Temples in Jerusalem

What is the difference between the temples of Solomon, Hezekiah, Zerubbabel and Herod?

Originally, King David wanted to build a temple but God said that his son Solomon would build it instead [1st Chronicles 17:4, 11-12]. That Temple was built around 960 BC and stood for about 400 years until Nebuchadnezzar destroyed it in 586 BC. It was built on a platform [750 ft x 750 ft] on Mt. Moriah.

Hezekiah would have used that same Temple because he reigned as King from 729-686 BC.

When the Jews returned from the Babylonian captivity, they built a new, very modest temple under the leadership of Zerubbabel [Ezra 3:8-11]. That Temple was completed around 520 BC. It was on the same site as the original Temple that Solomon built, and it remained there until the time of Herod the Great.

When Herod came to into power, he wanted to build a magnificent temple in Jerusalem, mostly to gain favor with his Jewish subjects. So, he rebuilt Zerubbabel’s Temple in a grand fashion, including the platform that it was built on. He expanded Solomon’s 750 ft x 750 ft platform to include over 35 acres. That is the Temple that Jesus and the disciples would have known. The Romans destroyed it in 70 AD.

The Temple Mount can be visited today, but you will not find a Jewish building on it. Instead, you will see the Dome of the Rock, which was built by Muslims around 690 AD.

Jesus and Baptism

Did Jesus baptize anybody?

Technically no, but His disciples baptized on His behalf. The apostle John wrote about it this way:

Therefore, when the Lord knew that the Pharisees had heard that Jesus made and baptized more disciples than John (though Jesus Himself did not baptize, but His disciples), He left Judea and departed again to Galilee. [John 4:1-3]

There is an Old Testament correlation. In Exodus 40, Moses is said to have built the Tabernacle, but in actuality, it would have been erected by a group of workers. Moses supervised the building of the Tabernacle, and in that sense, built it - just liked the disciples baptizing people under Jesus’ direction. 

Greater Works

What did Jesus mean when He said, “You will do greater works?”

You are referencing John 14:12, “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do, he will do also; and greater works than these he will do; because I go to the Father.”

I once read a book that suggested that the followers of Christ would have the power to perform greater signs, wonders, and miracles than Christ. While I read it, I kept thinking to myself, what could be greater that raising the dead? Walking on water? Multiplying food to feed the masses? Casting demons from unbelievers? Restoring crippled limbs? Healing issues of blood? Speaking to turbulent winds, calming them?

When was the last time you saw anyone do any of those things, much less something greater!

I take “You will do greater works” to mean, greater in “extent,” not greater in “kind.” Jesus limited Himself to a small area of the world. His followers, however, would take His message to the “uttermost parts of the earth.” It’s only in that sense that it is greater.

Adam's Birthday

Do you know the date when Adam was created?

The plain and simple answer is no, although there have been many attempts at doing so. Obviously the farther back we go in history the less certain we are of the chronology, unless we have specific data. For example, we know that Solomon completed the building of the first Temple about 960 BC. 1st Kings 6:1 states that the Exodus happened 480 years before the construction of the Temple, placing the time of the Exodus at about 1450 BC [which I think matches historically with Egyptology - but that is a matter for another time].

Since we don’t have such specific data linked to the time of Adam, I think it is impossible to know. But let me offer this caveat. Many reputable scholars, such as E. R. Thiele and L. McFall, suggest that agriculture commenced in the ancient near east around 10,000 year ago. If one were take that number as a matter of fact, and since Cain [Adam and Eve’s son] was a farmer, then Adam could possibly have been created around 8,000 BC.