A Turning Point in Israel?

During Sukkot, more Jews prayed at the Temple Mount than the Western Wall

The Western Wall in Jerusalem is known and recognized all over the world. This ancient limestone wall has long been considered the most sacred site available for Jewish people to worship. You’ve no doubt seen photos of large numbers of faithful Jews praying in front of this structure and even tucking notes into the cracks between its massive stone blocks.

Jews consider the Wall sacred because it was once the retaining wall below the plaza of the Second Temple. It’s the only part of the Temple left standing after it was destroyed in 70 A.D. by the Roman armies, which was predicted in Daniel 9.

Here’s how the Western Wall Heritage Foundation describes the Wall:

The Western Wall is one of the four supporting walls of the Temple Mount that remained intact after the destruction of the Second Beit HaMikdash—The Second Temple. It is the wall that faces westward, and it is the closest in proximity to the site of the Holy of Holies, the most sacred location in the Temple for the Jewish people.

Since the Temples' destruction, the Western Wall has served as a source of inspiration, and the focus of yearning and prayer for the Jewish people throughout many generations. It has helped keep the memory of the Temple alive, and is now a heritage site and location for formal ceremonies of the State of Israel.

Declining worshipers at the Western Wall

But recently, it seems that the numbers of Jews praying at the Western Wall has begun to decline. The reason for this has everything to do with how quickly our world is approaching a period of fulfilled prophecy: More Jews are beginning to worship on the Temple Mount itself instead of the Western Wall.

As I wrote during the summer, the Temple Mount is the holiest site in the Jewish faith because God’s divine presence dwelled within it. But this 36-acre piece of land is occupied by Muslims and home to the Al-Aqsa Mosque, making it one of the most disputed properties in the world. To reduce violence between Jews and Muslims, Israeli law prohibits any non-Muslim rituals on the Temple Mount.

This ancient destination will be central to the events of the end times. The Temple will be rebuilt here, and the two witnesses of Revelation 11 will minister here during the first half of the Tribulation. After killing the witnesses, the Antichrist will blaspheme God from the Temple Mount, at which point the second half of the Tribulation will begin. When Jesus returns to establish His millennial throne, it will be in this spot.

All of these things will happen in the rebuilt Temple, which means worship must resume on the Temple before any of these things come to pass. Quietly, Jewish religious groups have been preparing to reinstate their ceremonies, sacrifices and worship on the Temple Mount. They have begun openly praying there in full view of police and Muslims, something that hadn’t happened in nearly two thousand years.

Increasing worshipers at the Temple Mount

Earlier in October, an Israeli videographer named Moshe Nisimboyim shot film footage on Sukkot, a Jewish holiday known as the Feast of Tabernacles. In the process, he noticed that the Western Wall was completely empty. At this time last year, it had been packed with worshipers. Where were they?

That’s when Nisimboyim heard a large number of people singing from a bridge above him. They were Jewish pilgrims on their way to enter the Temple Mount. All of them were traveling there to pray. This article describes the scene:

This marked the first time since the founding of the modern state of Israel that there were more Jewish worshippers on the Temple Mount than at the Western Wall.

The event appears to represent a major turning point in the attitude of the Nation of Israel who have allowed a retaining wall around the Temple Mount to be viewed by most Jews as a mainstream pilgrimage site while almost ignoring the Temple Mount—where both temples actually stood. But this new unprecedented moment could also pave the path for a complete shift in contemporary Jewish thinking.

You can watch Nisimboyim’s video here.

Israel is still under lockdown because of precautions related to the Coronavirus. Only residents who live within one kilometer of the Temple Mount or the Western Wall can go to those sites to pray. Many of those who have been praying do so in representation of the many who are prohibited from worshiping.

“The Lord sent a plague”

One of those praying at the Temple Mount during Sukkot called attention to the story of the plague during the reign of King David, as told in the Old Testament book of 2 Samuel. After Israel aroused God’s anger because of a census, He sent a plague among them:

So the Lord sent a plague upon Israel from the morning till the appointed time. From Dan to Beersheba seventy thousand men of the people died.—2 Samuel 24:15

To end the plague, David followed the instructions of a prophet. He built an altar there in Jerusalem, “and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings” (2 Samuel 24:25).

How did God respond?

So the Lord heeded the prayers for the land, and the plague was withdrawn from Israel.—2 Samuel 24:25

The site of those offerings thousands of years ago—acts of worship that ended a plague—is the site of the Temple Mount today.

I believe the resumption of prayer at the Temple Mount and away from the Western Wall represents a very positive direction in Jewish worship. It’s one that takes us much closer to the rebuilding of the Temple and the events of the Tribulation.

But I also wonder if we can learn from the parallels between today and the events described in 2 Samuel. Could the resumption of worship on the Temple Mount be part of our healing from a pandemic that is ravaging the globe? Are prayer and sacrifice the answers to COVID-19?

I hope you’ll join me in praying for our land and asking God to withdraw this plague. As we wait faithfully, I will be keeping my eye on Jerusalem and the Temple Mount, where so many events of the last days will take place.