Customer Reviews

Temple, The

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This volume in its first publication in 1874 was an invaluable compendium of information that bridged the gap between the ancient world of the first century and the modern era. The 75 full-color photos and illustrations plus the carefully revised and updated textual notes have only added to this value!

This book is a wonderful book--it is well written, organized well in a format that allows for relatively quick reference, and just plain has a lot of information in it.

Edersheim was a Messianic Jew who lived during the 1800's. He was a phenomenal scholar, which he proves again in this book. This book is riddled with citations to the Talmud, Josephus, and many other early sources. By Edersheim's own admission, he omits as many footnotes as he can--and there are still more footnotes than most books written today!

That said, I suspect it is not the book for everyone. First of all, it is written from a Christian perspective. Edersheim shows, very effectively, how Christ fulfilled all that the Temple portrayed. To do this, there are some discussions that many people will find simply boring (I found most of them fascinating). Also, it is worth noting that this book was first published in 1874--and the Edersheim's writing style is thus outdated by over a century. If that doesn't bother you, then great--pick up the book. Or, if you don't plan on actually reading the book cover to cover, but would like a good reference, this would be a good book as well. If, on the other hand, you don't enjoy reading 19th-century language, this book may be sufficiently painful enough for you that you should pass it up.

However--and a big however--if you're not sure whether you would like this book, get it anyway. It's a great book.

Edersheim takes the reader throughout the first-century Temple, illuminating many things that are not commonly known. The book has some very detailed information in it, details not known to most people. These details bring to light many of the themes of the New Testament, and helps the reader understand exactly what was meant in a given passage.

For a better understanding of the Temple in the times of Christ, this book is superb--but like I said, probably not for the faint of heart.

I bought this book a couple of years ago and reference it from time to time after having read it completely. This version, which updates Edersheim's magnificent 19th century edition, contains color photos of some of the best researched models of the Herodian Temple at Jerusalem and is your one-stop-shopping source for information on structure, priesthood function, liturgical song and rites. Eyewitnesses to the Temple, such as Philo and Josephus are consulted and cited. Rabbinic material is investigated and used to support the text.

The Temple is depicted in painstakingly detailed models and maps based on the best archaeological evidence and eyewitness reports. Edersheim and his successors then take you through the priesthood functions as well as the rules specific to behavior in/around the Temple, and funding sources such as the various taxes and offerings. Next the sacrifices are covered. I found the most striking chapter for me to be "At Night in the Temple," where Edersheim takes you on rounds with the priests and temple guard. Everything is here, the feasts, the Passover, the Day of Atonement.

If you're a Jew, this text will help you in your studies of pre-diaspora Jewish Temple worship. If you're a Christian, it sheds more context on the New Testament by filling in blanks that would have made sense to 1st century Jewish Christians. One can sense just how devastating the loss of the Temple in 70AD must have been for the religious Jews of Jerusalem.

This is a terrific book, but some of the information is inaccurate and the wordier style of the 1800s can be difficult to follow. It has fantastic pictures. You can also try Garrards Splendour of the Temple (scads of photos, many the same as edersheim's) - you can also buy a cd of photos from a model for that, Leen Ritmeyers Secrets of Jerusalem's Temple Mount (he's a top scholar in the field but the book is quite readable), Carta's Encyclopedia of the Hholy Temple (or something like that). Also try the site of "The Temple Institute" for books reflecting more of the temple services like Edersheim has(less phsyical appearance, but both have a good deal of both), but buy it from Amazon, much cheaper! I haven't received them yet so I am quoting their description. Edersheim is a talented writer, some beautiful descriptions. Garrard's and Ritmeyer's are more correct but less eloquent and evocative.

Hope all that helps somebody out there! I had an impossible time finding anything on this temple, because Amazon just refers you to other Edersheim books in their sections on similar books and purchases.

This 1997 edition by Kregel Publications is beautiful. It has photographs of a model of the Temple accompanying the text. Even if you already have a copy, this edition is worth finding!

The book 'The Temple' offers interesting details of Herod's Temple in Jerusalem...This is important because it would have been the temple that Jesus, his disciples and Jews in general saw and related to, and It was this temple that was destroyed by Titus in 70 C.E.

I do have a couple of issues with some of the descriptions of various sacrifices and temple services. The way Mr. Edersheim and Bimson wrote and edited the book often makes it hard to really understand what is being done and why...but if you have OTHER references books to fall back on when you hit one of these little snares this book is worth adding to your collection of reference works.

This is a classic work done from research with opinions called out and expressed. I appreciated the scholarship and research of the author, his knowledge and opinions are well laid out and the clarity between the two is refreshing, compared to much of the recent works published (where opinion is put forth as fact).

I recommend this book if you are interested in the blending of the Jewish traditions with and into a disciplined worship of Jesus Christ.