What is the Knight of the Sword, or of the East, (the 15th Degree)?

The Fifteenth Degree of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite, styled the Knight of the East or Knight of the Sword, centers on the legend of Zerubbabel and the rebuilding of the second Temple 1. The narrative draws upon historical accounts, such as those found in Josephus, regarding the builders who maintained their armor and weapons while laboring under constant threat of hostility 1.

To counter opposition from Samaritans during the reconstruction, Zerubbabel ordered the workmen to hold the trowel in one hand and the sword in the other, allowing them to continue building while remaining equipped for immediate defense 1. The combination of the sword and trowel thus forms the primary symbol of the degree 1. Doctor Oliver interpreted this paired symbol as signifying that, next to obedience to lawful authority, a manly and determined resistance to lawless violence is an essential part of social duty 1.

Historically, the degree of Knight of the East was conferred as a preliminary degree under the jurisdiction of Councils of Princes of Jerusalem before nineteenth-century administrative reorganizations shifted its placement 1.