The Temple in the Days of our Savior Described, Chapter 8
CHAP. VIII. Cloiſters along this outmoſt wall within. foreign
THUS hath the outmoſt virge and bounds of the Mountaine of the Houſe beene laid before us; Now there is a thing that deſerves our paines and obſervation againe in another ſurvey, and that is, the walkes or cloiſters that were along the wall within betweene gate and gate round about.
[a]Shabbath fol 16.The Talmud in one place expreſſeth it, foreign Porticus duplicata, and ſo[b]Joſ. de Bell: lib. 5. c. 14. Joſephus foreign; which both the Talmud[c]Shab: fol: 13. Maym. in Beth habbechir. per. 5. in another place and alſo Maymony do utter more largely foreign It was all floored or roofed over, and one porch was before another.
The word foreign is ſo plainly the Greek word foreign, that I make no ſcruple to render it by that word in Greeke and by Porticus in Latine, but how to tranſlate any of them into our Engliſh tongue, is of ſome doubtfulneſſe, becauſe our word Porch by which they are conſtantly rendred, doth not reach to their ſenſe in our Engliſh uſe, but is commonly taken in another. For what[d]Kimch. in 1 Kings 6.4. Kimchi ſaith concerning the word foreign that it meaneth the ſame thing that by the language of the Talmud is called foreign The houſe of the gate, is alſo moſt true concerning the proper ſignification of the Engliſh word Porch, for that moſt ordinarily and commonly is taken among us for the building over or before the houſe door. But theſe words that we are about, do ſignifie Cloiſter-walks or rows, where men uſed to walk or ſit free from rains and weather, the one ſide open, ſupported with pillars, and all floored, or covered over head.
So was this large compaſſe along the wall, it was double Cloiſtered round about (for give me leave to uſe that word, till I find a better) having a roofe or floore over head, which lay almoſt as high as the top of the Wall, ſave what was left for the walls battlements: and it was ſupported with a treble row of Marble pillars (the inmoſt row joining to the wall) and it was diſtinguiſhed by the middle row of Pillars into a double walke. Wee need not goe farre for a copy, the ſtately new building (Piazza, walke, cloiſter, call it what you will) at the Weſt end of Pauls, may very well bee our patterne. For it was much about that height, twelve yards and an halfe; it joined on one ſide to the wall, as that to the Church, and was borne up with gallant white Marble Pillars: It was 30 cubits, or 15 yards broad; either walk, half that breadth pillars and all, and had battlements above the leads, both at the wall, and on the other ſide, as that at Pauls is creſted on the outſide. Where buildings ſtood out into the Mountaine of the Houſe (as we have obſerved they did) there theſe Cloiſters were carried accordingly: being either cut off at the building, if it ſtood 30 cubits out, or the one halfe or more of the Cloiſter cut off if the building were narrower, and the reſt of the Cloiſter carried on before it.
OnelyOnly upon the South ſide of the Square there was ſome difference of the Walkes or Cloiſter from what was in the other parts.
For here was the foreign the Cloiſter royall as[e]Ant. lib. 15. c. 4. Joſephus calls it, and of which he makes a very large and eminent deſcription to this purpoſe:
1. That it was treble walked or rowed all along from Eaſt to Weſt, whereas the Cloiſters of any of the other ſides were but double.
2. That this whole frame was borne up by foure rowes of Pillars that ſtood even one againſt another, the inmoſt row joining to the wall as it was on the other ſides.
3. The inmoſt and the outmoſt walke of theſe three (that is, that that was next to the wall, and that that was outmoſt towards the open ſpace of the Mountain of the Houſe) were equall in height and breadth with the walks or Cloiſters on any of the other ſides, namely 15 cubits high and 15 cubits broad apeece: but the middlemoſt walke was 42 cubits and an halfe broad and 50 cubits high, and ſo the two rowes of Pillars that ſtood on either ſide of this middle walke were 50 cubits high, ſo that the roofe of this walke was as high againe as the roofe of the Walkes on either ſide, and theſe altogether were as the upper and lower leads of a Church, and every one of them had a creſt or battlement round about: Finally the whole fabrick was ſo gallant and ſumptuous, foreign, that it is incredible, ſaith my Author, to thoſe that never ſaw it, and an amazement to thoſe that did.
4. Had one ſtood at the top of the higheſt Leads at either end and looked downe, there was ſo ſteep a trench or valley under foreign; that to looke downe it would make one giddy, and he could hardly ſee to the bottome; and Joſephus proclaimeth this fabricke to be foreign, one of the godlieſt workes under the Sunne.
Now though this gallant Southſide Cloiſter, did, and that very deſervedly, beare the name of The Cloiſter Royall foreign, yet is not this the ſame with that, which in the Scripture is called Solomons Porch, of which there is mention, John 10.23. Acts 3.11. for that (as the ſame Joſephus giveth us intimation) was upon the Eaſt ſide of this ſquare (that we have in hand) and not upon the South, his words are theſe[f]Id. ib. lib. 20. cap. 8. foreign: The People perſwaded the King Agrippa (the ſecond) to repaire the Eaſt Porch or Cloiſter: Now this Cloiſter was in the outmoſt ſpace of the Temple: ſtanding over an exceeding deep valley: raiſed upon a Wall of 400 cubits which was made of ſquare white ſtones of 20 cubits long, and 6 cubits high apeece, the worke of King Solomon who firſt built the Temple.
His meaning about the foundation of this Eaſt wall and cloiſter he tels elſewhere to this purpoſe,[g]De Bell. lib. 5. c. 14. that Solomon to finde roome enough this way, was put to fill and bring up a part of the deep trench with ſuch great ſtones, and foreign, and upon this ſtrong foundation, ſo brought up from the bottome of the valley, he built this porch, or Cloiſter that we have in mention.
Now when the Temple was deſtroyed by the Babylonian, and all the buildings ruined, yet this great and wonderfull foundation that Solomon had brought up ſo high as to equall the floore of the Mount, was not ruined or pulled downe but continued ſtill, and in after-times, the Porch or Cloiſter of that Eaſterne quarter, was built upon the ſame foundation of Solomons: and from that it tooke and bare the name ſtill of Solomons Porch, and the Eaſt gate here, upon the ſame occaſion was called the Kings gate, as was ſaid before.
And now to take a Proſpect of this ſpace, and wall, and buildings, and Cloiſters that we have ſpoken of at one view: By many ſteps, or at the leaſt by a great riſing, you were to come up to any of the gates that have been mentioned, let the Eaſt gate (or the gate of Shuſhan) be conceived for our entrance.[h]Ezek. 40.6. The Gate-houſe or threſhold was 12 cubits over, 6 without the doores and 6 within; being got within you ſaw the great ſquare within, moſt ſtately double cloiſtered round about on every ſide but onelyonly on the South, where the cloiſter was trebble: on the Weſt ſide were 4 gates, on the South two, on the North one, and one on the Eaſt where you came in: and at all theſe gates more or leſſe buildings.[i]Mid. per. 1.1. In five of theſe gates (namely in the Eaſt gate Shuſhan, the two South gates Huldah, the North gate Tedi, and the Weſt Shallecheth) was a guard kept of the Levites by night for the ſafety and honour of the Temple, and ſo there was in every corner of this great ſquare within.
Theſe gallant and ſumptuous walkes thus round about the whole compaſſe, were for the people to ſtand, walke or ſit under, in heat or raine, or according as they had a mind or occaſion: And ſo it is ſaid that our Saviour walked here, John 10.23. the Apoſtles James and John ſtood here and the people about them, Acts 3.11. And there were benches ſet by the walls round about for people to ſit downe when they thought good: And therefore D. Kimchi [k]Kimch. in 2 Kings 11.14.interprets foreign a bench on which men ſit: And R. Nathan [l]Aruch in foreignmakes it to be the ſame with foreign which he ſaith, is benches on which men ſet downe their wares, and on which they ſit themſelves.