When Will the Jewish Temple Be Rebuilt?
Contemporary Christian “Zionists” have written books regarding the question, when will the Jewish Temple be rebuilt? These include, Thomas Ice, Randall Price, Grant Jeffrey, Hal Lindsey, Tim LaHaye, Dave Hunt, and John Hagee. Since the Romans destroyed the last Jewish house of God in AD 70, many naturally assume that in order for the Antichrist to sit there, it will have to be rebuilt.
Most of the speculation for a rebuilt temple is based on one reference in the New Testament dealing with the Antichrist power: “Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition, who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God” (2 Thessalonians 2:3,4).
Jesus’ Spiritual Temple
The Lord told David, “Solomon thy son, he shall build my house and my courts” (1 Chronicles 28:6). Solomon, the son of David did build a physical prayer house, but the New Testament says that Jesus was the true “Son of David,” who was to build His house and kingdom that will last forever.
Jesus clearly taught that He had come to transfer the attention from a physical building of worship to his body, the church. “Jesus answered and said to them, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” Then the Jews said, “It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and will You raise it up in three days?” But He was speaking of the temple of His body” (John 2:19-21). Jesus was the real temple of the Jews. But when the Jews rejected Him and sought to kill Him, He said to them, “Behold, your house is left unto you desolate” (Matthew 23:38). And He prophesied of the destruction of their temple (Matthew 24:1, 2).
Even as Jesus hung on the cross, His mockers reminded Him of His teachings. “You who destroy the temple and build it in three days, save Yourself! If You are the Son of God, come down from the cross” (Matthew 27:40). But Jesus was not speaking of rebuilding the physical house of prayer. He meant to build a spiritual one. When Jesus was crucified, “the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom; and the earth quaked, and the rocks were split” (Matthew 27:51). After the veil ripped from top to bottom, the disciples understood that the believers became the temple of God on earth (1 Corinthians 3:17, 16).
Paul confirmed this same truth saying, “Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone, in whom the whole building, being fitted together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord, in whom you also are being built together for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit” (Ephesians 2:19-22). And Peter also taught, “you also, as living stones, are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ” (1 Peter 2:5).
Conclusion
Even after God provides all this clear biblical evidence that His temple today is a spiritual one which is the church, many Christians are waiting for the Jews to rebuild a physical temple on the site where the mosque of Omar (Dome of the Rock) now sits—also known as the Temple Mount. Yet, there is no prophecy in the Bible that says the temple would be rebuilt again after the Romans had destroyed it.
So, what does the verse in 2 Thessalonians 2:4 mean? It simply means that the Antichrist power would seat itself over the church of God claiming the worship that belongs only to Jesus Christ. Historically, Protestant scholars have consistently applied this verse to the papal power.
In His service,
BibleAsk Team
