1 And having gone forth, Jesus departed from the temple, and his disciples came near to show him the buildings of the temple,
for I say to you, ye may not see me henceforth, till ye may say, Blessed `is' he who is coming in the name of the Lord.'
And as he is going forth out of the temple, one of his disciples saith to him, `Teacher, see! what stones! and what buildings!' and Jesus answering said to him, `Seest thou these great buildings? there may not be left a stone upon a stone, that may not be thrown down.' And as he is sitting at the mount of the Olives, over-against the temple, Peter, and James, and John, and Andrew, were questioning him by himself, `Tell us when these things shall be? and what `is' the sign when all these may be about to be fulfilled?' And Jesus answering them, began to say, `Take heed lest any one may lead you astray, for many shall come in my name, saying -- I am `he', and many they shall lead astray; and when ye may hear of wars and reports of wars, be not troubled, for these behove to be, but the end `is' not yet; for nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there shall be earthquakes in divers places, and there shall be famines and troubles; beginnings of sorrows `are' these. `And take ye heed to yourselves, for they shall deliver you up to sanhedrims, and to synagogues, ye shall be beaten, and before governors and kings ye shall be set for my sake, for a testimony to them; and to all the nations it behoveth first that the good news be proclaimed. `And when they may lead you, delivering up, be not anxious beforehand what ye may speak, nor premeditate, but whatever may be given to you in that hour, that speak ye, for it is not ye who are speaking, but the Holy Spirit. `And brother shall deliver up brother to death, and father child, and children shall rise up against parents, and shall put them to death, and ye shall be hated by all because of my name, but he who hath endured to the end -- he shall be saved. `And when ye may see the abomination of the desolation, that was spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing where it ought not, (whoever is reading let him understand), then those in Judea, let them flee to the mountains; and he upon the house-top, let him not come down to the house, nor come in to take anything out of his house; and he who is in the field, let him not turn to the things behind, to take up his garment. `And wo to those with child, and to those giving suck, in those days; and pray ye that your flight may not be in winter, for those days shall be tribulation, such as hath not been from the beginning of the creation that God created, till now, and may not be; and if the Lord did not shorten the days, no flesh had been saved; but because of the chosen, whom He did choose to Himself, He did shorten the days. `And then, if any may say to you, Lo, here `is' the Christ, or, Lo, there, ye may not believe; for there shall rise false Christs and false prophets, and they shall give signs and wonders, to seduce, if possible, also the chosen; and ye, take heed; lo, I have foretold you all things. `But in those days, after that tribulation, the sun shall be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars of the heaven shall be falling, and the powers that are in the heavens shall be shaken. `And then they shall see the Son of Man coming in clouds with much power and glory, and then he shall send his messengers, and gather together his chosen from the four winds, from the end of the earth unto the end of heaven. `And from the fig-tree learn ye the simile: when the branch may already become tender, and may put forth the leaves, ye know that nigh is the summer; so ye, also, when these ye may see coming to pass, ye know that it is nigh, at the doors. Verily I say to you, that this generation may not pass away till all these things may come to pass; the heaven and the earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away. `And concerning that day and the hour no one hath known -- not even the messengers who are in the heaven, not even the Son -- except the Father. Take heed, watch and pray, for ye have not known when the time is; as a man who is gone abroad, having left his house, and given to his servants the authority, and to each one his work, did command also the porter that he may watch; watch ye, therefore, for ye have not known when the lord of the house doth come, at even, or at midnight, or at cock-crowing, or at the morning; lest, having come suddenly, he may find you sleeping; and what I say to you, I say to all, Watch.'
And certain saying about the temple, that with goodly stones and devoted things it hath been adorned, he said, `These things that ye behold -- days will come, in which there shall not be left a stone upon a stone, that shall not be thrown down.' And they questioned him, saying, `Teacher, when, then, shall these things be? and what `is' the sign when these things may be about to happen?' And he said, `See -- ye may not be led astray, for many shall come in my name, saying -- I am `he', and the time hath come nigh; go not on then after them; and when ye may hear of wars and uprisings, be not terrified, for it behoveth these things to happen first, but the end `is' not immediately.' Then said he to them, `Nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, great shakings also in every place, and famines, and pestilences, there shall be; fearful things also, and great signs from heaven there shall be; and before all these, they shall lay on you their hands, and persecute, delivering up to synagogues and prisons, being brought before kings and governors for my name's sake; and it shall become to you for a testimony. `Settle, then, to your hearts, not to meditate beforehand to reply, for I will give to you a mouth and wisdom that all your opposers shall not be able to refute or resist. `And ye shall be delivered up also by parents, and brothers, and kindred, and friends, and they shall put of you to death; and ye shall be hated by all because of my name -- and a hair out of your head shall not perish; in your patience possess ye your souls. `And when ye may see Jerusalem surrounded by encampments, then know that come nigh did her desolation; then those in Judea, let them flee to the mountains; and those in her midst, let them depart out; and those in the countries, let them not come in to her; because these are days of vengeance, to fulfil all things that have been written. `And wo to those with child, and to those giving suck, in those days; for there shall be great distress on the land, and wrath on this people; and they shall fall by the mouth of the sword, and shall be led captive to all the nations, and Jerusalem shall be trodden down by nations, till the times of nations be fulfilled. `And there shall be signs in sun, and moon, and stars, and on the land `is' distress of nations with perplexity, sea and billow roaring; men fainting at heart from fear, and expectation of the things coming on the world, for the powers of the heavens shall be shaken. `And then they shall see the Son of Man, coming in a cloud, with power and much glory; and these things beginning to happen bend yourselves back, and lift up your heads, because your redemption doth draw nigh.' And he spake a simile to them: `See the fig-tree, and all the trees, when they may now cast forth, having seen, of yourselves ye know that now is the summer nigh; so also ye, when ye may see these things happening, ye know that near is the reign of God; verily I say to you -- This generation may not pass away till all may have come to pass; the heaven and the earth shall pass away, but my words may not pass away. `And take heed to yourselves, lest your hearts may be weighed down with surfeiting, and drunkenness, and anxieties of life, and suddenly that day may come on you, for as a snare it shall come on all those dwelling on the face of all the land, watch ye, then, in every season, praying that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that are about to come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man.'
Be instructed, O Jerusalem, Lest My soul be alienated from thee, Lest I make thee a desolation, a land not inhabited.
And He saith unto me, `Son of man, art thou seeing what they are doing? the great abominations that the house of Israel are doing here, to keep far off from My sanctuary; and again thou dost turn, thou dost see great abominations.'
The Jews, therefore, said, `Forty and six years was this sanctuary building, and wilt thou in three days raise it up?'
For though they nourish their sons, I have made them childless -- without man, Surely also, wo to them, when I turn aside from them.
In their standing they stand, and in their exaltation they are exalted with them: for the living spirit `is' in them. And go forth doth the honour of Jehovah from off the threshold of the house, and standeth over the cherubs, and the cherubs lift up their wings, and are lifted up from the earth before mine eyes; in their going forth, the wheels also `are' over-against them, and he standeth at the opening of the east gate of the house of Jehovah, and the honour of the God of Israel `is' over them from above.
And the cherubs lift up their wings, and the wheels `are' over-against them, and the honour of the God of Israel `is' over them above. And the honour of Jehovah goeth up from off the midst of the city, and standeth on the mountain, that `is' on the east of the city.
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Commentary on Matthew 24 Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
CHAPTER 24
Mt 24:1-51. Christ's Prophecy of the Destruction of Jerusalem, and Warnings Suggested by It to Prepare for His Second Coming. ( = Mr 13:1-37; Lu 21:5-36).
For the exposition, see on Mr 13:1-37.