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The
walls of Jerusalem and its gates have expanded and contracted through the
centuries. The walls and gates you see today were, for the most part, built by
Suliman the Magnificent, circa 1535 AD.
There
are two gates on the eastern wall.
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The
Lion’s Gate (St. Stephen Gate)
When you enter the
Lion’s Gate, you will see the Temple Mount immediately on the left. If you
continue your walk for a short distance, St. Anne’s Church and the Pools of
Bethesda are on the right. The Lion’s Gate got its name for the four leopards
or panthers (often mistaken for lions) at the gate’s crest. There are two on the right and two on
the left. It is also called St. Stephen’s Gate because it was mistakenly taken
for the place of the martyrdom of Stephen.
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The Eastern Gate
The Eastern/Golden/Beautiful Gate is located on the
eastern wall facing the Mount of Olives right across the Kidron valley. In
Bible days, the gate led directly to the Temple Mount. The southern part of
the gate is called the Gate of Mercy (Shaar
Harashamim in Hebrew). In ancient times Jews would pray in front of the
gate asking the Almighty for mercy.
Ezekiel prophesied of that gate, “It
is for the prince; the prince, he shall sit in it to eat bread before the LORD;
he shall enter by the way of the porch of that gate, and shall go out by the
way of the same” (44:3). This is the origin
of the Judeo-Christian belief that the Messiah will enter through the Eastern
Gate.
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