This wall, located on the southern side of Jerusalem, was more than 900 feet long and more than 150 feet high. Pilgrims entered the temple primarily through this entrance%u2014the Double Gates%u2014after climbing the Southern Stairs%u2014a broad staircase more than 200 feet wide.

When Israel divided after Solomon's death (926 BC), the tribe of Judah under Rehoboam became the southern kingdom, or Judah. In 586 BC, God punished the people for their sins by exiling them to Babylon for 70 years. Jesus was born of this tribe.

Spring in the Kidron Valley near Jerusalem. It was the main water source for the city during Old Testament times. Hezekiah built a tunnel that directed the spring's water inside the city walls. Gihon means "gushing out."

Long building used for foot races and other athletic contests.

Large stone erected as a testimony to a significant act of God (or gods). Standing stones could serve pagan as well as God-honoring purposes.

Large meeting place for meetings of the state.

Upright stone with writing or decoration. Our practice of placing tombstones over the graves of loved ones probably derives from this special standing stone.

Porch not attached to a larger building.

A Greek word meaning "to gather." The Jews would gather at buildings called synagogues to worship God and to study the Scriptures. Each Jewish community also used the synagogue to teach young people.

Combining different forms of belief or practice. The Israelites practiced syncretism when they tried to worship both God and Baal.

Nation or area north and east of Israel. Old Testament: a bitter enemy of Israel. New Testament: large province (including Israel) under Roman control. At the time of Jesus, a large Jewish community lived in its capital, Damascus.

Small boxes and the accompanying leather straps worn by observant Jews during prayer. The boxes are placed on the forehead and near the heart and bound in place by the leather straps. (See Deut. 6.)

Means "dwelling place." It was a special tent where the Israelites worshiped God. It is sometimes called the Tent of Meeting. It was the place where God would meet his people.

The seventh yearly feast (Lev. 23) when all males were required to come to Jerusalem. The people celebrated Israel's wandering in the desert by living in temporary shelters. Included a water ceremony as part of prayer of rain.

Table that stood in the holy place of the tabernacle and temple, outside the Holy of Holies. Priests placed the bread of the Presence (Ex. 25:30), or showbread, on it. The bread symbolized the Israelites' commitment to give the Lord the results of their work. It also testified that everything they received was a gift from God.

The Hebrew word for disciple is talmid. This word stresses the relationship between rabbi (teacher or master) and disciple (student). A talmid of Jesus' day would give up his entire life in order to be with his teacher. The disciple didn't only seek to know what the teacher knew, as is usually the case today. It was not enough just to know what the rabbi said, but the foremost goal of any talmid was to become like the rabbi and do what the rabbi did.

A craftsman who often worked with stone. Jesus was trained as a tekton while growing up in nearby Nazareth.

Large mound or hill composed of layers of debris from several different periods of settlement.

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Sacred building.

' A building where people woship divine beings. God told Israel to build him a temple and worship him there. God showed his people that he was with them by having his presence in the temple. In the New Testament, we learn that the new temple is not a building. God's people are now the temple of God. God's Spirit lives within them.

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The ridge on which Jerusalem's Temple was built and/or the platform on which the Temple and its courts stood. King Herod's platform was supported by massive walls, the tallest standing 160 feet, and measured more than 1,500 feet long, north to south, and more than 900 feet wide, east to west. It accommodated 200,000 pilgrims.

' The ridge on which Jerusalem's Temple was built and/or the platform on which the Temple and its courts stood. King Herod's platform was supported by massive walls, the tallest standing 160 feet, and measured more than 1,500 feet long, north to south, and more than 900 feet wide, east to west. It accomodated 200,000 pilgrims.

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Warm room in Roman baths.

A Roman political office; meant one-fourth of a kingdom. When Herod died, his three sons and others received parts of his kingdom; two sons become tetrarchs, one an ethnarch.