Jerusalem and the Temple were the center of the Jewish religion for almost a thousand years. As a center of   faith and the location of the Temple, Jerusalem held a special place in the people's hearts as both a focus for their faith and worship and as a symbol. This is reflected in several Psalms such as Psalm 125, Psalm 122 and Psalm 137.

From Psalm 125:

They that trust in the Lord are as mount Zion,
Which cannot be moved and abideth forever.
As the mountains are round about Jerusalem,
So the Lord is round about his people,
From this time and forever more.

Jerusalem is located in the midst of some rather moderate mountains, some would consider them hills, certainly not like the Rocky Mountains or the Alps. But it's high elevation made it easier to defend, and to the Psalmist the mountains offered a protection to Jerusalem that could be an analogy that was similar to the protection of the Lord of the Jewish people.

The Painting shows a small, old Jerusalem, tightly surrounded by
protecting mountains and emitting a glow of holiness. This is the ideal of the mythic Jerusalem, the most holy place on earth to the people of several religions and a symbol of an ideal city of holiness, that has echoed down the ages. The eighteenth century visionary artist and poet, William Blake wrote:

I will not cease from mental fight,
Nor shall my sword sleep in my hand,
Till we have built Jerusalem
In England's green and pleasant land.

Blake's Jerusalem is the symbolic Jerusalem of holiness and peace.

Jerusalem is also mentioned in Psalm 122:

Pray for the peace of Jerusalem;
May they prosper that love thee,
Peace be within thy walls.

And of course there is the reference in Psalm 137: "If I forget thee Oh Jerusalem."

The centrality of Jerusalem to the Jews as both a place and symbol is evident in the Psalms.

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