Description
This plan shows the Rock, which is the top of Mount Moriah, inside the Islamic Dome of the Rock. The Holy of Holies (Most Holy Place) of Solomon’s Temple stood on this mountain top.
We believe that, in the time of David, the Angel stood here with his hand stretched out to destroy Jerusalem (2 Samuel 24.16; 1 Chronicles 21.15). David was then told to build an altar in the threshing floor of Araunah (2 Samuel 24.18; 1 Chronicles 21.18).
Threshing floors were usually located a little distance to the east of mountain tops to make advantage of the prevaling western winds to blow the chaff away, but not the grains. We believe therefore that the threshing floor, where Abraham built an altar to sacrifice his son Isaac (Genesis 22.9), was located to the east of the Dome of the Rock.
When Solomon built the Temple, flat areas needed to be created in order for the rectangular foundation stones to stand perfectly horizontal. Even when the stones have disappeared, these flat areas (foundation trenches) can still be detected.
In the centre of the Holy of Holies is a level depression that was specially made for the Ark of the Covenant (1 Kings 8.6,21).
This plan, which faces east, is not annotated to allow the user to add his/her own comments.