View source for Holy of Holies

{{short description|Inner sanctuary of the Jewish Tabernacle}}
{{for|the generic concept|Sanctum sanctorum}}
[[File:Mishkan5 big.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|A model of the Tabernacle showing the holy place, and behind it the Holy of Holies]]

The '''Holy of Holies''' ({{langx|hbo|קֹדֶשׁ הַקֳּדָשִׁים|Qoḏeš haq-Qŏḏāšim}}) or '''Devir''' ({{lang|hbo|הַדְּבִיר}} ''had-Dəḇir'' 'the Sanctuary') is a term in the [[Hebrew Bible]] that refers to the inner sanctuary of the [[Tabernacle]], where the [[Shekhinah]] ([[God in Judaism|God's presence]]) appeared. According to Hebrew tradition, the area was defined by four pillars that held up the veil of the covering, under which the [[Ark of the Covenant]] was held above the floor. According to the Hebrew Bible, the Ark contained the [[Ten Commandments]], which were given by God to [[Moses]] on [[Mount Sinai (Bible)|Mount Sinai]]. The first [[Temple in Jerusalem]], called [[Solomon's Temple]], was said to have been built by [[Solomon|King Solomon]] to keep the Ark.

[[Judaism|Jewish traditions]] viewed the Holy of Holies as the spiritual junction of the [[Seven Heavens]] and Earth, the "[[axis mundi]]".

As a part of the [[Temple in Jerusalem]], the Holy of Holies was situated somewhere on [[Temple Mount]]; its precise location is a matter of dispute, with some classical Jewish sources identifying its location with the [[Foundation Stone]], which sits under the current [[Dome of the Rock]].<ref name="auto1">{{Cite web|url=https://www.sefaria.org/Yoma.54b.2?ven=William_Davidson_Edition_-_English&lang=bi|title=Yoma 54b:2|website=www.sefaria.org}}</ref><ref name="auto">{{Cite web|url=https://www.sefaria.org/Sanhedrin.26b.5?ven=William_Davidson_Edition_-_English&lang=bi|title=Sanhedrin 26b:5|website=www.sefaria.org}}</ref> Other Jewish scholars argue that contemporary reports would place the Temple to the north or east of the Dome of the Rock.<ref name="World Jewish Digest"/>

The [[Crusades|Crusaders]] associated the Holy of Holies with the [[Well of Souls]], a small cave that lies underneath the Foundation Stone in the Dome of the Rock.<ref name="secrets">{{cite book|last=Ritmeyer|first=Kathleen|title=Secrets of Jerusalem's Temple Mount|date=1 January 2006|publisher=[[Biblical Archaeology Society]]|isbn=9781880317860|page=104|language=en}}</ref>

==Hebrew terminology and translation==
[[File:Holman The Holy of Holies.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|Depiction of a [[High Priest of Israel]] wearing the [[priestly breastplate]] and [[ephod]], included as an illustration in a Christian Bible; the Holy of Holies is in the background (A. J. Holman Bible, 1890).]]
The construction "Holy of Holies" is a translation of the Hebrew, which is intended to express a [[superlative]]. Examples of similar constructions are "servant of servants" (Gen 9:25), "sabbath of sabbaths" (Ex 31:15), "God of gods" (Deut 10:17), "vanity of vanities" (Eccl 1:2), "[[Song of Songs]]" (Song of Songs 1:1), "king of kings" (Ezra 7:12), etc.

The translators of the [[King James Version]] of the Christian Bible always translated "Holy of Holies" as "Most Holy Place" {{--}} in keeping with the intention of the Hebrew idiom to express the utmost degree of holiness. Thus, the name "Most Holy Place" was used to refer to the "Holy of Holies" in many English documents.

A related term, ''[[debir]]'', transliterated in the [[Septuagint]] ({{langx|grc-x-koine|δαβιρ|dabir}}),<ref>{{Cite web |title =H1687 – dᵊḇîr – Strong's Hebrew Lexicon (kjv) |url =https://www.blueletterbible.org/kjv/gen/1/1/s_1001 |website =Blue Letter Bible}}</ref>  either means the back (i.e. western) part of the Sanctuary,<ref>The Solomonic Debir according to the Hebrew Text of I Kings 6 J. Ouellette – ''[[Journal of Biblical Literature]]'', 1970 – JSTOR "The immediate implication of this reading is that the holy of holies was built "from within the debir," that is ... The LXX simply transliterates dabir, while the Vulgate has "oraculum", thus suggesting a derivation from dbr "to speak."</ref> or else derives from the verb stem [[:wikt:ד־ב־ר|ד־ב־ר]] "to speak", justifying the translation in the [[Vulgate]] as ''[[:wikt:oraculum|oraculum]]'', which the traditional English translation "oracle" (KJV, 1611) derives from.<ref>The Damaged "blueprints" of the Temple of Solomon. L. Waterman – ''[[Journal of Near Eastern Studies]]'', 1943 – JSTOR: "The term "holy of holies" has long been accepted as a later descriptive term applied to the debir. The Hebrew word debir, rendered "oracle" in the versions, is a mistranslation based on a false etymology. The term itself signifies only the back or part behind, for example."</ref>

The [[Latin]] terms {{lang | la | [[adytum]]}} and {{lang | la | {{linktext | penetralia}}}} parallel the designation of the Holy of Holies as an inner sanctuary.<ref>
{{cite book
 |last1                = Turner
 |first1               = Harold W.
 |date                 = 2 May 2011
 |orig-date            = 1979
 |chapter              = 9.5 Further influences of the temple tradition
 |title                = From Temple to Meeting House: The Phenomenology and Theology of Places of Worship
 |url                  = https://books.google.com/books?id=V0jmwuuZ64cC
 |series               = Religion and Society, volume 16
 |publisher            = Walter de Gruyter
 |page                 = 173
 |isbn                 = 9783110803679
 |access-date          = 16 August 2025
 |quote                = [...] there was a transference of the term {{lang | la | templum}} itself to church buildings, together with other words such as vᾶός, and even those which referred to the inner holy of holies {{--}} {{lang | la | penetralia}} and {{lang | la | adytum}}.
}}
</ref>

==Ancient Israel==
{{religious text primary|section|date=February 2025}}
===Tabernacle===
[[File:Door guardian figure (Lamassu) from Nimrud 2.jpg|thumb|This replica of one of a pair of door-guardian [[lamassu]] illustrates the hybrid form of the twin cherubim of the Ark]]
[[File:Tabernacle.gif|thumb|upright=1.2|Layout of the tabernacle with the holy and holy of holies]]
According to the [[Hebrew Bible]], so that Yahweh might dwell among the [[Israelites]], he gave [[Moses]] instructions for erecting a [[sanctuary]]. The directions provide for:
# The [[Ark of the Covenant]], wood with [[gold|gilded]] inside and outside, for the [[Tablets of Stone]], with a pure gold cover as the "[[mercy seat]]" for the [[Shekhinah]];
# A gilt table for the [[showbread]], on which loaves of bread were arranged;
# A golden [[Temple menorah]], a lampstand of seven oil lamps for a [[light]] never to be extinguished;
# The dwelling, including the curtains for the roof, the walls made of boards resting on [[silver]] feet and held together by wooden [[screw|bolts]]; the [[parochet]], a multi-colored curtain veiling the Holy of Holies colored blue, purple, crimson, white and gold; the table and candlestick; and the outer curtain
# A [[altar (Bible)|sacrificial altar]] made of [[bronze]]d boards for the [[korban]] (sacrifice)
# The outer court formed by [[column]]s resting on bronze [[pedestal]]s and connected by hooks and crossbars of silver, with embroidered curtains;
# Recipe and preparation of the [[olive oil#Judaism|fresh olive oil]] for the lampstand.

According to Exodus 26:31–33, the parochet covered the Holy of Holies and no one was allowed to enter except the [[High Priest of Israel]]. Even he would only enter once a year, on [[Yom Kippur]],<ref>Leviticus 16</ref> to offer the blood of sacrifice and [[Incense offering in rabbinic literature|incense]]. In the wilderness, on the day that the [[Tabernacle]] was first raised, the cloud of the Lord covered the tabernacle according to Exodus 40:33-34. There are other times that this was recorded. Instructions were given that the Lord would appear in the cloud upon the Mercy Seat, and at that time the priests should not enter into the tabernacle according to Leviticus 16:2. The Holy of Holies contained the [[Ark of the Covenant]] with a representation of [[cherub]]im.

Upon completion of the dedication of the Tabernacle, the [[Voice of God]] spoke to Moses "from between the Cherubim" in Numbers 7:89.

===Solomon's Temple===
{{main|Solomon's Temple}}
 
The Holy of Holies was the inner sanctuary within the [[Tabernacle]] and [[Temple in Jerusalem]] when [[Solomon's Temple]] and the [[Second Temple]] were standing. The [[parochet]], a [[brocade]] curtain with [[cherub]]im motifs woven directly into the fabric from the loom, divided the Holy of Holies from the lesser Holy place.<ref>[[Babylonian Talmud]] (''Yoma'' 72b); [[Rashi]]'s Commentary and Aramaic Targum of Exodus 26:31. The "parochet" was "the work of an artisan," meaning, one who was skilled in motifs worked into the loom. Brocade refers to the decorative elements inserted into the weft on the loom, unlike embroidery that is added to the finished cloth.</ref>

The Holy of Holies was located at the westernmost end of the Temple building and was a cube: 20 [[cubit]]s by 20 cubits by 20 cubits. The inside was in darkness and contained the Ark of the Covenant, gilded inside and out, in which was placed the [[Tablets of Stone]]. According to both Jewish and Christian traditions, [[Aaron's rod]] and a pot of [[manna]] were also in the ark.<ref>[[Midrash Rabba]], [[Midrash HaGadol]], et al.; [[Epistle to the Hebrews|Hebrews]] 9:4 in the [[New Testament]]</ref> The Ark was covered with a lid made of pure gold, known as the "[[mercy seat]]" ({{bibleverse|Exodus|37:6}}), which was covered by the beaten gold cherubim wings, creating the space for the [[Shekhinah]] ({{bibleverse|Exodus|25:22}}).

===Second Temple===
{{main|Second Temple}}
[[File:Jerus-n4i.jpg|right|thumb|upright=1.2|Model of the Second Temple]]

When the Temple was rebuilt after the [[Babylonian captivity]], the Ark was no longer present in the Holy of Holies; instead, a portion of the floor was raised slightly to indicate the place where it had stood. In Jewish tradition, two curtains separated the Holy of Holies from the lesser Holy place during the period of the Second Temple. These curtains were woven with motifs directly from the loom, rather than embroidered, and each curtain had the thickness of a handbreadth (ca. 9&nbsp;cm.; 3½").<ref>[[Midrash HaGadol]] on Exodus 26:31; [[Babylonian Talmud]] (''Yoma'' 72b)</ref> [[Josephus]] records that [[Pompey]] profaned the Temple by insisting on entering the Holy of Holies in 63 BCE.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/The_War_of_the_Jews/Book_I#Chapter_7|title=The War of the Jews|via=Wikisource}}</ref> When [[Titus]] captured the city during the [[First Jewish–Roman War]], Roman soldiers took down the curtain and used it to wrap therein golden vessels retrieved from the Temple.

===Yom Kippur===
{{Main|Yom Kippur Temple service}}
[[File:Magdala Stone (5).jpg|thumb|right|The [[Magdala stone]]]]
The Holy of Holies was entered once a year by the [[High Priest of Israel]] on [[Yom Kippur]], to sprinkle the blood of sacrificial animals: a bull offered as atonement for the High Priest and his household, and the [[scapegoat]] offered as atonement for the people and offer incense on the [[Ark of the Covenant]] and the Mercy Seat that sat on top of it in the [[Solomon's Temple]]. The [[Second Temple]] had no Ark, so the blood was sprinkled where the Ark would have been, and an [[Altar (Bible)#Altar of Incense|Altar of Incense]] was built. The goat was sacrificed and the blood was carried into the Holy of Holies. Gold was also present in the Most Holy Place.

==In ancient Judaism==
The [[Magdala stone]] is thought to be a representation of the Holy of Holies carved before the destruction of the Temple in the year 70.<ref name=Kershner>{{cite news|last1=Kershner|first1=Isabel|title=A Carved Stone Block Upends Assumptions About Ancient Judaism|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/09/world/middleeast/magdala-stone-israel-judaism.html|access-date=9 December 2015|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|date=8 December 2015}}</ref>

==In Rabbinical Judaism==
Traditional Judaism regards the location where the inner sanctuary was located as retaining some or all of its original sanctity for use in a future [[Third Temple]]. The exact location of the Holy of Holies is a subject of dispute.

[[File:Women praying in the Western Wall tunnels by David Shankbone.jpg|thumb|left|Women praying in the tunnel at the closest physical point to the site of the Holy of Holies not under the jurisdiction of the [[Jerusalem Islamic Waqf]]]]
Traditional Judaism regards the Holy of Holies as the place where the presence of [[God]] dwells. The [[Talmud]] gives detailed descriptions of Temple architecture and layout. According to the [[Babylonian Talmud]], Tractate [[Yoma]], the Holy of Holies was located in the center of the esplanade from a north–south perspective, but significantly to the west from an east–west perspective, with all the major courtyards and functional areas lying to its east.

The Talmud supplies additional details and describes the ritual performed by the High Priest. During the annual ritual, the High Priest would pronounce the [[Tetragrammaton]], the only time it was pronounced. According to tradition, the people prostrated themselves fully on the ground when the Name was spoken. According to the Talmud, the High Priest's face upon exit from the Holy of Holies was radiant.{{Citation needed|date=September 2010}}

While under normal circumstances, access to the Holy of Holies was restricted to the High Priest and only on [[Yom Kippur]], the Talmud suggests that repair crews were allowed inside as needed but were lowered from the upper portion of the room via enclosures so that they only saw the area they were to work on.<ref>[http://www.halakhah.com/pdf/moed/Pesachim.pdf Talmud Mas. Pesachim 26a]</ref><ref>[http://www.halakhah.com/pdf/moed/Eiruvin.pdf Talmud Mas. Eiruvin 105a]</ref>

===Synagogue architecture===
Jews regards the [[Torah ark]], a place in a [[synagogue]] where the [[Torah scroll]]s are kept, as a miniature Holy of Holies.

== Modern location ==
[[File:The rock of the Dome of the Rock Corrected.jpg|thumb|The [[Foundation Stone]] under the Dome of the Rock, one of the possible historical locations for the Jewish Holy of Holies]]The exact location of the Holy of Holies is a contentious issue, as elements of questioning the exact placement of the Temple are often associated with [[Temple denial]]. There are three main theories as to where exactly the Temple stood on the Mount: where the [[Dome of the Rock]] is now located; to the north of the Dome of the Rock (Professor Asher Kaufman); or to the east of the Dome of the Rock (Professor Joseph Patrich of the [[Hebrew University of Jerusalem|Hebrew University]]).<ref name="World Jewish Digest">See article in the ''World Jewish Digest'', April 2007.</ref> 

The location of the Holy of Holies is connected to the location of the Jewish Temple. The location of the Temple, however, had become uncertain already less than 150 years after the Second Temple's destruction, as detailed in the [[Talmud]]. Chapter 54 of the [[Berakhot (tractate)|Tractate Berakhot]] states that the Holy of Holies was directly aligned with the [[Golden Gate (Jerusalem)|Golden Gate]], which, assuming the current gate follows the same course as the now buried Herodian gate, would have placed the Holy of Holies slightly to the north of the Dome of the Rock, as Kaufman postulated.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.sefaria.org/Berakhot.54a.7?ven=William_Davidson_Edition_-_English&lang=bi|title=Berakhot 54a:7|website=www.sefaria.org}}</ref> Chapter 54 of the [[Yoma|Tractate Yoma]] and chapter 26 of the [[Sanhedrin (tractate)|Tractate Sanhedrin]], on the other hand, assert that the Holy of Holies stood directly on the [[Foundation Stone]].<ref name="auto1"/><ref name="auto"/>

The [[Crusades|Crusaders]] associated the Holy of Holies with the [[Well of Souls]], which is located under the [[Foundation Stone]] of the [[Dome of the Rock]].<ref name="secrets" /> Most [[Orthodox Judaism|Orthodox Jews]] today completely avoid climbing up to [[Temple Mount]], to prevent them from accidentally stepping on any holy areas.<ref>[[Sidra DeKoven Ezrahi]], [[Bernard Avishai]],  [https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/.premium.HIGHLIGHT-jews-don-t-have-a-holiest-site-1.10797092 'Jews Don’t Have a ‘Holiest’ Site,']  [[Haaretz]] 13  May :’The point is, this kind of recklessness not only offended secular democrats, it vulgarized what “holy” has meant for most observant Jews, too. Not coincidentally, more than 85 percent of Israel’s Haredi Jews oppose prayer on the Mount, for reasons having to do with purity and impurity that cannot be resolved in “our time.” Advocates of such prayer and sacrifice tend to be, like Goren, Orthodox-nationalist zealots educated in local yeshivas and identified with the neo-Zionist settlement project. They are, like Islamists, fanatics warped by violence and nationalist fantasy – “Jewists,” not Jews.‘</ref> A few Orthodox Jewish authorities, following the opinion of the medieval scholar [[Maimonides]], permit Jews to visit parts of the Temple Mount known not to be anywhere near any of the sanctified areas. Orthodox Jewish visitors to the Temple Mount, who come especially from those groups associated with the [[Temple Institute]] and its efforts to rebuild a [[Third Temple|Temple]], seek to conform to the minimal requirements for coming near the Temple, such as immersing in a [[mikvah]] ("collection of water"; a ritual of purification), not coming during or following [[niddah|menstruation]] or immediately following a [[semen|seminal emission]], not showing their back towards its presumed location, etc.

To avoid religious conflict, Jewish visitors caught praying or bringing ritual objects are usually expelled from the area by police.<ref>{{Cite news |first=Nadav |last=Shragai
|date=1 September 2003 |title=Three Jews Expelled from Temple Mount for Praying |url=https://www.haaretz.com/three-jews-expelled-from-temple-mount-for-praying-1.98824 |work=[[Haaretz]] |access-date=12 April 2017}}</ref>

==In apocryphal literature==

According to the ancient [[apocrypha]]l ''[[Lives of the Prophets]]'', after the death of [[Zechariah ben Jehoiada]], the priests of the Temple could no more, as before, see the apparitions of the [[angels]] of the Lord, nor could make [[divination]]s with the [[Ephod]], nor give responses from the ''[[Debir]]''.<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Lives of the Prophets – Zechariah son of Jehoiada |url=http://www.summascriptura.com/html/Lives_of_the_Prophets_Torrey.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160301192214/http://www.summascriptura.com/html/Lives_of_the_Prophets_Torrey.html |archive-date=2016-03-01 |access-date=2016-03-01}}</ref>

==Christianity==

===New Testament===
The Koine [[New Testament]] retains the pre-Christian [[Septuagint]] phrase "Holy of the Holies", {{lang|grc|ἅγιον τῶν ἁγίων}};<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kWEESjS8bg4C&pg=PA514|title=Ezekiel|isbn=978-9004177130|last1=Olley|first1=John W.|year=2009|publisher=BRILL }}</ref> without the definite article as "Holies of Holies" {{lang|grc|ἅγια ἁγίων}}<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.newadvent.org/bible/heb009.htm|title=New Advent Bible: Hebrews 9|work=newadvent.org}}</ref> in [[Hebrews 9]]:3. Koine Greek was the [[lingua franca]] of the [[Hellenistic period]], which began with the death of [[Alexander the Great]], and even after the rise of the [[Roman Empire]], it remained the primary language of much of the [[Levant]] and [[North Africa]], even after the [[early Muslim conquests]].

In the Latin [[Vulgate]] of [[Jerome]], these are rendered as ''sanctum sanctorum'' and ''sancta sanctorum'', respectively.

===Christian traditions===
The [[ciborium (architecture)|ciborium]], a permanent canopy over the altar in some churches, once surrounded by curtains at points in the [[liturgy]], symbolizes the Holy of Holies. Some Christian churches, particularly the [[Catholic Church]], consider the [[Church tabernacle]], or its location (often at the rear of the sanctuary), as the symbolic equivalent of the Holy of Holies, due to the storage of the Consecrated Host ([[Eucharist in the Catholic Church]]) in that vessel.

====Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church====
A [[cognate]] term in [[Geʽez]], ''qidduse qiddusan'' or ''bete meqdes'', is used by the [[Orthodox Tewahedo]], who believe the Ark of the Covenant is now in the Holy of Holies of [[Church of Our Lady Mary of Zion]] in [[Axum]], Ethiopia, and only the [[Christian monk]] chosen as its protector may enter the Holy of Holies to view it.

Other churches have one or more [[tabot]]s to sanctify them; this term may refer to a sacred tablet or to the Ark in which it is stored. These are placed on altars, and the Holy of Holies is covered with a curtain, similar to the [[parochet]]; there can be as many altars as there are tabots. There are often three entry points to a Holy of Holies to symbolise the [[Trinity]].<ref>Stuart C. Munro-Hay, ''Ethiopia, the unknown land: a cultural and historical guide'', (London, England: I. B. Tauris, 2002). p. 50.</ref>

====Catholic Church====
The Vulgate uses the translation ''sanctum sanctorum'' in [[Exodus 26]]:34. Reproducing in Latin the Hebrew construction, the expression is used as a superlative of the neuter adjective ''sanctum'', to mean "a thing most holy". Catholics use it to refer to the [[Eucharist]] in the Church tabernacle, which is considered the physical presence of Christ.

The Vulgate also refers to the Holy of Holies with the plural form ''Sancta sanctorum'' in [[2 Chronicles 5]]:7, possibly a [[synecdoche]] referring to the holy objects hosted there. This form is also used more broadly in Catholic tradition regarding sanctuaries other than the Temple in Jerusalem. A notable example is for the [[Sancta Sanctorum (Lateran, Rome)|Church of San Lorenzo, Sancta Sanctorum]], a chapel within the complex of [[St John Lateran]] in Rome.

====Eastern Orthodox Church====
{{main|iconostasis}}
The Greek phrase refers to the Tabernacle or Temple. The name in [[Greek language|Greek]] for the sanctuary of a church is '''{{lang|grc|Ἱερόν Βῆμα}}''' ({{Transliteration|grc|Hieron Vema}}, see [[Bema#Christianity]]), in [[Russian language|Russian]] it is called {{Lang|ru|'''Святой Алтарь'''}} (''{{Transliteration|ru|Svyatoy Altar}}'' – literally: "Holy Altar"), and in Romanian it is called ''Sfântul Altar''.

====Saint Thomas Christians====
[[File:A Syro Malabar Catholic Church or Nasrani Palli.JPG|thumb|upright=1.2|An [[Eastern Catholic Churches|Eastern Catholic church]] of the [[Syro-Malabar Church]] in [[Kerala]], [[South India]] keeps the Holy of Holies veiled by a red curtain like the Temple of Jerusalem, as do [[Oriental Orthodox Churches]] such as the [[Jacobite Syrian Christian Church]] and the [[Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church]].]]

The [[Saint Thomas Christians]] in [[Kerala]], [[South India]], veil their Holy of Holies most of the time. The red veil covers the inner or main altar. It is unveiled only during the central part of the main ritual, the [[Holy Qurbana]], the [[eucharist]].<ref name= "Ross">Ross, Israel J. (1979). "Ritual and Music in South India: Syrian Christian Liturgical Music in Kerala". ''Asian Music''. 11 (1): 80–98.</ref>

====The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints====
{{Main|Holy of Holies (LDS Church)}}

The [[Salt Lake Temple]] of [[the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints]] (LDS Church) contains a [[Holy of Holies (LDS Church)|Holy of Holies]]{{fact|date=March 2024}} wherein the church's [[President of the Church (LDS Church)|president]]—acting as the Presiding High Priest—enters to fulfill the relationship between the High Priest of Israel and God in accordance with the LDS Church's interpretation of the [[Book of Exodus]] ({{sourcetext|source=Bible|version=King James|book=Exodus|chapter=25|verse=22}}) and Latter-day Saint religious texts.

==== Seventh-Day Adventist Church ====
[[Seventh-day Adventist Church|Seventh-Day Adventism]] (SDA) believes that the Holy of Holies on Earth was a copy of the true [[tabernacle]] in [[heaven]],<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|url=https://www.andrews.edu/~damsteeg/pion.html|title=How Our Pioneers Discovered the Sanctuary Doctrine |last=Damsteegt |first=P. Gerard|date=Fall 1992 |publisher=Andrews University}}</ref> and this view can also be seen in other [[Christian denomination|Christian denominations]].<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Barker|first=Margaret|date=1998|title=Beyond the Veil of the Temple: The High Priestly Origins of the Apocalypses|journal=Scottish Journal of Theology|volume=51|issue=1|pages=1–21|doi=10.1017/s0036930600049991|s2cid=170375914 |issn=0036-9306}}</ref> Because in [[Epistle to the Hebrews|Hebrews]], God commands [[Moses]] to make sure that all things according to the pattern shewed to thee in [[Mount Sinai|the Mount Sinai]] (Heb 8:2, 5). After the "[[Great Disappointment]]", preacher [[O. R. L. Crosier]], [[Hiram Edson]], and F. B. Hahn published new insights into Christ's sanctuary ministry that [[Jesus]] began to minister in the [[heavenly sanctuary]] after His [[Ascension of Jesus|ascension]] (Heb 9:24).<ref name=":0" /> [[Seventh-day Adventist Church|Seventh-Day Adventism]] (SDA) believes that just as the [[High Priest of Israel|high priest]] completed the special ministry on [[Yom Kippur]] and blessed the Israelites. Christ will come and bless his people after cleaning the Holy of Holies in heaven (Heb 9:23).<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.adventist.org/en/beliefs/restoration/christs-ministry-in-the-heavenly-sanctuary/|title=Christ's ministry in the Heavenly Sanctuary |publisher=General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists |access-date=2019-10-17}}</ref>

==See also==
* [[Honden]], the most sacred building at a Shinto shrine
* [[Lustral basin]]
* [[Warren's Gate]], an ancient entrance into the Temple platform in Jerusalem

==References==
{{Reflist}}
{{Tabernacle and Jerusalem Temples|state=uncollapsed}}
{{Ark of the Covenant}}
{{Holy sites in Judaism}}
{{Temples in Jewish history}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Holy Of Holies}}
[[Category:Tabernacle and Temples in Jerusalem]]
[[Category:Yom Kippur]]
[[Category:Eastern Christian liturgy]]
[[Category:Jewish sacrificial law]]
[[Category:Hebrew Bible words and phrases]]
[[Category:Superlatives in religion]]
[[Category:Ark of the Covenant]]