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Passages in the NT describe the church forming part of (if not the whole) temple (1 Cor 3:16-17; 6:19-20; 2 Cor 6:16; Eph 2:21; Rev 3:12; 13:6). Since Jesus claims to be the temple (Matt 26:60-62; Jn 2:18-22), it is natural that his spirit dwelling within people constitutes the body of believers becoming the temple.

However, when looking at the OT, I have been unable to find an intellectual basis for such notions. Certainly, sanctuaries may be found in the OT's tabernacle, temples, and some mountaintop experiences (particularly those of Moses), but I have not been able to find passages that define the sanctuary more broadly, i.e. something along the lines of "Wherever God's spirit/glory is, that is a temple."

Is this a new idea from NT writers, or was there a precedent for such beliefs?

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    Houston, you're asking an interesting question. Let me point out two general issues. (1) There are some assumptions implicit in your question that need to be be pulled out and clarified. For example, you're assuming a static concept in the Old Testament and in the New. Did Abraham have a temple? (2) From the verses you quoted, pick two of them to contrast and quote them directly in your question. If you don't focus on two such verses and passages, your question could be closed as "Lacking in focus," which would be a pity. All the best! Commented Apr 7 at 16:28
  • Can you explain what you mean by static and why it is an issue? If there are any assumptions in my question, I do not find them prevalent enough to influence a response. Furthermore, I am unsure how lacking quotes would be "lacking in focus." My pursuit is OT intertextuality, not NT theology, so quoting the given passages would not be valuable. Commented Apr 7 at 17:14
  • Houston, static means unchanging. Notice how many covenants are specified by God in the OT. Can you list them? How are they different? There are two NEW covenants mentioned in the NT. The Abramic covenant does not specify a temple. Why not? How can you reconcile it with the Mosaic specifications. Aren't these contradictory? Thus, the covenants (plural) that God makes with humanity aren't fixed, permanent, and static. The Biblical Hermeneutics forum requires reference to a specific scripture or contrasting specific scriptures or the question could be closed. I'll help you if you are willing. Commented Apr 7 at 17:39
  • You won't find that coz it's contradictory idea to the priestly ritual or tradition. This is why prophets and Jesus oppose them and claimed that God does not live in temples. Such ideas cannot be discussed on dogmatic sites like this. You need to read books Commented Apr 17 at 3:14

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The Garden of Eden:
Genesis 3:8

And they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden.

The Tabernacle:
Exodus 25:8

And let them make me a sanctuary, that I may dwell in their midst.

The Temple:
1 Kings 9:1-3

As soon as Solomon had finished building the house of the Lord and the king's house and all that Solomon desired to build, the Lord appeared to Solomon a second time, as he had appeared to him at Gibeon. And the Lord said to him, “I have heard your prayer and your plea, which you have made before me. I have consecrated this house that you have built, by putting my name there forever. My eyes and my heart will be there for all time.

These are all places where God's presence was with His people.

Ezekiel 36:22 starts a passage with:

“Therefore say to the house of Israel, Thus says the Lord God: It is not for your sake, O house of Israel, that I am about to act, but for the sake of my holy name, which you have profaned among the nations to which you came.

Skipping to the portion of focus, verses 26-27:

26 And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules.

The idea that God's spirit will be within His people can be seen as an Old Testament basis for the concept that where God dwells with his people is a temple and since God's spirit now lives in His people then His people are the temple. As noted in the question this concept is found in several places in New Testament.

One example

1 Corinthians 3:16
Do you not know that you are God's temple and that God's Spirit dwells in you?

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  • Fundamentally, the goal of this discussion is to identify a relationship of God's indwelling spirit and the temple. While you have quoted some passages related to the temple, they do not provide an intersection of the spirit and temple. The Garden of Eden may be taken as evidence that the sanctuary is not bound to a man-made structure, but mountains are associated with sanctuaries (Eden being one; Ezek 28), so the sanctuary is still bound to a fixed location. Commented Apr 7 at 17:26
  • @HoustonBeckworth "And I will put my Spirit within you" identifies an Old Testament reference of God's Spirit dwelling in His people. It's clear that God dwelt in the temple. Are you saying that you want a verse that says "God's spirit dwelt in the temple"? Commented Apr 7 at 17:58
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Here I want to describe the Old Testament Tabernacle – not its detailed construction, but the significance that the Bible gives to this whole ceremonial system, or Levitical covenant. The same ceremonial system associated with Solomon’s Temple and the Zerubbabel will be included here.

The Old Testament Sanctuary/Tabernacle/Temple was so central to Israelite and Jewish identity that it is scarcely surprising that it figures prominently in several Bible references and illusions. For example, Jeremiah had to preach against the prevailing attitude that because the Jewish people had the Temple (and its services) that Jerusalem would be immune to Babylonian attack! (Jer 7:4-8) Similar warnings had to be issued on many other occasions, eg, Isa 1:10-17, Ps 40:6-8, 51:16, 17, 1 Sam 15:22, Hos 6:6, Prov 15:8, 21:3, Jer 6:20, Micah 6:6-8, etc.

Old Testament

In the Old Testament, the primary function of the Sanctuary was to teach the people about the plan of salvation as explained in Heb 9:11-14, 10:1. Therefore, it became the centre of Israel’s spirituality. (Unfortunately, it also became highly ritualised, devoid of meaning because the people did not remind themselves of what it meant. Thus, God had to condemn the very sacrificial system He had instigated – see Isa 1:10-17, Ps 40:6-8, 51:16, 17, 1 Sam 15:22, Hos 6:6, Prov 15:8, 21:3, Jer 6:20, Micah 6:6-8, etc.)

So, what did the Sanctuary teach about God and the people? It taught that God is Holy and the people should be holy also; that there could be no forgiveness without the shedding of blood (Heb 9:22). But there is something more fundamental about the way this was done.

Sin – ALL sin – is a sin against God, no matter who is the victim or perpetrator. Consider the following:

  • When you sin against your brothers in this way and wound their weak conscience, you sin against Christ. 1 Cor 8:12.
  • Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight. Ps 51:4
  • He who oppresses the poor shows contempt for their Maker, but whoever is kind to the needy honors God. Prov 14:31.
  • Otherwise, they will teach you to follow all the detestable things they do in worshiping their gods, and you will sin against the LORD your God. Deut 20:18. See also 2 Sam 12:13, 14, Gen 39:9, 1 Sam 12:23, 1 Sam 14:34, 2 Chron 19:10, Prov 17:5, Jer 34:19, Eze 13:19.

Thus, ALL Christians’ sins are sins against God – they misrepresent Him and malign His Character before the watching world. This caused the martyred saints to ask God, “how long are you not judging, until you avenge our blood?” (Rev 6:10), an allusion to Dan 8:14, which also asks, “How long”. Later, they get their answer in Rev 19:2, “You have avenged (vindicated) our blood.” In Daniel 8:13, 14, the holy one wanted to know how long the blasphemous activities of the little horn would continue – how long would God’s character be disgraced?

The Bible frequently expresses this idea about all sin being a sin against God in a different way. Because the Sanctuary is the center of God’s government, the Bible often represents sins as defiling or desecrating the sanctuary.

  • I will set my face against that man and I will cut him off from his people; for by giving his children to Molech, he has defiled my sanctuary and profaned my holy name. Lev 20:3.
  • You must keep the Israelites separate from things that make them unclean, so they will not die in their uncleanness for defiling my dwelling place, which is among them. Lev 15:31.
  • Whoever touches the dead body of anyone and fails to purify himself defiles the Lord's tabernacle… But if a person who is unclean does not purify himself, he must be cut off from the community, because he has defiled the sanctuary of the LORD. Num 19:13, 20.
  • Then he said to them, “Defile the temple and fill the courts with the slain. Go!” So they went out and began killing throughout the city.” Eze 9:7, see also Eze 5:11.
  • Judah has broken faith. A detestable thing has been committed in Israel and in Jerusalem: Judah has desecrated the sanctuary the LORD loves, by marrying the daughter of a foreign god. Mal 2:11.

See also Jer 7:30, 32:34, Eze 7:20-22, 23:38, Ps 74:7, 79:1, Zeph 3:4, 2 Chron 36:14, which all record acts of sin defiling the sanctuary. Thus, all Christians’ sin is sin against God and defiles His sanctuary, whether confession and sacrifice are involved or not. In Daniel 8:13, 14, the holy one enquired how long the blasphemous activities of the little horn would continue to defile the heavenly sanctuary.

On the annual Day of Atonement (“Yom Kippur”, Lev 16), the sanctuary had to be “cleansed” and made right (vindicated). This also represented the final vindication of God before the universe.

New Testament

The New Testament makes much use of Sanctuary imagery in at least five different ways:

  1. As a teaching device of Jesus and the plan of salvation (as in the Old Testament). Specifically, many of the elements of the sanctuary are explained.
  • The sacrificial lamb represented Jesus (John 1:29, Rom 8:3, 1 Cor 5:7, 1 Peter 1:19, Heb 9:12)
  • Jesus’ teaching is closely associated with water (in the laver), John 4:13, 14.
  • Jesus was the bread of life as symbolized by the shew bread (John 6:35-51)
  • The light of the Menorah represented Jesus (John 8:12, 9:5)
  • Jesus was the door (John 10:7-9)
  • Jesus opened the curtain to the Most Holy Place (2 Cor 3:13-16, Heb 6:19, 9:3, 10:20)
  • The smoke from the altar of incense represents the prayers of the saints (Rev 5:8, 8:3, 4)
  • The Ark of the Covenant, especially the “mercy seat,” represented the throne of God and its implied mercy (Ex 25:17-22, Heb 9:5, 4:16, Rom 3:23-25)
  • Jesus is represented as our great High Priest and intercessor in heaven (Heb 4:16, 7:25, 10:22, Rom 8:26, 34, 1 John 2:1, 2, 1 Tim 2:5, John 14:6)
  1. The Temple represented Jesus’ body (John 2:19-21)
  2. The Temple represented a Christian’s body (1 Cor 6:19, 20).
  3. The Temple represents the community of believers (or church) (1 Cor 3:16, 17, 2 Cor 6:16, Eph 2:19-22)
  4. The earthly temple represented the heavenly temple (Heb 8:2, 9:11). This is not to suggest that the heavenly temple is anything physically like the earthly one – far from it (the heavenly temple does not have an altar of burnt offering, nor does it have embroidered angels on the curtains, it is inconceivable that it is constructed of dyed rams' skin and beavers' hides, etc). The heavenly temple is nowhere described and is vastly grander and beyond description. However, the earthly temple/tabernacle represented the work of Jesus and His mediatorial work of intercession as our Great High priest in Heaven (Heb 4:16, 7:25, 10:22, Rom 8:26, 34, 1 John 2:1, 2, 1 Tim 2:5, John 14:6) as shown above.

It is thus seen that the OT sanctuary was crucial and pivotal in understanding numerous places in the NT teaching.

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I have a couple of things I can think of that point to the future temple of God.

1 Peter refers us back to Isaiah 28:16 “therefore thus saith the Lord GOD, Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation a stone, a tried stone, a precious corner stone, a sure foundation: he that believeth shall not make haste.” We know this cornerstone is Jesus, what’s He a cornerstone for? We know.

He also references Isaiah 8:14 "And he shall be for a sanctuary; but for a stone of stumbling and for a rock of offence to both the houses of Israel, for a gin and for a snare to the inhabitants of Jerusalem." It says right in the verse He shall be a sanctuary.

After Jacob’s ladder dream he does a curious thing which is a prophecy in and of itself of the future temple of God. He raises a stone up and anoints it with oil and called it the house of God. The raised stone being a representation of dead man being given life, the oil being the Holy Spirit, and this together being called the temple of God. The new testament backs this up by calling us stones and lively stones.

I am sure there is a bunch more.

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The term 'church' in the present day does not correspond to the 'temple' described in the Old Testament. For example, in 1 Kings 8:65, the term refers to:

  • 'Assembly' (as rendered in NIV, ESV, NKJV, NASB)
  • 'Congregation' (as rendered in NLT, KJV, ERV)

By definition, a church is a place of worship where believers gather for prayer, sermons, and sacraments like Communion. The emphasis is placed on the gathering of 'people', making terms like 'assembly' or 'congregation' a more accurate match.

The Holy Temple, on the other hand, was the dwelling place of God in the Old Testament. It served as a sacred space where believers worshipped and prayed, fostering a communion between humanity and God. In the present day, the believers' bodies are considered temples of God, as the Holy Spirit dwells with them. Furthermore, Jesus serves as the High Priest, and all believers are seen as priests. Through Jesus, all believers are able to boldly approach God in prayer and worship.

1 Corinthians 3:16 NIV

Don’t you know that you yourselves are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in your midst?

1 Peter 2:9 NIV

But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.

Ephesians 2:18 NIV

For through him (Jesus) we both have access to the Father by one Spirit.

Hebrews 4:14-16 NIV

14 Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has ascended into heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. 15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin. 16 Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.

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  • "By definition, a church is a place of worship where believers gather for prayer, sermons, and sacraments like Communion." Is the church a place? Ephesians 5:25 "Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her," Did Christ love a place or did he love people? The church meets in a place but that place is not the church. Commented Apr 8 at 15:38
  • @DavidD - While churches primarily focus on nurturing believers, their fellowship need gathering places. These can be any locations where believers come together. In another words, a place without believers cannot be considered a church, even if it once was. Commented Apr 9 at 3:33
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Mark 11:17

And as he taught them, he said, “Is it not written: ‘My house will be called a house of prayer for all nations’? But you have made it ‘a den of robbers.’”

Isaiah 66:8

Can a country be born in a day or a nation be brought forth in a moment?

That Isaiah prophecy was about the new covenant church, the spiritual temple of the Israel of God born on a day of Pentecost.

Hebrews 8:5

They serve at a sanctuary that is a copy and shadow of what is in heaven. This is why Moses was warned when he was about to build the tabernacle: “See to it that you make everything according to the pattern shown you on the mountain.”

Revelation 8:5

Then the angel filled the incense burner with fire from the altar and threw it down upon the earth; and thunder crashed, lightning flashed, and there was a terrible earthquake.

Leviticus 6:12

The fire on the altar must be kept burning; it must not go out. Every morning the priest is to add firewood and arrange the burnt offering on the fire and burn the fat of the fellowship offerings on it.

So that altar is still a spiritual altar in heaven per Revelation. The church was God's plan all along. Giving his chosen people the new Jerusalem, the heavenly Mount Zion was the plan all along- Palestine/Canaan was the promised land until the seed/Shiloh to whom it was promised came, which was Jesus 2000 years ago.

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