Temple Takes the Temperature

When Karen Armstrong describes the creation of Solomon's Temple, she discusses how it did not have only symbolism of Yahweh but instead incorporated other Syrian and Canaanite images of the divine (Armstrong, 48-49). When telling the story of the time the temple existed, there are many times when pagan imagery is brought into the temple, then brought out of the temple and destroyed, then brought in again. Writers of the Hebrew Bible would sometimes link this to how pious the people were towards Yahweh. However, this may have had more of a reflection on the political attitudes of the people at the time, and their attitudes towards other nations.

For Solomon, it was probably not abnormal to include pagan imagery when planning the construction of the temple. Armstrong mentions that Isreal was probably not monotheistic until the 6th century BCE, long after the temple was built. We also know that Solomon built shrines for other gods so that his many wives could worship who they chose to, Armstrong describes this as a courtesy (Armstrong 54). This acceptance of pagan imagery into his kingdom showed that Solomon wanted to extend that courtesy to his political partners. Other times when kings made the choice to bring pagan imagery to the temple, it was a political move for allegiance, like King Ahaz, who, when Isreal became a vassal of Assyria, replaced the altar in the temple courtyard with a more Assyrian style altar (Armstrong 67). This push for peace with Assyria and a gesture of goodwill was heavily dependent on bringing pagan imagery into the temple.

On the other hand, the move to remove pagan images from the temple was often associated with political stances of power and isolation. King Hezekiah initiated intense religious reform that placed Yahweh as the only deity allowed to be worshipped. He did this as a way of trying to rebel against Assyria after the reign of King Ahaz (Armstrong 68). There was also the reign of King Josiah, who repaired the Temple of Solomon, and reformed life in Judah to be centered around the Law of Moses. The other major impact that Josiah made was that he attempted to make Judah totally independent from any power over them, including going to war against Egypt (Armstrong, 74-76). All of the periods of religious independence we see during the period of the Temple of Solomon are connected to a push for political independence as well.

We can see through the religious culture of the temple a picture of what the political culture was aiming for. If the temple was inclusive, the policies of the time tended to also be about political peace. If the temple was pure and only for Yahweh, then we see more political independence.