It must be admitted however, that all the scholars do not agree that our last view was of the real Mount Zion. The most recent and leading authorities have stated that this hill on the right represents the site of the earliest Jerusalem, the city where Abraham was met by the priest-king Melct-rizedek, where the Jebusites maintained their independence for two hundred years after Joshua's conquest, and where David set up his throne. This is Mount Ophel, the foothill of Mount Merian. On this slope it is now believed stood the original Jerusalem, and not on the Mount Zion of tradition. One strong reason for this opinion is that the location of every ancient town was fixed by its water-supply. There are no springs in or near the western hill, while beside this slope is an abundant fountain, now known as "the Virgin's spring." The question of identity is not fully settled, but the tendency is strongly in this direction.
Although there may be doubt as to the location of Mount Zion, there is none as to Mount Moriah. It stands north of Ophel, and somewhat higher. The open square marks the site of Solomon's Temple with the courts that surrounded it. We are looking at Mount Moriah from the Mount of Olives, across the Valley of the brook Kedron. Directly before us is the southeastern corner of the modern wall, which here follows the course of the ancient wall. Where stood the altar of the temple now rises the Dome of the Rock, generally but wrongly called "The Mosque of Omar". To the left of this Dome and over the southern wall we see another dome, which is the Mosque el Aksa, and beyond is the Mohammedan quarter of the city. Upon yonder open space, in the days of old, walked David and Solomon, Isaiah and Jeremiah, Christ and the twelve apostles.
