Stairs or Ramp

Exodus 20:25 says Israelite altars made of stone should use natural, uncut stones so as not to defile the natural building material with iron tools. Deuteronomy 27:5-6 and Joshua 8:31 reinforce this idea of using unworked stones in altar construction to avoid polluting them with iron.

Exodus 20:26 goes on to say that steps should not be used to access a high altar to avoid a priest inadvertently exposing his private parts to those below. During the exodus from Egypt, priests wore flowing robes with no undergarments so immodest public displays were possible.

Zealous but poorly informed students of the Book of Mormon sometimes use these verses to claim that the Nephites (Jarom 1:5) and Lamanites (Helaman 13:1), both following the law of Moses, would never have built buildings with hewn stones and steps. Voila! their argument goes, Mesoamerica could not be the place where the Book of Mormon happened because it is full of worked stone architecture and elaborate staircases.

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The truth is that soon after the instructions in Exodus 20 were given, God revealed Exodus 28:42 which instituted a new dress code for priests that included modest linen undergarments. This eliminated the problem with steps as Torah commentaries have noted for millenia. By the time Solomon's Temple was constructed, both hewn stones and stairs were used in the architecture. 1 Kings 6:7 specifies the use of stones shaped at the quarry or a remote workshop, while 1 Kings 6:8 specifies stairs. An image of Solomon's Temple on display at the Israel Museum in Jerusalem depicts both worked stones and steps.

Solomon's Temple per the Israel Museum

An image informed by good biblical and historical/archaeological scholarship shows the high altar from Solomon's Temple with both worked stones and stairs. 1 Kings 5:17-18 could hardly be more clear. Solomon's temple was built with hewn stones and timber.

Image of Solomon's Temple Altar per 1 Kings

Nehemiah 9:4 talks about the stairs of the Levites. Ezekiel 40:42 describes a temple with a hewn stone altar. Ezekiel 40:49 mentions steps. Ezekiel 41:7 in many versions (such as the NIV) mentions a winding stairway. Ezekiel 43:17 explicitly mentions stairs.

The Scripture Central YouTube channel, Messages of Christ, has a beautiful 3D model of Solomon's Temple that shows the best current thinking about its architecture. Solomon's Temple had at least 3 sets of stone stairs.

Self-credentialed "experts" on the law of Moses who denigrate Mesoamerican architecture are simply naive.

For another take on this subject from bright young Hebrew scholar, Spencer Kraus, see his blog article "A Note on Temples, Stairs, and Mesoamerica."

For information on similarities between Mesoamerican and ancient Hebrew temple architecture, see the Scripture Central Evidence Summary #257 entitled Mesoamerican Temples.