The Tabernacle at Sunset - by Pat Marvenko Smith (click for larger view)

Note: I taught our Elders Quorum class today, and was assigned the topic of the Mosaic Tabernacle as a Temple.  Below are the notes and illustrations I used for my lesson.

Review of prior lesson on the exodus:

• Children of Israel escape Egyptian bondage (Ex. 14)
• Moses leads them out
• Parting of the Red Sea, Pharoah’s armies are drowned
• Lord begins to organize his people
• Manna rains down from heaven, sends Quail for meat (Ex. 16)
• Moses strikes the rock, and water comes out
• Lord covenants to Israel a peculiar treasure, a kingdom of priests, an holy nation (Ex. 19:5-6)
• 10 commandments and Mount Sinai (Ex. 20)
• The people start to refuse to become what the Lord had offered them – “Speak thou with us, and we will hear: but let not God speak with us, lest we die.” (Ex. 20:19).  Foreshadowing…
• Many instructions, laws, covenants, etc. are delivered to Moses, which he delivers to the people, who all answer with one voice, “Yes, we will be obedient (Ex. 24:3, 7)

Moses goes up Mount Sinai again to receive instructions for 40 days and nights (Ex. 24:18).  Matthew Brown – “As part of his ascension experience, Moses is said to have been washed, anointed, clothed in heavenly garments, called with names of honor, enthroned, and initiated into heavenly secrets”.  Joseph Smith noted that Moses received the “keys of the Kingdom,” and “certain signs and words”. 

Next 7 chapters are instructions to Moses of how to build the Tabernacle while he is at Sinai.  Meanwhile the children of Israel are at base camp without their prophet, and things start to go bad.

Preliminary considerations – The Tabernacle functioned under the Aaronic priesthood, and as such things are different than we would expect from a temple functioning under the Melchizedek priesthood.  But much of the symbolism and typology remains the same.

Also, because of the translation, editing, and copying of the Bible through many generations, particularly during Josiah’s reforms, the Old Testament has some interpolations and insertions of Aaronic priesthood as the dominant authority throughout much of its history, even before the golden calf.  Some things seem out of place, anachronistic, counterintuitive, or unlogical (see for example Ex. 33 verses 11 and 20).  Some biblical scholars have noted that these are likely the result of later editing and rewriting.

Schematic drawing comparing Garden of Eden to Mosaic Tabernacle. From Temples of the Ancient World, Donald W. Parry, ed. (click for larger view)

Exodus 25 – Tabernacle, Tabernacle of the Congregation, Tabernacle of Witness or Tent of Witness, literally “Tent of Meeting” – Read Ex. 25:8-9 (first mention of Tabernacle).  Translated from two Hebrew words:

Garden of Eden as a prototype for the Tabernacle – temple functioned as a reversal of the effects of the Fall, and include many of the symbols in reverse order, going from the profane to the sacred:

The schematic drawing attempts to depict the sacred landscape of Genesis in simplified form.  The first land to arise from the waters became the Mountain of the Lord, where the Lord created Adam.  It is from this divine center that creation begins and extends out in all directions.  The Hebrew for east means “faceward or frontward”; thus, driving Adam from before his face is part of the continuing eastward movement.  Once a year on Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, Adam’s eastward expulsion from the Garden is reversed when the high priest travels west past the consuming fire of the sacrifice and the purifying water of the laver, through the veil woven with images of cherubim.  Thus, he returns to the original point of creation, where he pours out the atoning blood of the sacrifice, reestablishing the covenant relationship with God.

Mosaic Tabernacle. From templebuilders.com (click for larger view)

Construction of the Tabernacle – Exodus 25-27 -

• Holy of Holies = Celestial
• Holy Place = Terrestrial (Garden?)
• Courtyard = Telestial
• Altar & Laver = sacrifice, obedience, baptism, washing
• Menorah = tree of life, the cross, the light of the world (Christ).. Fall
• Table of shewbread and wine = fruit of the tree of life, sacrament, flesh and blood of Christ.. Atonement
• Altar of incense = prayer, sacred ritual prayer, before the veil
• Veil = separation from God… we can rend through the rending of Christ’s flesh (Hebrews 10:19-20)
• Ark of the covenant = throne of God, immortality and eternal life

Aaron's holy garments (high priest). Diagram Illustrated by Janshen. (click for larger view)

Aaron’s holy garments (or all of Israel before their great sin) – Exodus 28 -

• Aaron’s garments consecrate him and allow him to minister as a priest. (Ex. 28:3).  Consecrate being translated from the Hebrew words meaning to “fill the hand” – sacrificial emblems, olive oil, incense.  The “filled hand” is a widespread sign of offering sacrifice.
• Breastplate (Ex. 28:4; includes many of the following items)
• Ephod = apron
  • Holman Bible Dictionary – “Priestly garment connected with seeking a word from God . . . In early OT history there are references to the ephod as a rather simple, linen garment, possibly a short skirt, apron, or loincloth.  It is identified as a priestly garment… From its earliest forms and uses, it appears that the ephod was associated with the presence of God or those who had a special relationship with God… There are references to a special ephod associated with the high priest.  It appears to have been an apron-like garment worn over the priest’s robe and under his breastplate… Woven of gold, blue, purple, and scarlet materials, it was very elaborate and ornate… The ephod was fastened around the waist by a beautiful and intricately woven girdle”.
• Robe
• Broidered (embroidered) coat = garment worn next to the skin
• Linen breeches (Ex. 28:42) = to cover nakedness; from the loins even unto the thighs they shall reach
• Mitre = a turban or round cap.  Something wrapped around with white linen.  Holman Bible Dictionary – “a type of headdress, probably a turban… In Zech. 3:5 the high priest Joshua received a clean mitre as a sign of the restoration of the priesthood”
• Girdle = sash – Holman Bible Dictionary – “An ornate sash worn by the officiating priests… to gird up one’s loins means literally to tuck the loose ends of one’s outer garment into one’s belt.  Loins were girded in preparation for running, battle, or for service for a master.  The call to ‘gird your minds’ means to be spiritually alert and prepared”.
• Bells on the hem (Ex. 28:35) = sound heard when he goes into the holy place, as an announcement
• Golden crown (Ex. 28:36) = HOLINESS TO THE LORD.  Taking upon him the name of the Lord, literally.
• Blue lace (Ex. 28:37) = a thread, a line, or cord; string to attach the crown, and secure it to the mitre.

Sons of Aaron (priests). (click for larger view)

Aaron’s sons garments – Ex. 28:40 -

• Coat
• Girdle
• Bonnet (hat or headdress)

Aaron and his sons were to be anointed, consecrated, and sanctified, and clothed in these holy garments so that they could minister in the priest’s office and come to the altar in the holy place. (Ex. 28:41-43; Ex. 29:29)

Exodus 29:4– “And Aaron and his sons thou shalt bring unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, and shalt wash them with water.”

Clothing in the garments of the priesthood – Exodus 29:5-6

Exodus 29:7– “Then shalt thou take the anointing oil, and pour it upon his head, and anoint him.”

These things were done before the priests entered the holy place.  They were preparatory or initiatory ordinances to become ritually clean to serve in the Tabernacle.

Other offerings of animal sacrifices were offered on the altar.

The Tabernacle was to be a place of meeting the Lord and speaking with Him – Exodus 29:42-46 “This shall be a continual burnt offering throughout your generations at the door [veil?] of the tabernacle of the congregation before the Lord:  where I will meet you, to speak there unto thee.  And there I will meet with the children of Israel, and the tabernacle shall be sanctified by my glory… And I will dwell among the children of Israel, and will be their God.  And they shall know that I am the Lord their God… that I may dwell among them: I am the Lord their God.”

All this was given to Moses while he was on Mount Sinai.  The children of Israel, meanwhile, were beginning to build idols, “which shall go before us” (Ex. 32).  Were desiring some intermediary to go before the Lord, now that Moses was gone, and they didn’t know if he was coming back (Ex. 32:1).

The Adoration of the Golden Calf, Nicolas Poussin, April 1633 (click for larger view)

Golden Calf!  Here is the turning point.  Moses comes down and breaks the tablets in his anger (Ex. 32:19, symbolic of the covenant being broken, literally).  The Lord chastises Israel for their great sin.  They will no longer be able to become a kingdom of priests – “Ye are a stiffnecked people: if I came up into the midst of thee in a moment, I would consume thee: therefore now put off thy ornaments from thee, that I may know what to do unto thee” (JST Ex. 33:5; see also Ezek. 24:17, 23).  The children of Israel can no longer come into the presence of the Lord because of their wickedness, and breaking their covenants.  The Lord commanded the Israelites to remove their “ornaments” (Ex. 33:4-6).  Matthew Brown suggests that this might have been connected with the “robes of . . . glory” that the Israelites were required to remove.  “These robes may be related to the ‘garments . . . for glory’ (i.e. temple robes) worn by the Israelite priests”.  Here we see that all the people were preparing to wear the sacred robes, not just Aaron and his sons.  But they were now unworthy of them.

Brigham Young once took note:

If they had been sanctified and holy, the children of Israel would not have traveled one year with Moses before they would have received their endowments and the Melchisedec Priesthood.”

Moses, and later on Aaron, become the intermediary for the people (Ex. 33:7-11).  They would go before the face of God, not the people.  We get more insight into what happened here in the Doctrine and Covenants (D&C 84:17-27).

17 Which priesthood continueth in the church of God in all generations, and is without beginning of days or end of years.
18 And the Lord confirmed a priesthood also upon Aaron and his seed, throughout all their generations, which priesthood also continueth and abideth forever with the priesthood which is after the holiest order of God.
19 And this greater priesthood administereth the gospel and holdeth the key of the mysteries of the kingdom, even the key of the knowledge of God.
20 Therefore, in the ordinances thereof, the power of godliness is manifest.
21 And without the ordinances thereof, and the authority of the priesthood, the power of godliness is not manifest unto men in the flesh;
22 For without this no man can see the face of God, even the Father, and live.
23 Now this Moses plainly taught to the children of Israel in the wilderness, and sought diligently to sanctify his people that they might behold the face of God;
24 But they hardened their hearts and could not endure his presence; therefore, the Lord in his wrath, for his anger was kindled against them, swore that they should not enter into his rest while in the wilderness, which rest is the fulness of his glory.
25 Therefore, he took Moses out of their midst, and the Holy Priesthood also;
26 And the lesser priesthood continued, which priesthood holdeth the key of the ministering of angels and the preparatory gospel;
27 Which gospel is the gospel of repentance and of baptism, and the remission of sins, and the law of carnal commandments, which the Lord in his wrath caused to continue with the house of Aaron among the children of Israel until John, whom God raised up, being filled with the Holy Ghost from his mother's womb.

Moses goes back up the mountain to get the stone tablets again, but this time the covenant did not include the “everlasting covenant of the holy priesthood” that the people were not prepared to receive anymore (JST Deut 10:2).

1 And the Lord said unto Moses, Hew thee two other tables of stone, like unto the first, and I will write upon them also, the words of the law, according as they were written at the first on the tables which thou brakest; but it shall not be according to the first, for I will take away the priesthood out of their midst; therefore my holy order, and the ordinances thereof, shall not go before them; for my presence shall not go up in their midst, lest I destroy them. 2 But I will give unto them the law as at the first, but it shall be after the law of a carnal commandment; for I have sworn in my wrath, that they shall not enter into my presence, into my rest, in the days of their pilgrimage. (JST Ex. 34:1-2)

For the rest of Israelite history until the coming of Jesus Christ, the temple performed its functions primarily through the Aaronic priesthood, the authority to perform outward and carnal ordinances, but not the authority to bring mankind into the presence of the Father.  Christ restored what was lost through Israel’s iniquity, brought back the higher priesthood, reacquainted man with his Father, and restored the ordinances through which mankind may come once again into the presence of God.  These ordinances have been restored again today.

Here is another schematic drawing of the Tabernacle.

(To see more Tabernacle illustrations see TempleBuilders.com.)

Mosaic Tabernacle as an Aaronic Temple

One of the excavated enclosures at Göbekli Tepe, Turkey, with massive T-shaped megaliths forming ancient stone circles thought to be up to 12,000 years old. (Click for a larger view)

Grandpa Enoch over at Pronaos wrote a few days ago that Archaeology Magazine‘s latest issue has a cover article by Sandra Scham entitled “The World’s First Temple”.  The magazine Science also did an article on the same subject back in January 2008.  There are many articles that are being published, all focused on one archeological dig in southeast Turkey (see this map) which has come to be known as Göbekli Tepe, a Turkish name meaning “navel hill/mountain” or “hill with a belly”.

What makes this excavation so unique?  Why all the hype?  Because evidence is showing that this may be the world’s first man-made monumental structure ever built, even before agriculture developed.  Archeologists didn’t believe that Neolithic hunter-gatherers were capable of building such an enormous complex at such an early date, but this site is starting to redefine our understanding of the beginnings of mankind.  What else is interesting is that this appears to have been some sort of ritual center or ceremonial complex – a temple. 

An artist's rendering of what Göbekli Tepe may have looked like.

The site was first noted as a serious archaeological interest in 1994 when a German archeologist, Klaus Schmidt from the German Archaeological Institute (DAI), began digging there.  Since that time Schmidt has led a team of archaeologists in unearthing parts of what has been determined was an enormous complex of stone circles formed into rooms dating back nearly 11,500 years ago, and intentionally buried in dirt around 8,000 B.C. (which is interesting in and of itself, since that preserved the site for ages instead of destroying it).  Only about 3-5% of the site has been excavated so far, which has yielded several of these stone circle rooms, only one of which has been dug down to the floor.  As many as 20 such structures are thought to exist under the ground at the site, detected by radar scans.

When we mention “stone circles” people usually immediately think of Stonehenge, which we’ve written about before here.  Göbekli Tepe, however, dates to even 7,000 years earlier than its more famous counterpart.  That’s right, it is twice as old as any other ritual complex found on the planet.  Jacob, in the Bible, is noted for having raised a pillar of stone at Bethel, a name which means “House of God” (Gen. 35:14).

But why do the archeologists think it was a temple?  We still don’t know much about the religious practices at this site, but here are some of the things I’ve found.

Probably the biggest indicator that this may have been a temple lies in the fact that there has been no substantial evidence of any settlement at the site – no homes, no trash pits, etc. – the usual markers of human habitation.  In other words, this wasn’t a site where people lived, so they must have been doing something else.  The dating of the site indicates that the people were nomadic hunter-gatherers, so many archaeologists think that what was likely going on here was some sort of ritual – it was a shrine, or place of worship.  This has changed many archeologists’ theories about the beginning of mankind.  The history books have stated for a long time that people did not gather together and establish communities or centers of gathering (cities) until agriculture developed, sometime after 9,000 B.C.  But this complex shows otherwise, which has provoked lead archaeologist Klaus Schmidt to say, “Our excavations also show it is not a domestic site, it is religious – the world’s oldest temple”.  The interpretation is that “first came the temple, then the city”.  I think Hugh Nibley would have agreed with that argument.  Furthermore, Schmidt gives another Nibleyesque statement on the “terrible questions” which these temples were made to answer: “In my opinion, the people who carved [the pillars] were asking themselves the biggest questions of all… What is this universe? Why are we here?”.  It may have been the very rituals that these people were gathering to perform that led them to develop agriculture.  Andrew Curry in Science Magazine notes:

Archaeologists once hypothesized that agriculture gave early people the time and food surpluses that they needed to build monuments and develop a rich symbolic vocabulary. But Göbekli Tepe raises the alternative possibility that the need to feed large groups who gathered to build or worship at the huge structures spurred the first steps toward agriculture.

The site is on the top of a hill/mountain, which is the highest point in that area.  We learn from the scriptures and modern revelation that mountains are synonymous with temples.  People always ascended to their sanctuaries.  As Nibley often said, the temple is the cosmic mountain, the primordial mound or hill.  Moses ascended Mount Sinai.  Nephi was caught away to a high mountain.  The temple has even been referred to as “the mountain of the Lord’s house” (Isa. 2:2).  So it is not surprising to find a temple on a high hill.

Evidence indicates that people traveled from great distances to come to the site.  Many bone remnants have been found at Göbekli Tepe, indicating that animal sacrifice was performed.

Klaus Schmidt, lead archaeologist on Göbekli Tepe.

Klaus Schmidt suspects another reason why this might have been a temple:

Though he has yet to find them, he believes that the first stone circles on the hill of the navel marked graves of important people. Hauptmann’s team discovered graves at Nevali Çori, and Schmidt is reasonably confident that burials lie somewhere in the earliest layers of Göbekli Tepe. This leads him to suspect the pillars represent human beings and that the cult practices at this site may initially have focused on some sort of ancestor worship.

Indeed, Sean Thomas has said that “human skeletons have been found, in telling positions, which indicate that Gobekli was possibly a funerary complex, a shrine that celebrated the life and death of the hunters”.

Schmidt has also noted that this was not only the first man-made monument, but “the first manmade holy place” ever built.  Gary Rollefson, another archaeologist from Washington, also agrees – “Certainly it was a major focus for regional celebrations or ritual activity”.  While there are several such ritual sites in the region, Rollefson notes, “Göbekli Tepe's really the only one with that megatemple approach”.  Schmidt continues, “Here we have the religious center for settlements at least 50 kilometers away… Those were village churches; this is the cathedral on a hill”.  Andrew Collins likewise agrees: “Göbekli Tepe can be described as sacerdotal, in that it was clearly utilised as a place of veneration and perhaps communication with supernatural entities and domains”.

Another interesting note from Science Magazine is that this site has been deemed by some to be the original Biblical Garden of Eden.  Why?  Well, there are several reasons for this.  The location is generally the same as what is thought to be the beginning place of civilization – Turkey.  It also seems to follow the latest theories about the origin of the Garden story.  The online news magazine The First Post reports:

Historians have long wondered if the Eden story is a folk memory, an allegory of the move from hunter-gathering to farming. Seen in this way, the Eden story describes how we moved from a life of relative leisure – literally picking fruit from the trees – to a harsher existence of ploughing and reaping.

This site seems to depict that transition from hunter-gathering to agriculture.  But it goes further than that.  Even the landscape seems to match the Bible story.  The site is in the “fertile crescent,” right between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, purportedly the rivers that flowed down from the Edenic paradise.  Even the vegetation at that time points to a paradise-like environment:

Animal and plant remains suggest that 11,000 years ago this place teemed with gazelle, aurochs, and deer. Groves of fruit and nut trees lined the rivers, and flocks of migrating birds paused here regularly. "It must have looked like a paradise, ideal for hunter-gatherers," says Angela von den Driesch, an emeritus archaeozoology professor at Ludwig Maximilian University in Munich, Germany, who has classified animal remains at the site. The region was so rich that people could have settled down while still supporting themselves with hunting and gathering…

While it is highly suspect that this was actually the original Garden of Eden, particularly from an LDS point of view, just the fact that people are describing this “temple” as such is fascinating.  The Garden of Eden story has endless connections and parallels with the temple.

The Göbekli Tepe excavation has only just begun.  It will be interesting to watch and learn as more is discovered about this site, particularly if they can uncover in more detail the rituals and ceremonies that occurred there.

Klaus Schmidt has written several books on his finds at Göbekli Tepe, which can be found here on Wikipedia.  His latest book published in 2006 is entitled Sie bauten die ersten Tempel. Das rätselhafte Heiligtum der Steinzeitjäger, which is German for “They Built the First Temple. The Mysterious Shrine of Stone Age Hunters.”

There are also two great YouTube videos which show Göbekli Tepe, both the excavated ruins, and what they think the complex looked like.  The narration is in German, I believe. If you know the language, be sure to let us know if they say anything else interesting in the videos. I’ve embedded them below:

The First and Oldest Temple in the World? – Göbekli Tepe

Initiation of Nemo

(Continued from Part 1)

To continue our discussion on whether God may dwell in temples on earth, and whether there exists a need for further temples after Christ, we might look again to the Bible to see if God dwelled in those sacred edifices which He commanded to be built in ancient times.

The first example that we might look at is Paul’s own theophany, which he experienced in the temple of Jerusalem shortly after his conversion:

12 And one Ananias, a devout man according to the law, having a good report of all the Jews which dwelt there,
13 Came unto me, and stood, and said unto me, Brother Saul, receive thy sight. And the same hour I looked up upon him.
14 And he said, The God of our fathers hath chosen thee, that thou shouldest know his will, and see that Just One, and shouldest hear the voice of his mouth.
15 For thou shalt be his witness unto all men of what thou hast seen and heard.
16 And now why tarriest thou? arise, and be baptized, and wash away thy sins, calling on the name of the Lord.
17 And it came to pass, that, when I was come again to Jerusalem, even while I prayed in the temple, I was in a trance;
18 And saw him saying unto me, Make haste, and get thee quickly out of Jerusalem: for they will not receive thy testimony concerning me.
19 And I said, Lord, they know that I imprisoned and beat in every synagogue them that believed on thee:
20 And when the blood of thy martyr Stephen was shed, I also was standing by, and consenting unto his death, and kept the raiment of them that slew him.
21 And he said unto me, Depart: for I will send thee far hence unto the Gentiles. (Acts 22:12-21)

It is interesting to note that prior to this vision of the Lord in the temple that he had been visited by Christ on the road to Damascus, which he recounted earlier in the same chapter of Acts 22. But Paul never says that he saw Jesus when he fell and heard the voice. All he says is that he saw a “great light” shining from heaven, a light so bright in fact that it caused temporary blindness (v. 11), and heard a voice from the light. It was not until Paul went to the holy temple in Jerusalem that he says he “saw him” (Acts 22:18). It is also insightful that it was near this time of his vision of Christ when he received his new name of Paul, his original name being Saul.

When the temple of Solomon was finished in Old Testament times, one of the signs of God’s acceptance of it was the filling of the sacred house with the glory of God:

13 It came even to pass, as the trumpeters and singers were as one, to make one sound to be heard in praising and thanking the Lord; and when they lifted up their voice with the trumpets and cymbals and instruments of musick, and praised the Lord, saying, For he is good; for his mercy endureth for ever: that then the house was filled with a cloud, even the house of the Lord;
14 So that the priests could not stand to minister by reason of the cloud: for the glory of the Lord had filled the house of God. (2 Chr. 5:13-14; cf. 2 Chr. 7:2-3)

The very reason why the structure was called the “house of the Lord” and the “house of God” was because it was a place where God Himself could make his abode on earth, where the divine presence was, where His glory filled the house. Solomon says as much in the following chapter:

1 Then said Solomon, The Lord hath said that he would dwell in the thick darkness.
2 But I have built an house of habitation for thee, and a place for thy dwelling for ever. (2 Chr. 6:1-2)

A cloud, the very symbol of the divine presence, associated with the sacred sanctuary occurred even earlier with the tabernacle of Moses:

34 ¶ Then a cloud covered the tent of the congregation, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle.
35 And Moses was not able to enter into the tent of the congregation, because the cloud abode thereon, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. (Ex. 40:34-35)

And on the day that the tabernacle was reared up the cloud covered the tabernacle, namely, the tent of the testimony: and at even there was upon the tabernacle as it were the appearance of fire, until the morning. (Num. 9:15; cf. Ex. 24:15; D&C 84:5)

Within the tabernacle, and the temple, was the Ark of the Covenant. On the top of the Ark was the mercy seat. This is the very place that God manifested himself to Israel, and gave them instructions:

And there I will meet with thee, and I will commune with thee from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubims which are upon the ark of the testimony, of all things which I will give thee in commandment unto the children of Israel. (Ex. 25:22)

Indeed, the Lord is said to have dwelled between the cherubims on the ark within the tabernacle (cf. 1 Sam. 4:4). At one point the Lord reminded Moses under what conditions Aaron was allowed into the holy place of the tabernacle, because the divine presence was there:

And the Lord said unto Moses, Speak unto Aaron thy brother, that he come not at all times into the holy place within the vail before the mercy seat, which is upon the ark; that he die not: for I will appear in the cloud upon the mercy seat. (Lev. 16:2)

Clearly the tabernacle and the temple were places of God’s dwelling, for God had directed the construction for that very purpose.

Returning to the question of the necessity of temples the post-Messianic age, if there was to be no temple after the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, then we would not expect to find future prophecies of temples in the Bible. However, we find just the contrary. In a prophecy of the last days we find that the Anti-Christ will enter and sit in the temple of God:

3 Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;
4 Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God. (2 Thes. 2:4)

Such an occurrence can not happen if there is no “temple of God.” Isaiah also forsaw a temple in the last days:

2 And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the Lord's house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it.
3 And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. (Isa. 2:2-3)

Ezekiel records a lengthy vision of a future temple in Ezekiel 40-48. Malachi also prophesies of the future advent of the Lord coming suddenly to a temple (Mal. 3:1). And John records in his vision a heavenly temple, which was still in full use even in heaven (Rev. 3:12; Rev. 7:15; Rev. 11:1).

Regarding Paul’s instruction that we are the temple of God, he said to the Corinthians:

9 For we are labourers together with God: ye are God's husbandry, ye are God's building.
10 According to the grace of God which is given unto me, as a wise masterbuilder, I have laid the foundation, and another buildeth thereon. But let every man take heed how he buildeth thereupon.
11 For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ.
12 Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble;
13 Every man's work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man's work of what sort it is.
14 If any man's work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward.
15 If any man's work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire.
16 Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?
17 If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are. (1 Cor. 3:9-17)

Comparing the Saints to a building, even a holy temple, was a common analogy that Paul used (1 Cor. 6:19; 2 Cor. 6:16; Eph. 2:19-22). Other apostles used it (1 Pet. 2:4-8). It is found in other early Christian writings (cf. The Shepherd of Hermas). God has used it again even in this dispensation:

The elements are the tabernacle of God; yea, man is the tabernacle of God, even temples; and whatsoever temple is defiled, God shall destroy that temple. (D&C 93:35; cf. Mosiah 2:37)

Using the analogy that we are the temple of God does not preclude, as we have seen, the notion of a physical temple building, just as using the analogy of members of the Church as the stones of a building with Christ as the chief cornerstone does not forbid the existence of a tangible stone and mortar synagogue in which to worship the Lord, nor the actuality of a physical cornerstone. The symbolic act of offering animal sacrifice under the Mosaic law did not replace the veritable sacrifice of the Lamb of God in the meridian of time. The tokens of bread and water used in the holy sacrament did not, and do not, prevent the offering of the body and blood of Christ in Gethsemane and on the cross. These are symbols and similitudes used to teach a lesson, in this case, that we must act in accordance with God’s law in order to receive of His Spirit, and to treat our physical bodies as sacred and holy gifts which God has entrusted to our stewardship. Symbols do not exclude reality--they reinforce it. Furthermore, such scriptures strengthen the conception that God does, in fact, dwell in temples; they do not detract from it.

I know that the Lord has revealed the temple today. He has commanded the construction of over 140 of them around the world, and is preparing His covenant people through a process of purification and sanctification therein to be prepared for the great work that lies ahead in fulfilling the redemption of mankind. Just as the mortal Messiah ordained apostles and sent them forth to preach his word and act in his name, so also has he called prophets and apostles today, to preach His gospel and to administer in its ordinances, which ordinances can only be performed in a space consecrated for that purpose – the temple of the Lord.

God Dwelleth Not in Temples Made with Hands? – Part 2

It has often been claimed that the Book of Mormon cannot contain the 'fullness of the gospel,’ since it does not have temple ordinances. As a matter of fact, they are everywhere in the book if we know where to look for them, and the dozen or so discourses on the Atonement in the Book of Mormon are replete with temple imagery. (Nibley, Approaching Zion, 566-67)

There are probably many more references to the temple in the Book of Mormon than we initially realize. Over the last few days I’ve pondered that, and wondered how many times I might see temple imagery in the Book of Mormon as I read.

This morning I was doing my Sunday School reading in 2 Nephi, chapter 4, sometimes referred to as the “Psalm of Nephi.” In this chapter, Nephi exclaims in poetic form (chiasmus) the afflictions and temptations that have befallen him in his life, but also the glorious blessings that the Lord has given him. I found several inferences to temples:

And upon the wings of his Spirit hath my body been carried away upon exceedingly high mountains. And mine eyes have beheld great things, yea, even too great for man; therefore I was bidden that I should not write them. (v. 25)

We know from modern revelations that the tops of mountains are considered holy places, much like temples, where the sacred ordinances of the gospel may be performed (Bible Dictionary, “Temple”). The experiences of the prophets on Mount Sinai and the Mount of Transfiguration have been equated with the temple. When Nephi was carried away to the tops of the mountains, he saw things and learned things that he could not write. It was sacred knowledge. He had a type of temple experience. Whether he received the endowment on such occasions is up for discussion, but he did have a temple experience – he conversed with God and His angels.

Later in Nephi’s Psalm he exclaims,

May the gates of hell be shut continually before me, because that my heart is broken and my spirit is contrite! O Lord, wilt thou not shut the gates of thy righteousness before me, that I may walk in the path of the low valley, that I may be strict in the plain road!

O Lord, wilt thou encircle me around in the robe of thy righteousness! . . . (v. 32-33)

Speaking of the “gates of thy righteousness” and the “robe of thy righteousness” certainly refers to the temple. It’s interesting to note that Nephi tells us of the existence of two gates, one in hell and one where the Lord resides. We know that it is by priesthood authority that the gates of hell will not prevail against those in spirit prison, and it is by the temple ordinances that they are enabled to be brought forth from that place, and pass by those gates (see Matt. 16:18).

Do you see any other temple imagery in Nephi’s Psalm? Share with us in the comments.

Temple Imagery in Psalm of Nephi