Yet of the temple of God.
AND ye shall understande that this is not the temple that Salomon made, for that temple lasted but a thousand, an hundred and two yeare. For Titus, Vespasianus Son, that was Emperour of Rome that layde syege about Hierusalem for to discomfyte the Jewes, for they hadde put Chryst to death without leave of the Emperour, and when he had taken the citie he did brenne the temple and caste it downe, and toke all the Jewes and put to death CXIM and the other he put in prison, and solde xxx for a peny for they sayd that they bought Jesu Christ for xxx pence. And sithen1 gave Julian Apostata leve to ye Jewes to make the Temple of Hierusalem againe for he hated christen men, and yet he was Chrysten, but he forsoke his lawe. And whan the Jewes hadde made the Temple, then came an earthe quacke (as God woulde) and caste downe all that they had made. Sythen Adryan the Emperour that was of them of Troye made Hierusalem againe and the Temple in that same maner that Salomon made it, and would that no Jewe should dwell there but all christen men, for if all it were2 so that he was not chrystened, he loved the christen men more than other men, save men of his owne fayth. And this emperour dyd enclose and wall the church of the holy sepulcre within the citie, that before was farre without the citie, and he would have chaunged the name of Hierusalem and called it Helyam,3 but that name lasted not longe. And ye shall wete4 that the Sarasins do greate worship to that Temple and they saye that place is right holy, and when they go therein they go bare foote and knele many times downe. And when I and my felowes came therein, we did of5 our harnesse6 and came bare foote into the Temple & thought that we should doe as much or more than they that were mistrowing.7 And this Temple is three score8 and three cubites of wydenesse and as much of length and xxxii9 cubites in height and covered with lead and it is within full of pillers of Marble. And in the middes of the Temple is a stage of twenty10 and foure greces of height and good pillers all about. This place called of Jewes Sancta Sanctorum. That is to say Holy of Holyest and in that place cometh none but their prelate that maketh theyr sacrafyce, and the people standeth all about in divers stages, after they are11 of dignitie and worshippe, and there be foure entrings into that Temple and the dores are of Cipres well dighte,12 and within the East dore our Lord sayd, here is Hierusalem. And on the northe syde within the dore is a fountaine but it runneth not; of the which holy writ speaketh & saith thus—Vidi aquam egredientem de templo. That is to saye, I saw water comming out of the temple. And upon the other side is a roche that men calle sometyme Moryach, but after it was called Belet,13 or the arke of God, with the reliques of the Jewes. Thys arke did Titus cary with him to Rome when he had discomfited all the Jewes. In that same arke were the ten commandementes and Aarons rodde and Moyses rodde with which he departed14 the red sea, when the people of Israeli passed through on dryefoote & with that rod he did many wonders, and there was the vessell of gold ful of manna, & clothing & ornaments & the tabernacle of Aaron, and a table square of golde with twelve precious stones, & a box of Jasper graven with four figures & eight names of our Lorde within, & seven candlesticks of golde, & foure sensers of golde, and an aulter also of fine gold & foure lions of gold, uppon the which they had Cherubin of gold twelve spanne long, & a tabernacle of golde & also twelve15 trumpets of silver & a table of sylver & seven barly loves and all other reliques that were before the nativitie of Jesu. Also upon this roch slept Jacob, when he sawe Aungels go up and downe, and sayde, Vere locus iste sanctus est, et ego ignorabam, That is to say Forsooth this place is holy & I wist16 it not. And there the Aungel chaunged Jacob's name and called him Israell. And in that same place David saw the aungell that slew the people with a sworde, and put it all blody in the shethe. And in this roch was saynct Symeon when he received our Lorde into the temple, and on this roch he set him when the Jewes would have stoned him and the roch rived in two and in that refte17 he hid him and after a sterre came downe & gave him light. And on this roch sat our Lady and learned hir sauter.18 And there forgave our Lord the sinnes of the woman that was taken and found in adoultry, and there was our Lorde Jesu Christ circumcised, and there the Aungell denounced to Zachary the nativitie of sainct Jhon Baptist, and there offred fyrst Melchisedech bread and wine and water to our Lorde in tokening of the sacrament that was to come, and there fell Davyd, praying to our Lorde for mercy for him and for his people, when he sawe the Aungell slea19 his people, and our Lorde anon herde his prayer, & therefore woulde he make the Temple in that place, but our Lorde Jesu Christ forbadde hym by an Aungell, for he had done treason when he did slea Euryas, a good knight, for to haue his wyfe. And therefore all that he had ordeined for to make the Temple he betoke20 it to Salomon hys sonne, and he made it, and he prayed our Lorde, that all those that prayed in that place devoutly, and wyth good hearte, that he woulde heare theyr prayer and graunt that they asked ryght wysely, and our Lorde graunted it, and therefore Salomons son called it the Temple of counseyll and helpe of God. Wythout the dores of that Temple is an auter, where Jewes were wont to offer doves21 and turtylles, and in that Temple was Zachary slayne, and on that pynacle the Jewes sette Sainct James that was the fyrst Byshoppe of Hierusalem. And a lyttle from this temple on the right syde, is a church covered with lead, that is called the scole22 of Salomon. And toward the south is the temple of Salomon that is full fayre, and a greate place, and in this place dwell knightes yt are called Templars and that was the founder thereof and of theyr order and in that Templum Domini dwell Chanons. From this Temple towarde the East xxvi23 paces in a corner of the citie, is the bathe of our Lorde, and (in) thys bath was wont to go24 to Paradise & beside is our Ladies bed and nere there is the tombe of Saynt Symeon. And without the Cloyster of the Temple towarde the North is a ryght fayre Churche of Sainct Anne our Ladies mother, & there was our ladye conceyved, and before that churche is a great tree that began to grow that same nighte. And as men go downe from yt Church xxii greces lieth Joachim our ladyes father, in a tombe of stone and there nere was layde sometyme sainct Anne, but saint Eleyne did translate hir to Constantinople. In this churche is a well in maner of a cesterne that is called Probatica piscina that hath five entrings, and in that cesterne was wont an Aungell to discende and sterre the water, and what man that bathed him firste therein after the morning,25 was made hole that was sicke, what sycknesse so euer he had, and there was the man of the palsye made hole, that was sicke xxxviii yeare and our Lorde sayde to him in this maner of wyse Tolle grabatum tuum et ambula. That is to say, take thy bed and go. And there besyde, was the house of Pylate and a little thence was the house of Kinge Herode that dyd slea the Innocentes.
