The Temple became more than the center of worship in Judea; it served as the center of society. Priests held important positions as official leaders outside of the Temple. Solomon's Porch (modeled in the image below) as mentioned in today's reading from Acts 5 and in an earlier assignment in Acts 3, was a colonnade, or cloister probably, on the eastern side of the temple.
Throughout the Second Temple Period, Jerusalem saw several shifts in rule. Alexander’s conquest of the Mediterranean world brought an end to Persian control of Jerusalem (539 BC- 334/333 BC) and ushered in the Hellenistic period.
The democratizing forces of the Hellenistic period lessened and shifted the focus of Judaism away from the Temple and in the 3rd century BC, a scribal class began to emerge. New organizations and “social elites” appeared. It was also during this time that the high priesthood - the members of which are often identified as Sadducees - was developing a reputation for corruption. The Sadducee's persecution of the Apostles is well documented.
"Then the high priest and all his associates, who were members of the party of the Sadducees, were filled with jealousy. They arrested the apostles and put them in the public jail." Acts 5:17-18
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