Saturday, August 26, 2006

Where will the 3rd Beis Hamikdash be built?

This sounds like a stupid question, the answer is obvious, in ירושלים on הר הבית.

However, the מלבי"ם and the רש"ש point out that the simple reading of the pesukim in יחזקאל פרק מ"ח is not that way.

The מלבי"ם in his commentary (יחזקאל מ"ג,ז) states that we see from the pesukim in פרק מ"ח that the Beis Hamikdash will be 25 mil from ירושלים on a different mountain. The רש"ש makes a similar comment (בבא בתרא קכ"ב). The Gemara there is discussing the חלוקת הארץ that will be when moshiach comes. The רש"ש points put out דרך אגב, that the simple reading of the pesukim in יחזקאל פרק מ"ח is that the Beis Hamikdash will be on a different mountain 25 mil from ירושלים and that this understanding can explain additional Pesukim in other places in נ"ך as well.

This opinion is clearly against the Rambam and I don't know of any earlier source who says like them.

The Rambam in (הלכות בית הבחירה (א,ג writes:
כיון שנבנה המקדש בירושלים--נאסרו כל המקומות כולן לבנות בהן בית לה', ולהקריב בהן קרבן; ואין שם בית לדורי הדורות אלא בירושלים בלבד, ובהר המורייה שבה--שנאמר "ויאמר דויד--זה הוא, בית ה' האלוהים; וזה מזבח לעולה, לישראל" (דברי הימים א כב,א), ואומר "זאת מנוחתי, עדי עד"

Once the Beis Hamikdash was built in Yerushalayim, it was prohibited to build a house for Hashem anywhere else and to bring sacrifices anywhere else. The only eternal house of Hashem is in Yerushalayim and on Har Hamoriah ...

Hopefully we will merit to see the resolution of this question very soon when Moshiach arrives.