Introduction
In Acts 6, Stephen was charged before the Sanhedrin with “speaking against this place [the temple]” and charged with blasphemy for saying, “that this Jesus of Nazareth will destroy this place [the temple]”. Stephen’s defense in Acts 7 recounted Israel’s history beginning with Abraham and progressing through Solomon’s construction of the temple. Upon reaching the incident of Israel’s worship of the golden calf in the wilderness, Stephen said “they made an idol in the form of a calf. They brought sacrifices to it and reveled in what their hands had made” (vs 41). Later in Stephen’s defense he quoted Isaiah 66:
49 “ ‘Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool. What kind of house will you build for me? says the Lord. Or where will my resting place be? 50 Has not my hand made all these things?’
The contrast between what “their hands had made” and what God’s hand had made is our focus. [1]
The True Temple of God Cannot be Made with Human Hands
We begin by analyzing Solomon’s words. He recognized that no house he could build with his hands could truly house God (1 Kings 8:27). It suggests an awareness that any true temple of God would need to be made by God’s hands, much as creation was fashioned by His hands, serving as His cosmic temple. Implied is that Herod’s temple built by human hands, could also not hold the true glory of God. As such it could never serve as the true eternal resting place of God. Stephen’s words anticipate that God’s true temple is in heaven. His testimony, “I see heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God” (vs 56) supports that he realized that the glory of God was in His heaven with the Son of Man. Critically, Jesus’ incarnation was accomplished by God’s hands and could never be the result of men’s efforts. Thus, Stephen seems to imply that Jesus is God’s new temple of our eschatological age.
The Sanhedrin seemed to understand Stephen’s argument. Stephen’s complete presentation from Abraham through Moses seems intended to draw a direct parallel between the people’s refusal to accept Moses as God’s leader and the refusal now of the Sanhedrin to accept God’s greater appointment of Jesus as leader. Stephen’s inclusion of “This is the Moses who told the Israelites, ‘God will raise up for you a prophet like me from your own people.’” affirms it. Stephen is declaring that Jesus is the fulfillment of Moses’ prophecy. His condemnation of their rejection of Jesus (vs 51) affirms that Stephen sees Jesus fulfilling a Mosaic role.
Stephen’s inclusion of Moses’ role in building a tabernacle as God’s dwelling yet the people’s determination to idolatrously worship a golden calf is designed to show that Jesus must build a new temple (see Zechariah 6:12). In effect, Stephen is informing the Sanhedrin of what they should already know – that Herod’s temple will be replaced by a better temple built by Jesus. The Sanhedrin understood Stephen’s argument, burning with rage that he would dare to undermine their authority and the authority of their temple. To suggest the Herodian temple must be destroyed opposed all they stood for. But for Stephen, Herod’s temple, like the golden calf, had become idolatrous. Like the golden calf, it had been made with men’s hands and could never house the glory of God. Stephen’s quotation of Isaiah 66 makes it likely he understood the preceding verses of Isaiah 65 where it was prophesied that God would create a new heaven, a new earth and a new Jerusalem (vss 17-18). That God would create a new heaven, new earth and new Jerusalem implies a new temple within Jerusalem, but all made with God’s hands rather than men’s hands.
The connection is made explicit by Paul in Acts 17:24 where he proclaims that “the God who made the world . . . does not live in temples built by human hands” (cf. Acts 19:26). That the God who made the world and is the Lord of heaven and earth does not dwell in temples made with human hands confirms that the new heaven and new earth have been inaugurated and with it, a new Jerusalem and a new temple. That temple has been built by the hands of the Messiah (Zechariah 6:12).
Daniel 2 also points to this truth. A rock crushed a statue of four metals, breaking it to pieces that became like chaff. The statue represented the kingdoms of this world as four is a number typical of things of the world. Notably, the rock that destroyed the kingdoms of this world “was cut out, but not by human hands” (vs 34), portending the coming kingdom of God and its victory over the kingdoms of this world. That the rock “became a huge mountain that filled the whole earth” points toward evangelization of the world by the church in our age. [2] That Isaiah 2:2 speaks of the mountain of the Lord’s temple as the highest of the mountains, suggests that the rock which became a mountain is a symbol of the new temple of our age. The Old Testament frequently spoke of the temple as a mountain, [3] enhancing this view. Christ spoke of Himself as a stone that crushed those upon whom it fell and breaking to pieces those who fell upon it (Matthew 21:44; Luke 20:17-18), an echo of Daniel 2. It further enhances the position that the rock not cut by human hands is emblematic of the new temple.
Further support is found in Mark 14:58, where Jesus is accused of having said he would destroy “this temple made with human hands and in three days will build another, not made with hands”. The accusation cuts directly to what the New Testament church believed. Jesus, as the new temple of our eschatological age, was a temple not made with human hands, replacing the Herodian temple made with human hands. (Some expositors have concluded that Jesus’ death and resurrection brought the spiritual destruction of the second temple, with its physical destruction delayed until Titus’ capture of Jerusalem in 70 A.D). Mark’s testimony points toward the belief that the new eschatological temple must be a temple made without human hands – that is, Christ, made miraculously without human hands through the Spirit coming upon a virgin. Hence how we have Christ “tabernacling” among us (John 1:14). [4]
Hebrews affirms God’s true temple is in heaven (9:11, 24), where Christ reigns. Christ’s sacrifice was made in the heavenly temple (vss 23-24_. That Christ’s sacrifice was not made in the Herod’s temple portends it obsolescence and destruction. It was merely a copy of the true temple in heaven. Its cultic sacrifice of bulls and goats only foreshadowed the better blood sacrifice of Jesus in the heavenly temple. Hebrews 8:1-2 further declares that Jesus, as High Priest, serves in the heavenly temple “set up by the Lord”. It is a temple not made by human hands.
Perhaps most important is the declaration of Hebrews 9:11 which equates the temple “not made with human hands” with “not part of this creation”. The implication is that things made with human hands are part of the old creation, the physical cosmos. Those things made without human hands are part of the new spiritual cosmos, the new creation. This point proves crucial, establishing that Israel’s historical temples (Solomon’s and Herod’s) are part of the old creation that is passing away. It brings insight into why Jesus prophesied its destruction. The new temple Jesus is building (what we would call “the eschatological temple” in contrast with Israel’s “historical” temple) is the true temple that will endure for eternity.
Resurrection and the New Eschatological Temple
That the true temple is part of the new creation is telling in light of Paul’s testimony in 2 Corinthians 5:
1 For we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands. 2 Meanwhile we groan, longing to be clothed instead with our heavenly dwelling, 3 because when we are clothed, we will not be found naked. 4 For while we are in this tent, we groan and are burdened, because we do not wish to be unclothed but to be clothed instead with our heavenly dwelling, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life.
Paul claims that if we are martyred, or when we die, the body in which we currently reside will be replaced with an eternal house in heaven not made with human hands. His claim is deeply significant as the “house” is a reference to the heavenly temple, to which we are a part. Paul’s declaration that this new body is eternal stands in contrast to our current body which is impermanent and transitory. Our current body, as part of the current creation is subject to decay and to the effects of aging, ending in death. The body that replaces it is not subject to decay, aging or death. It is eternal and it thus reflects true eternal life. God’s promise is to dwell with us permanently, eternally, accomplished first in indwelling us, but consummating in an eternal body through which He can ever dwell with us. Its full accomplishment cannot happen as long as we dwell in a physical body of the old creation that is subject to decay from sin. That body must be replaced by a new body, one not encumbered in sin and thus not subject to decay and destruction.
In similar fashion, any temple made with human hands is a physical temple that is part of the old creation subject to decay and destruction. The old creation must be replaced, and with it the old temple made with human hands, replaced with a new spiritual temple that can last forever. Paul’s argument shows why it is impossible for a temple of stone, like the Solomonic or Herodian temple to be rebuilt. God would not be able to fulfill His promise to dwell in that temple eternally as that temple would be subject to decay. Hence why Paul called us a new creation (2 Corinthians 5:17), a creation made by God’s hands. Our salvation has been secured by His hands and not the hands of men.
That Paul speaks of our current bodies as a “tent” is also significant, as it echos the tent of meeting and tabernacle, structures that were temporary and whose use was limited to Israel’s wilderness wanderings. That our eternal heavenly body is spoken of as a house, a term applied to the temple given its permanence, points toward the end of our probative wilderness wanderings and eternal arrival to God’s heavenly land (Hebrews 11:16).
The Meaning of Things Made with Human Hands
The Old Testament often spoke of idols being fashioned by men’s hands (Deuteronomy 4:28; 2 Kings 19:18; Psalm 115:4; 135:15; Isaiah 37:19; cf. Isaiah 2:8; 17:8). [5] Beale has noted the word handmade appears fourteen times in the Greek Old Testament, always in reference to idols. The same word appears five times in the New Testament, once regarding pagan temples, three times applied to Herod’s temple that was destroyed and once to circumcision. [6] It suggests an understanding within the church that the Herodian temple was idolatrous and must be destroyed. A replacement temple must be made without human hands. John’s account suggests his awareness as he spoke about men refusing to repent of the work of their hands (Revelation 9:20) even amidst the harshest of judgments. Their unrepentance can be contrasted with John’s closing vision of the New Jerusalem in which he sees no temple (structure). Rather, the only temple is God and the Lamb, a living, eternal temple providing eternal life to all within the city’s walls. That John sees the final consummated temple as nonstructural supports that it is not made with human hands and thus the true temple of God. The Herodian temple, being made with human hands and subject to decay, is thus seen as idolatrous, unable to house God for eternity, and must pass away.
Should Such a Stunning Temple Transformation Been Expected?
Many Christians believe that a new temple of stone must be rebuilt in Jerusalem. Our findings contradict such a notion. Many may find it surprising, especially given the regathering of Jewish people from diverse places in the world, their re-establishment as a nation and their deep desire to rebuild Solomon’s temple. Yet there is ancient testimony supporting the idea that Israel should have realized the the coming of the Messiah would establish a new temple. This evidence is worthy of examination.
The testimony of the New Testament shows how the disciples moved from a position of initial surprise at Jesus’ prediction of the destruction of Herod’s temple to a fuller understanding that the true temple of God cannot be made with human hands. While some may find it surprising, the idea that temples built with human hands were idolatrous was widely known. Also widely understood was that God’s true temple was made without human hands.
Some examples showing this widespread understanding include Odes of Solomon 4, describing God’s temple in heaven as “the sanctuary thou hast designed before thou didst make (other) places” (vs 3) and that all earthly temples were simply reproductions. 1 Enoch 46:7 states “their faith is in the gods which they have made with their hands” while 1 Enoch 50:2 says “that they may repent and forgo the works of their hands”, both references to idol worship. [8] 2 Enoch 22:3 states that God’s throne was “not made with hands”, that is, with human hands. 2 Enoch 33:3 states “I [God] am self-eternal, not made with hands”. [9]
The Sybilline Oracles speak of “idols made with hands” (Book 3, line 762), “all the works made with hands shall fall by a flame of fire” (Book 3, lines 777-778), “but of the mighty God, whom hands of men formed not like speechless idols carved of stone. For he has not for his abode a stone” (Book 4, lines 7-8), “When they behold temples and altars, figures of dumb stones”, [stone images and statues made with hands] (Book 4, lines 33-34), “each one an idol, formed by mortal hands” (Book 5, line 110), “shall melt in statues of gods made with hands” (Book 14, line 78). [10] Sybilline Oracles show first an understanding that things made with human hands are idolatrous. More importantly, Sybilline Oracles shows that things of God are not made with human hands nor is His dwelling place a place of stone, whether a carved stone idol or a stone temple.
2 Esdras 13 records a vision of one who emerges from the sea, flew with the clouds of heaven (vs 3). “An innumerable multitude gathered from the four winds of heaven to make war against” him (vs 5). “He carved out for himself a great mountain” (vs 6). The multitude was destroyed by a stream of fire from the man’s mouth (vs 11) after which he called another multitude that was peaceable (vs 12). In the interpretation, the man from the sea was “he whom the Most High has been keeping for many ages, who will himself deliver his creation” (vs 26). He will defeat his enemies and deliver those who are on the earth (vss 29-34). The mountain is “Mount Zion” (vs 35) and “Mount Zion will come and be made manifest to all people . . . the mountain carved out without hands” (vs 36). [11] The dream and interpretation clarify Mount Zion is a euphemism for the new eschatological temple that Jesus has built without human hands. [12]
Barnabus 16 speaks extensively of the temple, stating first how “wretched men . . . set their hope on the building, and not on their God that made them, as being the house of God” (vs 1). He then argues that no human temple can contain the glory of God (vs 2), predicting its replacement by Christ (vs 3), before declaring that there will be a replacement temple (vs 6). Before delving into the new temple, he digresses to show that the old temple, “the abode of our heart was corrupt and weak, a temple truly built by hands; for it was full of idolatry and was a house of demons, because we did whatsoever was contrary to God” (vs 7). The author understood that Herod’s temple, made with human hands was weak, corrupt and a source of idolatry, needing to be destroyed and replaced. After asking “how then shall it be built in the name of the Lord” (vs 7), he declares “by receiving the remission of our sins and hoping on the Name we became new, created afresh . . . wherefore God dwelleth truly in our habitation within us . . . He Himself prophesying in us, He Himself dwelling in us, opening for us . . . the door of the temple . . . and giving us repentance leadeth us to the incorruptible temple” (vs 9). An incorruptible (eternal) temple is what we are when we put our trust in Christ and thus have the Spirit indwelling us as God’s house. His conclusion is striking: “This is the spiritual temple built up to the Lord” (vs 10). [13]
While it is clear that the church embraced this truth, there are indications that Judaism also should have anticipated this change in temple reality. [14] Zechariah had predicted the temple would be built by the Branch, suggestive that Herod’s temple would only serve until the coming of the Messiah. The song of Moses and Miriam in Exodus 15:17 speaks of Yahweh planting His people “on the mountain of your inheritance”, “the place, Lord, you made for your dwelling, the sanctuary, Lord, your hands established”, pointing toward God’s establishment of the sanctuary and people. More important, it points toward the establishment of God’s dwelling by Yahweh’s hands rather than the hands of men. The Sybilline Oracles, seen by many as a Jewish work, also recognizes the inability of human-made temples to house the deity, though their views may be reflective of the realization of the destruction of the Herodian temple and the need to seek new meaning in their cult. But Philo, a Jew whose death preceded the destruction of Herod’s temple seemed to recognize that handmade temples could not house the deity, saying:
Since, therefore, he [God] thus invisibly enters into this region of the soul, let us prepare that place in the best way the case admits of, to be an abode worthy of God; for if we do not, he, without our being aware of it, will quit us and migrate to some other habitation, which shall appear to him to be more excellently provided . . . what sort of of habitation ought we to prepare for the King of kings, for God the ruler of the whole universe, condescending in his mercy and lovingkindness for man to visit the beings whom he has created . . .? Shall we prepare him a house of stone or of wooden materials? Away! Such an idea is not holy even to utter; for not even if the whole earth were to change its nature and to become on a sudden gold, or something more valuable than gold, and if it were then to be wholly consumed by the skill of workmen, who should make it into porticoes and vestibules, and chambers, and precincts, and temples—not even then could it be a place worthy for his feet to tread upon, but a pious soul is his fitting abode. [15]
Philo’s testimony suggests a broad awareness within Judaism that the true dwelling place of God was in His people, not in a temple of stone or wood. He shows repugnance for the idea of a temple of wood or stone as a suitable dwelling place for God, hinting that perhaps he also understood that God could never tabernacle in a temple made with human hands. [16] He does seem to comprehend that God, as spiritual, would naturally make His dwelling-place a spiritual place, rather than a physical temple of stone.
The Qumran community also seemed to believe that the eschatological temple built at the end of days would be established by Yahweh’s hands and last forever. [17] All these sources testify to the knowledge within ancient Judaism of a coming new eschatological temple not made with human hands.
Relevance to Christians Today
Ethical Lessons
There are two ethical lessons that seem of overarching importance. First, the evidence presented continues to reveal that the church is the true temple of God during our eschatological age. God has indwelt us with His Spirit and His indwelling is affirmation that God is not only dwelling with us, but in dwelling in us, He is declaring that we are His temple. As prior argued, we are not only the temple of God, but in being in His presence, we have been granted full access into His Holy-of-Holies.
It places great responsibility upon us to live holy lives, fully in accord with His laws and mandates. We are not coming into His presence (i.e. when we go to church) but we are ever in His presence. To sin is to subject His dwelling to uncleanness. If God moved outside the camp after Israel’s idolatrous incident with the golden calf, and if God moved outside Israel’s symbolic center of Jerusalem after the priests sinned idolatrously (Ezekiel 10), we should expect that He will move outside our physical bodies when we sin. He will distance Himself from us, cutting off access to His presence. The claim that somehow God will accept us as fallen creatures is dubious in light of prophetic pronouncements that His Spirit will enable us to live faithfully (Ezekiel 11:19-20). God will cut us off until we repent.
Second, Israel’s history is for our benefit (1 Corinthians 10). If God not only separated Himself from His people, but subsequently destroyed their temple and city due to unbelief, we must realize that the same fate awaits us if we fail to believe. It is not that God will destroy His new eschatological temple, but that He will judge the sinners in our midst, cutting them off from the temple. Note Paul’s warning of 1 Corinthians 3:17: “If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy that person; for God’s temple is sacred, and you together are that temple.” Our sin has destructive consequences on God’s temple (and thus all God’s creation) and God will not tolerate such behavior.
By separating sinners from those who are not guilty of sin, He is purifying His church, making it spotless and holy. It does not mean that we are cut off if we inadvertently sin. There is provision in the law for inadvertent sin and there is similar provision in the new covenant through the bread and blood of Christ. But we are not to partake of it unworthily, but in honest self-evaluation of our failings and our continuing need for Christ’s cleansing provision in our lives. But there should be genuine fear for those who willfully choose to sin and make excuse. They needlessly put their salvation at risk. In this regard, those seeking holiness must assess God’s laws with great care. An example is divorce and remarriage. God’s law is unequivocally clear. Yet also equally clear are many who seem to disregard its constraints.
Crucially, Israel’s history reveals the devastating consequences of idolatry. When we rely on things made with our hands, we no longer rely on those things only God can do. It undermines our faith in Him as our confidence in ourselves rises. The problem with idolatry is in its subtleness. No Christian wishes to believe they are guilty of idolatry. Yet there are many sources of unrecognized idolatry. Politics – whether liberal or conservative, can become an idol. Sexual misconduct, pornography, even impure sexual thoughts can become an idol that can control our lives (or exert some control) or just become something we seek instead of seeking God. Money can become an idol. Freedom can become an idol, our jobs and careers can become an idol – even our good lives can become an idol that stands in the way of God’s calling and mandate. Ironically, one could make a credible argument that many of these sins are currently idols not only in the church, but widespread in its leadership.
The ethical lesson is clear. God wants a people wholly dedicated to Him and Him alone. One cannot love God and the carnal things of this world as well. Note it: the idols mentioned above are all the products of this world, things made with men’s hands, whether politics, sexual misconduct, money, career or the good life. Often we want to attribute our job or our career or our good lives to God. But Scripture establishes that these things are idolatrous because they are made by men’s hands. God wants His people to turn to Him, seeking the divine move of His hand and its accompanying miracles that are not part of this world.
There is also a strong caution found here. The systems we as men develop, are scripturally idolatrous. It doesn’t matter how well intended they are, they are idolatrous. Whether it is the process by which we educate and ordain our Pastors, the system we implement for missions advancement, even the leadership counsels within our denominations. These things are all the product of men’s hands and thus idolatrous. It should bring reverent reflection. How can we as Christians best advance the name of Christ and bring glory to Him alone? Through penitent prayer, entreating God to move as He did in the days of old, bringing miracles and wonders into our world that can only be done by His hand.
Eschatological Lessons
Given the mistake made by mainstream Judaism to presume the power of the Herodian temple would continue, it is unwise to maintain the idea of a coming new Jewish temple in current Jerusalem as part of end-time prophecy. Scripture entreats us to learn from Israel so that we not make their mistake of putting our faith and confidence in the idea that a temple made with human hands can persist or suit God’s purposes. Any temple made with human hands would be false and thus idolatrous. It would not be where the Spirit of God is found. It would be a temple subject to decay and corruption and could never eternally house the presence of God.
Physical temples are part of the physical creation, the old world order corrupted by sin. The Lord could never permanently dwell in a creation that was corrupted with sin. The glory of God can never be fully realized in the old, corrupted creation. No wonder God has created a new heaven, a new earth, and a new Jerusalem. As we have seen, He has also created a new temple. It is within this temple that we serve as priests, mediating with spiritual sacrifices for the unsaved of the nations, reconciling them to Christ.
For those who might find it difficult to accept that a rebuilt temple in Jerusalem would be idolatrous, a couple observations can be made. First, the refusal of most Jewish people to accept Christ over the last two thousand years can be attributed to idolatry. They have loved the law and its associated traditions more than the Son promised in their law. As Paul has said, they continue to put their confidence in their own ability to justify themselves before God, making their efforts are idolatrous, efforts of their own hands.
Second, Paul is clear that the temple is where the Antichrist will demand his worship:
3 Don’t let anyone deceive you in any way, for that day will not come until the rebellion occurs and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the man doomed to destruction. 4 He will oppose and will exalt himself over everything that is called God or is worshiped, so that he sets himself up in God’s temple, proclaiming himself to be God. 2 Thessalonians 2
If a physical temple of stone is in fact erected in Jerusalem, Paul reveals idolatry will occur there. But such a view of a temple in Jerusalem is incorrect. The reality is that the Antichrist will set himself up in “God’s temple”. He is not setting himself up in a false temple in Jerusalem but as head of the church, leading a “rebellion”. Those participating in the rebellion are Christians who have been deceived into following him. It is a strong warning to believers. As Israel rebelled against Moses when reaching the promised land, it seems there will be a similar rebellion of Christians who have decided they will not enter God’s heavenly land, demanding they remain part of the world God commanded them to leave.
Scripture is clear this rebellion will fail and those guilty of the idolatry of the beast (i.e. those taking the mark), will perish. Paul’s account seems to model the incident of Israel’s worship of the golden calf (Exodus 32). With the golden calf, some of the people seemed to rebel, commanding Aaron to make an idol they later presented to the Israelites as their god (vs 4). The occasion was when Moses was on the mountain with God. His return was delayed longer than the people expected and in his absence, they rebelled. Upon Moses return, he and the Levites struck down three thousand with the sword (vs 27-28). Later a plague struck those who survived the sword.
The three thousand killed by the sword were likely ringleaders who misled Israel into idolatry and were struck down immediately. It seems to parallel those who take the mark of the beast – ringleaders who mislead Christians into idolatry. Those who died from the plague may represent those who were deceived by the harlot Babylon which Scripture warns has deceived some Christians into idolatry (Revelation 18:4). Similarly Moses’ extended absence likely parallels Christ’s extended delay before His Parousia, about which the church is warned.
If correct, there will be some in the church who lead a rebellion, promoting the Antichrist as a world leader who can save the people from the problems of our world. They will not be forgiven but face certain judgment in hell. The carnal Christians they deceive are carnal find the things of this world appealing (its wealth and privilege) and are deceived into idolatry of the riches the lawless one seems to promise. But their idolatry makes them complicit with the beast’s persecutions of the saints (Revelation 17:6). If they fail to repent, they will be subject to the plagues brought upon the Prostitute Babylon that consummate in her destruction. They will perish with Babylon.
These predictions show why it is so important to understand God’s temple. Many Christians see this rebellion as Jewish or “post-rapture”. But Paul is speaking to Christians – and Gentile Christians at that, as Thessalonika had a substantial Gentile membership. He is specifically addressing Christians who had been deceived into believing that Christ’s Parousia had already occurred and they had missed it. In responding to their fears, Paul affirms that they need not worry because preceding Christ’s Parousia will be the rebellion followed by the appearance of the man of sin.
It emphasizes the importance of knowing Christians are the temple of God throughout our age until the return of Christ! We must not be deceived into subtle forms of idolatry. We are God’s new creation and must live uncorrupted by sin so the glory of God can be seen in us. This is why Paul could proclaim that though the veil on the law was removed for those who have turned to Christ, “we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory” (2 Corinthians 3:15-18). Notice his subtle claim that the veil of the law has been removed. There is no reason to look to a resumption of the law in the last days.
We are being sanctified, transformed into Christ’s image with ever-increasing glory. Yet the full glory of God cannot be seen until we are resurrected and have received glorified bodies. This is our great hope. Whether in death, or martyrdom to persecutions of the beast, we have been promised resurrection and with it, eternity in a glorified body with Christ. An apt illustration is found in 1 Kings 6 states:
7 In building the temple, only blocks dressed at the quarry were used, and no hammer, chisel or any other iron tool was heard at the temple site while it was being built.
1 Kings 6:7 suggests that believers’ sanctification can be envisioned as living stones being cut and dressed in the quarry of this world so that at Christ’s Parousia these “stones” can be immediately assembled on site without chisel or hammer or iron tool at the temple site. Our sanctification in this world assures our readiness for the next world. We should recognize that the troubles and persecutions we face in this world are part of the process of cutting and dressing us as stones, preparing us for Christ’s return.
A further illustration is found in Isaiah 51:1 which states “look to the rock from which you were cut and to the quarry from which you were hewn”. It shows that our salvation is done without human hands, solely by God’s hands. Our assembly can be envisioned as our resurrection to spiritual bodies, living stones fitly framed into a spiritual house for the Lord (Ephesians 2:21). [18] At the resurrection, no further work of fitment must be performed. It was completed in our world as part of our sanctification, fitting us for final assembly at His Parousia. The biblical prohibition upon using iron tools to cut stones for the altar (Exodus 20:25; Deuteronomy 25:5) likely points to this same truth, that those things set apart for the Lord cannot be made with human hands.
[1] Though our focus is upon what constitutes the true temple, things made with human hands in Scripture is a euphemism for idolatry. There is a stern warning regarding those who choose to value and worship things made with human hands. That warning is in Psalm 115:4-8 where things made with human hands are shown to be of no value and foolish. Vs 8 however, constitutes the warning of idolatry. Those who worship things made with human hands become like those things, making themselves useless and worthless.
[2] That it “filled” the earth echos the Genesis 1 mandate, suggestive that the original mandate will finally be fulfilled with the new kingdom of God as part of the new heaven and new earth. Note that destruction of the kingdoms of this world is envisioned in its inauguration, but not yet in consummation which awaits the end of the age. The inauguration is seen in the coming of the kingdom of God, a kingdom in which all the tribes and nations and tongues are one in Christ (Galatians 3:28), where the separating wall between Jew and Gentile has been eliminated (Ephesians 2:14). This truth is demonstrated in the descent of the Spirit at Pentecost creating a new humanity where all men could be understood despite their differing tongues, a reversal of the curse at Babel.
[3] Note “mountain of the house” (Jeremiah 26:18; Micah 4:1), “holy mountain” (Psalm 2:6; 3:4; 15:1; 43:3; 48:1; 87:1; 99:9; Isaiah 11:9; 27:13; 56:7; 57:13; 65:11, 25; 66:20; Ezekiel 20:40; Daniel 11:45; Zechariah 8:3), “holy hill” (Psalm 15:1; 43:3; 99:9; Jeremiah 31:23), “temple hill” (1 Maccabees 13:52; 16:20). A review of these vss shows frequent equivalence between the terms with mountain and the tent or temple of the Lord. Beale, G. K., The Temple and the Church’s Mission, A Biblical Theology of the Dwelling Place of God, Downers Grove IL, InterVarsity Press, 2004, p.145
[4] John’s word for “dwelt”, σκηνόω skēnoō, means “to fix one’s tabernacle, have one’s tabernacle, abide (or live) in a tabernacle (or tent), tabernacle”, an apt choice for John’s description of Christ as a tabernacle.
[5] These scriptures attest the meaning of Acts 17:24-25 where Paul says “The God who made the world and everything in it . . . does not live in temples built by human hands. And is not served by human [men’s] hands.” The subject of all of these Old Testament vss is idolatry, which results from the effort of men’s hands to fashion an idol. Temples made with human hands have the purpose to serve gods with men’s hands, which is also idolatry per Paul.
[6] Beale, G. K., The Temple and the Church’s Mission, A Biblical Theology of the Dwelling Place of God, Downers Grove IL, InterVarsity Press, 2004, p.224. Note that Paul says the circumcision of our hearts was done without hands, in contrast to the circumcision of the foreskin done with hands. It points to the superiority of the work of Christ in our lives through His new covenant in contrast to the work of men’s hands in the old covenant. What Christ has done in our hearts cannot be accomplished with human hands, only through the power of the Spirit. It suggests Paul is acknowledging that the old covenantal cultic practices were idolatrous in light of the reality now realized in Christ. To deny true worship rested in Christ’s accomplished work is idolatrous. Maintaining the old cultic practices thus became untrue idolatrous worship.
[7] Odes of Solomon available @ http://www.sacred-texts.com/bib/fbe/fbe195.htm
[8] 1 Enoch available @ http://www.sacred-texts.com/bib/boe/boe053.htm
[9] The book of 2 Enoch available @ http://www.pseudepigrapha.com/pseudepigrapha/enochs2.htm
[10] Sybilline Oracles available @ http://www.sacred-texts.com/cla/sib/sib.pdf
[11] 2 Esdras available @ http://www.thecallofthebride.com/2%20Esdras.PDF
[12] That Zion as a mountain becomes symbolic of God’s people is supported by 2 Baruch 59:4 which speaks of Zion as a temple modeled after the heavenly pattern. Taken together with 2 Baruch 4:1-7 which speaks of the city patterned after God’s true tabernacle in heaven, makes clear that Zion became known as the temple of God’s people. 2 Baruch available @ http://www.pseudepigrapha.com/pseudepigrapha/2Baruch.html
[13] The Epistle of Barnabus available @ http://scriptural-truth.com/PDF_Apocrypha/The%20Epistle%20of%20Barnabas.pdf
[14] While the Jews failed to perceive Jesus as the new and final temple, there seems to be growing evidence that the Jewish people understood that the establishment of a future final temple was synonomous with the new heaven and new earth. “C. T. R. Hayward . . . has persuasively argued that, from the same period, the establishment of a temple at Leontopolis in the first half of the second century BC was bound up with the renewal of the cosmos. Ben Zion Wacholder has suggested that the peculiarly cubic architecture of the Temple Scroll found at Qumran, which he correlates closely with the cosmology of the early Enoch literature, reflects a similar conceptual world. The ‘future sanctuary prescribed in the scroll seems to have been designed to correspond to the renewal of the heaven and earth at the end of days’. Certainly at one point in the Temple Scroll there is an unequivocal identification of the creation of the sanctuary as the day of creation.” Fletcher-Louis, Crispin, H. T., The destruction of the Temple and the Relativization of the Old Covenant, presented in Brower, Kent E. & Elliott, Mark W. , Eschatology in the Bible & Theology, Downers Grove, Il, Intervarsity Press, 1997, p. 160
[15] On the Cherubim, 98-100 available @ http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/yonge/book5.html
[16] Philo, being influenced by Grecian thought, likely saw deep significance in the soul as the important part of a person’s consciousness, yet it is surprising that he would suggest God would tabernacle within men, or at least, with their souls.
[17] Beale, G. K., The Temple and the Church’s Mission, A Biblical Theology of the Dwelling Place of God, Downers Grove IL, InterVarsity Press, 2004, p. 237, quoting 4QFlor 1.2
[18] It seems likely that New Testament references to the temple of living stones have their origin in verses such as Isaiah 50:1, where it also seems intimated that the quarry from which we are hewn is a metaphor of being conformed to the image of Christ.