One-Page Learn · The Halachos at a glance
הִלְכוֹת בֵּית הַבְּחִירָה
The Chosen Temple · Chapters 5–7
500²
The Temple Mount, in cubits
10
Ascending degrees of holiness
22
Cubits you climb to the Sanctuary
Awe
The mitzvah: revere the Temple
Ch 5The courtyards
- The Temple Mount. A walled square, 500 by 500 cubits, with five gates and a covered colonnade; the ground beneath was hollowed to guard against impurity. (5:1-2)
- Rings of approach. Inside: a low latticework (soreg), then the ten-cubit rampart (cheil), then the Temple Courtyard itself - 187 by 135 cubits, with seven gates. (5:3-4)
- The Women's Courtyard. East of the Courtyard, 135 square, with four corner chambers and balconies so men and women would not mingle at the festivities. (5:7-9)
- The chambers. The Israelites' Courtyard held the Chamber of Hewn Stone - seat of the Sanhedrin - plus chambers for salt, washing, and the High Priest. (5:17)
RememberSquare within square: Mount, rampart, Courtyard, Sanctuary - each smaller, each holier.
Ch 6The ascent
- You climb the whole way. The Temple sits on Moriah's slope; one ascends by steps - 12 to the Women's Courtyard, 15 to the Israelites' - the Sanctuary standing 22 cubits above the eastern gate. (6:1-5)
- Sanctity follows the door. A chamber's holiness goes by where it opens: built on unconsecrated ground but opening inward, it counts as holy; the reverse does not. (6:7-8)
- Consecrating an addition. Extending the city or Courtyard requires a king, a prophet, the Sanhedrin, the Urim v'Tumim, and two thanksgiving offerings. (6:11-13)
- Holy forever. Solomon's consecration sanctified the Temple and Jerusalem for all time - so we may still offer there even in ruin, for that holiness can never be undone. (6:14-16)
RememberYou do not walk in - you climb, 22 cubits, from the gate up to the Sanctuary.
Ch 7Reverence & the ten degrees
- Hold it in awe. A positive mitzvah - though the awe is for the One who commanded it, not the stones. No staff, shoes, dust, or money; no spitting; no shortcut. (7:1-2)
- How one carries oneself. Circle to the right; never sit in the Courtyard (except a king of David's line); leave without turning your back to the Sanctuary. (7:3-6)
- Even in ruin. The reverence is eternal - the site stays holy though the Temple is destroyed; and one may not build a replica of the Temple or its vessels. (7:7, 7:10)
- Ten rising degrees. Holiness climbs in ten steps, from the Land of Israel inward to the Sanctuary, each barring more people than the last - ending at the Holy of Holies, the High Priest alone, on Yom Kippur. (7:12-22)
RememberTen rising degrees, each admitting fewer, ending where only the High Priest goes, once a year.
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Mishneh Torah, Hilchot Beit HaBechirah, Chapters 5-7. A study overview, not a halachic ruling - consult a competent rav for practical questions.