Herod’s Temple

Herod’s Temple

Herod’s Temple was a magnificent structure in Jerusalem, built and expanded by Herod the Great around 18 BCE. It was constructed on the site of Solomon’s Temple and was destroyed by the Romans in 70 CE. 

Herod (reigned from ca. 40–4 BC) was one of the great builders of antiquity; his goal in rebuilding the temple was to create one of the most magnificent buildings in his day and in the process to try to please his subjects, the Jews. Herod began to build his temple in ca. 20 BC…

While the main structures were largely completed during Herod’s reign, construction at the complex continued for decades, possibly until the 60s CE, as reflected in the New Testament’s mention of 46 years of work[34] and Josephus’ reference to additions under the procurator Lucceius Albinus (c. 62–64 CE).

Herod was a master builder, and the Temple (with its accompanying Temple Mount) was the crowning jewel of his achievements. Its size was enormous, covering an area of 40 acres. Herod employed 10,000 men (largely slave labor), along with Roman craftsman.

Its highest wall was 158 feet from bedrock; its length was roughly equivalent to five football fields end to end and about 1,000 feet wide.

According to Josephus, Herod believed that building the temple would be a task great enough “to assure his eternal remembrance” (Antiquities 15.380). Herod’s temple was one of the wonders of the ancient world—a beautiful building and a marvel of engineering. Josephus, who was an eyewitness of the temple, reported, “The exterior of the building lacked nothing that could astound either mind or eye. . . . To approaching strangers it appeared from a distance like a snow-clad mountain; for all that was not over laid with gold was of purest white” (Jewish War 5.222–23).

  • Magnitude:

The Temple was a grand structure, made of marble and gold, and was taller than a 15-story building. It was twice as large as the largest temple enclosure in Rome and could accommodate hundreds of thousands of pilgrims. 

  • Materials:

The temple walls were made of massive stones, some weighing up to 80 tons, and the temple itself was adorned with marble and gold. 

  • Labor Force:

Herod employed 10,000 men, including slave labor, to build the Temple Mount complex. 

  • Duration of Construction:

The Temple Mount complex took approximately ten years to build. 

  • Sanctuary:

The Temple sanctuary was designed with an entrance hall and a great gate leading to the Holy of Holies. 

  • Destruction:

The Temple was destroyed during the Roman-Jewish War in 70 CE, leaving only the remaining walls of the Temple Mount, including the Western Wall,. 

  • Remnants:

The Western Wall and some other Herodian architectural elements, like gates, still exist today.