Since Adam was formed, several temples have been built. Which temple will we measure first? After the Flood of Genesis, Noah built an "altar to the Lord". Would we regard this as a temple? The first biblical record of a temple is that of the Tabernacle or "tent" built under God's instruction to Moses. This Tabernacle was built in the wilderness during Israel's Exodus from Egypt. So before we begin, let's have a look at a brief chronological history of the Adamic peoples; we need to do this to fit the various temples into their place in history.

Today, even the experts of history and archaeology do not agree on chronological dates. When we take into consideration the research and writings of historians and archaeologists, the subject of chronology can become quite unwieldy and confusing. My chronological works have been taken strictly from the time measures given in the Bible. There are instances in Bible history when the dates do not seem clear, but pointers are given in various biblical references which help to clarify awkward chronological situations. Such situations include the timing of the birth of Abram, the timing of the birth of Moses, the time of the Exodus, the times of the Judges after the Exodus, and the time when Saul was anointed as the first King of Israel.

By taking the sole Biblical approach, I discovered that from the year 4000 BC to the historically recorded times of King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon, 605 BC, the Biblical count of years was to within four or five years of the proven historic time in years of King Nebuchadnezzar's coming on the world scene. The results of my Bible research, however, place the birth of Abram, the Exodus, and the period of the Judges on different time-scales from many other chronological sources.

There is, as far as the beginning of the world is concerned, an apparent conflict between science and religion. This conflict is most obvious if we take the scientific point of view that the universe, and life forms, began millions of years ago. Maybe there has been more than "one beginning", that is, previous "races" of people before Adam. Maybe "man" in Genesis 1 created on the sixth "day", is a different "man" from the man Adam formed in Genesis 2, after the seventh day of God's rest. The Bible says that in God's sight, a day can be as a thousand years. As well as this, prophetically, a day can be interpreted as a year. So can a day be referred to a specific "Age" in time also?

It is not intended here to have a thorough investigation into chronological biblical history, and I hope to produce a separate study on the subject of chronology. So I have selected some key dates of Bible history, in order to show where the different temples fit into Biblical history.

This was built about 1551 BC after the Exodus of Israel (1552 BC) from Egyptian captivity. With the tabernacle, God established a priesthood to care for the tabernacle itself and to serve the requirements of the nation from a civil service point of view.

There was only one priest mentioned in the Bible prior to this time. During the two thousand years 4000 BC to 2000 BC, it seems that God communicated with man either directly, as in the Garden of Eden, or via his angelic representatives or messengers. The first priest we read about is Melchizedek - Priest of the Most High, and King of Salem - who spoke with Abraham in 1977 BC when Abraham was 75 years old. Melchizedek appeared on the scene of history suddenly, with nothing said about his birth, death, ancestry, or descent. His appearance is in a manner which declared his superiority to Abraham, and by implication, superior also to the Aaronic priesthood which later descended from Abraham, through Isaac, Jacob and Levi. Aaron and Moses were sons of Levi, and it was through the tribe of Levi that the Aaronic priesthood was established from the time that Moses' Tabernacle was erected.

A fragmentary text from Cave 11 at Qumran envisages Melchizedek as "divinely appointed judge in the heavenly court, expounding Psalm 7.7 and 82.1 in this sense. In Psalm 110.4, a Davidic King is acclaimed by divine oath as a priest for ever and after the order of Melchizedek. King David and his House became heirs to Melchizedek's dynasty of priest kings, as did Jesus Christ, who descended from the Davidic line of kings.

Alternative chronological considerations could be compared in the chart below, but we leave the study of chronology for a more in depth paper to be presented later (and remember that a "day" could equivalent to a thousand years, or maybe even an Age of unspecified years in time):

Some bible students consider that man was created on the sixth day of God's first week, that God rested on the seventh day, and that Adam, was formed the eighth day, or the first day of the second week. Such students claim that Genesis chapter 1, and Genesis chapter 2, are two different periods of time.

There was 500 years since the birth of Abraham and the erection of Moses' Tabernacle and the establishment of the Aaronic priesthood. These major events for Israel were followed by a period of Judges over the nation's activities - some 484 years after Joshua died - followed by the later appointment of kings to rule over the nation. Joshua was the first judge over Israel followed by many others. Then Saul became the first King over the twelve-tribed Israel nation. He was followed by David, then Solomon who was regarded as the wisest of all the Kings who ruled over them. It took him seven and a half years to build, complete and dedicate a temple around 1,000 BC, that is some 550 years after Moses' Tabernacle was constructed.

After King Solomon's reign, the nation was divided into two kingdoms - the Kingdom of Judah (made up of the two tribes of Judah and Benjamin); and the Kingdom of Israel (made up of the other ten tribes). Each kingdom had a succession of 20 kings after Solomon.

Returning to 723 BC, the Kingdom of Israel (the 10-tribed part of Israel) was captured and deported to Assyria. Some historians believe they can trace their migration across Europe to "Isles of the Sea" by names of the Hibernians, Danaans, Scots, Picts, Britons, Angles, Saxons, Jutes, Danes, Celts, Frisians, Normans - to become the British Commonwealth of Nations. This was the destiny of Ephraim, Joseph's son, to become a Company of Nations (Genesis 35.11). Joseph's other son, Manasseh, was to become a great people (Genesis 48.19), their destiny - the United States of America.

At the time of Jesus first advent, these peoples were still emigrating across Europe, and they were the "lost sheep of the house of Israel" to whom Jesus said He came. The heritage of the Davidic line of kings was taken to Ireland via King Zedekiah's daughters, who escaped with the prophet Jeremiah during the plundering of Jerusalem some 139 years later by King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon. By the time the great migration of the "lost ten tribes" of Israel was complete, the throne of David was well established within the Irish and English lines of Kings. During their migrations, these peoples left stone monuments across Europe as they travelled. These may have been places of worship, especially when these peoples of the ten tribes of Israel had no temple to worship in as did the House of Judah in Jerusalem.

About 118 years after Israel was deported to Assyria, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon conquered the Kingdom of Judah (about 605 BC). A period of seventy years' captivity began. Jerusalem fell to the Babylonians during this 70 year period, and the temple of Solomon was destroyed. The tribes of Judah and Benjamin, i.e. the House of Judah, were captured and deported to Babylon over a series of six raids by Nebuchadnezzar between 605 BC and 584 BC. After their release some 47 years later in 537 BC by the Decree of Cyrus the Persian, some of these peoples returned to Jerusalem. Others were dispersed through many lands. The Jewish nation was founded around this time.

The prophet Ezekiel was among those captured and deported to Babylon during the several raids on Jerusalem that took place, as was the prophet Daniel who gives us many time measures for Bible prophecy. After the fall of Jerusalem and the burning of the temple, Ezekiel had a vision of a new temple, and the description of its structure is even more vivid than that of the description of Solomon's Temple. Ezekiel's temple, however, never became a physical reality. It was never built.

The next temple to be built after the 70 years of captivity of Judah was Ezra's temple - so called here because it is recorded in the book of Ezra in the Bible. The prophet Ezra took no part in the temple's erection. It was actually built by Zerubbabel and Jeshua, and completed and dedicated after being hindered several times, about 517 BC. This was 88 years after Nebuchadnezzar's first raid on Judah in 605 BC. After Nebuchadnezzar's reign, Europe and the Middle Eastern countries saw the rise and fall of three empires - the Medo/Persian, Greek and Roman Empires.

At about 125 BC some of Amalek's descendants known as Idumeans, were absorbed into the Jewish nation. The Amalekites and Idumeans were descendants of Jacob's twin brother, Esau. By the time of the first advent of Jesus Christ, Ezra's temple was still standing in Jerusalem. Herod began a reconstruction of it in 19-18 BC. This was a political move on his part, rather than a move to glorify God. It was burnt and destroyed by Titus of Rome, in 70 AD as Jesus had prophesied.

It is also 553 years since 521 BC when Ezra's Temple was begun. This is 555 minus 2. The "minus 2 years" seems to indicate that the cycle of God's sanctuary, and the relationship between God and man, is still not complete, and may not be until the resurrection of man and the return to earth of the Lord Jesus Christ to claim the Throne of David, and to rule the nations of the world.

With the close of the Old Testament dispensation, the Temple with all its old ordinances and sacrifices, was finished. Thereafter, in the New Testament dispensation, God established a "Living Temple" through Jesus Christ. God entered into Jesus by His "Spirit", baptising or anointing Him with His own Holy Spirit. At the age of 30 years, Jesus of Nazareth, was anointed of God, and inaugurated into His ministry of revealing His Father Jehovah in the midst of Israel. Previous to this He had been only His Father's only-begotten "Son", not yet manifested as the living "Temple" of God.

When Jesus was baptised by John at the River Jordan, John "saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him: and lo a Voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased". We too, can receive God's Holy Spirit, as Jesus did.

In the New Testament, Jesus is referred to as a living temple, and John spoke of "the temple of His body". Peter refers to a "spiritual house" made up of many living members whom he refers to as "lively stones" with Jesus Christ as the Head of "chief cornerstone, elect, precious". The topstone of the Pyramid of Cheops is symbolic of this - the topstone which was never placed in position.

How do we measure this temple? The apostle Peter says "we are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit". The Israel nation will again be instrumental in God's tabernacle or temple at the end time of God's Great Age. The Book of Revelation tells us this (Revelation 1.5-6; 5.10; 20.6).

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