Beihefte zur Zeitschrift für die
neutestamentliche Wissenschaft
und die Kunde der älteren Kirche

No physical structure in antiquity held more significance as a place of
access to deity than a temple. It was the supreme locus of communication
between the divine and the human, a place of mediation between heaven and
earth. Since a temple was the abode of deity and the place of divine enthronement, access to divine power and mercy resided there, resulting in
supplication for justice, refuge, and divine aid. A temple offered a sense of
security based in a relationship with the deity