Why would Christians go to the 'Western Wall' of the ancient Roman Fortress Antonia? Say What? Read the following to find out.
The so-called temple mount (Haram Al-Sharif) is not or never was the place where the Temple of Solomon and the subsequent Temple of Herod was located. This site is the ruins of the Roman Fortress Antonia. The temple mount (Haram) is located on the highest position in the region. There's not a single record of Solomon's Temple being built on a high place. In fact, God advised against it. It is however a common practice for the military to build fortresses on high ground. Like all major fortresses, Josephus describes Fort Antonia as being built over a "rock" the highest point of the area. And the Haram Al-Sharif fits this depiction. No Biblical description of the Temple includes such a feature. In addition, the Temple Mount is not located in the city, but outside of it. The Temple was said to be the center of Jerusalem. King Solomon built the Temple on the site of the threshing floor of Araunah, which was IN the City of David. The Haram never was. Everything about this location is wrong. The dimensions are impossibly wrong.
(400) This hill was walled all round, and in compass four furlongs, [the distance of] each angle containing in length a furlong:
Josephus Antiquities Book 15, Chapter 11.
(411) but the fourth front of the temple, which was southward, had indeed itself gates in its middle, as also it had the royal cloisters, with three walks, which reached in length from the east valley unto that on the west, for it was impossible it should reach any farther;
Josephus Antiquities Book 15, Chapter 11.
These two quote from Josephus are probably two of the most important when it comes to defining exactly where the Temple stood. A furlong or a stade was about 606 ft in length.
The Southern Wall of the Temple Mount (The Haram) where the Royal Porch was supposedly situated does reach from valley to valley. The problem is to do that it has to be at least 922 ft in length. That's more than a football field discrepancy (316 ft.). For a manually constructed temple wall is a big deal. Hence what Josephus was describing could not have been the Haram Al-Sharif as we know it today. One of the major problems with his placing the Temple in the position mentioned is that the Southern Wall does not and cannot go from valley to valley.
That Temple Mount which is the very large oblong area dominating the site is surrounded by literally thousands of original Herodian era blocks of stone. But the gospels state and Josephus explicitly records (as an eye-witness) that NO block of stone was left of the Temple after the Roman assault.
The Romans raided Jerusalem under General Vesparian and subdued it. Four years later, the Emperor Titus had the temple disassembled and every stone was removed. Several sources (Roman, Greek, and Jewish, etc.) record that the Romans completely erased the Temple from its existence where "No stone was left un-turned". The Romans destroyed and carried away every last piece of the Temple in AD 70. The "Wailing Wall" in the early literature, including the Talmud refers to the western wall of the Temple itself. Nobody believes that the wall described today is anything other than the outer wall of a Herodian era structure. So how did the Western Wall become a Jewish religious site? I'll get to this in a moment, but first there's more evidence the Western Wall is not part of the Temple.
In 2000 years of research, excavation and exploration including a protracted search by the Templars, not ONE single artifact from the Temple of Jerusalem has ever been found. Even the inscription found at Hezikiah's tunnel far from the alleged temple mount gives proof that the Haram is NOT the site. The overwhelming evidence continues to prove the Dome of the Rock location is NOT the location where Solomon's temple once existed. Yet, the Temple mount will continue to be the site of the proposed 3rd temple.
From any tactical and geographical consideration the original Temple of Solomon would never have been built in an exposed northern "suburb". It must rather have been built in the Center of the City of David which by coincidence is right beside the Gihon Spring. For religious and practical reasons (due to the vast amount of animal sacrifices taking place) it was necessary to build the Temple near fresh running water. There is none on the Haram and only the Gihon Spring was such a source at the time of King David and King Solomon.
Fort Antonia was described by Josephus as being like a city with large areas for troop parades etc. A legion of troops (5000 fighting and 5000 support) was housed there. Only the Haram fits the description and the small area now designated the site of the Fort would have been impossibly small.
How did the Western Wall become a Jewish religious site? The irony is truly amazing and is based on Jewish hatred of anything Roman.
The history of the 'Wailing Wall' is another remarkable story. I am amused that many Jews congregate and worship at the what they believe is the remaining wall of the temple when in it is really a remaining wall of the Roman fortress Antonia. History tells us that every stone of Herod's temple was removed and carried away. Even the historian Flavius Josephus who lived in Jerusalem and knew exactly where Herod's temple once stood, later saw the aftermath of its total destruction, in which he stated that it was like it never existed. Every stone was removed and taken away. After the Roman defeat of the Jews, the location of the temple was lost. There was no worship at the Western wall until well after the time of the Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent came into power in the mid-1500s. He ordered a search of Jerusalem for it. Meir Ben Dov's book -- "The Western Wall" records how it was found. He writes:
"In the days of the king Sultan Suleiman nobody knew the location of the Temple, so he ordered a search of Jerusalem to find it.
One day, a man in charge of the search who had already given up hope, saw a woman coming and on her head was a basket full of garbage and filth.
"What is on your head?" he asked.
"Garbage" she said.
"Where are you taking it?""To such-and-such a place".
"Where are you from?" He queried.
"From Bethlehem." She answered.
"And between Bethlehem and this place are there no garbage dumps?"
"We have a tradition that anyone who brings garbage and dumps it here is performing a meritorious work."
"This must be it" said the man and ordered many men to clear out the garbage from that spot, garbage which, because of the great time that had passed, had turned the earth at the bottom. And so he uncovered the holy place. He went and told the king who rejoiced greatly and ordered them to clean and sweep (the place) and wash the Wall with rose-water."
Rabbi Eliezer Nahman Puah ( Abboth de-Rabbi Nathan (A) 31. and Medrash Bahidush, 1641 p.31a) is reported to have stated in c. 1540 that in the day of Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent (1495c -1566), the site of the Temple was unknown and he carried out an extensive search for it. A wall was finally found beneath a public garbage heap and everyone rejoiced that the site of the Holy Temple had been found.
This is the site of the Wailing Wall today!
Ironic, no? It is not only the wrong site (for this reason and many others), but it happens to be the remaining wall of the Roman Fortress Antonia, and it was used as garbage heap. Karma? No, it's False Israel.
Why would Christians go to the 'Western Wall' of the ancient Roman Fortress Antonia? Say What? Read the following to find out.
The so-called temple mount (Haram Al-Sharif) is not or never was the place where the Temple of Solomon and the subsequent Temple of Herod was located. This site is the ruins of the Roman Fortress Antonia. The temple mount (Haram) is located on the highest position in the region. There's not a single record of Solomon's Temple being built on a high place. In fact, God advised against it. It is however a common practice for the military to build fortresses on high ground. Like all major fortresses, Josephus describes Fort Antonia as being built over a "rock" the highest point of the area. And the Haram Al-Sharif fits this depiction. No Biblical description of the Temple includes such a feature. In addition, the Temple Mount is not located in the city, but outside of it. The Temple was said to be the center of Jerusalem. King Solomon built the Temple on the site of the threshing floor of Araunah, which was IN the City of David. The Haram never was. Everything about this location is wrong. The dimensions are impossibly wrong.
(400) This hill was walled all round, and in compass four furlongs, [the distance of] each angle containing in length a furlong:
(411) but the fourth front of the temple, which was southward, had indeed itself gates in its middle, as also it had the royal cloisters, with three walks, which reached in length from the east valley unto that on the west, for it was impossible it should reach any farther;
These two quote from Josephus are probably two of the most important when it comes to defining exactly where the Temple stood. A furlong or a stade was about 606 ft in length.
The Southern Wall of the Temple Mount (The Haram) where the Royal Porch was supposedly situated does reach from valley to valley. The problem is to do that it has to be at least 922 ft in length. That's more than a football field discrepancy (316 ft.). For a manually constructed temple wall is a big deal. Hence what Josephus was describing could not have been the Haram Al-Sharif as we know it today. One of the major problems with his placing the Temple in the position mentioned is that the Southern Wall does not and cannot go from valley to valley.
That Temple Mount which is the very large oblong area dominating the site is surrounded by literally thousands of original Herodian era blocks of stone. But the gospels state and Josephus explicitly records (as an eye-witness) that NO block of stone was left of the Temple after the Roman assault.
The Romans raided Jerusalem under General Vesparian and subdued it. Four years later, the Emperor Titus had the temple disassembled and every stone was removed. Several sources (Roman, Greek, and Jewish, etc.) record that the Romans completely erased the Temple from its existence where "No stone was left un-turned". The Romans destroyed and carried away every last piece of the Temple in AD 70. The "Wailing Wall" in the early literature, including the Talmud refers to the western wall of the Temple itself. Nobody believes that the wall described today is anything other than the outer wall of a Herodian era structure. So how did the Western Wall become a Jewish religious site? I'll get to this in a moment, but first there's more evidence the Western Wall is not part of the Temple.
In 2000 years of research, excavation and exploration including a protracted search by the Templars, not ONE single artifact from the Temple of Jerusalem has ever been found. Even the inscription found at Hezikiah's tunnel far from the alleged temple mount gives proof that the Haram is NOT the site. The overwhelming evidence continues to prove the Dome of the Rock location is NOT the location where Solomon's temple once existed. Yet, the Temple mount will continue to be the site of the proposed 3rd temple.
From any tactical and geographical consideration the original Temple of Solomon would never have been built in an exposed northern "suburb". It must rather have been built in the Center of the City of David which by coincidence is right beside the Gihon Spring. For religious and practical reasons (due to the vast amount of animal sacrifices taking place) it was necessary to build the Temple near fresh running water. There is none on the Haram and only the Gihon Spring was such a source at the time of King David and King Solomon.
Fort Antonia was described by Josephus as being like a city with large areas for troop parades etc. A legion of troops (5000 fighting and 5000 support) was housed there. Only the Haram fits the description and the small area now designated the site of the Fort would have been impossibly small.
How did the Western Wall become a Jewish religious site? The irony is truly amazing and is based on Jewish hatred of anything Roman.
The history of the 'Wailing Wall' is another remarkable story. I am amused that many Jews congregate and worship at the what they believe is the remaining wall of the temple when in it is really a remaining wall of the Roman fortress Antonia. History tells us that every stone of Herod's temple was removed and carried away. Even the historian Flavius Josephus who lived in Jerusalem and knew exactly where Herod's temple once stood, later saw the aftermath of its total destruction, in which he stated that it was like it never existed. Every stone was removed and taken away. After the Roman defeat of the Jews, the location of the temple was lost. There was no worship at the Western wall until well after the time of the Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent came into power in the mid-1500s. He ordered a search of Jerusalem for it. Meir Ben Dov's book -- "The Western Wall" records how it was found. He writes:
"In the days of the king Sultan Suleiman nobody knew the location of the Temple, so he ordered a search of Jerusalem to find it.
One day, a man in charge of the search who had already given up hope, saw a woman coming and on her head was a basket full of garbage and filth.
"What is on your head?" he asked.
"Garbage" she said.
"Where are you taking it?" "To such-and-such a place".
"Where are you from?" He queried.
"From Bethlehem." She answered.
"And between Bethlehem and this place are there no garbage dumps?"
"We have a tradition that anyone who brings garbage and dumps it here is performing a meritorious work."
"This must be it" said the man and ordered many men to clear out the garbage from that spot, garbage which, because of the great time that had passed, had turned the earth at the bottom. And so he uncovered the holy place. He went and told the king who rejoiced greatly and ordered them to clean and sweep (the place) and wash the Wall with rose-water."
Rabbi Eliezer Nahman Puah ( Abboth de-Rabbi Nathan (A) 31. and Medrash Bahidush, 1641 p.31a) is reported to have stated in c. 1540 that in the day of Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent (1495c -1566), the site of the Temple was unknown and he carried out an extensive search for it. A wall was finally found beneath a public garbage heap and everyone rejoiced that the site of the Holy Temple had been found.
This is the site of the Wailing Wall today!
Ironic, no? It is not only the wrong site (for this reason and many others), but it happens to be the remaining wall of the Roman Fortress Antonia, and it was used as garbage heap. Karma? No, it's False Israel.