The following is an aerial photograph of the City of David taken in the early 20th Century. The city was leveled, much as it was after its destruction by the Romans in 70 A.D. There were few structures. Also, notice the traditional Temple Mount above the City of David.

Photo courtesy of Robert Cornuke
(Red circle = Temple?) (Blue circle = Silwan village) (Arrow = Dome of the Rock)

If the Temple was located in the City of David, what was the traditional Temple Mount? The Jewish historian Flavius Josephus tells us:

“Now on the north side [of the Temple] was built a citadel, whose walls were square, and strong, and of extraordinary firmness. This citadel was built by the kings of the Hasmonean race, who were also high priests before Herod, and they called it the Tower. “But for the Tower itself, when Herod the king of the Jews had fortified it more firmly than before, in order to secure and guard the temple, he gratified Antonius, who was his friend, and the Roman ruler, and then gave it the name of the Tower of Antonia. “Now as to the Tower of Antonia, . . . it was erected upon a rock of fifty cubits in height, and was on a great precipice; - Flavius Josephus, Wars of the Jews, Book V, Chapter 5, Paragraph 8

The Tower of Antonia was built on a seventy-five foot high precipice. This describes the traditional Temple Mount. It is the only rock precipice in the area. In 73 A.D. Eleazar, a Jewish leader, stated that Jerusalem was totally destroyed except “the camp of those that hath destroyed it, which still dwells upon (over) its ruins.” The Wars Of The Jews, Book VII, Chap. 8, Para. 7.

All that remained was the Roman fort.

Next, a description of the Tower of Antonia. Continue praising the Lord and seeking the lost sheep that surround us.