Will the Temple Be Rebuilt? By Dr. Eli Lizorkin-Eyzenberg
The prospect of rebuilding the Temple in Jerusalem continues to captivate the hearts and minds of millions of Christians around the world. When will it be rebuilt? Will there still be animal sacrifices? What would happen next? How will it work with the sacrifice already offered on the Cross? Those are just some of the questions that sincere Christians are asking.
Whatever we think about the possibility of such a building project, we must remember that the New Testament, while confirming its great respect for God’s Temple in Jerusalem, posits that the Jewish Christ and those in Him are the ultimate Temple of God (1 Pet 2:5).
An example of this connection between Jesus and his followers with the temple is found in John’s gospel (John 1:14), where Jesus’ incarnation is described in terms of God, “tabernacling among us.” However, the clearest connection with the eschatological Temple described by Ezekiel can be found in the words Jesus uttered during the priestly watering-pouring ceremony during the Feast of Tabernacles.
Jesus declared: “He that believes on me, as the scripture has said, out of his belly will flow rivers of living water.” (John 7:38) The Scripture to which Jesus is undoubtedly referring describes the river that makes the desert green and all dead things alive again. That river flows directly from the belly of the Temple that Ezekiel saw in his vision (Ezek 47:1-9).
So, will the Temple be rebuilt? No matter what our answer would be we must always remember that the ultimate Temple is located in the person of the Jewish Christ and in the lives of his Jewish and Gentile followers.