Second Temple Destruction

[Kris]

Hello-- I was wondering if anyone recalls reading that after the second temple was destroyed that some folks lived among the ruins. I remember reading this somewhere, but have not had luck finding anything on this. Does anybody remember who might have written about this?

[Kris]

I feel really unpopular!! Nobody wants to post on my threads!! I have the last two posts on this site!!

[DCHindley]

Hello-- I was wondering if anyone recalls reading that after the second temple was destroyed that some folks lived among the ruins. I remember reading this somewhere, but have not had luck finding anything on this. Does anybody remember who might have written about this?

Well, I think you are referring to Herod's temple. If so, yes, I have seen statements to the effect that there might have been some sort of "reduced function" alter with the occasional sacrifice where the old temple once stood, but I do not know whether the priests who offered the sacrifices lived in the city itself or came there on a regular or intermittent basis from the countryside.

The city of Jerusalem itself must have been pretty desolate after the war. Offhand I cannot remember whether Titus had just the temple, or the whole city, razed. The reason I kind of think it was the whole city was that they allowed the towers of Herod's palace to remain standing to serve as testaments to Herod and his family. The Romans had nothing but good things to say about Herod. He, his dad and his brothers were immense assets to Roman emperors and to the empire as a whole. Herod delivered exactly what he was ordered, or volunteered, to produce for the Romans. Where other allies struggled to scrape up exactions, Herod delivered his part AND bailed out his friends. Apparently he was a brilliant financial analyst when it came to strategically bartering for assets that he figured could be useful to him someday, then liquidating them lightening fast when he had to.

So, if anything, there was maybe a Roman legionary camp or two laying about the ruins. That means a bunch of tents, but some building as folks went about erecting Roman baths and setting up storehouses, administration buildings, etc. Someone calls in stonemasons, and the call goes out. Many priests made a living as stonemasons during the 50 weeks they had not been serving at the alter. It may be for the damned Romans, but they would see the city again, the temple, or what was left of it, and get paid for work for the first time in months, maybe years.

If the priests who made those offerings in the revived alter were from the countryside, were they priestly aristocrats who had surrendered to the Romans and were allowed to keep their lands like Josephus? They may have been common day laborers who lived in the villages of such estates.

I dunno ...

DCH

[outhouse]

the temple, or what was left of it,
DCH

Which brings up a good question.

How much time after the war was devoted to leveling the grounds. Many of the huge stones were purposely removed and moved off the upper deck.

How long was a work force there ? a fire/s can only do so much damage.

[outhouse]

some folks lived among the ruins.

Who is the question?

What description.

[John2]

Once the Jewish revolt had been put down, Jews were again permitted to visit the site of the former temple since the Romans generally did not object to the worship of local gods. As far as they were concerned, once the rebellion was suppressed, there was no longer any impediment to Jewish worship on the mount. Many stories in the Talmud testify to the fact that leading rabbis continued to pray on the now desolate Temple Mount.

Ascent to the Temple Mount was not limited to rabbis; the people's attachment to the former sanctuary also remained very strong. One story relates that "Ben Zoma once saw a [large] crowd on one of the steps of the Temple Mount."

The people continued to bring sacrifices that were offered on a Temple Mount altar that had survived the destructive fire by the Romans. The Mishnah, a central code of Jewish law codified in the early third century C.E., states that "one may offer sacrifices [on the place where the temple used to stand] even though there is no house [i.e., temple]." Some rabbis held that the sacrificial services continued almost without interruption for sixty-five years following the temple's destruction while others suggest that sacrificial services ceased in 70 C.E. but were resumed for the 3-year period when Bar Kochba controlled Jerusalem.

http://www.meforum.org/3556/temple-mount