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The Temple’s Water Systems Were South of the Moriah Platform

The kings of Israel and Judah constructed underground tunnels and channels which enabled water from the Gihon Spring to be available in other areas of the city. Warren’s shaft and Hezekiah’s tunnel (which diverted the water from the Gihon to the Pool of Siloam) are examples of this subterranean water system of ancient Jerusalem. Biblical and historical texts report that King Hezekiah had a tunnel cut through the bedrock under the city of Jerusalem during the Assyrian siege. This tunnel has been discovered today beneath the southern portion of the Moriah ridge under the area of Davidic Jerusalem. (In the second quote below titled, “Warren’s Shaft,” the “old city” mentioned in connection with Warren’s Shaft refers to the original city of David, as any map of Warren’s Shaft reveals.)

Hezekiah's Tunnel – Hezekiah's Tunnel, or the Siloam Tunnel is a tunnel that was dug underneath the Ophel in Jerusalem about 701 BC during the reign of Hezekiah. It was probably a widening of a pre-existing cave and is mentioned in the Bible. The tunnel^[1], leading from^[2] the Gihon Spring to^[3] the Pool of Siloam, was designed to act as an aqueduct to provide Jerusalem with water during an impending siege by the Assyrians, led by Sennacherib. – wikipedia.org

Warren's Shaft – Warren's Shaft is an archaeological feature in Jerusalem found by Charles Warren in the late 18th century. It runs from within the old city to a spot near the Gihon Spring, and after its 18th century discovery was thought to have been the centrepiece of the city's early water supply system, since it would have enabled the city's occupants to safely reach fresh water (which was otherwise unavailable within the city) even if the city itself was besieged. – wikipedia.org

As we have seen, both Aristeas and Tacitus stated that channels had been constructed to bring the Gihon’s water to the Temple itself.

The Temple faces the east and its back is toward the west. The whole of the floor is paved with stones and slopes down to the appointed places, that water may be conveyed to wash away the 89 blood from the sacrifices, for many thousand beasts are sacrificed there on the feast days. And there is an inexhaustible supply of water, because an abundant natural spring gushes up from within the temple area. – Letter of Aristeas, ccel.org, http://www.ccel.org/...

Accordingly he pitched his camp, as I have related, before the walls of Jerusalem, and displayed his legions in order of battle….The temple resembled a citadel, and had its own walls, which were more laboriously constructed than the others. Even the colonnades with which it was surrounded formed an admirable outwork. It contained an inexhaustible spring; there were subterranean excavations in the hill, and tanks and cisterns for holding rain water. – Tacitus, the Histories, Book 5

These subterranean excavations which channelled water from the Gihon Spring to the Temple courts have been discovered in the area of Davidic Jerusalem south of the Moriah Platform. While many cisterns have been found in the northern portion of the Moriah ridge within the Moriah Platform, all of the channels connected to the Gihon Spring are south of the Moriah Platform. Warren’s Shaft, Hezekiah’s tunnel, and the rest of the subterranean water system of ancient Jerusalem and the Gihon Spring are all beneath the ground of the southern portion of the Moriah ridge, south of the Moriah Platform.

We must be clear, the Temple had direct access to the natural spring water of the Gihon rather than a simple, cistern-based water supply.

Cistern – A cistern (Middle English cisterne, from Latin cisterna, from cista, box, from Greek kistê, basket) ^[1] is a receptacle for holding liquids, usually water. Often cisterns are built to catch and store rainwater. They range in capacity from a few litres to thousands of cubic metres (effectively covered reservoirs). – wikipedia.org

The prophet Jeremiah confirms this fact. In Jeremiah 2, God compares Himself to a natural spring and contrasts Himself with a cistern.

Jeremiah 2:13 For my people have committed two evils; they have forsaken me the fountain of living waters, and hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water.

Other biblical references also indicate that the Temple’s location was associated with spring waters. Both Ezekiel 47 and Joel 3 prophecy that a spring will issue forth from the Temple itself.

Ezekiel 47:1 Afterward he brought me again unto the door of the house; and, behold, waters issued out from under the threshold of the house eastward: for the forefront of the house stood toward the east, and the waters came down from under from the right side of the house, at the south side of the altar.

Joel 3:18 And it shall come to pass in that day, that the mountains shall drop down new wine, and the hills shall flow with milk, and all the rivers of Judah shall flow with waters, and a fountain shall come forth of the house of the LORD, and shall water the valley of Shittim.

Now, we must again be clear, Ezekiel and Joel do not mention the Gihon Spring by name. These passages combined with the descriptions of 1 Kings 1, Psalm 46, Aristeas, Tacitus, and the archeological evidence of a water system beneath the Jerusalem of David’s time, all confirm that the Temple was located near the Gihon Spring on the southern portion of the Moriah ridge. Other historical evidences and archeological discoveries also demonstrate the close proximity of the Temple to the Gihon Spring.

First, in the times of the Temples, there was a ceremony of “water drawing” in which water was drawn from the Gihon Spring for use in the Temple rituals.

Indeed, even later in Herod’s Temple with the ceremony of the “Water Drawing” (the joyous festivity in the Temple at the Feast of Tabernacles), the waters were obtained from the Siloam water system, 413 and these waters came from the Gihon. This ritual was looked on as drawing “water out of the wells of salvation.” 414, Footnote 413: Sukkah 21a, 48a,b., Footnote 414: Isaiah 12:3. – Ernest L. Martin, The Temples that Jerusalem Forgot, p. 311

Indeed, we are told in the Mishnah that the symbolic waters of the “Water Drawing” were collected in a pitcher from Shiloah….418, Footnote 418: Middoth 2:6. This symbolic ritual is also described in detail in Sukkah 4:9. In Sukkah 4:10 the Mishnah states that if the time for the rite occurs on the Sabbath, then priests could collect the needed water from the laver. Why from the laver? It was simply because even waters brought in great abundance into the laver, were waters from the Siloam water system with its origin in the Gihon. – Ernest L. Martin, The Temples that Jerusalem Forgot, p. 311

Libation Flask - This flask was designed for the water libation which takes places during the festival of Sukkot (Tabernacles) in the Holy Temple. The Festival of the Water Libation, the ceremony of drawing water from the Siloam Spring (in the City of David), is concluded by carrying the water back to the Holy Temple in this vessel, where it is poured on the altar. Activities on the Festival of Sukkot This is one of the more fabulous sights in the Temple: the celebrations on the Festival of Sukkot (Tabernacles). At the foot of the outer altar, a tall willow bough is fixed in place so that the heads of its branches bend over the top of the altar. In addition to this, both water and wine libations are poured, and the trumpets are sounded by the priests from atop a marble table. This is the grand finale of the nightlong festivities which accompany the drawing of water from the Siloam Spring. Water Libation Flask - This flask is designed for pouring water upon the altar, part of a ceremony which takes place during the Festival of Sukkot (Tabernacles) in the Holy Temple. The Festival of the Water Libation, the joyous ceremony of drawing water from the Siloam Spring (in the City of David), is concluded by carrying the water back to the Holy Temple in this vessel, where it is poured out on the altar. – templeinstitute.org

Simchat Beit HaShoeivah - In the days of the Temple in Jerusalem, a unique service was performed every morning throughout the Sukkot holiday: the Nisuch HaMayim (lit. "pouring of the water") or Water Libation Ceremony. According to the Talmud, Sukkot is the time of year in which God judges the world for rainfall; therefore this ceremony, like the taking of the Four Species, invokes God's blessing for rain in its proper time. The water for the libation ceremony was drawn from the Pool of Siloam (Hebrew: Breikhat HaShiloah‎) in the City of David, and the joy that accompanied this procedure was palpable. (This is the source for the verse in Isaiah: "And you shall draw waters with joy from the wells of salvation" (Isa. 12:3). Afterwards, every night in the outer Temple courtyard, tens of thousands of spectators would gather to watch the Simchat Beit HaShoeivah (Rejoicing at the Place of the Water-Drawing), as the most pious members of the community danced and sang songs of praise to God. The dancers would carry lighted torches, and were accompanied by the harps, lyres, cymbals and trumpets of the Levites. According to the Mishnah, Tractate Sukkah, "He who has not seen the rejoicing at the Place of the Water-Drawing has never seen rejoicing in his life." Throughout Sukkot, the city of Jerusalem teemed with Jewish families who came on the holiday pilgrimage and joined together for feasting and Torah study. – wikipedia.org

Second, recent publications report to have discovered the mikvah of the high priest. A mikvah is a bath or bathing pool. Mikvahs required a natural source of water (such as spring water) for the purposes of ritual cleansing.

Mikvah – Mikvah (or mikveh) is a ritual bath designed for the purpose of ritual immersion in Judaism. The word "mikvah", as used in the Hebrew Bible, literally means a "collection" - generally, a collection of water.^[3] Several biblical regulations specify that full immersion in water is required to regain ritual purity after ritually impure incidents have occurred. Most forms of impurity can be nullified through immersion in any natural collection of water. Some, such as a Zav, however require "living water,"^[4] such as springs or groundwater wells. Living water has the further advantage of being able to purify even while flowing as opposed to rainwater which must be stationary in order to purify. The mikvah is designed to simplify this requirement, by providing a bathing facility that remains in ritual contact with a natural source of water. Mikvahs were not always by immersion, as the practice in pre second temple Judaism could refer to numerous sorts of washings for ritual purity. – wikipedia.org

It is significant to note that an important mikvah bath has been discovered in the archeological site that is today called “The City of David” south of the Moriah Platform. The water used in this mikvah bath was supplied by the Gihon Spring. The use of this term “City of David” does not refer to the Fortress of Zion, which in the Bible is called the City of David. Instead, the archeological area is today called “the City of David” in order to identify the area occupied by the Jerusalem in David’s time. Again, for reference, we point out that this area is south of the Moriah Platform and nearly 1/5 mile (approx. 1/3 km) south of the Dome of the Rock itself.

On their website, templemountfaithful.org reports as follows regarding the discovery of this mikvah bath.

Recently taken photographs in Hezekiah's tunnel in the City of David in Jerusalem prove that under the steps leading to the tunnel through which the water from the Gihon Spring runs to the City of David there are more underground spaces which were not previously known. The researchers believe that these spaces were used as a Mikvah for the special purification of the High priest in the Second Temple era. - http://www.templemountfaithful.org/...

These new photographs reveal that the water actually followed a long path from the spring to the tunnel. Inside, these underground spaces were used as a Mikvah for the High Priest whose purification needed to be perfect and in a separate place. David Be'eri, leader of the Jewish citizens of the City of David, shared that a diver went into the spaces with an underwater camera and that research will continue to find the total route that the water took from the Gihon Spring to the tunnel. - http://www.templemountfaithful.org/...

Videos documenting this find are available online at:

http://www.truveo.com/City-of-David-Mikveh/...

In his work Legends of Jerusalem, Zev Vilnay explains that the mikvah bath of Ishmael, a high priest of the second Temple era, was supplied by the Gihon Spring and that was in the courtyard of the Temple. This is just as Aristeas and Tacitus recorded in their accounts.

To the Jews of Jerusalem, the Fountain of Gihon is known as the Bath of Ishmael the High Priest. They relate that on the Day of Atonement, before entering the Holy of Holies, the high priest used to dip his body and purify himself in its waters. – Zev Vilnay, Legends of Jerusalem, p. 277.

The ritual bath of the high priest was in the Temple courtyard; see legend VIII:2. – Zev Vilnay, Legends of Jerusalem, p. 277.

It is said of the Fountain of Gihon: ‘It was the ritual bath of Rabbi Ishmael the high priest,’ who was among the ‘ten martyrs of Israel.’ And a big fountain fills it with water every day before the break of dawn; and the waters were sweet and pure from the moment they gushed forth from the spring till sunrise. But after the sun shined and flashed its rays over the surface, they became so salty that no man could drink from them. – Zev Vilnay, Legends of Jerusalem, p. 277.

In the Temple courtyard there was a bathhouse for the high priest. He used to immerse himself in water on the eve of the Day of Atonement.” – Zev Vilnay, Legends of Jerusalem, p. 88

Recent archeological excavation has located a Jewish ritual bathing pool used by the high priest for purification purposes. This mikvah was filled by waters from the Gihon Spring using tunnels cut through the bedrock beneath the area of Davidic Jerusalem south of the Moriah Platform. Rabbi Ishmael used a mikvah bath which was within the courts of the Temple itself during the second Temple period. Some Jewish groups today have identified this mikvah as the mikvah of Rabbi Ishmael. This archeological information fits very well with the idea presented in the biblical texts and by Aristeas and Tacitus. The Temple did in fact have spring water available in its courts supplied by the Gihon Spring. And this mikvah was used by the high priest for the purposes of ritual purification before conducting his ceremonial duties at the Temple.

If this mikvah bath which has been found in the City of David archeological site is the mikvah of Rabbi Ishmael the high priest, then it constitutes a decisive piece of evidence that Temple was built very near the Gihon water-system on the southern portion of the Moriah ridge. This data fits with other indications that the Temple was near the fortress on the summit of the hill of Zion which was also very near the Gihon Spring (1 Kings 1). These facts all strongly support the view that the Temple was south of the Moriah Platform and near the Gihon Spring area of the hill of Zion which was the site of Davidic Jerusalem.

God’s Dwelling Was in Zion

Further evidence that the Temple was located very near the fortress of Zion hill comes from biblical names used to describe the Temple. For instance, God’s dwelling in the Temple and His dwelling in the tabernacle in Zion Fortress are described in the Old Testament using the same language. Biblically speaking, God dwelled on the hill of Zion in the middle of Jerusalem both before and after the Temple was built. We know what the bible means when it says that God dwelled in Zion before the Temple was built. It meant that God’s dwelling was located at a site on the area of the hill of Zion which was Davidic Jerusalem. Ongoing biblical descriptions that God continued to dwell in Zion even after the Temple was built would demand a similar conclusion, God’s dwelling place was still somewhere on the hill of Zion on the southern portion of the Moriah ridge south of the Moriah Platform that we see today.

2 Samuel 7 tells us that it was David’s desired to build a house for God to dwell in at Jerusalem. However, God said that David would not be the one build His house. Instead, during David’s lifetime the Ark of the Covenant was placed within a tabernacle (or tent) in the Fortress of Zion (the City of David). In numerous ways, subsequent references to “God’s dwelling” continue to locate it in the area of Zion, the original City of David. This continues to be the case even after the Temple was built by Solomon, In turn, this rules out a location on the Moriah Platform far outside the city of that time.

In this passage, God’s house (or Temple) is described as a place where God would dwell.

2 Samuel 7:2 That the king said unto Nathan the prophet, See now, I dwell in an house of cedar, but the ark of God dwelleth (03427) within curtains….5 Go and tell my servant David, Thus saith the LORD, Shalt thou build me an house for me to dwell (03427) in?

This concept of God’s “dwelling” (Strong’s number 03427) is presented throughout the Old Testament texts. The idea is that God dwelled between the two cherubim on the Mercy Seat of the Ark of the Covenant.

2 Samuel 6:2 And David arose, and went with all the people that were with him from Baale of Judah, to bring up from thence the ark of God, whose name is called by the name of the LORD of hosts that dwelleth (03427) between the cherubims.

1 Chronicles 13:6 And David went up, and all Israel, to Baalah, that is, to Kirjathjearim, which belonged to Judah, to bring up thence the ark of God the LORD, that dwelleth (03427) between the cherubims, whose name is called on it.

Psalm 113:5 Who is like unto the LORD our God, who dwelleth (03427) on high,

So, during David’s time, God’s presence dwelled above the Ark. And Ark was within the tabernacle inside the fortress at the summit of the hill of Zion (the City of David). This high peak was inside Davidic Jerusalem on the southern portion of the Moriah ridge, south of where the Moriah Platform stands today. Biblical texts describe this place on Zion hill as God’s dwelling place and the “holy hill.” Psalms 76 and 15 even make reference to the fact that in David’s time God dwelled in a tabernacle on Zion hill.

Psalm 76:2 In Salem also is his tabernacle, and his dwelling (04585) place in Zion.

Psalm 74:2 Remember thy congregation, which thou hast purchased of old; the rod of thine inheritance, which thou hast redeemed; this mount (02022) Zion, wherein thou hast dwelt.

Psalm 15:1 LORD, who shall abide in thy tabernacle? who shall dwell in thy holy hill (02022)?

Psalm 2:6 Yet have I set my king upon my holy hill (02022) of Zion.

Because Zion was the hill that was occupied by David’s Jerusalem, biblical texts also speak of God’s dwelling “within Jerusalem.” Notice the way Psalm 134 and 147 use Zion and Jerusalem interchangeably. Since Jerusalem was situated on the hill of Zion, it was accurate to refer to the city itself as the city of Zion, or simply Zion. In other words, Jerusalem was the city that occupied the hill called Zion.

Psalm 48:1. Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised in the city of our God, in the mountain (02022) of his holiness.

Psalm 135:21 Blessed be the LORD out of Zion, which dwelleth at Jerusalem. Praise ye the LORD.

Psalm 147:12 Praise the LORD, O Jerusalem; praise thy God, O Zion.

Zechariah 8:3 and 2:10-11 provide additional examples of the interchangeable usage of the terms “Zion” and “Jerusalem.” Zechariah was written around 450 years after the Temple was built by Solomon (circa 520 BC). He states that God would dwell in Zion and Jerusalem. This clearly indicates that, even 450 years after the Temple was built, God still dwelled in the hill of Zion on the southern portion of the Moriah ridge. This makes perfect sense because Josephus and First Maccabees explained that the Temple adjoined the Fortress of Zion and was, in fact, built on a small peak on the side of (over against) the hill of Zion.

Zechariah 8:3 Thus saith the LORD; I am returned unto Zion, and will dwell (07931) in the midst (08432) of Jerusalem: and Jerusalem shall be called a city of truth; and the mountain of the LORD of hosts the holy mountain.

Zechariah 2:10 Sing and rejoice, O daughter of Zion: for, lo, I come, and I will dwell in the midst (08432) of thee, saith the LORD. 11 And many nations shall be joined to the LORD in that day, and shall be my people: and I will dwell in the midst (08432) of thee, and thou shalt know that the LORD of hosts hath sent me unto thee.

It would not be possible for Zechariah to say that God dwelled on the hill of Zion unless the Temple site was located somewhere on the hill of Zion or within the area of this hill. If the Temple was on another hill besides Zion, outside the area of Zion, then it would not be accurate to say that God dwelled in Zion after the Temple was built. And yet this is what these texts from the time of the Temple do say.

Psalm 116 speaks of the courts of the Lord’s house. References to “courts” and “house” indicate that this is discussing the Temple and not David’s temporary tabernacle for the Ark.

Psalm 116:19 In the courts of the LORD’S house, in the midst (08432) of thee, O Jerusalem. Praise ye the LORD.

The Hebrew word translated as “midst” (“tavek,” Strong’s number 08432) in Psalm 116:19 is also used in the following passages. In each of them the word “midst” clearly means “within” or “inside of.” More verses could have been added to this sample. But the following are adequate to demonstrate this word’s meaning.

2 Samuel 6:17And they brought in the ark of the LORD, and set it in his place, in the midst (08432) of the tabernacle that David had pitched for it: and David offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before the LORD.

Exodus 3:2 And the angel of the LORD appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst (08432) of a bush: and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed.

Exodus 14:22 And the children of Israel went into the midst (08432) of the sea upon the dry ground: and the waters were a wall unto them on their right hand, and on their left.

Exodus 24:16 And the glory of the LORD abode upon mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it six days: and the seventh day he called unto Moses out of the midst (08432) of the cloud.

1 Samuel 9:14 And they went up into (08432) the city: and when they were come into the city, behold, Samuel came out against them, for to go up to the high place.

1 Kings 6:19 And the oracle he prepared in (08432) the house within, to set there the ark of the covenant of the LORD.

In 2 Samuel 6, the Ark of the Covenant is placed “within” or “inside” the tabernacle. It is not “outside, and slightly away from” the tabernacle. Similarly, in Exodus 3:2 the Lord appears “within” the burning bush, not beside it. And in Exodus 14:22, the Israelites miraculously went through the Red Sea not around it. In Exodus 24:16, the Lord was within or inside the cloud that covered Mount Sinai. He was not adjacent to and outside the cloud. In 1 Samuel 9:14, they go up into the city. They do not remain 1/5 mile outside from the city. And in 1 Kings 6:19, the Ark of the Covenant is placed within or inside the Temple that Solomon had built. It is not left outside the Temple.

The use of this Hebrew word “tavek” (Strong’s number 08432) in these passages clearly indicates that according to Psalm 116:19 the Temple was within the area of ancient Jerusalem. And yet the same words are used in Zechariah to say that the Lord’s dwelling place was on the hill of Zion and in the middle of Jerusalem.

Similarly, Psalms 76:2, 2:6, 15:1, 24:3, 48:1, and 74:2 all place God’s dwelling place in Zion and in Jerusalem.

Psalm 76:2 In Salem also is his tabernacle, and his dwelling (04585) place in Zion.

Psalm 2:6 Yet have I set my king upon my holy hill (02022) of Zion.

Psalm 15:1 LORD, who shall abide in thy tabernacle? who shall dwell in thy holy hill (02022)?

Psalm 24:3 Who shall ascend into the hill (02022) of the LORD? or who shall stand in his holy place?

Psalm 48:1. Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised in the city of our God, in the mountain (02022) of his holiness.

Psalm 74:2 Remember thy congregation, which thou hast purchased of old; the rod of thine inheritance, which thou hast redeemed; this mount (02022) Zion, wherein thou hast dwelt.

These passages from Psalms and Zechariah all describe God’s dwelling on a holy hill in Zion in Jerusalem. The use of similar phrases and language in these passages indicates that God’s dwelling was still in the southern hill of Zion even after the Temple was built.

The biblical passages below all warrant this same conclusion. Each of them confirms that the Temple was located on the hill of Zion and very near to the fortress at the summit of Zion. Without indications from the authors to the contrary, the most reasonable approach is to understand their words in light of earlier passages which speak similarly. It is decisively less reasonable to instead interpret similar statements in completely different ways. This kind of interpretive procedure is unfair to the historic context and intentions of the authors. As such, it is likely only to produce a result that corresponds to the reader’s interest rather than the author’s intent.

Isaiah wrote several hundred years after Solomon built the Temple, (circa 700 BC). But he continues to indicate that God still dwelled somewhere on the hill of Zion. He uses the terms Zion and Jerusalem interchangeably. Again, this could not have been the case unless the Temple was located on an adjoining peak of the hill of Zion. If the Temple was moved to an area outside the hill of Zion, then Isaiah could not state that God still dwelled in the middle of Zion.

Isaiah 12:6 Cry out and shout, thou inhabitant of Zion: for great is the Holy One of Israel in the midst (08432) of thee.

Isaiah 2:3 And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.

Isaiah 8:18 Behold, I and the children whom the LORD hath given me are for signs and for wonders in Israel from the LORD of hosts, which dwelleth in mount (02022) Zion.

Isaiah 24:23 Then the moon shall be confounded, and the sun ashamed, when the LORD of hosts shall reign in mount (02022) Zion, and in Jerusalem, and before his ancients gloriously.

Isaiah 27:13 And it shall come to pass in that day, that the great trumpet shall be blown, and they shall come which were ready to perish in the land of Assyria, and the outcasts in the land of Egypt, and shall worship the LORD in the holy mount (02022) at Jerusalem.

Isaiah 66:20 And they shall bring all your brethren for an offering unto the LORD out of all nations upon horses, and in chariots, and in litters, and upon mules, and upon swift beasts, to my holy mountain (02022) Jerusalem, saith the LORD, as the children of Israel bring an offering in a clean vessel into the house of the LORD.

The prophet Micah wrote at about the same time as Isaiah. He also says that God dwelled in the hill of Zion, the southern portion of the Moriah Platform.

Micah 4:2 And many nations shall come, and say, Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, and to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for the law shall go forth of Zion, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.

Micah 4:7 And I will make her that halted a remnant, and her that was cast far off a strong nation: and the LORD shall reign over them in mount (02022) Zion from henceforth, even for ever.

Because Jerusalem was located on the hill of Zion, 2 Chronicles indicates that the Temple (the house of God) was within Jerusalem.

2 Chronicles 33:15 And he took away the strange gods, and the idol out of the house of the LORD, and all the altars that he had built in the mount (02022) of the house of the LORD, and in Jerusalem, and cast them out of the city.

Daniel wrote during the Babylonian exile (circa 586-516 BC). This was over 400 years after the Temple had been built by Solomon. And yet Daniel also clearly identifies the city of Jerusalem with the holy hill that it was situated on. As we have seen, this hill was Zion.

Daniel 9:16 O Lord, according to all thy righteousness, I beseech thee, let thine anger and thy fury be turned away from thy city Jerusalem, thy holy mountain (02022): because for our sins, and for the iniquities of our fathers, Jerusalem and thy people are become a reproach to all that are about us. 17 Now therefore, O our God, hear the prayer of thy servant, and his supplications, and cause thy face to shine upon thy sanctuary that is desolate, for the Lord’s sake. 18 O my God, incline thine ear, and hear; open thine eyes, and behold our desolations, and the city which is called by thy name: for we do not present our supplications before thee for our righteousnesses, but for thy great mercies. 19 O Lord, hear; O Lord, forgive; O Lord, hearken and do; defer not, for thine own sake, O my God: for thy city and thy people are called by thy name. 20 And whiles I was speaking, and praying, and confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel, and presenting my supplication before the LORD my God for the holy mountain (02022) of my God;

Joel calls this holy hill by its name, Zion. This verse was written centuries after Solomon removed the Ark from the fortress of Zion hill and placed it in the Temple. And yet according to Joel, the hill of Zion was still God’s holy mountain. This can only be accurate if the Temple site was somewhere on the hill of Zion.

Joel 2:1 Blow ye the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in my holy mountain (02022): let all the inhabitants of the land tremble: for the day of the LORD cometh, for it is nigh at hand;

As we finish reading these biblical descriptions, we must keep in mind that after the Temple was built, Solomon moved the Ark of the Covenant (where God dwelled) from the fortress atop Zion hill to the Temple itself. And yet hundreds of years after this event, the Old Testament prophets continued to indicate that God still dwelled in the hill of Zion. This biblical survey clearly indicates that Solomon moved the Ark from the fortress on the summit of Zion hill to the site of the Temple, which was also located on an elevated position on Zion hill. Both sites were near to the Gihon Spring. And Zion hill was on the southern portion of the Moriah ridge, south of the Moriah Platform. These biblical, historical, and archeological facts require the conclusion that the Temple itself was located on Zion hill on the southern portion of the Moriah ridge near the Gihon Spring. The Temple was not located outside of the hill of Zion. It was on Zion, the hill where Davidic Jerusalem was located. Today, this area is south of the Moriah Platform.

The Hill of the Temple was a Daughter Hill to the Hill of Zion

Earlier, we noted Josephus’ statement that the Temple was adjoining the fortress of the hill of Akra. He also stated that the Temple was located on a hill that was “over against” the hill of Zion (Akra). Similarly, First Maccabees stated that the fortress at the top of Zion (Akra) hill was very near to the Temple. To these facts we can add another. These historical descriptions inform us that the peak where the Temple stood was lower than the peak on which stood the fortress of Zion hill.

In his writing, Josephus states that originally the Temple was lower in elevation than the peak of Zion hill. He then explains that the Hasmoneans demolished both the fortress and the hill of Akra (Zion) so that it would be lower in height than the Temple.

1. But the other hill, which was called "Acra," and sustains the lower city, is of the shape of a moon when she is horned; over against this there was a third hill, but naturally lower than Acra, and parted formerly from the other by a broad valley. However, in those times when the Asamoneans reigned, they filled up that valley with earth, and had a mind to join the city to the temple. They then took off part of the height of Acra, and reduced it to be of less elevation than it was before, that the temple might be superior to it. – Josephus, Wars of the Jews, Book 5, Chapter 4 – THE DESCRIPTION OF JERUSALEM., Paragraph 1

Isaiah 29 also mentions the demolition of the fortress of Zion atop the summit of Zion hill. Isaiah states that the City of David would be “brought down” and “out of the ground.”

Isaiah 29:1 Woe to Ariel, to Ariel, the city where David dwelt! add ye year to year; let them kill sacrifices. 2 Yet I will distress Ariel, and there shall be heaviness and sorrow: and it shall be unto me as Ariel. 3 And I will camp against thee round about, and will lay siege against thee with a mount, and I will raise forts against thee. 4 And thou shalt be brought down, and shalt speak out of the ground, and thy speech shall be low out of the dust, and thy voice shall be, as of one that hath a familiar spirit, out of the ground, and thy speech shall whisper out of the dust.

Elsewhere in his writings, Josephus provides additional detail to this historic development that was begun by Simon Maccabaeus. In the quote below, Josephus describes how Simon cast down the stronghold (citadel) of Jerusalem and demolished the hill on which it sat to the ground. This arduous task took three years of hard labor, but the result was that Zion hill was made into a low lying area and the Temple was superior to it in elevation.

7. But Simon, who was made high priest by the multitude, on the very first year of his high priesthood set his people free from their slavery under the Macedonians, and permitted them to pay tribute to them no longer; which liberty and freedom from tribute they obtained after a hundred and seventy years (14) of the kingdom of the Assyrians, which was after Seleucus, who was called Nicator, got the dominion over Syria. Now the affection of the multitude towards Simon was so great, that in their contracts one with another, and in their public records, they wrote, "in the first year of Simon the benefactor and ethnarch of the Jews;" for under him they were very happy, and overcame the enemies that were round about them; for Simon overthrew the city Gazara, and Joppa, and Jamhis. He also took the citadel of Jerusalem by siege, and cast it down to the ground, that it might not be any more a place of refuge to their enemies when they took it, to do them a mischief, as it had been till now. And when he had done this, he thought it their best way, and most for their advantage, to level the very mountain itself upon which the citadel happened to stand, that so the temple might be higher than it. And indeed, when he had called the multitude to an assembly, he persuaded them to have it so demolished, and this by putting them in mind what miseries they had suffered by its garrison and the Jewish deserters, and what miseries they might hereafter suffer in case any foreigner should obtain the kingdom, and put a garrison into that citadel. This speech induced the multitude to a compliance, because he exhorted them to do nothing but what was for their own good: so they all set themselves to the work, and leveled the mountain, and in that work spent both day and night without any intermission, which cost them three whole years before it was removed, and brought to an entire level with the plain of the rest of the city. After which the temple was the highest of all the buildings, now the citadel, as well as the mountain whereon it stood, were demolished. And these actions were thus performed under Simon. – Josephus, Antiquities, Book 13, Chapter 6

Acra – The Acra was a fortress or citadel built in Jerusalem by Antiochus Epiphanes, ruler of the Seleucid Empire, after his conquest of the city in 168 BCE. According to Josephus^[1], it stood on a hill higher than the Temple and was garrisoned by Greek soldiers…The first stage of the liberation of Jerusalem by the Maccabees in 164 BC was incomplete, as they gained possession of the city and the temple but the Hellenistic garrison and local supporters of the Seleucids held out in the Acra for a considerable time. It withstood the efforts of both Judas and Jonathan Maccabeus to subjagate it, eventually yielding to Simon Maccabeus in 141 BC. After reduction of the fortress the Maccabees demolished the Acra and leveled the hill on which it had stood – wikipedia.org

So, after the Hasmonean undertaking the hill called Akra (Zion) was lower than the site of the Temple. However, before this the hill called Akra (Zion) was higher than the site of the Temple. This means that the Temple site was lower in elevation than the former fortress on the peak of Zion (Akra) hill. Tuvia Sagiv explains these facts in his presention.

One of the problems of Jerusalem for the archeologists, where is the Hakra [Akra] fortress? The Antonia was from the Roman period. The Hakra was from the Greek period. The second century before Christus. And according to Josephus Flavius the Hakra was in the south. And in the period of Shimon the Hasmonean he decided to destroy this fortress. Not only the fortress, but also the hill on which the fortress stood. It took him three years to destroy this hill. Now let us see what happens. Let us try and see the area in the Hasmonean period. We say that here is the Antonia fortress, one hill. Here is the Jewish Temple. And here was another small hill, the Hakra. The section of it will be like this. It means. Here is the Dome, the rock of the Dome of the Rock, here is the Temple. Here is the Hakra, which was cut in the period of Shimon Hasmonean. Which means that the Temple was between two shoulders. I am going back to the Jewish sources and in one of them it’s written. At first they had decided to put the Temple on the highest point and then they changed their mind and lowered the level of the Temple so the Temple will be between two shoulders….Here we can see the Temple according to Josephus Flavius in the period of the Hasmoneans. Nobody paid attention to this text and therefore it caused them a lot of problems. – Tuvia Sugiv, 1995, The Coming Temple, Presentation 2, Koinonia House, 1 hour, 1 minute, and 9 seconds, http://store.khouse.org/...

In the following quote, Sagiv continues to discuss the historical fact that the Temple hill was lower than the fortress of Akra hill and the Antonia Fortress. In the quote above Sagiv explained that many scholars have not paid attention to these historical facts. Below Sagiv notes that Dan Bahat is among those who have failed to take these reports into account.

You know one of the main problems Dan Bahat has spoken about was the place of the Hakra, which was a fortress in the south. Here when we arrange the areas as I’ve spoken with you now that this is the place of the Antonia, this is the place of the Temple. And here, in the south, was the Hakra. Which means, against what Dan Bahat said in the morning, the Temple was not in the highest place. It was between two small mountains. In a higher place according to David’s City. But in between two small hills. This hill was destroyed by the Hasmoneans. And now we can see as it was before the Hasmoneans. It means the Temple was in between. And indeed, it’s very interesting that in our sources, in the Jewish sources, in the Talmud, it’s written, and now I will translate it from Hebrew, “That at first they thought to build the Temple on the highest point. And they had decided to lower it in order that the Temple will be between two shoulders.” Between the two shoulders is the Temple. And this is exactly what you see. Here one, one here, this is the Hakra, this is the Dome of the Rock, the rock of the Dome of the Rock. You see, in the Hasmonean times this hill was destroyed and how it looks nowadays. It means the Temple is lower in between. – Tuvia Sagiv, The Southern Location of the Temples, 32 minutes and 1 second, http://www.templemount.org/lectures.html

Here is the quote from Dan Bahat to which Tuvia Sagiv is referring. Note that Bahat claims that the Temple occupied the highest elevation despite the fact that Josephus, First Maccabees, and the Talmud all state that it was lower than the fortress of Akra and Antonia.

One thing, which I think is also very important. We should say that according to the Jewish tradition, the higher the holier. And it is unlike Christianity, for example, where when you come to a church you sometimes can find that the holiest place in the church will be the reliquary, which are venerated in the crypt of a church. Or in the Greek world the holiest place was the cellar. And suddenly in Judaism, as in other Semitic religions, the higher the holier, which again goes well with the story. – Dan Bahat, The Traditional Location of the Temples, 1 hour, 10 minutes, and 37 seconds, http://www.templemount.org/lectures.html

The elevation differences discussed in the sources above can be visualized using a simple diagram. (See elevation_diagram.)

These historical records explain the rationale for the Hasmonean demolition of Zion hill. As we saw earlier, First Maccabees chronicled the actions of Seleucid forces under Antiochus IV Epiphanes. These troops held out in the fortress at the summit of Akra (Zion) hill for a long time. The superior elevation of the fortress and its proximity to the Temple itself enabled them to assault the Temple and harrass Jewish Temple activities. Eventually, the Hasmoneans were able to regained control of the fortress. Once this was accomplished, they decided to prevent future use of the stronghold to obstruct Temple worship. Their distaste for the Seleucid conduct was so strong that they decided to totally demolish both the fortress and the hill on which it stood. The result was the utter destruction of the peak of Davidic Jerusalem and all of the historic structures that had formerly stood on or near the site. This Hasmonean demolition of Zion hill explains why today’s low-lying slope is often described in the biblical and historical texts as a lofty peak.

Because the hill of the City of David was demolished by the Hasmoneans, we would not expect to find a great peak on the southern portion of the Moriah ridge today. On the contrary, today the area that was Davidic Jerusalem is much lower in elevation compared to the higher peaks of the northern Moriah ridge, the western ridge, and the Mount of Olives. But beyond this, the demolition of this important peak makes it very unlikely that we will be able to find any significant structural remains from the critical period of Jerusalem when the Temple was first built. Any structures that were built on or in the proximity of the Zion hill were surely destroyed in this great Hasmonean undertaking.

Knowing that prior to the Hasmoneans the peak of Zion hill was higher than the site of the Temple is significant. One reason it is significant is that it explains the bible phrase “the daughter of Zion” which, according to Isaiah, refers to a certain hill of Jerusalem.

Isaiah 10:32 As yet shall he remain at Nob that day: he shall shake his hand against the mount of the daughter of Zion, the hill of Jerusalem.

The Book of Lamentations was written by the prophet Jeremiah after the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple by the Babylonians in 586 BC. In that work, Jeremiah refers to “the daughter of Zion” as God’s footstool.

Lamentations 2:1 How hath the Lord covered the daughter of Zion with a cloud in his anger, and cast down from heaven unto the earth the beauty of Israel, and remembered not his footstool in the day of his anger!

In 1 Chronicles 28, David identifies the Temple itself as God’s footstool on earth.

1 Chronicles 28:2 Then David the king stood up upon his feet, and said, Hear me, my brethren, and my people: As for me, I had in mine heart to build an house of rest for the ark of the covenant of the LORD, and for the footstool of our God, and had made ready for the building:

According to these passages from Isaiah, Jeremiah, and David, “the daughter of Zion” was a hill within the city of Davidic Jerusalem where God’s footstool, the Temple, was located. From this we can see that the term “the daughter of Zion” is undoubtedly a reference to the hill where the Temple was built. The name itself reflects the idea of a smaller hill, a daughter, nearby to its mother, the larger hill of Zion.

Additionally, while discussing the destruction of Jerusalem, Isaiah remarks about the “daughter of Zion” specifically. He states that this hill of Jerusalem would be left as a “cottage” or “temporary shelter,” or “booth” and “as a besieged city.”

Isaiah 1:1 The vision of Isaiah the son of Amoz, which he saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah. 2 Hear, O heavens, and give ear, O earth: for the LORD hath spoken, I have nourished and brought up children, and they have rebelled against me. 3 The ox knoweth his owner, and the ass his master’s crib: but Israel doth not know, my people doth not consider. 4 Ah sinful nation, a people laden with iniquity, a seed of evildoers, children that are corrupters: they have forsaken the LORD, they have provoked the Holy One of Israel unto anger, they are gone away backward. 5 Why should ye be stricken any more? ye will revolt more and more: the whole head is sick, and the whole heart faint. 6 From the sole of the foot even unto the head there is no soundness in it; but wounds, and bruises, and putrifying sores: they have not been closed, neither bound up, neither mollified with ointment. 7 Your country is desolate, your cities are burned with fire: your land, strangers devour it in your presence, and it is desolate, as overthrown by strangers. 8 And the daughter of Zion is left as a cottage in a vineyard, as a lodge in a garden of cucumbers, as a besieged city. 9 Except the LORD of hosts had left unto us a very small remnant, we should have been as Sodom, and we should have been like unto Gomorrah. 10 Hear the word of the LORD, ye rulers of Sodom; give ear unto the law of our God, ye people of Gomorrah. 11 To what purpose is the multitude of your sacrifices unto me? saith the LORD: I am full of the burnt offerings of rams, and the fat of fed beasts; and I delight not in the blood of bullocks, or of lambs, or of he goats. 12 When ye come to appear before me, who hath required this at your hand, to tread my courts? 13 Bring no more vain oblations; incense is an abomination unto me; the new moons and sabbaths, the calling of assemblies, I cannot away with; it is iniquity, even the solemn meeting. 14 Your new moons and your appointed feasts my soul hateth: they are a trouble unto me; I am weary to bear them. 15 And when ye spread forth your hands, I will hide mine eyes from you: yea, when ye make many prayers, I will not hear: your hands are full of blood. 16 Wash you, make you clean; put away the evil of your doings from before mine eyes; cease to do evil; 17 Learn to do well; seek judgment, relieve the oppressed, judge the fatherless, plead for the widow. 18 Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool. 19 If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land: 20 But if ye refuse and rebel, ye shall be devoured with the sword: for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it. 21 How is the faithful city become an harlot! it was full of judgment; righteousness lodged in it; but now murderers.

The most important object that was destroyed by the Babylonians was the Temple itself. In the above passage, Isaiah is discussing the coming destruction, the cessation of Temple activities (v.13), and the desolation of the Temple (v.12), which was the site of Israel’s feastly assemblies (v.13). There can be no doubt that Isaiah is speaking of the Temple’s destruction at the hands of the Babylonians. And in verse 8 he singles out the particular hill of Jerusalem, “the daughter of Zion,” as being left as a “temporary shelter” and a “field.” Clearly, Isaiah confirms that the Temple hill was “the daughter” hill on the larger hill “of Zion.” This “daughter” hill was the location of God’s footstool, the Temple.

Likewise, Jeremiah also describes the destruction of “the daughter of Zion” as with fire.

Lamentations 2:4 He hath bent his bow like an enemy: he stood with his right hand as an adversary, and slew all that were pleasant to the eye in the tabernacle of the daughter of Zion: he poured out his fury like fire.

Just a Jeremiah describes, Solomon’s Temple was indeed destroyed by fire under the command of Nebuchadnezzar.

Solomon’s Temple – Raids and Destruction – King Nebuchadnezzar II of Babylon who pillaged it twice — once in 597 BCE, and again in 586 BCE, after which he destroyed it (2 Kings 24:13; 2 Chronicles 36:7). He burned the temple, and carried all its treasures with him to Babylon (2 Kings 25:9-17; 2 Chronicles 36:19; Isaiah 64:11). – wikipedia.org

2 Kings 25:9 And he burnt the house of the LORD, and the king’s house, and all the houses of Jerusalem, and every great man’s house burnt he with fire.

The prophet Micah 4 is also explicit in identifying the “daughter of Zion” with the hill of the Temple. In verse 13, the “daughter of Zion” is told to “arise and thresh.”

Micah 4:13 Arise and thresh (01758), O daughter of Zion: for I will make thine horn iron, and I will make thy hoofs brass: and thou shalt beat in pieces many people: and I will consecrate their gain unto the LORD, and their substance unto the Lord of the whole earth.

The Hebrew word translated as “thresh” here in Micah 4:13 is the same word used in 1 Chronicles 21:20 to describe the future site of the Temple as the place of “threshing.”

1 Chronicles 21:20 And Ornan turned back, and saw the angel; and his four sons with him hid themselves. Now Ornan was threshing (01758) wheat.

The prophetic word of Micah telling “the daughter of Zion” to “thresh” strongly indicates that “the daughter of Zion” is a reference to a lower peak on Zion hill that was the site of the Temple, the former threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite.

And as we have seen, Zechariah states that the “daughter of Zion” was where God dwelled during Temple times.

Zechariah 2:10 Sing and rejoice, O daughter of Zion: for, lo, I come, and I will dwell in the midst of thee, saith the LORD.

Later in the Book of Zechariah, Zechariah gives another prophecy concerning “the daughter of Zion.”

Zechariah 9:9 Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he is just, and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass.

This prophecy of Zechariah is fulfilled in the gospels when Jesus enters into the city of Jerusalem (Matthew 21:1-15). Matthew 21 records that Jesus approached Jerusalem from the east. He first passed Bethpage and then the Mount of Olives.

Matthew 21:1 And when they drew nigh unto Jerusalem, and were come to Bethphage, unto the mount of Olives, then sent Jesus two disciples, 2 Saying unto them, Go into the village over against you, and straightway ye shall find an ass tied, and a colt with her: loose them, and bring them unto me. 3 And if any man say ought unto you, ye shall say, The Lord hath need of them; and straightway he will send them. 4 All this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying, 5 Tell ye the daughter of Sion, Behold, thy King cometh unto thee, meek, and sitting upon an ass, and a colt the foal of an ass. 6 And the disciples went, and did as Jesus commanded them, 7 And brought the ass, and the colt, and put on them their clothes, and they set him thereon. 8 And a very great multitude spread their garments in the way; others cut down branches from the trees, and strawed them in the way. 9 And the multitudes that went before, and that followed, cried, saying, Hosanna to the Son of David: Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord; Hosanna in the highest.

Now, the Temple was situated on the eastern side of Jerusalem above Kidron Valley and across from the Mount of Olives where the priest would take the red heifer to the altar located there for cleansing and consecration rituals.

…the Eastern Gate on which was portrayed the Palace of Shushan. Through this the High Priest that burned the Heifer, and the heifer, and all that aided him went forth to the Mount of Olives. – Middoth 1:3, quoted from Ernest L. Martin, Secrets of Golgatha, p.32

So, Jesus entered the city from the east. Once he entered the city, he was immediately in the Temple. Verse 9 records that as Jesus entered the people cried out “Hosanna to the Son of David” (v.9). Verse 15 indicates that this crying out “Hosanna to the Son of David” took place in the Temple.

Matthew 21:10 And when he was come into Jerusalem, all the city was moved, saying, Who is this? 11 And the multitude said, This is Jesus the prophet of Nazareth of Galilee. 12 And Jesus went into the temple of God, and cast out all them that sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the moneychangers, and the seats of them that sold doves, 13 And said unto them, It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves. 14 And the blind and the lame came to him in the temple; and he healed them. 15 And when the chief priests and scribes saw the wonderful things that he did, and the children crying in the temple, and saying, Hosanna to the Son of David; they were sore displeased, 16 And said unto him, Hearest thou what these say? And Jesus saith unto them, Yea; have ye never read, Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings thou hast perfected praise? 17 And he left them, and went out of the city into Bethany; and he lodged there.

These descriptions from Matthew strongly indicate that Jesus entered into the Temple area from the Mount of Olives. Regardless of whether Jesus entered the Temple directly, it is clear that the place where he entered Jerusalem was very near to the Temple. And yet Zechariah refers to this event as the King coming to “the daughter of Zion.” The fulfillment of Zechariah’s prophecy by Jesus entering into the Temple area indicates that the term “daughter of Zion” refers to the site of the Temple.

These historical, biblical, and geographical descriptions inform us that the Temple was built on a lower peak of Zion hill within Davidic Jerusalem. Because of this, biblical writers could refer to this hill where the Temple was located as “the daughter of Zion.” In other words, the hill of the Temple was a “daughter” hill, a lower hill to the greater peak of Zion hill. Zion hill is the southern portion of the Moriah ridge and it’s “daughter” was “over against” it. The Temple and the fortress at the peak of Zion hill were adjoining one another. This means that the Temple hill was not far away to the north and far away from the fortress on the summit of Zion hill as the Moriah Platform Views would require. Instead, the Temple site was very close to the fortress on the peak of Zion hill and both were nearby the Gihon Spring.