ÒAs we learn from the NT,
the Jews and Samaritans were not agreed
on the proper place of worship, but that there could
only be one was taken to be as certain as the
unity of God HimselfÉ. But this oneness of the sanctuary was not originally recognized either in fact or in law; it was a slow growth of time.
With the help of the OT we are still quite able to trace the process. In doing so, it is possible to distinguish several stages of developmentÉ –
Wellhausen, Prolegomena, p 17.