), known in English as Pompey ( ) or Pompey the Great, was a Roman general and statesman who was prominent in the last decades of the Roman Republic. ...

, who was in Syria fighting against the

Armenians Armenians (, ) are an ethnic group indigenous to the Armenian highlands of West Asia.Robert Hewsen, Hewsen, Robert H. "The Geography of Armenia" in ''The Armenian People From Ancient to Modern Times Volume I: The Dynastic Periods: From Antiq ...

in the

Third Mithridatic War The Third Mithridatic War (73–63 BC), the last and longest of the three Mithridatic Wars, was fought between Mithridates VI of Pontus and the Roman Republic. Both sides were joined by a great number of allies, dragging the entire east of th ...

, sent his lieutenant to investigate the conflict in Judaea. Both Hyrcanus and Aristobulus appealed to him for support. Pompey was not diligent in making a decision about this, which caused Aristobulus to march off. He was pursued by Pompey and surrendered but his followers closed Jerusalem to Pompey's forces. The Romans besieged and took the city in 63 BCE. The priests continued with the religious practices inside the Temple during the siege. The temple was not looted or harmed by the Romans. Pompey himself, perhaps inadvertently, went into the

and the next day ordered the priests to repurify the Temple and resume the religious practices.

Renovations under Herod

In c. 20/19 BCE, Herod, king of Judaea, began an ambitious renovation of the Second Temple. The old temple built by

was replaced by a magnificent edifice. Herod's Temple was one of the larger construction projects of the 1st century BCE.Flavius Josephus: ''The Jewish War'' Josephus records that Herod was interested in perpetuating his name through building projects, that his construction programs were extensive and paid for by heavy taxes, but that his masterpiece was the Temple of Jerusalem. Later, the sanctuary shekel was reinstituted to support the temple as the temple tax. According to

, the construction of the Temple itself took about a year and a half, while the porticoes and outer walls required a further eight years. During the works, Herod was careful not to offend religious sensitivities: ten thousand laborers and a thousand priests were specially trained for the construction, daily offerings continued uninterrupted, and modesty partitions were erected to shield sacred rituals from view. While the main structures were largely completed during Herod's reign, construction at the complex continued for decades, possibly until the 60s CE, as reflected in the

New Testament The New Testament (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus, as well as events relating to Christianity in the 1st century, first-century Christianit ...

's mention of 46 years of work and Josephus' reference to additions under the procurator Lucceius Albinus (c. 62–64 CE).

Under Roman rule

In the early 40s CE, a major crisis erupted when the Emperor

Caligula Gaius Caesar Augustus Germanicus (31 August 12 – 24 January 41), also called Gaius and Caligula (), was Roman emperor from AD 37 until his assassination in 41. He was the son of the Roman general Germanicus and Augustus' granddaughter Ag ...

ordered that a statue of himself be installed in the Temple—a move that would have deeply violated Jewish religious beliefs prohibiting idolatry. The Jewish population in Judaea and Galilee responded with mass protests and passive resistance, including a sit-in to block the Roman army from transporting the statue. Jewish leaders also mobilized diplomatically:

Philo Philo of Alexandria (; ; ; ), also called , was a Hellenistic Jewish philosopher who lived in Alexandria, in the Roman province of Egypt. The only event in Philo's life that can be decisively dated is his representation of the Alexandrian J ...

, in Rome as part of a delegation representing the Jews of Alexandria, appealed to Caligula, while Agrippa I, a Herodian prince and confidant of the emperor, attempted to dissuade him. The crisis was ultimately averted with Caligula's assassination in 41 CE.

In rabbinic literature

Traditional

rabbinic literature Rabbinic literature, in its broadest sense, is the entire corpus of works authored by rabbis throughout Jewish history. The term typically refers to literature from the Talmudic era (70–640 CE), as opposed to medieval and modern rabbinic ...

states that the Second Temple stood for 420 years, and, based on the 2nd-century work , placed construction in 356 BCE (3824 AM), 164 years later than academic estimates, and destruction in 68 CE (3828 AM). According to the

Mishnah The Mishnah or the Mishna (; , from the verb ''šānā'', "to study and review", also "secondary") is the first written collection of the Jewish oral traditions that are known as the Oral Torah. Having been collected in the 3rd century CE, it is ...

, the " Foundation Stone" stood where the Ark used to be, and the High Priest put his censer on it on Yom Kippur. The fifth order, or division, of the Mishnah, known as

Kodashim 150px, Pidyon haben Kodashim () is the fifth of the six orders, or major divisions, of the Mishnah, Tosefta and the Talmud, and deals largely with the services within the Temple in Jerusalem, its maintenance and design, the ''korbanot'', or sa ...

, provides detailed descriptions and discussions of the religious laws connected with Temple service including the sacrifices, the Temple and its furnishings, as well as the priests who carried out the duties and ceremonies of its service. Tractates of the order deal with the sacrifices of animals, birds, and meal offerings, the laws of bringing a sacrifice, such as the sin offering and the guilt offering, and the laws of misappropriation of sacred property. In addition, the order contains a description of the Second Temple ( tractate Middot), and a description and rules about the daily sacrifice service in the Temple ( tractate Tamid). According to the

Babylonian Talmud The Talmud (; ) is the central text of Rabbinic Judaism and the primary source of Jewish religious law (''halakha'') and Jewish theology. Until the advent of modernity, in nearly all Jewish communities, the Talmud was the centerpiece of Jewi ...

, the Temple lacked the (the dwelling or settling divine presence of God) and the (holy spirit) present in the First Temple.

Architecture of Herod's Temple

The Second Temple in Jerusalem was remarkable for its sheer size, surpassing typical temples in the Roman Empire. Fig66temple

The writings of Flavius Josephus and the information in tractate Middot of the

had for long been used for proposing possible designs for the Temple up to 70 CE. The discovery of the Temple Scroll as part of the

Dead Sea Scrolls The Dead Sea Scrolls, also called the Qumran Caves Scrolls, are a set of List of Hebrew Bible manuscripts, ancient Jewish manuscripts from the Second Temple period (516 BCE – 70 CE). They were discovered over a period of ten years, between ...

in the 20th century provided another possible source. Lawrence Schiffman states that after studying Josephus and the Temple Scroll, he found Josephus to be historically more reliable than the Temple Scroll.

Temple structure

The Temple itself once stood on the location now occupied by the

Dome of the Rock The Dome of the Rock () is an Islamic shrine at the center of the Al-Aqsa mosque compound on the Temple Mount in the Old City (Jerusalem), Old City of Jerusalem. It is the world's oldest surviving work of Islamic architecture, the List_of_the_ol ...

, while its gates led to areas adjacent to what would later become the site of the

Al-Aqsa Mosque The Aqsa Mosque, also known as the Qibli Mosque or Qibli Chapel is the main congregational mosque or Musalla, prayer hall in the Al-Aqsa mosque compound in the Old City (Jerusalem), Old City of Jerusalem. In some sources the building is also n ...

. Leen and Kathleen Ritmeyer (1998). ''Secrets of Jerusalem's Temple Mount''. A golden vine adorned the gates of the Temple; it is described by both Josephus and the Mishnah. Its fame reached as far as Rome, where it was mentioned by the historian

Tacitus Publius Cornelius Tacitus, known simply as Tacitus ( , ; – ), was a Roman historian and politician. Tacitus is widely regarded as one of the greatest Roman historians by modern scholars. Tacitus’ two major historical works, ''Annals'' ( ...

Temenos expansion, date and duration

Reconstruction of the temple under Herod began with a massive expansion of the Temple Mount temenos. For example, the Temple Mount complex initially measured in size, but Herod expanded it to and so doubled its area. Herod's work on the Temple is generally dated from 20/19 BCE until 12/11 or 10 BCE. Writer Bieke Mahieu dates the work on the Temple enclosures from 25 BCE and that on the Temple building in 19 BCE, and situates the dedication of both in November 18 BCE.

Elements

Platform, substructures, retaining walls

Mt. Moriah had a plateau at the northern end, and steeply declined on the southern slope. It was Herod's plan that the entire mountain be turned into a giant square platform. The Temple Mount was originally intended to be wide by broad by 9 stories high, with walls up to thick, but had never been finished. To complete it, a trench was dug around the mountain, and huge stone blocks were laid. Some of these weighed well over 100 tons, the largest measuring and weighing approximately 567–628 tons.

Court of the Gentiles

The Court of the Gentiles was primarily a

bazaar A bazaar or souk is a marketplace consisting of multiple small Market stall, stalls or shops, especially in the Middle East, the Balkans, Central Asia, North Africa and South Asia. They are traditionally located in vaulted or covered streets th ...

, with vendors selling souvenirs, sacrificial animals, food. Currency was also exchanged, with Roman currency exchanged for Tyrian money, as also mentioned in the New Testament account of Jesus and the Money Changers, when Jerusalem was packed with Jewish pilgrims who had come for Passover, perhaps numbering 300,000 to 400,000. Funk, Robert W. and the Jesus Seminar. ''The Acts of Jesus: The Search for the Authentic Deeds of Jesus.'' HarperSanFrancisco. 1998. Above the Huldah Gates, on top the Temple walls, was the Royal Stoa, a large

basilica In Ancient Roman architecture, a basilica (Greek Basiliké) was a large public building with multiple functions that was typically built alongside the town's forum. The basilica was in the Latin West equivalent to a stoa in the Greek Eas ...

praised by Josephus as "more worthy of mention than any other tructureunder the sun"; its main part was a lengthy Hall of Columns which includes 162 columns, structured in four rows. The Royal Stoa is widely accepted to be part of Herod's work; however, recent archaeological finds in the Western Wall tunnels suggest that it was built in the first century during the reign of Agripas, as opposed to the 1st century BCE.

Pinnacle

The accounts of the temptation of Christ in the gospels of Matthew and Luke both suggest that the Second Temple had one or more ' pinnacles': The Greek word used is (), which literally means a tower, rampart, or pinnacle. According to ''

Strong's Concordance ''The Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible'', generally known as Strong's Concordance, is a Bible concordance, an index of every word in the King James Version (KJV), constructed under the direction of American theologian James Strong. Strong fi ...

'', it can mean little wing, or by extension anything like a wing such as a battlement or parapet. The archaeologist Benjamin Mazar thought it referred to the southeast corner of the Temple overlooking the Kidron Valley.

Inner courts

According to Josephus, there were ten entrances into the inner courts, four on the south, four on the north, one on the east and one leading east to west from the Court of Women to the court of the Israelites, named the Nicanor Gate. According to Josephus, Herod the Great erected a golden eagle over the great gate of the Temple.

Roofs

states that "the teams of archaeologists Nahman Avigad in 1969–1980 in the Herodian city of Jerusalem, and Yigael Shiloh in 1978–1982, in the city of David" have proven that the roofs of the Second Temple had no

dome A dome () is an architectural element similar to the hollow upper half of a sphere. There is significant overlap with the term cupola, which may also refer to a dome or a structure on top of a dome. The precise definition of a dome has been a m ...

. In this, they support Josephus' description of the Second Temple.

Pilgrimages and religious services

Pilgrimages

Jews from distant parts of the Roman Empire would arrive by boat at the port of

Jaffa Jaffa (, ; , ), also called Japho, Joppa or Joppe in English, is an ancient Levantine Sea, Levantine port city which is part of Tel Aviv, Tel Aviv-Yafo, Israel, located in its southern part. The city sits atop a naturally elevated outcrop on ...

, where they would join a caravan for the three-day journey to the Holy City and secure lodgings in one of the many hotels or hostelries. Thereafter, they would exchange some of their money from the standard Greek and Roman currency to

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

and Tyrian money, the latter two considered acceptable for religious use.Sanders, E. P. ''The Historical Figure of Jesus''. Penguin, 1993. Ehrman, Bart D. Jesus, Interrupted, HarperCollins, 2009. Mishnah ''Bikkurim'' 3:3–4 provides a detailed account of how pilgrims were welcomed to Jerusalem during the festival of Shavuot:

Those who lived near erusalemwould bring fresh figs and grapes, while those who lived far away would bring dried figs and raisins. An ox would go in front of them, his horns bedecked with gold and with an olive-crown on its head. The flute would play before them ..When they drew close to Jerusalem they would send messengers in advance, and they would adorn their ''bikkurim''. The governors and chiefs and treasurers would go out to greet them, and according to the rank of the entrants they would go forth. All the skilled artisans of Jerusalem would stand up before them and greet them saying, "Our brothers, men of such and such a place, we welcome you in peace." ..When they reached the Temple Mount even King Agrippas would take the basket and place it on his shoulder ..When he got to the Temple Court, the Levites would sing the song: "I will extol You, O Lord, for You have raised me up, and You have not let my enemies rejoice over me" (Psalms 30:2).

This passage reflects the public and ceremonial nature of the pilgrimage, as well as the communal ethos fostered by shared ritual, music, and mutual recognition. The idea that pilgrimage helped promote social cohesion is also expressed by Josephus, who writes:

Let them come together three times a year from the ends of the land that the Hebrews conquer, into the city in which they establish the Temple, in order that they may give thanks to God for the benefits that they have received and that they may appeal for benefits for the nature and coming together and taking a common meal, may they be dear to each other. For it is well that they not be ignorant of one another, being compatriots and sharing in the same practices. This will occur for them through such intermingling, instilling a memory of them through sight and association, for if they remain unmixed with one another they will be thought completely strangers to each other.

The Jerusalem Temple held central importance not only for Jews in Judaea, but also for Jewish communities in the

Diaspora A diaspora ( ) is a population that is scattered across regions which are separate from its geographic place of birth, place of origin. The word is used in reference to people who identify with a specific geographic location, but currently resi ...

, a Jewish philosopher from

Alexandria Alexandria ( ; ) is the List of cities and towns in Egypt#Largest cities, second largest city in Egypt and the List of coastal settlements of the Mediterranean Sea, largest city on the Mediterranean coast. It lies at the western edge of the Nile ...

, writes:

Countless multitudes from countless cities come, some over land, others by sea, from east and west and north and south at every feast. They take the temple for their port as a general haven and safe refuge from the bustle and great turmoil of life, and there they seek to find calm weather, and, released from the cares whose yoke has been heavy upon them from their earliest years, to enjoy a brief breathing space in scenes of genial cheerfulness.

The importance of the Temple for the Diaspora is further illustrated by the delegation led by Philo and other Alexandrian Jews to Emperor

, during which they appealed against the proposed installation of the emperor’s statue in the Temple.

Pilgrimage festivals

Passover

On the 14th of

Nisan Nisan (or Nissan; from ) in the Babylonian and Hebrew calendars is the month of the barley ripening and first month of spring. The name of the month is an Akkadian language borrowing, although it ultimately originates in Sumerian ''nisag' ...

, the eve of

, participants would bring a lamb or kid to the Temple for sacrifice. The slaughtering took place in the Temple courtyards, typically in the afternoon—between the ninth and eleventh hours (roughly 3–5 PM)—according to Josephus, who also notes that groups of 10 to 20 people shared each animal. The Mishnah records that the sacrifices were performed in three organized batches, with priests assisting by collecting and pouring the blood at the base of the altar. Once slaughtered, the animals were roasted—in clay ovens, according to the Mishnah—and eaten later that night, along with unleavened bread ( ''matzah'') and bitter herbs ('' maror''), in accordance with Exodus 12. Participants also recited the Hallel during the meal.

Shavuot

was observed on the fiftieth day following the waving of the '''omer'' (barley offering). Celebrated in the month of Sivan, it marked the beginning of the wheat harvest and served as the conclusion of the Passover season, earning it the alternative name '''Atseret'' ("conclusion") in some sources. The central Temple ritual in Shavuot was the offering of the "two loaves" of wheat bread, along with prescribed animal sacrifices, as outlined in the Torah. According to rabbinic tradition, while new grain (''ḥadash'') was permitted for general use after the omer offering, wheat for meal offerings in the Temple was permitted only from Shavuot onward. Shavuot also functioned as the festival of first fruits (''bikkurim''), during which pilgrims brought offerings from the seven species to the Temple priesthood. According to the Mishnah, these ''bikkurim'' could be brought from Shavuot until Sukkot.

Sukkot

The pilgrimage festival of

, which began on the 15th of Tishrei and lasted seven days, was regarded as the preeminent Jewish festival during the Second Temple period. Its centrality is evident in the ancient sources, some referring to it simply as "the Festival". Temple offerings during Sukkot involved a extraoridnarily high number of animals sacrificed daily as required by the Torah. Central to the celebration was the procession with the ' Four Species' (which derives from Leviticus 23)—a palm branch ('' lulav''), myrtle (''hadas''),

willow Willows, also called sallows and osiers, of the genus ''Salix'', comprise around 350 species (plus numerous hybrids) of typically deciduous trees and shrubs, found primarily on moist soils in cold and temperate regions. Most species are known ...

( ''aravah''), and citron ( ''etrog'')—which were carried, and according to the Mishnah, shaken, during the recitation of Psalm 118. Another key ritual was the willow ceremony, in which large willow branches were placed around the altar. Participants would circle the altar once each day and seven times on the seventh day, reciting Psalm 118 and concluding with the beating of branches. According to the Mishnah, the willow ceremony overrode the Shabbat, though the Boethusians objecting to this ruling. The water libation ritual, symbolizing the onset of the rainy season, involved water drawn from the Pool of Siloam and poured by the priest at the altar each day. Each night, this ritual was preceded by the Simchat Beit HaShoevah, a night-long celebration held in the Temple courtyards, characterized by music, dancing, and the lighting of bonfires. The Levites stood on the steps leading to the Nicanor Gate, chanting the "Songs of Ascent" from the Book of Psalms.

Yom Kippur

Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement commanded in the Torah and observed on the tenth of Tishrei, was marked by a special Temple service performed by the high priest, as described in

Leviticus 16 Acharei Mot (also Aharei Mot, Aharei Moth, or Acharei Mos, ) is the 29th weekly Torah portion in the annual cycle of Torah reading in Judaism. It is the sixth parashah or weekly portion () in the Book of Leviticus, containing Leviticus 16:1– ...

and later elaborated in Mishnah Yoma. The high priest prepared for a week prior to the festival through isolation, purification, and instruction. On the day itself, he put on white linen garments after the morning ''tamid'' sacrifice, offered a bull and a goat as sin offerings, and entered the Holy of Holies multiple times to sprinkle blood on the

Mercy seat According to the Hebrew Bible, the ''kaporet'' ( ''kapōreṯ'') or mercy seat was the gold lid placed on the Ark of the Covenant, with two cherubim at the ends to cover and create the space in which Yahweh appeared and dwelled. This was connecte ...

and pronounce the Divine Name. He also carried out the scapegoat ritual, confessing Israel's sins over a second goat and sending it into the wilderness. After further immersions and changes of garments, the high priest concluded the day with additional sacrifices and the evening ''tamid''.

Archaeology

Archaeological understanding of the Second Temple is primarily derived from investigations of the outer walls of the Temple complex, as direct excavations on the Temple Mount itself have been limited due to the presence of later Islamic structures. Foundational research was conducted by Sir Charles Warren between 1867 and 1870; his work remains a principal source for the site's architectural layout.

Temple warning inscriptions

In 1871, a hewn stone measuring and engraved with Greek uncials was discovered near a court on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem and identified by Charles Simon Clermont-Ganneau as being the Temple Warning inscription. The stone inscription outlined the prohibition extended to those who were not of the Jewish nation to proceed beyond the separating the larger Court of the Gentiles and the inner courts. The inscription read in seven lines: Today, the stone is preserved in Istanbul's Museum of Antiquities. In 1935 a fragment of another similar Temple warning inscription was found. The word "foreigner" has an ambiguous meaning. Some scholars believe it referred to all gentiles, regardless of ritual purity status or religion. Others argue that it referred to unconverted Gentiles since Herod wrote the inscription. Herod himself was a converted Idumean (or Edomite) and was unlikely to exclude himself or his descendants.

Place of trumpeting

Another ancient inscription, partially preserved on a stone discovered below the southwest corner of the Herodian Mount, contains the words "to the place of trumpeting". The stone's shape suggests that it was part of a parapet, and it has been interpreted as belonging to a spot on the Mount described by Josephus, "where one of the priests to stand and to give notice, by sound of trumpet, in the afternoon of the approach, and on the following evening of the close, of every seventh day" closely resembling what the

Talmud The Talmud (; ) is the central text of Rabbinic Judaism and the primary source of Jewish religious law (''halakha'') and Jewish theology. Until the advent of Haskalah#Effects, modernity, in nearly all Jewish communities, the Talmud was the cen ...

says.

Walls and gates of the Temple complex

After 1967, archaeologists found that the wall extended all the way around the Temple Mount and is part of the city wall near the Lions' Gate. Thus, the remaining part of the

is not only the Western Wall. Currently, Robinson's Arch (named after American Edward Robinson) remains as the beginning of an arch that spanned the gap between the top of the platform and the higher ground farther away. Visitors and pilgrims also entered through the still-extant, but now plugged, gates on the southern side that led through

colonnade In classical architecture, a colonnade is a long sequence of columns joined by their entablature, often free-standing, or part of a building. Paired or multiple pairs of columns are normally employed in a colonnade which can be straight or curv ...

s to the top of the platform. The Southern wall was designed as a grand entrance. Recent archaeological digs have found numerous (ritual baths) for the ritual purification of the worshipers, and a grand stairway leading to one of the now blocked entrances.

Underground structures

Inside the walls, the platform was supported by a series of vaulted archways, now called Solomon's Stables, which still exist. Their current renovation by the is extremely controversial.

Quarry

On September 25, 2007, Yuval Baruch,

archaeologist Archaeology or archeology is the study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of Artifact (archaeology), artifacts, architecture, biofact (archaeology), biofacts or ecofacts, ...

with the Israeli Antiquities Authority announced the discovery of a quarry compound that may have provided King Herod with the stones to build his Temple on the

. Coins, pottery and an iron stake found proved the date of the quarrying to be about 19 BCE. Archaeologist Ehud Netzer confirmed that the large outlines of the stone cuts is evidence that it was a massive public project worked by hundreds of slaves.

Floor tiling from courts

More recent findings from the Temple Mount Sifting Project include floor tiling from the Second Temple period.

Magdala stone interpretation

The Magdala stone is thought to be a representation of the Second Temple carved before its destruction in the year 70.

Destruction of the Temple

In 66 CE, the Jewish population of Judaea launched a

rebellion Rebellion is an uprising that resists and is organized against one's government. A rebel is a person who engages in a rebellion. A rebel group is a consciously coordinated group that seeks to gain political control over an entire state or a ...

against the Roman Empire. Four years later, on the Hebrew calendrical date of Tisha B'Av, either 4 August 70 or 30 August 70,

Roman legion The Roman legion (, ) was the largest military List of military legions, unit of the Roman army, composed of Roman citizenship, Roman citizens serving as legionary, legionaries. During the Roman Republic the manipular legion comprised 4,200 i ...

s under Titus retook and destroyed much of Jerusalem and Herod's Temple. Josephus, while an apologist for the Empire, claims the burning of the Temple was the impulsive act of a Roman soldier, despite Titus's orders to preserve it, whereas later Christian sources, traced to

, suggest that Titus himself authorized the destruction, a view currently favored by modern scholars, though the debate persists. Historical accounts relate that not only the Jewish Temple was destroyed, but also the entire Lower city of Jerusalem. Even so, according to Josephus, Titus did not totally raze the towers (such as the ''Tower of Phasael'', now erroneously called the

Tower of David The Tower of David (), also known as the Citadel (), is an ancient citadel and contemporary museum, located near the Jaffa Gate entrance to the Old City of Jerusalem, Old City of Jerusalem. The citadel that stands today dates to the Mamluk Sult ...

), keeping them as a memorial of the city's strength. The Midrash Rabba (''Eikha Rabba'' 1:32) recounts a similar episode related to the destruction of the city, according to which Rabban Yohanan ben Zakkai, during the Roman siege of Jerusalem, requested of

Vespasian Vespasian (; ; 17 November AD 9 – 23 June 79) was Roman emperor from 69 to 79. The last emperor to reign in the Year of the Four Emperors, he founded the Flavian dynasty, which ruled the Empire for 27 years. His fiscal reforms and consolida ...

that he spare the westernmost gates of the city () that lead to Lydda ( Lod). When the city was eventually taken, the Arab auxiliaries who had fought alongside the Romans under their general, Fanjar, also spared that westernmost wall from destruction. The

Arch of Titus The Arch of Titus (; ) is a 1st-century AD honorific arch, located on the Via Sacra, Rome, just to the south-east of the Roman Forum. It was constructed in 81 AD by Emperor Domitian shortly after the death of his older brother Titus to comm ...

, which was built in

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

to commemorate Titus's victory in Judea, depicts a

Roman triumph The Roman triumph (') was a civil ceremony and religious rite of ancient Rome, held to publicly celebrate and sanctify the success of a military commander who had led Roman forces to victory in the service of the state or, in some historical t ...

, with soldiers carrying spoils from the Temple, including the temple menorah. According to an inscription on the

Colosseum The Colosseum ( ; , ultimately from Ancient Greek word "kolossos" meaning a large statue or giant) is an Ellipse, elliptical amphitheatre in the centre of the city of Rome, Italy, just east of the Roman Forum. It is the largest ancient amphi ...

, Emperor

built the Colosseum with war spoils in 79–possibly from the spoils of the Second Temple. The sects of Judaism that had their base in the Temple dwindled in importance, including the priesthood and the

Sadducees The Sadducees (; ) were a sect of Jews active in Judea during the Second Temple period, from the second century BCE to the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 CE. The Sadducees are described in contemporary literary sources in contrast to ...

. Although Jews continued to inhabit the destroyed city, Emperor

Hadrian Hadrian ( ; ; 24 January 76 – 10 July 138) was Roman emperor from 117 to 138. Hadrian was born in Italica, close to modern Seville in Spain, an Italic peoples, Italic settlement in Hispania Baetica; his branch of the Aelia gens, Aelia '' ...

established a new Roman ''colonia'' called Aelia Capitolina. At the end of the

Bar Kokhba revolt The Bar Kokhba revolt (132–136 AD) was a major uprising by the Jews of Judaea (Roman province), Judaea against the Roman Empire, marking the final and most devastating of the Jewish–Roman wars. Led by Simon bar Kokhba, the rebels succeeded ...

in 135 CE, many of the Jewish communities were massacred. Jews were banned from entering Jerusalem. A

Roman temple Ancient Roman temples were among the most important buildings in culture of ancient Rome, Roman culture, and some of the richest buildings in Architecture of ancient Rome, Roman architecture, though only a few survive in any sort of complete ...

was set up on the former site of Herod's Temple for the practice of Roman religion.

Legacy

Jewish eschatology Jewish eschatology is the area of Jewish philosophy, Jewish theology concerned with events that will happen in the Eschatology, end of days and related concepts. This includes the ingathering of the exiled Jewish diaspora, diaspora, the coming ...

includes a belief that the Second Temple will be replaced by a future

Third Temple The "Third Temple" (, , ) refers to a hypothetical rebuilt Temple in Jerusalem. It would succeed the First Temple and the Second Temple, the former having been destroyed during the Babylonian siege of Jerusalem in and the latter having bee ...

in Jerusalem.

Notes

References

Modern sources

* * * * *

External links

Second Temple and Talmudic Era
The Jewish History Resource Center, Project of the Dinur Center for Research in Jewish History, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem
''Jewish Encyclopedia'': Temple of Herod''Jewish Encyclopedia'': Temple, The Second4 Enoch: The Online Encyclopedia of Second Temple Judaism
{{Authority control 1871 archaeological discoveries 1st-century BC religious buildings and structures 515 BC 6th-century BC religious buildings and structures 70 disestablishments 70s disestablishments in the Roman Empire Ancient Hebrew pilgrimage sites Hellenistic Jewish history Ancient Jewish Persian history Buildings and structures demolished in the 1st century Classical sites in Jerusalem Cyrus the Great Darius the Great Destroyed temples Ezra–Nehemiah Herod the Great Maccabean Revolt Jewish Persian and Iranian history Jews and Judaism in the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire Religion in ancient Israel and Judah