Edersheim's analysis of the Jerusalem Temple's structure and religious significance

Temple- Its Ministry and Services

The Temple: Its Ministry and Services

In The Temple: Its Ministry and Services, Alfred Edersheim seeks to show the reader Jerusalem as it was in the days of Christ. First, Edersheim seeks to show how the physical structure of the Temple. Then Edersheim attempts to describe the Temple's ordinances. Next, Edersheim discusses those who worshipped in the Temple during Jesus' time. Finally, Edersheim concentrates on the priesthood, discussing both its ministry and its rituals.

Edersheim begins chapter one by giving the reader an initial impression of Jerusalem. First, he discusses the charm of Jerusalem, which is based on its religious and spiritual promise to people of many faiths. Next, he talks about the ancient memories in Jerusalem, which was the birthplace of those who became the Hebrews, and who eventually formed the foundation of three major religions: Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Edersheim maintains that God named Jerusalem, and that its name means either the foundation, the abode, or the inheritance of peace. Next, Edersheim talks about how Jerusalem is situated. He points out that Jerusalem sat higher than the surrounding land. However, Jerusalem was not flat, but was actually situated on four hills. In addition, Jerusalem had extraordinary architecture, which was unrivaled in ancient times, was at the top of the Mount of Olives, and surrounded by city walls, which were protected by towers. Edersheim describes the High Priest's palace, which was located on the northeast corner of Mount Zion. The Shushan Gate led one to Jerusalem through the Mount of Olives. It is in this description that Edersheim gives his first description of the Temple, which was located on an artificially leveled plateau. He also discusses how the Rabbis struggled to keep Jerusalem free from pollution. Edersheim ends his introduction by speaking of Jerusalem being in ruins.

In chapter two, Edersheim discusses being within the Holy Place. He begins by talking about the various entrances into Jerusalem. There was an avenue referred to as the Royal Bridge, which was an ascent into the Temple. The Temple was surrounded by porches, which ran the length of the inside of its wall. While the Temple was a place for Jews, gentiles were permitted in its lowest enclosure. Nine gates opened from the terrace into the sanctuary. The most beautiful of those gates was the eastern gate. The Temple contained a Court of the Women, which was as far into the Temple as women could go except for the purpose of sacrifices. The four corners of the Court of the Women had chambers, and different levels of priests worked in different areas. There was a Court of Israel, which was actually two courts that were divided into two sections. That chamber was divided into different sections, with different purposes. One part of the chamber was the Court of the Priests. Inside the Court of the Priests was an altar, with three fires and four altars. Between the Temple's altar and porch was a laver, where the priests washed.

In chapter three, Edersheim speaks about Temple order, revenues, and music. He points that there were three divisions in the Holy City, just as there had been in the wilderness: the camps of Israel, the Levites, and of God. Edersheim makes it clear that outward reverence was expected of those who entered upon the Temple Mount. The Temple Mount was only to be used for strictly religious purposes. In fact, the priests had many of the same prohibitive ordinances as Jesus incorporated for his Temple. The purity of the Temple was so important that there was no atonement for willful profanity. Those who willfully profaned the Temple could be punished by cutting off, death by the hand of God, whipping after a trial, and a "rebel's beating," which was an immediate beating on the spot of defiance. Edersheim points out that Jesus received the "rebel's beating" on multiple occasions. The strictness of punishment was necessary because of the huge number of worshippers passing through the Temple.

Edersheim next discusses the Temple treasury, because worshippers could give any object or person to the Temple. If it was not suitable for Temple use, then it was sold for the Temple's treasury. In addition, people brought voluntary contributions to the Temple. Furthermore, every adult male Israelite was expected to bring a half-shekel for Temple tribute. This tribute was enforced by law and was about 76,000 pounds annually. The Temple money was spent on public sacrifices, services for the sanctuary, Temple repairs, salaries for officials, and repairs for the upkeep of Jerusalem. The Temple's wealth was matched by the character of its services, which included the sacrificial rites, and the hymnody of the sanctuary. Praise in the Temple was done only with the voice, and instrumental music was merely an accompaniment. The trumpet blasts were not part of the service, but were symbolically claiming the Kingdom of God. Temple music was influenced by David, who was a musician, and was played with the harp, the lute, and, on special occasions, the flute.

In chapter four, Edersheim discusses the officiating priesthood. Half of all Jewish priests were to reside in Jerusalem. The priests served a symbolic purpose, reconciled Jews with God, and mediated on behalf of Jews in their relationships with God. The object of reconciliation was holiness, and things such as dress were meant to symbolize their holiness. Israel was divided into different classes.

Likewise, different groups had different duties. The Levites were the Temple police and kept the sanctuary clean. The priests kept watch over the innermost places of the Temple and the Temple's inner gates. Each course of priests and Levites served for a week at a time. However, the priesthood was merely representative of the people and priests received only modest payment. Priests generally underwent instruction and had to pass an examination before being allowed to officiate. The high-priest was answerable to the Sanhedrim, and the Sanhedrim was watched over by an ecclesiastical council. The office of high-priest was originally hereditary. Having a good voice was the only qualification for a priest, although certain bloodlines helped. Priests were not anointed, but merely investitured. High priests dressed in eight sacred vestments. Four of those vestments were distinctive: the breast-plate, mitre, phylacteries, and the ziz. However, those garments may have been indicative of parties. The priests were divided into different categories: the Sagan, two Katholikin, seven Ammarcalin, and three Gizbarin. While each category had specific duties, Edersheim states that it is difficult to determine what those duties were. There were lower officials underneath these groups. There was also a 24-point system of support for the priests.

In chapter five, Edersheim discusses sacrifices, their order, and meaning. First, he points out that modern Jews believe that sacrifices were imported into the Old Testament from other sources, rather than being part of ancient Judaism. He believes this is a mistake. Edersheim indicates that the Old Testament sacrifices were both symbolic and typical. The sacrifices indicated a blessing yet to appear. Sacrifices were the center of the Old Testament. The central idea of a sacrifice was substitution. Sacrifices could be divided into two categories: bloody and unbloody. God appointed the means and modes of sacrifice. Oxen, sheep, goats, turtle-doves, and pigeons were appointed for sacrifices. There were eleven public sacrifices. There were also private sacrifices. In addition, there were some required sacrifices and some voluntary sacrifices. Sacrifices were also separated into degrees of holiness. There were acts of sacrifice that belonged to the offerer: the laying on of hands, slaying, skinning, cutting up, and washing the inwards. However, five acts of sacrifice belonged solely to the priests: catching up the blood, sprinkling it, lighting the altar fire, laying on the wood, bringing up the pieces, and anything else done at the altar. Women could not participate in any of these activities. The Old Testament and New Testament versions of sacrifice were in agreement.

In chapter six, Edersheim goes into greater detail regarding various sacrifices: the burnt-offering, the sin and trespass offering, and the peace offering. Jews argued whether or not sacrifices were to cease after the coming of the Messiah. However, it was agreed that the Messiah was the ultimate substitute sacrifice. When read as a unit, the Old Testament Messianic prophecies form a unified picture and predicted Christian theology. Once the reader figures in Christian and some older Judaic interpretations of the Old Testament, it becomes clear that the Messiah was intended to be the substitute for mankind. However, Jewish scholars abandoned this point-of-view when it became clear that it was supporting Jesus' claims as the Messiah. Edersheim then explains the individual types of offerings. A burnt offering was offered wholly to God and could precede a peace offering. A sin offering was offered for general redemption of sins through ignorance, differed according to the role of who was giving the offering, and had their blood sprinkled not thrown. In contrast, trespass offerings were offered for redemption of particular sins. Trespass offerings could be offered for certain or doubtful transgressions. An additional type of offering was the peace-offering, which represented a feast where God was a guest and the host. Peace offerings were accompanied by meat and drink offerings. For all offerings, repentance was necessary.

In chapter seven, Edersheim describes a night in the temple. Edersheim points out the connection between Temple services and the Book of Revelations, which he suggests indicates that the Book of Revelation and the Fourth Gospel were written before Temple services actually ceased. Edersheim indicates that there was an evening service in the Temple. Accounting was also done in the evening. The Temple guard worked at night and consisted of ten men. The captain of the guard patrolled and beat any sleeping guards. The priests cast lots for the services of the day. Those who drew the first lot cleansed and prepared the later. Those who drew the second lot were to offer the sacrifice, to cleanse the candlestick, and the altar of incense. Those who drew the third lot were to offer the incense; this lot was cast in both the morning and the evening. Those who drew the fourth lot were to burn the sacrifice on the altar.

In chapter eight, Edersheim describes the morning and evening sacrifice. Although not required under Mosaic Law, by the time of Christ public service was an important part of Temple services. Edersheim attributes widespread public worship to the spread of synagogues. He also links public worship to the rise of the Pharisees. However, this prayer was not genuine, and the disciples asked Jesus to teach them to pray. The rabbis strictly delineated the attitude of worshippers during prayer. There were two types of prayer: prayers of thanksgiving and prayers of petition. When the Temple's great gates were opened in the morning, a sacrificial lamb was slain. Edersheim then describes in detail the prayers and blessings offered by the priests.

In chapter nine, Edersheim discusses Sabbath in the Temple. First, he points out that the law was not a burden, but a gift. However, by the time of Christ, the Sabbath had become perverted. Edersheim describes the rigid prohibitions against work on the Sabbath as the greatest labor of all. The school of Shammai, the sect of the Essenes, and the Samaritans observed the Sabbath more stringently than others. While the scriptural restrictions on the Sabbath were not extensive, they were stretched into a variety of rules prohibiting almost any type of activity on the Sabbath except for forced festivities and certain priestly functions.

One of those priestly functions was the renewal of the shewbread. There were 12 cakes, made of wheat flour, and placed in two rows of six cakes. Between the cakes were two bowls of incense. The shewbread was changed in a ritual manner, and was eaten during the Sabbath, but only by priests in a state of Levitical purity. The shewbread symbolized life and God's presence. In the Temple was the table on the Arch of Titus, which was made of pure gold. The table had vessels, on which the shewbread was either carried or placed. There is a question whether drink offerings were brought into the Temple.

Edersheim also mentions the Sabbatical year. Every seven years the soil was to be left uncultivated, and anything growing on its own was to be given to the poor. This applied to land in Palestine. Because the farmers could not grow anything during this year, one could not collect debts from farmers. However, to protect creditors Rabbi Hillel devised the Prosbul, which was a declaration that secured debts for money lent in the Sabbatical year. Edersheim believes that the Jews perverted the law of the Sabbath, but points out that Jesus did most of his work during the Sabbath.

In chapter ten, Edersheim discusses the festive cycles and arrangement of the calendar. The cycles are marked by the number seven. The Sabbath is the seventh day, the Feast of the Pentecost occurs seven weeks after the start of the ecclesiastical year, the seventh month is the most sacred, the seventh year is Sabbatical, the 49th year is the year of Jubilee. Furthermore, there are seven days of each year designated as the most festive. Furthermore, the cycles are marked by either two or three cycles; one beginning with the Paschal sacrifice and ending on the Day of Pentecost. The other cycle begins in the seventh month, which marks Israel's possession of the land. The three great festivals were marked by Reiyah, Chagigah, and Simchah. In addition to Mosaic festivals, Jews celebrated Purim and the Dedication of the Temple. All male Israelites had the duty of appearing three times a year in the Temple. The Hebrew year was lunar, not solar, with leap-years done by the insertion of a thirteenth month. Generally, every third year required the addition of a month. Special messengers, called the seven messengers of the new moon, were sent to announce the new moon. Jews divided the week into seven days, but only the last was named.

In chapter eleven, Edersheim discusses the Passover. Initially there were two festivals: the Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread. However, they were celebrated together and were generally treated as one festival. There were certain peculiarities about Passover which differentiated it from other festivals. For example, it was the first of three feasts in which all males in Israel were bound to appear before the Lord. The feast of unleavened bread celebrated the Jews deliverance from destruction and bondage, and the commencement of their existence as a nation. The term Passover, in Hebrew Pesach, and in Aramaic and Greek Pascha, meant to step over or overleap. There was a differentiation between the Egyptian and the Permanent Passover. Passover involved the slaying of a lamb. The lambs were to be eaten either wholly by a family or by two neighboring families. In the Mishnah, Passover was to be celebrated for seven days. There was an intermission in the celebration of Passover, between the second year after the Exodus and when the Jews reached the Promised Land. Jews began preparing for Passover a month before it occurred. There were three things implied in the command to appear before the Lord: Presence, the Chagigah or peace offering, and Joyousness. The Passover was sacrificed between the evenings of the 14th and 15th of Nisan, with the Paschal Supper taking place on the 15th itself. Only unleavened cakes were to be used during the feast. The Paschal lamb was to be between eight days and one-year-old, and to be served to a group of ten to twenty people. While describing the requirements of the Paschal lamb, Edersheim intersperses information regarding Christ's celebration of Passover. The Hallel was song on Passover, and it celebrated the goodness of God and the deliverance of the Jews from Egypt.

In chapter twelve, Edersheim discusses the Paschal Feast and the Lord's Supper. It is here that he gave them the bread of his body and the wine of his blood. This was only one in a series of events that were extremely important to the Jewish people that occurred during the Passover. The present Passover ritual is not the same as the one celebrated in New Testament times. Jesus' sacrifice at the Passover combined the ideas of the sin-offering and the peace-offering, and was thus distinct from all Levitical sacrifices. Wine was an important part of the Paschal Supper, and even the poorest was to drink four cups of wine during it. The Paschal Supper commenced with people giving thanks, then they drank the first cup of wine, and each washed his hands. After that, they ate the bitter herbs. A child asked why the night was different, and the head of the house gave the history of the entire nation. Then the Paschal dishes were brought back to the table. After carefully investigating the ritual in the Paschal Supper, Edersheim feels comfortable concluding that Judas did not actually partake of the Lord's Supper. He also connects the third cup of Paschal Supper wine with the cup Jesus connected with His own Supper. In fact, Edersheim makes it clear the Jesus was the perfect lamb, and that his sacrifice and obedience was necessary for the salvation of Israel.

In chapter thirteen Edersheim discusses the Feast of Unleavened Bread and the Day of Pentecost. Beginning on the Paschal night, Jews were only permitted to eat unleavened cakes for a week. However, this was not the bread of punishment, but a bread of remembrance. The remembrance was of Israel's deliverance, not her bondage; much like the cross became a symbol of life. There were public offerings each day of Passover. However, the Chagigah could not be offered by a person who had contracted Levitical defilement, which is why the Jews did not go with Jesus into the judgment hall. Next, Edersheim goes into an explanation of Judas' betrayal of Jesus. When Jesus was arrested, he went peacefully after securing the freedom of his followers. He was treated very poorly and violently by the mob, which eventually turned him over to Pilate in order to secure public condemnation of Christ. Christ's time of death would have coincided with the time of the evening sacrifice. While those celebrating Passover were bringing their sheaths of firstfruits to the priest, Jesus' followers were placing his body in the tomb. After highlighting the similarities between Jesus' burial and the traditional Passover celebration, Edersheim describes the later significance of Pentecost, which he links with the power of the Holy Ghost going into the world.

In chapter fourteen Edersheim describes the Feast of Tabernacles, which he describes as the most joyous of all festive seasons in Israel. The feast celebrated the Lord's gift of Israel, and demonstrated how the Jews and Israel were inextricably linked. The Feast of Tabernacles was the third of the festivals that male Israelites were required to attend and was at the time of the harvest. The Feast of Tabernacles followed closely upon the Day of Atonement, and the removal of sin contributed the feast's joyous nature. During this festival, male Israelites resided in booths. In addition, the offerings given during the Feast of Tabernacles were unusual. The number of bullocks decreased every day of the festival. In addition there were a larger number of animals sacrificed during the Feast of Tabernacles. The prayer connected with the Feast of Tabernacles was for salvation in connection with the Son of David. It was in connection with this feast that Nicodemus invited the priests and Pharisees to seek from the teaching and miracles of Christ. In every sabbatical year, the Law was to be publicly read on the first day of the feast. Two important ceremonies of the Feast of Tabernacles were of post-Mosaic origin: the pouring out of water and the illumination of the Temple.

In chapter fifteen, Edersheim discusses the new moons festive season. The festival occurred each month and was to give a hallowed character to each month. The new moon was determined by observation, not calculation. When the new moon was observed, trumpets were blown and special sacrifices were offered. These sacrifices consecrated the whole month. If there were any special prayers offered in the Temple for new moons' days, they have not been preserved. The new moon of the seventh month was considered the most sacred. One of the new moons marked the beginning of the New Year. On New Year's Day, three books were opened representing life, death, and the intermediate. In addition, there were special blessings associated with the New Year.

In chapter sixteen, Edersheim discusses the Day of Atonement. Only the high-priest officiated on the Day of Atonement. Worshippers were required to fast. The Day of Atonement was said to have been the day Adam sinned and repented, that Abraham was circumcised, and the day that Moses returned from the mount. This was the only day that the high-priest was allowed to go into the Most Holy Place, but he had to wear special clothes and bathe his entire body. There were three types of offerings for the Day of Atonement: the continual burnt offering, the festive sacrifices of the day, and the sin-offering. One of these offerings was the scapegoat. The priest then cleansed the sanctuary of the defilement of the priesthood and the worshippers. The scapegoat was to be sent forth into the wilderness. Edersheim says that Christ was a scapegoat and compared Him to the goat. They were both presented to the people, and they were both to bear the iniquity of the people. Then both were sacrificed. Christ was sacrificed on the cross, and the scapegoat was pushed off a cliff.

In chapter seventeen, Edersheim discusses the post-Mosaic festivals. These festive seasons were to celebrate great national deliverances or great national calamities. However, most of these festivals would have been celebrated in local synagogues by the majority of Jews. One of these festivals was the Feast of Purim, which celebrated the preservation of the Jewish nation at the time of Esther. Purim began with a fast. There was also a Feast of the Dedication of the Temple, which was the Feast of Lights, which celebrated the extension of oil for light. There were also four great fasts and twenty-two other fast days.

In chapter eighteen, Edersheim talks about the various different forms of purification. A red heifer was sacrificed to purify them from the defilement of death by ashes. Women gave an offering for their first-born. There was also a purification for the dead, as death was considered the greatest defilement and all classes of Levitical defilement could be traced back to death. There were six degrees of defilement, and red heifer was to be offered for this defilement. The scapegoat, the red heifer, and the living bird sacrificed for a leper were all dipped in blood, which separated them from the other types of sacrifices. Furthermore, all of those sacrifices defiled those who took part in them. Children took place in the offering of the red heifer, because they could not be suspected of defilement. Edersheim briefly describes the purification of the leper, which was significant because leprosy symbolized sin and death. Women could be purified from the suspicion of adultery, even though there was no actual offering connected with this, but they generally offered barley-flour. The woman was exposed to everyone's gaze and shame.

In chapter nineteen, Edersheim discusses various vows. Men were required to keep vows made to Jehovah. There was a difference between positive and negative vows and also between an undertaking and a renunciation. There were limits on vows; for example, a man could only vow his own things and could not bring ill-gotten gains to the altar. Apparently the Nazarite vow existed at the time of Moses, but Moses refined it. The offering of the firstfruits was not technically a vow, but did have to be presented in the Temple in Jerusalem. There were two types of firstfruits: the Biccurim and Terumoth.

Conclusion

While it is possible to understand the life of Christ and the New Testament without an understanding of the Old Testament, religious scholars like Edersheim make it clear that an understanding of the Old Testament and ancient Judaism can only enhance one's understanding of the life of Christ.

Specifically, Edersheim does this by demonstrating the concept of Christ as the ultimate sacrifice, and the fulfillment of God's promise to the people of the nation of Israel.

While Edersheim explains some of the tenets of the concept of a Messiah, he does not go into an in-depth explanation of those tenets. However, Edersheim's work is best understood within the context of Messianic scholarship. First, it is important to understand that the concept of the Messiah is not entirely consistent in the Old Testament. On the contrary, there is some ambiguity related to the term, as it was also applied to men chosen by God to lead the Israelites. However, when one looks at the Messianic prophecies in the Old Testament, it becomes clear that these prophecies relate to the coming of one man. There are certain essential elements to these prophecies, which become very important when one is faced with the question of whether or not Jesus was the Messiah. These prophecies promise the Jews a future leader. This leader will be a descendant of King David. Furthermore, the Messiah is to fulfill several different roles: he is to rebuild Israel, bring peace to the world by restoring the Kingdom of David, and bring judgment to the people of the world. Therefore, it is important to understand that the Jewish people had an expectation of a Messiah. They had been told that a Messiah would appear and that this Messiah would restore Israel to the greatness it had experienced under King David and which had been promised them by God.

However, people often mistakenly believe that the tradition of the Messiah is the most important link between Old Testament Judaism and the life of Christ. However, as scholars like Edersheim demonstrate, this belief is erroneous. Instead, it is more important that Christ fulfill the traditional role that had been filled by sacrifices, than that he fulfilled the Messianic prophecies. This is because Jesus could have been a Messiah without bringing the significant changes that He brought both to Judaism and the world. For example, the prophecies for a Messiah could have been fulfilled by the coming of another Jewish king like David. However, Jesus went beyond the promises of the Messiah, which is what makes the similarities between the death of Christ and Old Testament sacrifices so interesting.

In fact, when one understands how important sacrifice was to the Old Testament Jews, one really begins to understand the concepts of substitution, redemption, and forgiveness. These concepts are absolutely essential to an understanding of the life and death of Christ. For example, in everyday life devout Jews offered sacrifices to redeem themselves from sin. These sacrifices varied, but there were certain consistencies among them. For example, it was traditional for the firstfruit to be sacrificed. Second, there was a sharing element to sacrifice: while items were sacrificed to God, the people were still able to utilize some elements of those sacrifices. In addition, these sacrifices could redeem people from specific and general sin, which shows awareness that sin can be both intentional and unintentional. Therefore, it comes as no coincidence that Jesus was the firstfruit. Not only was the first son of God, but he was also Mary's first son. This element highlights the important role that the sacrificial tradition plays in the story of Christ, because the Messianic tradition does not require the Messiah to be a firstfruit, nor does it require the Messiah to be the son of God. In addition, there was a sharing element to Jesus' sacrifice; at the Last Supper he gave his disciples the wine and the bread, which symbolized his body and his blood. While the fact that Jesus redeemed people from general sin is commonly stressed, it is important to keep in mind that He continues to redeem people from specific and intentional sin, as well. These similarities make it clear that Jesus did not signal a departure from the sacrificial nature of Old Testament Judaism, but, instead, the completion of the tradition of sacrifice in the Old Testament.