Herod’s Temple

From Augustus, Herod obtained the right to intervene on behalf of the Jews wherever in the Roman empire they might be annoyed. But, above all, he tried to prove that Greek temples were not his only concern by undertaking to rebuild and beautify the Temple in Jerusalem. Almost five hundred years had elapsed since the Second Temple had been built by those who returned from the Babylonian Exile. After that the Temple had no doubt been repaired and enlarged, but it remained essentially the old building, inferior in beauty and grandeur to some of the pagan temples which were around. Not only was it contrary to Herod's love of architecture to permit the Temple of his own God to remain so modest, but he thought to show his piety to the Jews by making their Temple grander than the rest. The leading scribes at first opposed his plan being very suspicious of the whole thing. They actually believed that once he pulled the old building down he would never replace it. Herod had to promise that he would not touch the old building until he had built the new one around it.

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