Did God's presence ever return to the temple after the exile???

I don't have any Scripture on this, but I think that was a small part of why the veil in the Temple was torn: to reveal what the High Priests already knew - that God's visible presence wasn't there anymore.

 

Did He ever leave?

 

I've read that this is true - I'll see if I can find the reference.

 

This is an area where I have more questions than answers.

Here's one: Up to the point where the veil of the temple was torn, did the high priest still go into the Holy of Holies and sprinkle blood on the mercy seat? Did he have a rope tied to his leg in case the Lord killed him while he was in there? Did he have those little bells on his robe so the folks outside would know if he was still alive?

If the answers are Yes, then it would seem to me that the Spirit of God occupied the Holy of Holies, at least up to that point.

Now, did the tearing of the veil mean all now had access to the Holy of Holies? Did they repair the veil after the resurrection? Was the Holy Spirit still there?

I've now told you more than I know.

 

That's interesting; I guess it did lay it wide open for all to see. I've never thought of it like that.

 

Think that the final and last time that the presense of God was there was when the Lord Jesus went up to it, as a fulfillment of Malachi, that the Lord would go up to His temple!