The temple’s destruction foretold
- And while He’s departing from the temple, one of His disciples tells Him: “Teacher, behold what kind of stones and what kind of buildings!”
- And Jesus told him: “You see these great buildings? There definitely won’t be one stone left upon another stone here which won’t be torn down.”
- And while He’s sitting on the Mount of Olives opposite the temple, Peter, and James, and John, and Andrew were questioning Him in private,
- “Tell us, when will these things be? And what’s the sign when all these things are about to be fulfilled?”
- And Jesus began to tell them: “Watch out, lest someone misleads you.”
- “Many will come in My name saying “I am the Anointed“, and they will mislead many.
- “And when you hear of wars and rumors of wars, don’t be shaken. It must happen, but it’s not yet the end.
- “For nation will rise up against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be earthquakes in various places. There will be famines. These are the beginning of birth pains.
- “But you, watch out for yourselves; they will hand you over to the Sanhedrins and to synagogues, you will be flogged, and you will stand before rulers and kings for My sake, for a testimony to them.
- “And it’s necessary for the good news to be proclaimed to all nations first.
- “And when they lead you away, handing you over, don’t be anxious beforehand about what you might say. But whatever is given to you in that hour, say that. For you aren’t the men speaking, but the Holy Spirit is.
- “And brother will hand over brother to death, and a father his child, and children will rise up against their parents and will put them to death.
- “And you will be hated by all men because of My name. But the man who endured to the end, that man will be saved.
- “And when you see the Abomination of Desolation, [the one which was spoken of by the prophet Daniel], *standing where it shouldn’t be – let the man reading this understand – then let the men in Judea flee into the mountains.
- “Yet the man on the roof must not come down, nor go in to take anything from his house.
- “and the man in the field must not turn back to the things behind him to take his cloak.
- “But woe to the women having a child in their womb, and to the women nursing in those days.
- “And pray that it won’t happen in winter,
- “for in those days there will be a tribulation of such a kind that something like it hasn’t happened from the beginning of the creation which God created until now, and it definitely won’t happen again.
- “And if the Lord didn’t cut those days short, no flesh would be saved. But for the sake of the elect whom He selected, He cut the days short.
- “And then if someone tells you: ‘Look, the Anointed is here’ or ‘Look He is there’, don’t believe him.
- “For false anointed ones and false prophets will arise, and they will give signs and wonders in order to mislead the elect, if possible.
- “But you, watch out; I have forewarned you of all these things.”
- “But in those days, after that tribulation, the sun will be darkened and the moon won’t give its light.
- “And the stars will be falling from heaven, and the powers in the heavens will be shaken.
- “And then they will see the Son of Man coming in the clouds with much power and glory.
- “And then He will send the angels, and He will gather His elect from the four winds; from earth’s end as far as heaven’s end.
- “And learn from the parable of the fig tree: When its branch at last becomes tender and sprouts leaves, you know that summer is near.
- “In this way also, you know that He is near at the doors when you see these things happening.
- “Amen I tell you that this generation definitely won’t pass away until all these things happen.
- “Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words [definitely] won’t pass away.
- “But concerning that day or hour, no one *knows except the Father, not even the angels in heaven nor the Son.
- “Watch out, be vigilant; for you don’t *know when the time is.
- “It’s like a man traveling to another country who left his house and gave his slaves authority for each to do his work, and he commanded the doorkeeper that he should keep watch.
- “So keep watch, for you don’t *know when the master of the house is coming: whether at evening, or at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or at dawn,
- “lest having come unexpectedly, He might find you sleeping.
- “And what I tell you, I tell all men: keep watch.”