The Word Made Fresh
1As he was leaving the temple one of his disciples said, “Look, Teacher, at these huge stones and these impressive buildings!”
2Jesus said, “Do you see these huge buildings? Not one stone will be left upon another. All of them will collapse.”
3Jesus then went to the Mt. of Olives, and sat across from the temple. Peter, James, John, and Andrew came to him privately and asked, 4“Tell us when this will happen. And what will signal that all these things are about to take place?”
5Jesus replied, “Don’t let anyone tell you differently. 6A lot of people will claim to be me and they will lead many others astray. 7When you hear about wars and rumors of wars, don’t be alarmed. These things must happen, but it doesn’t mean the end has come. 8Nations and kingdoms will go to war against each other, and there will be earthquakes and famines here and there, but these things will be only the beginnings of the birth pangs.
9“Be on your guard, because they will take you to court, and you will be beaten in the synagogues. You will be taken before governors and kings as witnesses against me. 10But first, the gospel must be shared with all the nations. 11But, when you are brought to trial and turned over to the courts, don’t worry about what to say. Just tell them whatever words are given to you at that time, because it won’t be you speaking, but the Holy Spirit. 12Brothers will betray one another and be sentenced to death. Fathers will betray their children, and the children will testify against their parents and have them sentenced to death. 13Everyone will hate you because of me, but the one who holds out to the end will be saved.
14“When you see the abomination set up where it should never be (let the reader understand), then the people of Judea must run away to the mountains – 15those on the housetops must flee without entering the house to gather anything to take with them, 16and those working in the fields must not bother to turn back to search for a coat. 17It will be too bad for pregnant women and those who are still nursing their infants in those days. 18Pray that it doesn’t happen in the wintertime, 19because there will be more pain and suffering than has ever been known from the time of creation until now, and it will never happen again. 20If the LORD had not decided that those days will be brief, no one would be saved. But God chose the elect, and for their sake has cut those days short.
21“If in those days anyone says to you, ‘Look! Here is the Christ!’ or ‘There he is!’ don’t pay any attention to them. 22False saviors and prophets will come and perform signs and wonders to lead even the chosen away if they can. 23Be on the alert; I have told you everything that will take place.
24“But in the days following all the suffering ‘the sun will rise darkly, and the moon will have no light. 25The stars will fall from the heavens and the powers of the heavens will be shaken.’
26“Then they will see the Son of Man coming in the clouds, with tremendous power and glory, 27and he will send the angels forth and gather his chosen ones from every direction throughout the heavens and the earth.
28“Let the fig tree be a lesson for you; as soon as its branches begin to sprout leaves you know that summer is near. 29So, when you see all these things taking place you will know that it is at the door and about to happen. 30The truth is that this generation will not pass on until all these things happen. 31Heaven and earth will pass away, but what I’m telling you will endure.
32“No one knows when that time will come – not even the angels in heaven, or the Son; only the Father knows. 33So, always be on the lookout because you don’t know when it’s going to happen. 34It will be like a man departing on a journey. While he is gone, he puts his servants in charge, giving each one instructions, and he tells the doorkeeper to be alert. 35Stay awake! You don’t know when the master of the house will return, whether it will be in the evening or at midnight or when the rooster crows or when the sun rises. 36If he comes suddenly, he may find you sleeping. So, I say this to all of you: stay awake!”
Commentary
1-2: The disciples are in awe of the temple architecture. Jesus tells them that the thing they are admiring is not something that can be depended on, but rather something that is destined to be destroyed (the destruction of the temple will take place in 70 A.D., the Romans’ response to an attempted Jewish revolt). The disciples are taken by surprise, and later in private they ask him when such a thing will happen, and how they will know it’s about to take place. Jesus avoids giving a direct answer, but tells them the signs are almost always with us: wars, rumors of wars, earthquakes, and famines.
3-13: Jesus tells them they will have to defend themselves before the authorities. Notice that he doesn’t give them any way out of this: “They will hand you over to councils,” he says. He paints a picture of the persecution that would plague the early church, and assures them that they need not worry about how to defend themselves. They should simply rely on the Holy Spirit.
14-23: The “abomination” is borrowed from Daniel 9:27, which refers to the placement of pagan idols in the inner sanctuary of the temple. Commentators speculate that Jesus was referring to an incident that would take place in 40 A.D. when the emperor Caligula tried to have a statue of himself placed there or to the rebellion of 66-70 A.D. when the temple was defiled by Roman soldiers. I think Jesus was simply saying that the time was soon coming when there would be violence and the temple would be defiled, and his point is that they should be prepared for such a thing to happen.
24-27: The end result, however, will be the victory of God over the evil powers in the world.
28-31: Therefore, whenever there is war, earthquake and famine, they should know that God is near and not lose faith.
32-37: Jesus refuses, however, to put a date on things. Keep the faith. Don’t let your defenses down. Continue in the way that I am teaching you. Don’t fall asleep at the wheel.
Takeaway
Everything that happens to us in life can be looked upon as a lesson in faith. But, in all circumstances we can be assured that God’s plan is unfolding as it should. Our true reward isn’t to be received in this life, but in the life to come.