An answer to Grant Jeffrey and his 2007 book - from Keith Hunt
I picked up Jeffrey's book "The Triumphant Return and the
the coming Kingdom of God" at the large "Chaperts" book store we
have across Canada. It was on the sale table. A number of copies
were there, it was under $5. That book was written in 2001. I
guess it had run its race, just about nobody was still interested
I guess, was going the way of Hal Linsay books of the 1980s -
just speculative nonsense, that had no reality to it, and
whatever copies the "book stores" had left, they were just about
ready to give away.
But old Jeffrey is not about to give up, a new book, coming
from a different angle was needed, so he's written it. It's all
about the supposed Bible truth that the Scriptures teach there
MUST BE, WILL BE, a literal physical Temple build on the site of
the Dome of the Rock, by Jews, in the last days, who will then
practice the laws of Moses regarding animal sacrifices.
On the front cover of this new book are the words: "The
Prophecy that Points to Christ's Return in Your Generation." On
the back of the book is says: "An array of new archaeological
finds and revealing discoveries lead to a stunning conclusion:
The generation Alive Today will witness the Return of Christ."
Now that is pretty smart at a publicity stunt, or a hit
between the eyes, kinda sure and dogmatic sounding. But when you
think about what he has stated, he has been clever enough to
cover his tracks. For what generation will ever read his book he
has an endless generation of generations for which it will say
the same thing. Today, you could be 8 years old reading his book,
and if you live to be 80, Jeffrey gives himself plenty of time
yet. Then in 10 years if you can find his book anywhere, and say
you are 15 years old, Jeffrey's words to YOU could be another 65
years if you live to be 80 years old.
So the book starts off on the front cover to be somewhat eye
catching if you are religious at all, yet clever to cover his
tracks, if Jesus does not come yet for another 25 years or more.
On page 4 Jeffrey (I'll call him J from here on out to make
it short) says it would seem that because of the the political
and religious and physical obstacles for Jews to build a Temple
on the site of the Dome of the Rock, most would think it
impossible. Of course he tells you the Bible "teaches" that this
will be done. I have shown in various studies, the Bible teaches
no such thing. But that would be the quick answer to J. I though
do want to give you what he teaches and my answers to it all.
On page 5, J claims Jesus was giving some indication that
the Jewish Sanhedrin will "indeed be fulfilling its duties in the
last days." Later in his book he talks about the so-called
"present" Sanhedrin, being now established in the State of
Israel. He does not offer you to go to their Website, BUT I WILL!
Yes, type in "Sanhedrin" and let Google bring it up for you. I
encourage you to read their Website, but not just the first few
pages. You need to take the time to read all they say. When you
do you will find some very revealing facts and statements. And it
all blows away like a house of cards the "significance" and
"prophetic" wonder this is all supposed to be by J and his kin.
He tries to tell you the Jews are just praying, praying, and
in so much desire to have this "temple" once more in Jerusalem.
Nothing could be further from the truth. Most Jews in Israel and
around the world, are not "religious" - they are secular. The
Israeli Government is secular not religious. They could not care
less about some religious Temple with animal sacrifices being
performed. It is only a small, very small sect, of Jews, a
fanatical sect in reality, that desire a physical Temple to
perform the laws of Moses in, with animal sacrifices a large
part. And it is only the fundamental folly of the fundamental
sect of Christianity that claim such a physical Temple MUST come
before Christ can return, while at the same time they teach a
"secret rapture" of the church can happen at any given second.
On page 6, J tells you that this Temple will be built on the
most passionately contested piece of real estate on earth - which
is where the Dome of the Rock is. Oh according to J they, the
rabbis, are drawing up detailed architectural plans and
gathering together all the lost treasures for this Temple they
will erect. Key figures of Orthodox Jewish leaders has, he says,
thrown their support behind these efforts.
Now, that frankly does not say as much as it may sound, for
"orthodox" Judaism is pretty nutty in its true understanding of
the Bible, and they sure do not want to support any belief in
Christ as the Messiah, in fact many "orthodox" Jewish families
will dis-own a son or daughter that accepts Jesus Christ as Lord
and Savior.
J goes on to point out that after the war of 1967 Moshe
Dayan met with the 5 leaders of the Supreme Muslim Religious
Council. Dayan, a nonreligious Jew gave administrative control to
the Arabs. Dayan ordered the Israeli flag to be removed from the
Dome of the Rock. Also administrative control of the Temple Mount
was given to Supreme Muslim Religious council. Jews could visit
the Temple Mount but all prayer or reading of Scripture by Jews
or Christians was forbidden. J admits the Arabs to this day
control this area, but then says God has called on His people to
rebuild the Temple. J says this is a commandment by God, and the
Scriptures reveal the Temple will be rebuilt before the Messiah
returns to earth.
NO!! God has NOT commanded anyone to rebuild the Temple,
that is all in the minds of some fanatical Jews and the wrong
understanding by the fundamental prophets of Scripture.
We come to J's chapter called "Preparing the Way for the
Third Temple." J goes to 2 Thessalonians 2:3-4 and gives you
some guy from way back, Lactantius by name. It is said this
fellow wrote about a seven year tribulation and a rebuilt Temple.
A 7 year end-time tribulation is nowhere mentioned in the
Scriptures, it is 42 months in Revelation, with Daniel 12 adding
about two extra months.
What Paul was teaching in 2 Thes. 2 is covered in full
depth in a study on my Website. It is another passage the
fundamentals have got wrong. I simply here encourage you to study
that study, it is either under "prophecy" or "end time" on my
Website.
J goes to Revelation 11 and 2 Thessalonians and Daniel
8:14. I have covered these passages either in the New Testament
Bible Story or in prophetic studies under "prophecy" or "end
times." These passages teach nothing like J would want you to
believe they teach.
Page 21, J goes into the debate surrounding the Temple's
Location. He tries to claim the idea that the Dome of the Rock is
where it must be built, may not be as correct as often taught. He
goes back to Revelation 11 with some ideas of his own. I will ask
the reader to find and read what the old fundamental scholar
Albert Barnes wrote about this chapter in his "Barnes' Notes on
the New Testament." If J has read it he ain't going to tell you,
he would probably not want you to know, it would blow his theory
away.
J admits no one is saying the Dome of the Rock would be
cleared away by Israel so they could build a Jewish Temple in its
place. J admits the evidence is that the Dome of the Rock will
stand there until "at least during the Tribulation" (page 22).
So, yes you should be guessing what he's now going to do. J
will try to persuade you that the old Herodian Temple was not
where the Dome of the Rock now stands, but in another part of
that area that may be the size of a square block. Some huge
stones have been found so says J, 65 feet below the current
surface of the Temple Mount. Supposedly some unknown gate of
Solomon's Temple, several hundred feet has been discovered
extending to the Western Wall. With some passage-ways leading to
the Beautiful Gate and the sealed Easter Gate, then he thinks
Herod's Temple and Solomon's Temple lied north of the Dome of the
Rock.
So J also claims on the same page that this early discovery
goes back to the early 1980s. Oh, that would count for old Hal
Linsay and others bringing out books in the early 1980s to claim the
Temple was just about read to be built and Jesus would return
before 1990. Why they even had the stones for the Temple at some
USA dock ready to ship over to Israel, so one report read. It
turned out to be fundamental lies and not one word of truth in
it. I have to question how many lies J has given us so far. If
they are absolutely certain the Temple of Solomon and Herod was
no where near the Dome of the Rock, why, with everything they
have supposedly got ready, have they not STARTED to build a
Temple? The truth is that there are so many other items that the
Jews have erected for themselves in building this Temple, as J
will explain later, that even if they were sure it would not take
one square foot away from the Arabs, it would still make the
fanatical effort just about impossible. J claims they have known
where the previous two Temples were build, away from the Dome of
the Rock, yet there is not one slightest move to even petition
the secular Israeli government to back the re-building of a
Temple to administer the Temple laws of Moses.
Of course J does not want you to even think about such
matters, as the human logic which has not got close to human logic
never mind the illogic of a religious sect, that just about
nobody but their relatively few members, care anything about in
the first place.
On page 25 J gives you some more tunnels and cisterns,
treasure rooms, guardrooms, etc. that once more are claimed as
the area where up above would not be under the Dome of the Rock.
So lots of things, lots of tunnels, and whatever rooms down
there. So why have not these fanatical Jews been pushing the
Israeli government into serious talks to build this Temple, as it
would not disturb the Dome of the Rock? It's because the
Government is not interested in the plight of something that
belongs in the PARS of the Jewish mind, a little part in the mind
of some small Jewish sect. Even trying to build a Temple 100 or
150 feet away from the Dome of the Rock would rock the boat (pun
untended) and you would see bloodshed. The Israeli Government is
wise enough to not touch that picture with a hundred foot pole.
The Jews have their Wailing Wall, the Arabs have their Dome of
the Rock to worship at - the Israeli Government is wise to say
you both have your place of worship in freedom, so leave it be,
just leave it be.
We now go to the LOCATION of the most Holy place, starting
with page 26. J claims the true site of the ancient Temple is
located by a small Arabic cupola known as Qubbat al-Arwah, or the
Dome of the Spirits. This structure is located more than one
hundred fifty feet to the north of the Dome of the Rock. It has a
flat foundation stone, which J says: "The structure's two names
may well reveal ancient knowledge that this stone is, in fact, the
foundation stone that supported the ark of the covenant." And of
course the ark contained the tablets of the Law and was kept in
the most Holy place in Solomon's Temple.
J points out to us that in 1896, a short distance southeast
of the Dome of the Spirits, British archaeologists located a
cistern that in ancient times was between the Temple porch and
the altar of sacrifice. J claims the discovery of this cistern
helps identify the location of the most Holy place of the Temple,
which when all is said and done you are to believe was north of
the Dome of the Rock. J tells us "The Third Temple can be built
on the exact location of Solomon's Temple, and the Holy of Holies
in its original location on this ancient foundation stone. J goes
on to tell us: "Israel could rebuild the Temple without disturbing the
Dome of the Rock." You would not build the "court of the
Gentiles" (Revelation 11:1-2) and so both the Dome of the Rock
and Al-Aqsa Mosque would be undisturbed. This Temple, the third
one, would be more than one hundred fifty feet north of the
Muslim shrines.
Wow! Now isn't that nice! And they have known this since
1896!! Do you also get the feeling that J is hoping the Israeli
government and the small sect of Jews will read what he has
written and say, "Oh my, we could have build the Temple decades
ago. Let's get moving and build it!"
The truth is the Israeli Government is "secular" and they
could care less about building a "temple" so Jews can perform
animal sacrifices and Jesus can return again. The Israeli
Government would NOT even dare build a Temple even 150 feet away
from two of the most sacred sites in the world for Muslims. And
with everything else the fanatical Jewish sect have "got in
place" according to this book by J ... the sect has not yet moved
to build a Temple 150 feet away from the Dome of the Rock. Oh,
forgot, that it maybe because they have not yet got the "red
heifer" - it has to be so pure, not even one hair can be white.
You talk about making it hard for themselves - then could it be
they deliberately want it to be hard so they can talk about
building a Temple, so the fundamental prophets can talk about it,
but NEVER DO IT! Surely they could find a pure red heifer
somewhere in the world, maybe a little red paint would help, if
they are so desperate to build a Temple, now that J claims the
original Solomon's Temple was 150 feet away from the Dome of the
Rock. But the red heifer has to be born in the Holy Land.
The verses from Revelation 11:1-2 .... again see the
commentary by Albert Barnes which I quote in length on my Study
of Revelation in the "New Testament Bible Story." It has nothing to
do with a physical Temple.
According to J some people and an Orthodox Jewish group
calling itself Netemanei Har Habayit, the "Faithful of the Temple
Mount," has built a detailed model of the Temple. A fund has been
established to collect donations. J claims a source in Israel has
told him that over the last century, millions of dollars have
been set aside in wills and trusts by Jews who want to help in
building a Temple.
I would like to see concrete proof of this, for the lies
that have been perpetrated over the decades past concerning this
"Temple" are many.
J claims that on February 11, 1996, the Temple Mount and
Land of Israel Faithful Movement, an orthodox Jewish group hired
the Gallup Organization to survey Israeli attitudes regarding
building a Temple. The survey found, it is stated, 58 percent of
those polled agreed Israel should build a Temple. The younger
generation were said to be the most in favor of it.
Now, I wonder who they polled, was it random, off the street
people, or was it selected, among "Jewish religious" people.
Surveys can be surveyed to meet the ends of those wanting the
survey. You will note it was "orthodox" Jews who wanted the
survey. Did they survey the Israeli Government on the matter.
Well, whatever ... the fact remains, no matter how J puts it,
the Temple is nowhere near being built, they are still as far
away from building it as they were 100 year ago.
At the end of this chapter J is so dogmatic, well the true
site has been found he claims, a priesthood is being trained, a
new Sanhedrin is there, the Temple Mount is in Israeli hands, and
so the prophets describe the coming Temple, and the Messiah's
footsteps can be heard as He can then return.
The prophets DO NOT foretell the building of a physical
Temple BEFORE Jesus can return! The so-called new Sanhedrin is
not as J would like you to believe. Go to their Website and get
the truth of the whole picture on this Sanhedrin by reading ALL
they have posted up. It is not at all like J tries to tell you.
The Israeli Government could care less about building a
Temple anywhere near the Dome of the Rock. The general population
of the State of Israel are "secular" and they could care less
either about some relatively small fanatical sect of Judaism
wanting to build a Temple. Certainly the "animal rights" people
would be against the killing of so many animals in religious
worship; they would never allow such a practice. The Arabs would
never allow a Jewish Temple to be built so close to the Dome of
the Rock. Why don't these "temple builders" just pick another
place miles away from the Dome of the Rock? They do not because
they teach the Temple must be where the Dome of the Rock now
stands, and either do not believe or just ignore what J wants
them to believe, that the original site of Solomon's Temple was
150 feet away from the Dome of the Rock, for them nothing will do
but building the Temple on the site of the Dome of the Rock, and
the religious Arabs, Muslims, would never allow that in a
thousand years.
The coming of the Lord does NOT require a physical Temple to
be built in Jerusalem, where animals sacrifices are again
instituted. I have a number of in-depth studies under "prophecy"
and "end times" on my Website that show you the truth of the
matter on this subject. The prophecies of the Bible have nothing
to do with an end time Temple being built in Jerusalem before
Christ comes again!
.................
To be continued
The Temple and Christ's Coming The Glory of Solomon's Temple!
From the book by Dr.Grant Jeffrey (published 2007)
THE GLORY OF JERUSALEM'S TEMPLE
J goes through starting on page 3, the unequaled building
project of the Temple - 1 Chron.28:19; 28:11-12; 1 Kings 6:7. He
says the stones were quarried from three locations: the Royal
caverns beneath the present day Muslim Quarter in the northern
portion of the Old City; the quarries near the present-day
Knesset (Israel's parliament buildings); a quarry in Lebanon,
from which the stones were transported on rafts to Joppa.
J says that Jewish sages hand down curious traditions that
many miracles took place during the building of the Temple.
Starting on page 36 J goes into the building materials that
were used for Solomon's Temple. In today's calculation the gold
used in the Temple would be $64 billion. The one million talents
of silver, equal to 30 thousands tons today, would be today
nearly $13 billion. J tells us that Josephus (the Jewish
historian of the first century A.D. records the Temple walls and
floors were covered in gold.
The interior ceiling 180 feet long and 90 feet wide and the
height was 50 feet. The highest point of the exterior structure
was 207 feet. J gives more measurements but based on a cubit of
36 inches, although he admits there were several different
lengths of the ancient cubit.
So all his given measurements are really up for grabs, and
may not have been anywhere as large as J would like it to be.
Cedar wood came from Lebanon. Solomon put 20 small towns
under the king Haram to help pay for cedars, stones, and
craftsmen from that area (see 1 Kings 9:11).
J starts his expounding of the "courts" of the Temple on
page 38. The major entrance was through the Royal Porch, yet that
porch contained a number of porches that encompassed the huge
expanse of the Court of the Temple, commonly called the Court of
the Gentiles. The were pillars and costly and beautiful paving of
varied marble.
The more sacred courts were constructed on higher and higher
levels. There has been found in the middle 1800s an ancient
inscription near the Temple Mount that warned the Gentiles not to
proceed beyond the court of the Gentiles on pain of death.
The Temple sanctuary itself was composed of three individual
courts: the Court of the Women, the Court of the Israelites, the
Court of the Priests (open only to priests and those offering
sacrifices).
The "Beautiful Gate" was of brass and Jewish tradition
claims the massive brass double doors were so heavy that 20
strong Levite priests were required to open and close them.
J tells us, "As the worshipper entered the Temple
superstructure, he or she would ascend using a series of
magnificent marble staircases. Having entered through the Court
of the Gentiles, the worshipper would take a staircase directly
to the front of the Temple itself, leading to the Court of the
Women, then higher yet to the Court of the Israelites, and
finally into the more sacred Court of the Priests. In this
highest structure, the priests performed their worship duties"
(page 41).
Concerning the Court of the Women, J tells us: "The Court of
the Women included 4 chambers. Any Jew (man or woman) was
permitted to enter this court. The entrance from the Court of the
Women into the Court of the Israelites was the massive Gate of
Nicanor. According to Jewish traditions, the gate was named for
the wealthy man who donated the costly brass gate. fifteen steps
upward led through the gate, and on the Feast of Tabernacles,
Levite priests would stand on these steps and sing the fifteen
"Psalms of Degree [Psalms 120-34].
"The Court of the Israelites was restricted to Jewish males.
A low marble structure 18 inches high separated it from the court
of the Priests, an area restricted to the Jewish worshippers of
both gender who were there to offer sacrifices.
The Court of the Priests was quite large, measuring
approximately 260 feet long by 202 wide. Animal sacrifices were
carried out daily in the Court of the Priests" (pages 41,42).
(Again, not sure how J is calculating this for us into feet;
the measurement would vary according to which length of cubit you
would use. So the measurements from J could have been much
smaller. But its always nice to have HUGE measurements [I'm
saying this with tongue in cheek] - Keith Hunt)
J does give us some good mind-blowing information about the
ALTAR, AND BLOOD of the sacrifices.
"The altar was constructed of unhewn stones that were
whitewashed every six months to eliminate the inevitable
discoloration caused by the blood of animal sacrifices. The altar
formed a square measuring approximately 48 feet on each side
(again that depends of the cubit measurement - could have been
much smaller - Keith Hunt) and stood almost 15 feet high. Four
hollow 'hours' rose approximately 18 inches higher than the top
surface of the altar at each corner. the horns were used to
receive the drink offerings, including the special offering of
water from the Pool of Siloam that was poured into the horns
during the Feast of Tabernacles.
"The vast number of animals sacrificed during the major days
of liturgical sacrifice (Passover, Pentecost, and Tabernacles)
produced and enormous amount of blood and waste, which had to be
removed from the altar area. A complex system of tunnels and
aqueducts brought a massive amount of water to the Temple from
huge reservoirs surrounding Jerusalem. The aqueduct was designed
using sophisticated engineering that staggers the imagination;
the tunnel system transported water over a 40 mile course, and it
was constructed almost 3 thousand years ago! The tunnels were
drilled through mountains. Aqueducts were built around mountains,
and segments of the watercourse had a drop in elevation of only a
few inches per mile. However, the system succeeded in carrying
water dozens of miles from near Bethlehem, Etham, and Hebron to
the Temple Mount in Jerusalem. (This is truly amazing when you
consider that the city of Jerusalem is high up, you would
literally 'go down' from Jerusalem to other towns below - Keith
Hunt)
"It has been calculated that more than ten million gallons
of water were stored in the system of 39 cisterns located in
subterranean chambers deep beneath the Temple Mount. The greatest
of these cisterns, known as the Great Sea, alone held more than 2
million gallons of water.
"The water was used to flush the blood and other animal
waste materials through an elaborate system of drainage tunnels
that lay beneath the surface flagstones of the Temple. Animal
waste products were flushed east-ward to outlets deep in the
Kidron Valley. Years of accumulated waste material produced an
incredibly rich compost that was treasured by the gardeners of
ancient Jerusalem, according to Jewish tradition" (pages 42,43).
Consecration of the Temple is in 1 Kings 8:43). See also 2
Chron.7:1-2.
The Scriptures record that the priests sacrificed 22,000
oxen and 120,000 sheep during the festival of dedication.The meat
as J points out would have been distributed to the priests. and
the people coming to the festival. J also points out: "If the
recorded number of sacrificed animals seems impossibly high,
remember that the Muslim leader Khalif Moktader is reported by
the explorer Sir Richard Burton, who secretly visited Mecca in
disguise, to have sacrificed 40,000 camels and 50,000 sheep
during a major festival in the 1870s" (page 44).
HEROD'S TEMPLE
It was around 18 B.C, that King Herod began an immense
building project to reconstruct and enlarge the Second Temple to
try and rival that of Solomon's Temple. This reconstruction was
still going on during Jesus' ministry some 46 years later. We are
told this from the Gospel of the New Testament You might remember
Jesus said "Destroy this temple and i will raise it up in three
days." They laughed at Him, saying the Temple was 46 years in
building, so how could He raise it up in three days. Jesus was
not speaking about the physical Temple of Jerusalem, but about
His body as the Temple of God.
Josephus does record that: "Accordingly in the fifteenth
year of his reign, he [king Herod] restored the existing
sanctuary and round it enclosed an area double the former size,
keeping no account of its cost and achieving magnificence beyond
compare."
J tells us that Herod was king of a prosperous Israeli
empire that produced annual revenues of more than $70 million,
according to Josephus (page 45).
Herod employed more than a thousand large wagons to
transport the quarried limestone for the Temple. Some of the
foundation stones were taken from a quarry near the present-day
Knesset (the Israeli parliament building), many of the large
stones were carved from the Royal Caverns deep beneath the
northeastern quarter of Jerusalem. Huge wagons transported the
stones from the Royal Caverns through the subterranean entrance
to the Temple Mount (page 45).
J writes: "The Roman historian Tacitus, who was a
contemporary of the apostle Paul, wrote with great admiration of
the glories of the Temple as it existed in the days of Herod the
Great: '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'" (page 45).
.......................
To be continued
The Temple and Christ's Return The Oil of Anointing?
From a book by Grant Jeffrey
RECOVERING LOST TEMPLE TREASURES
On page 49 J remembers the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls
back in 1947, and the light they gave on life in the first
century and the fall of Jerusalem. Then in 1953 another curious
scroll was found in Cave 3 at the village of Qumran on the West
side of the Dead Sea. It was a rolled up scroll of three copper
sheets riveted together. It was 8 feet long and 1 foot wide. And
so it became known as the Copper Scroll.
The Copper Scroll J says revealed 64 secret locations where
the Jewish Essene priests had hidden gold and silver treasures
from the Temple.
Among the 64 listed sites, we are told that locations
include places near Qumran, southern Jerusalem centered on Mount
Zion, and in a area on the east of the Jordan River in present-
day Jordan.
All sounds very nice, right? Well, not just as easy as that.
J points out to us that details of the topographical descriptions
are subject to interpretation. One problem is that a great deal
of wind and occasional water erosion has transformed some of the
features of the Qumran area. So, it is not easy to match the
described landmarks to the present-day terrain, due to the
physical features of the land over the past two thousand years
(pages 49-51).
Ah but we are told many scholars believe there are
additional Essene manuscripts that remain undiscovered. Now if
God is planning that this new Temple has these "hidden" treasures
from the old Temple, you'd think they would have come to light by
now, especially with modern space age tech equipment.
And J then tells us about a few of the NASA technology to
analyze features that lie hundreds of feet beneath any given
target area. J says that using this technology, archaeologists
can locate underground caves, rooms, tunnels, and even objects
within those spaces.
Then J tells us such things are detected already and the
Israeli government has given the okay to dig down for them, but
"It will take several years for archaeologists to dig down to the
largest cave, fifty feet below the surface. But according to J
the Israel government will release whatever is found to the wider
scholarship community to examine (page 52).
Well time is always being used by the fundamentalists. Jesus
could come any second (albeit in a "secret" way to rapture the
church to heaven), then again they teach that a physical Temple
must be built by the Jews before Jesus can come in open glory.
They say the prophecies "demand" it!
J does go on to say that some scholars accept the "hidden
treasure" of the Copper Scroll as nothing more than a fanciful
tale. The scroll would say there is 3,282 talents of gold and
1,280 talents of silver, and according to J an ancient Hebrew
talent varied from 75 pounds to 125 pounds, at current prices
(2007 when he wrote this book) the value would be $2.5 billion,
with a "B."
He figures the old Temple was full of treasure that could be
worth that amount of money today (page 53). J tells us that the
Jewish historian Flavius Josephus wrote that when General Pompey
captured Jerusalem in 63 BC, Crassus demanded and received a
immediate tribute of "more than 10,000 talents" from the Temple
treasury.
J gives the facts that there was a Temple guard and if that
guard fell asleep while on duty, his clothes would be set on fire
as punishment (Jewish commentary Middoth 11:12, a part of the
Mishnah). there was a captain of the Temple (Acts 4:1) J says
Jewish records "suggest" that 240 priests from the tribe of Levi,
plus as many as 24 additional priests, served on security duty
every night. I find that "suggestion" a little hard to believe.
If such treasure from the Temple is hidden, with modern tools we
should expect it to be found. Personally I will not hold by
breath waiting for it to be discovered. And anyway, if it is,
what has it to do with the building of a third Temple before
Jesus comes. But it all adds "glamor" and "pomp" to the idea that
a Temple must be built by Jews before the Messiah can return in
triumph and glory to set up the Kingdom of God on earth.
Now J goes on to tell us that the Copper Scroll lists
artifacts including "items that hold great significance for the
rebuilding of the Temple and the resumption of Temple worship and
sacrifice. A copper scroll he states was found in 1952 in Cave 8
at Qumran. This scroll is supposed to be in Amman, Jordan, the
ashes of the last sacrifice of the red heifer was AD 68, just
before Jerusalem fell in 70 AD. It is sated by J that the priests
took the heifer's ashes from the Temple in a clay vessel and
buried it with other sacred objects "so they could be recovered
in the last days" (page 55).
J tells us that if the ashes could be recovered they could
be used in the ritual cleansing of the Temple Mount and a rebuilt
sanctuary. The ashes are needed to create the "water
purification" (see Numbers 19) that are needed to purify the
priests, the sacred worship vessels, and the Third Temple.
A place location is supposed to be given on the scroll, but
as J admits "it is difficult to match this description with
current location, but several investigations are being conducted
under the auspices of the chief rabbi and the Israeli museums"
(page 55).
Now, this book by J was written in 2007, or published in
2007. Have you heard any breaking news that they have discovered
this vessel with the red heifer ashes? With all the modern space
age tech stuff from NASA, you would think they would have
discovered something by now, especially since the Israeli museums
are said to be involved.
It sure seems like the Jews are making it very hard on
themselves to build this third Temple, if they really have the
over-powering desire to go back to the days of Moses. The truth
of the matter is, it is only fundamentalists like J that teach
the over-powering idea that a third Temple must be built before
Jesus can come in glory, and yes a few religious Jews. The
majority in the Israeli government have no interest in a Temple
and re-instituting the days of Moses, and the average person in
the State of Israel could care less, they just want peace and to
have a prosperous life.
J finishes this page 55 by saying, "Recovering these sacred
artifacts is KEY (my emphasis) to re-building the Temple."
Again, how hard these fundamentalists and few Jews make it
for themselves in getting to rebuild this Temple. You wait for
another ten years, and this new book by J will be given away by
the stores that may have a few copies left, and his theories and
hidden treasure stuff, will be so out of date, he'll have to come
up with another book to keep perpetuating this fundamental
teaching that a temple MUST be built before Jesus can return.
DISCOVERING THE OIL OF ANOINTING
J tells us that an archaeological team and one of his
friends, with information from the Copper Scroll set out to
discover the oil of anointing lost since the first century. The
reached Cave 11 in Qumran and found a clay vessel that contained
oil that had solidified as a jelly like substance.
J tells us that there was 5 ingredients used in the oil for
anointing kings. The technical word for this oil is "shemen
afarsimon."
The 5 ingredients are found in Exodus 30:23-26, 30-31).
Apparently, says J, when this solidified oil was analyzed,
it was shown to be composed of the exact 5 ingredients as given
by God to Moses. He claims Carbon-14 radioactive dating put this
oil at nearly 2 thousand years, from the time of the Second
Temple of Herod's day.
J tells us that intensive testing by the Pharmaceutical
Department of the Hebrew University established that the oil
inside the clay vessel was the ancient oil of anointing. It was
supposedly given to the two chief rabbis of Israel for
safekeeping (pages 56-57).
Then we see again from J how hard the Jews have made for
themselves, to ever build this Temple and re-establish the laws
of Moses regarding Temple service and sacrifice. We are led to
believe the Jews WANT to build this temple, yet at the same time
we are told all the nitty-gritty, one, two, three, and more
things needed to re-institute this Temple and its services.
J says that some Jewish scholars argue that the inability to
create the legitimate oil of anointing would prevent the Jews
from ever resuming legitimate Temple worship. Supposedly without
the oil of anointing it would be impossible to anoint the sacred
objects and the priests.
But as J puts it, "However, the discovery of this ancient
sample of the oil of anointing makes it possible to anoint the
Temple, the sacred vessels, the Cohanim [priests descended
directly from the sons of aaron], and the Messiah-King of Israel"
(page 58).
J then goes on to say that with this oil found, the Temple
can be rebuilt, and all in it can be anointed. He finishes this
section with "When the Lord returns, the oil of anointing will be
used to usher in His messianic rule" (page 58).
Hummmmm .... all sounds kinda nice, you would say. well we
have only J to say all this as to what he states is TRUE! I think
I'll do a check on the Internet, maybe you can do the same, and
see if there is anything, or anyone in Israel, who can verify
what J has told us. Quite frankly, the fundamentalists have lied
before to uphold their teaching on a "must have a physical Temple
before Jesus can return" teaching. In the early 1980s some
reports were circulated that the stones for the Temple were at
dock-side in the USA waiting to be shipped over to Israel. It
turned out to be just one big lie, as there never was any stones
at any sea-port in the USA, going to be shipped over to Israel.
The oil of anointing does not have to be there to be used on
the coming Messiah. I do not think God needs to be anointed with
physical oil to take His position as King of kings and Lord of
lord, as ruler of this world, when He comes again.
Now the reader may like to go on the Internet and learn more
about the Copper Scroll than J tells you about. I suggest "Vandyl
Jones Research Institutes" on the Copper Scroll. You can type in
also Archaeology/Discoveries - the Copper Scroll.
We have gone for 57 years since this Copper Scroll was
discovered in 1952, and with modern space-age technology this
Scroll has not produced the "theological message" that J would
like you to believe. Secondly, the bottom line is that it is not
some Copper Scroll from the Essenes or whoever wrote it, that
gives the truth of the Word of the Lord. The Bible only is the
inspired Word of God. And its prophetic messages tell you the
future. The coming of the Messiah in glory is NOT RELATED in any
way to the "must have a physical Temple in Jerusalem" teaching,
BEFORE Jesus can return to establish the Kingdom of God on earth.
THE EZEKIEL TABLETS
J goes into some detail from pages 58-61 on the so-called
"Ezekiel Tablets." "There is a theory that stone tablets
containing the next of the book of Ezekiel were buried in the
tomb of the prophet, which still exists in Iraq" (page 59).
You will notice please the word "theory."
J goes on to relate stories about people taking or
trying to take, books or scrolls from the supposed tomb of
Ezekiel. A close friend of J's was allowed to view these
mysterious Ezekiel Tablets in 1952, which contain the major
portion of the text of Ezekiel. Well to cut a long story short, J
was in the dark corner of a special library in Jerusalem and
discovered an elusive reference to the Copper Scroll in "an
enormous group of documents and volumes that covered the entire
wall of the library" (page 60).
Some leading Dead Sea Scroll scholar at the end of his text
gave a photo of marble tablets in ancient Hebrew script
containing a history of the treasures lost six centuries earlier
from Solomon's Temple (586 BC) and the secret hiding places of
those treasures, said to be near Mount Carmel in northern Israel.
J says, "Prudence forces me to refrain from providing the
topographical details of the secret sites the priests used to
hide these treasures from Solomon's Temple" (page 61).
Of course J hopes from these two tablet texts that more
treasures from Solomon's Temple will be found.
Don't hold your breath, we are in 2009, with many space-age
tech stuff and the glories of Solomon's Temple have still to be
found. Even if they were to be found, it all has nothing to do
with the truth of Bible Scripture that does NOT TEACH a physical
Temple with Jews sacrificing animals, MUST come to be, before
Jesus can return to earth. The lengths and depths fundamental
"scholars" will dig up (excuse the archaeological pun, which was
intended) to try and "amplify" with buried treasure stuff to
enhance their "temple must be built" teaching, is truly amazing
at times.
...................
To be continued
The Temple and Christ's Return Deep below the City of Jerusalem
From a book by Grant Jeffrey (published in 2007)
EXPLORING THE ANCIENT CITY UNDER JERUSALEM
J says few visitors are aware of the secret city that lies
beneath the Temple Mount and Jerusalem's Old City. The
underground city as it is now, was constructed over many
centuries. Jerusalem has been invaded 27 times, more than any
other city on earth. Despite all the invasions, the secret
tunnels, treasures, food storage chambers, cisterns, and
underground shelters have remained unknown (page 65).
In 1990 a cavern and tunnel was discovered that is supposed
to go back to Jeremiah's day, as told in Jeremiah 39:4.
Archaeologists have uncovered many remains of tunnels,
rooms, treasuries, and cisterns in many areas of the Old City. J
tells us that the entire city sits above a honey-comb of
underground passageways (page 66).
The writings of the Jewish sages, the Talmud and Maimonides'
"Mishneh Torah" refer to the construction and use of this
underground complex at various times during Jerusalem's history.
J has already explained the huge amount of water needed for
the Temple sacrificing system. He tells us that most rabbis today
believe that no Jews should enter any part of the Temple Mount
lest they inadvertently defile the Holy of Holies (page 68).
J quotes from Parah, chapter 3, Mishneh 3, "The entire earth
below was hollowed out ... to prevent the possibility of impurity
from the grave under the Temple courtyard."
Below the present city of Jerusalem there is an elaborate
subterranean structure containing numerous rooms, guardrooms,
water cisterns, storage rooms, and storage compartments that
Jewish historians estimate would have held enough grain reserve
to feed the population of Jerusalem during a siege lasting more
than a dozen years (page 69).
It appears that this subterranean passages connect in a vast
system of tunnels extending from the Pool of Siloam area in the
south of the ancient city of David all the way to Golgotha -
Calvery - to the north of the city walls and the Gate of
Damascus.
The city of Jerusalem is built on limestone. When first
uncovering it, it is very soft to work with, but after being
exposed to air it will finally dry to as hard as any rock. Hence
the easy construction of rooms and tunnels under the city in past
ages (page 70).
There are J states, several tunnels underneath the Temple
Mount that lead directly to "mikvehs" (ritual baths), which the
priests used to cleanse themselves before entering the Temple.
Additionally, there were tunnels that allowed the high priest and
others to privately enter and exist the Temple to wash at their
personal "mikvehs" without the risk of defilement by contact with
spiritually unclean people or objects (page 71).
TREASURES HIDDEN
J tells us, "There is reason to believe the treasures from
the Temple and other sacred items have been hidden underneath
Jerusalem for millenniums" (page 72).
J relates to us the story of some Jewish sages that believed
Josiah was given special insight and so God led the king to bury
the treasures of the Temple, including the oil of anointing, the
rod of aaron, and the pot of manna, so they would not be
destroyed in the destruction and burning of Jerusalem in 586 BC.
The Talmud according to J is said to say the ark of the covenant
(or its replica) was hidden in the same underground chamber.
Maimonides of the 11th century AD is said to uphold this belief
(page 73).
J and his wife were 100 feet down under in the excavation
walls exactly opposite the original Temple location, a picture of
the menorah (the seven-branched candelabrum) was hanging on a
spike. he asked his archaeological friend why it was hanging
there. The answer was that "Grant, we believe that the sacred ark
of the covenant os located in a secret chamber directly to the
east behind this Western Wall" (pages 73-74). J n does not agree,
but believes the ark was removed to Ethiopia near the conclusion
of the reign of Prince Menelik, King Solomon's son with the queen
of Sheba. J says that Ethiopian history claims that the replica
of the ark was substituted for the real ark in the Holy of Holies
(page 74).
J goes on to tell us that large underground rooms was needed
to hold the enormous quantity of animals used in the daily
sacrifices. Now that does make sense, especially at times of the
yearly Festivals (page 75).
Apparently old king Herod had his engineers build a secret
escape tunnel that led diagonally from his palace north of the
Temple sanctuary, underneath the Temple to a special defense
tower near the Eastern Gate (page 76).
According to J a friend told him that Herod had a narrow, 11
mile-long escape tunnel built, that provided him a way of escape
that led from the Temple Mount across the Kidron Valley, past the
Mount of Olives, and east towards King Herod's castle in the city
of Jericho (page 76).
In 1990 J was witness to and told by a rabbi that the
Western Wall, the Wailing Wall, is never left, day or night,
without worshippers, be it cold nights or winter. The rabbi was
to lead J and his wife into more deeper areas under the Temple
Mount. It was the middle of the night, there were no
archaeological guys around or guards to interfere with their
research. The tunnels were so narrow at times they had to pass
through them sideways. Tunnel after tunnel opened to special
guard rooms and ancient synagogues and storage chambers.
Well they went through gates and follow for two hours the
most amazing tunnel system for more than a mile and a half, with
walls rising as high as sixty feet (page 78,79).
There was this one tunnel J says was 60 feet high and he
relates it to Jeremiah 52:7. It led thousands of feet from the
Temple Mount northward to emerge outside the walls of the city
(page 80).
SOLOMON'S STABLES
The Temple Mount is administratively under the control of
the Muslim council of "Waqf" - explorers of the past had to use
personal risk or large gifts to get permission to "go under" this
area. J got permission to explore this area in 1991, which had
not been visited he claims by a Westerner since the 1850s, except
for Moshe Dayan, Israel's minister of defence, following the Six-
Day War in 1967. J says he was able to photograph the rows of
ancient columns that supported the roof of Solomon's Stables. The
substructure extends 319 feet in an east-west direction towards
the Western Wall and as much as 247 feet north from the southern
wall of the Temple Mount (page 81).
According to J the Waqf authorities in the last 10 years (he
wrote his book in 2007) have destroyed the archaeological
remnants of Solomon's Stables. The Waqf brought in bulldozers and
massive stones saws to gut the ancient stable and build an
underground Mosque. He claims all this was done in violation of
Israeli law, but the Jews did nothing. He claims he was able to
go back before the stable was destroyed with a TV crew and take
footage of this ancient treasure (page 82).
ANCIENT CHURCH FOUND
J relates how he and his wife were also inside an
underground room that was about 100 feet long and 50 feet wide
with a roof arched some 60 feet above their heads. It was
supposed to be built in the 2nd century and then rebuilt in the
time of the Crusades. The 60 foot ceiling was many feet below the
basement of the centuries-old Arab buildings just to the west of
the Temple Mount.
He says the original structure was clearly formed in the
shape of a cross. It was apparently a one time Christian church
located at the foot of the Western Wall. And as he says, many
early Roman Christian churches used this cross-shaped plan.
The Israeli authorities were shock to discover this
structure within 100 feet of the Western Wall. Some
archaeologists he says refused to admit openly that this was a
Christian church at one time (page 83).
Well this is all "interesting" as such, but what it has to
do with the coming of Christ, I'm still trying to figure out, but
it does add some dark underground thrill to the ancient city of
Jerusalem.
...................
To be continued
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