The Rose Guide to the Temple (RGT) manages to provide a readable survey of the biblical temple(s) that synthesizes a wide variety of information, from archaeological and historical to biblical and theological—and all richly illustrated with diagrams, photographs, paintings, timelines and overlays. RGT’s author, Randall Price, earned a ThM from Dallas Theological Seminary and a PhD in Middle Eastern Studies from the University of Texas (his dissertation was on the temple as an eschatological motif), and has written several temple-related books already, including The Coming Last Days Temple (Eugene: Harvest House, 1999), The Battle for the Last Days Temple (Eugene: Harvest House, 2004), and The Temple and Bible Prophecy (Eugene: Harvest House, 2005).

The first section, labeled “God’s Sanctuary Before the Temple,” overviews the temple within the history of salvation, with subsections on the temple before time, and on pre-temple sanctuaries in the Bible. The second section deals with the First Temple, rehearsing the biblical account as well as providing an explanation of the threefold structure of the temple complex, along with the furnishings within each area. It also includes subsections on the temple in the life of God’s people, the destruction of the temple, archaeological discoveries, and temples in the ancient Near East. This last subsection highlights the ‘Ain Dara temple which, as many scholars have noted, contains structural and stylistic affinities with Solomon’s temple. An overview of the Second Temple is covered in the book’s third section, which rightly distinguishes between Zerubbabel’s temple and that of Herod. This section also contains a unit on archaeological discoveries that notes nine interesting finds, including miqva’ot (ritual immersion pools) and the “place of trumpeting” stone (from which priests would signal the Sabbath). Section Four, “The Modern Temple,” reviews the history of the Temple Mount after the temple’s destruction in 70 AD, along with the present-day politics pertaining to it; other subsections explore the historical significance of the open and sealed gates of the Temple Mount, the future temple, Qumran’s Temple Scroll, and the New Jerusalem. After the endnotes, the book contains a bibliography and general index. It also includes a foldout poster by National Geographic of a digital model of the Herodian Temple Mount and (on the other side) the Temple Mount through time.

In our estimation, where RGT exceeds expectations is in the opening section on God’s sanctuary before time, inasmuch as it offers a biblical theology of the temple. This thematic introduction sets the book apart from other works of this sort, which typically remain within the bounds of explaining and illustrating the architectural features of the temple and the symbolism of its furnishings. For example, Price rehearses some of the parallels between the garden of Eden and the tabernacle that suggest that the former was seen as an archetypal sanctuary—a point that is commonplace in scholarship yet not often conveyed at a popular level.

This same strength, however, leads also to the work’s main disappointment: the temple as a theme receives inadequate development into the New Testament. In relation to the church, Price writes, “The apostle Paul uses the sanctity of the temple to teach that the bodies of believers as the church itself is [sic] holy because God’s presence (as the Holy Spirit) dwells there, and therefore it must not be defiled by sinful acts” (p. 5). Elsewhere he discusses the indwelling Spirit as making possible “a spiritual application” to the believer’s body and to the church “as a ‘temple’” (p. 15). Needless to say, these statements are somewhat understated when compared to the reality proclaimed in apostolic teaching, that the New Testament church—comprised of both Jews and Gentiles—forms a temple of the living God, each saint a chosen and precious stone, with Christ as the chief cornerstone, and all fitly joined together by the outpoured Spirit. Also, while in the “Future Temple” subsection Price offers a chart on both symbolic and literal interpretations of Ezekiel’s temple vision, his application is restricted to the latter—not to mention that this subsection comes after the subsection on the “Temple Mount Today” (with timelines up to the present day), effectively precluding any real correlation of Ezekiel’s temple with the church.

Our evaluation is, of course, mitigated in that a work of this genre is expected to be more concerned about the Dome of the Rock than it is about probing ecclesiology. Nevertheless, when one comes to appreciate the extent to which the NT presents Jesus as the Davidic temple-builder who is building his church as the greater reality to which the temple “made with hands” foreshadowed (see Mark 14:58; John 2:19; 1 Cor 3:16–17; Paul’s profound use of Lev 26:12 in 2 Cor 6:16–17; Eph 2:19–22; 1 Pet 2:4–10), then RGT’s omission is at the least a missed opportunity—especially so given its opening biblical-theological section.

Notwithstanding this criticism, Price is to be commended for his broad and thorough exploration of all things temple-related and for clearly incorporating Christ and the gospel message throughout the work. Keeping in mind that illustrations are by nature subjective, RGT is a useful resource for better understanding that temple whose beautifully adorned buildings the disciples had once pointed out in wonder to Christ.

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