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Solomon's Temple (the First Temple)
built c. 960s BC; destroyed 587/586 BC· Place· Bible story & events
Mostly agreed by scholarsMost historians agree; some details uncertain.
The First Temple was the house for Israel's God that Solomon built in Jerusalem, the center of worship for nearly four centuries.
See it on the Bible & Christianity map →What it is
1 Kings 6–8 says Solomon built it over seven years with cedar from Hiram, king of Tyre. It was a stone building about 27 m (60 cubits) long, with a porch, a main hall and an inner cube, the Holy of Holies, which held the Ark of the Covenant. Priests offered daily sacrifices. King Josiah (622 BC) made it the only lawful place of sacrifice. Babylon burned it in 587/586 BC.
Why it matters
It made Jerusalem God's 'dwelling' and the one place of sacrifice. Its loss and rebuilding shaped Judaism, and the Gospels unfold around its successor, the Second Temple.
Sources and history
No remains have been excavated: the site, the Temple Mount (Haram al-Sharif), holds Islamic shrines and cannot be dug. Its three-room plan matches excavated Iron Age temples such as Ain Dara in Syria.
Questions and debates
Exactly where it stood on the Temple Mount, and how grand it was in Solomon's day, are unknown. What became of the Ark is a lasting mystery.
Inside this (2)
Connections (4)
▸Tabernacle and the Ark of the Covenant was housed in Solomon's Temple (the First Temple)Faith & scripture
The connection
For centuries the Ark, the gold-covered chest holding the stone tablets of the Law, traveled with the portable Tabernacle tent. David brought it to Jerusalem; Solomon had priests carry it into the Temple's Holy of Holies, and a cloud of God's glory filled the house (1 Kings 8:10–11).
When and where
Jerusalem, at the Temple's dedication around 960 BC, during the autumn festival (1 Kings 8:2).
How do we know?
Biblical texts only. Chests carried on poles in processions are known from Egypt, such as Tutankhamun's Anubis shrine, so the idea fits its world.
Questions and debates
The Ark vanishes from the record and is not listed among Babylon's loot. Ethiopian Orthodox Christians say it rests in Aksum. Its fate is unknown.
▸King Solomon built Solomon's Temple (the First Temple)Mostly agreed by scholars
The connection
David had wanted to build a house for God, but 2 Samuel 7 and 1 Chronicles 22 say the task fell to his son. Solomon used Phoenician cedar, craftsmen from Tyre and thousands of conscripted laborers, finished in seven years, and dedicated it with a long prayer (1 Kings 8).
When and where
Jerusalem, begun in Solomon's fourth year, about 966 BC by traditional dating, and finished seven years later (1 Kings 6:1, 38).
How do we know?
No direct remains. The Temple's three-room layout matches excavated temples in Syria and Turkey (Ain Dara, Tell Tayinat), supporting an Iron Age design. Its builder is known only from the Bible.
Questions and debates
Did Solomon build it as described, or did later kings enlarge a modest royal chapel? Archaeologists cannot dig the site to check.
▸Solomon's Temple (the First Temple) was replaced after the exile by The Second TempleHistorical record
The connection
Babylon destroyed Solomon's Temple in 587/586 BC. Returning exiles rebuilt on the same site, completing a humbler Second Temple about 516 BC; old men who had seen the first one wept (Ezra 3:12). The Ark of the Covenant, lost with the first Temple, was never recovered.
When and where
Jerusalem's Temple Mount; rebuilding led by Zerubbabel and the high priest Joshua, urged on by the prophets Haggai and Zechariah (Haggai 2:3).
Historical evidence
A Babylonian chronicle records the 597 BC capture; burn layers mark the 586 BC destruction. Ezra, Haggai and Josephus describe the rebuilding. Little of either early Temple has been found: the site cannot be excavated.
Questions and debates
How the Second Temple compared with the first in size and layout, and what became of the Ark, remain unknown.
▸Babylon destroys Jerusalem and the First Temple burned and looted Solomon's Temple (the First Temple)Historical record
The connection
A month after the walls were breached, Nebuzaradan, Nebuchadnezzar's commander, burned the Temple, the palace and the great houses (2 Kings 25:8–9). Bronze pillars and vessels were broken up and carried to Babylon. About 375 years after Solomon built it, the First Temple was gone.
When and where
Jerusalem, in the month of Av, 587 or 586 BC (the 7th or 10th, by different verses); Jews mourn it on Tisha B'Av.
Historical evidence
The destruction layer in Jerusalem is well documented. 2 Kings 25 and Jeremiah 52 give matching accounts; no Babylonian record of that year survives.
Questions and debates
Why Babylon burned the Temple this time, after only stripping its treasures in 597 BC (2 Kings 24:13), is not recorded; punishing a repeat rebel is the usual explanation.