Luke's Distinctive Use of the Temple: Portraying the Divine Visitation

The Gospel of Luke stands out among the Synoptics in its prominent and generally positive use of the Jerusalem temple in framing the narrative. The gospel begins and ends at the temple, and Jesus’ ministry is developed by the writer in such a way that the temple continually comes to the forefront. Prior scholarship has duly made note of the prominence of the temple in the literary structuring of Luke (and Acts), but few comprehensive treatments of the theological importance of the temple have been attempted. This article—after providing a summary of Luke's temple language, the Jewish background of the temple motif in the gospel, and Luke's unique treatment of the temple relative to Matthew and Mark—provides a detailed analysis of the theological use of the temple in Luke. In particular, the article examines how Luke uses a variety of Old Testament temple concepts to portray Jesus’ definitive arrival at the temple as the prophetic re-visitation of Yahweh. This theology of visitation, especially in view of Ezekiel 8–11 and 43, is traced throughout the major sections of the gospel, including the infancy narrative, baptism and transfiguration, the travel narrative, Jesus’ entry into the temple, and the eschatological discourse.