Editing Yahweh (section)

===Temples===
[[File:Tissot Solomon Dedicates the Temple at Jerusalem.jpg|thumb|alt=In the foreground, a bearded man dressed in an impressive white robe and head-dress raises his hand to heaven.  Behind him, a large crowd bows in prayer.|[[Solomon]] dedicates the [[Temple in Jerusalem]] (painting by [[James Tissot]] or follower, c. 1896–1902).]]
The Hebrew Bible gives the impression that the Jerusalem temple was always meant to be the central or even sole temple of Yahweh, but this was not the case.{{sfn|Davies|2010|p=112}} The earliest known Israelite place of worship is a 12th-century BCE open-air altar in the hills of [[Samaria]] featuring a bronze bull reminiscent of Canaanite [[El (deity)#Ugarit and the Levant|Bull-El]] (El in the form of a bull) and the archaeological remains of further temples have been found at [[Dan (ancient city)|Dan]] on Israel's northern border, at [[Tel Arad|Arad]] in the [[Negev]] and [[Tel Be'er Sheva|Beersheba]], both in the territory of Judah.{{sfn|Dever|2003a|p=388}} [[Shiloh (biblical city)|Shiloh]], [[Bethel]], [[Gilgal]], [[Mizpah in Benjamin|Mizpah]], [[Ramah in Benjamin|Ramah]] and Dan were also major sites for festivals, sacrifices, the making of [[Vow#Divine vows|vows]], private rituals, and the adjudication of legal disputes.{{sfn|Bennett|2002|p=83}}