Luke 21

Luke 21:1

Luke: The Man Christ Jesus Jesus Completes his Work in Jerusalem An EasyEnglish Bible Version and Commentary (2800 word vocabulary) on Luke 19:45 to 21:38

www.easyenglish.info Ian Mackervoy This commentary has been through Advanced Checking.

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Chapter 21 The widow’s gift – Luke 21:1-4 v1 Jesus looked up and he saw some rich people. They put their gifts into the box in the *temple. v2 Then he saw a poor widow who put two small *copper coins into the box. v3 And he said, ‘I tell you the truth. This poor widow has given more than all those other people. v4 From their plenty, the rich people gave gifts to God. But she is poor. She put in all that she had to live on.’

Verses 1-4 In the *temple, there was an area where the women could *worship. In that area was a special room.

That was where the priests stored gold and silver for the *temple. Here the people could put their gifts into 13 boxes. The money in 6 of the boxes was for general use. The money in the other 7 boxes was for particular purposes.

Jesus saw how the people put money into one of these boxes. Many rich people put a lot of money in the box (Mark 12:41). Then he saw a poor widow put two *copper coins in the box. These coins were the smallest of the *Jewish coins. They were worth very little.

Jesus said that this poor widow had given to God more than all the other people. They could afford what they had given to God. They had enough and more than enough for themselves. The value of the gift was in the cost to the person who gave it. She had given all that she had.

The true worth of a gift is not how much a person gives. It is not so much the amount of the gift but the attitude of the person who gives it. By her generous gift, this widow had shown true love for God. The end of the age – Luke 21:5-38 v5 Some people talked about the *temple. The builders had built it with beautiful stones and with the gifts that people had given. v6 But Jesus said to them, ‘You see this *temple. The time will come when not one stone will remain on top of another stone. An enemy will throw them all down.’

v7 They asked him, ‘Teacher, when will these things happen? And how will we know that the time has come for these things to happen?’

v8 Jesus replied, ‘Be careful. Do not allow anyone to tempt you away from me. Many will come who will use my name. They will say, ‘I am the *Christ.’ They will say that the time has come. Do not follow them. v9 Do not be afraid when you hear of wars and revolutions. These things must happen first. But they do not mean that the end is near.’

v10 Then he said to them, ‘Nations will fight against other nations. *Kingdoms will fight against other *kingdoms. v11 In many places, there will be terrible *earthquakes. People will suffer from lack of food and awful diseases. Also, people will see strange and terrible things in the sky.

v12 Before all these things happen, people will arrest you. They will *persecute you. They will hand you over to their *synagogues and they will put you in prisons. They will accuse you in front of kings and rulers because of my name. v13 But this will give you an opportunity to tell about me. v14 So do not worry about what you will say to defend yourselves. v15 I will give you the wisdom to know what to say. None of your enemies will be able to oppose you. They will not be able to argue against you. v16 Even parents, brothers, relatives, and friends will hand you over to your enemies. And they will kill some of you. v17 All people will hate you because of me. v18 But you will not lose even one hair from your head. v19 Stand firm and you will gain life.

v20 You will see when armies come to camp all round Jerusalem. Then you will know that they will soon destroy Jerusalem. v21 Then the people who are in Judea should escape to the mountains. Those people who live in the city should leave it. Those people who are in the country should not go into the city. v22 These are the days of punishment. All that the *scriptures say about it will happen. v23 In those days, it will be terrible for women who are expecting babies. It will be terrible for mothers who *nurse young children.

The earth will suffer terribly; the people in this country will suffer because of the anger. v24 Their enemies will kill some of the people with swords. They will take other people as prisoners to all the other countries. People from other nations will walk all over Jerusalem. This will continue until the end of the periods of time that belong to the nations.

v25 Strange things will happen to the sun, moon and stars. On the earth, fear will fill the nations. The roar of the sea and of the great waves will confuse and worry them. v26 People will be weak with fear, because of the things that they expect to happen in the world. God will shake the heavens, the sun, moon and the stars. v27 Then people will see the Son of Man as he comes in a cloud. He will come with power and much *glory. v28 When these things begin to happen, stand up. Raise your heads, because your *salvation is near.’

v29 Then Jesus told this story, ‘Look at the *fig tree and all the other trees. v30 As soon as leaves grow on them, summer is near. You can see it for yourselves and you know it. v31 In the same manner, you will see that these things are happening. Then you will know that God’s *kingdom is near.

v32 I tell you the truth, all these things will happen. People of this time will certainly remain alive until all this has happened. v33 The heaven and the earth will not last. But the words that I have spoken will last for all time.

v34 Be careful how you live. Do not cause problems for yourselves by excesses of food and drink. Do not let the worries of life cause you not to be ready. Otherwise that day will take you by surprise. v35 Like a trap that catches a bird, that day will come on all the people across the whole earth. v36 So be ready at all times. Pray that God will make you able to escape all these things. They will happen soon. Pray that you will be able to stand in front of the Son of Man.’

v37 Each day Jesus taught the people at the *temple. And in the evenings, he went out to spend the night on the hill called the Mount of Olives. v38 Early each morning, all the people came to him in the *temple to hear him.

Verses 5-7 The *temple was a magnificent building. It had taken 46 years to build it (John 2:20). The *disciples admired it and they talked about it to Jesus (Mark 13:1, Matthew 24:1). They showed him the beautiful stones with which Herod had built it. But Jesus told them that an enemy would throw down all of these stones. The enemy would destroy the *temple.

Jesus and the *disciples left the *temple area. They went to the hill called the Mount of Olives (Matthew 24:3). As they sat there, they had a wonderful view of the *temple. The *disciples asked when the enemy would destroy the *temple.

In *AD 70, the *Roman army destroyed the *temple. It happened as Jesus had said.

Verses 8-11 Matthew 24:3 refers to three questions that the *disciples asked on this occasion. When shall these things be? What will show us that you are coming? What will show that the end of the world has come? In answer to these questions, Jesus spoke to them about the future. He will come before the end of the age. But that would not happen immediately. Much had to happen before the time when he would return.

Before Jesus comes, there will be many false *prophets. Jesus warned his *disciples not to believe them. Many will come who pretend to be the *Christ. Many people will believe them and they will follow these false *Christs. However, Jesus warns his *disciples not to follow any of these false *Christs.

Before the end comes, there will be wars between nations. There will be many *earthquakes. People will die from the lack of food and because of diseases. There will be strange things in the sky. These things are the beginning of the troubles that will come upon the world.

Verses 12-19 This passage refers to the time before the *Romans destroyed the *temple. But in the same way, people will *persecute those who believe until the end of time.

Jesus told his *disciples that people would *persecute them. The *synagogues were not just places for *worship. There they dealt with legal matters under the *Jewish law. People would drag the *disciples in front of the *synagogue rulers. They would put the *disciples in prison. Also, people who were not *Jews would *persecute the *disciples. Those people who believe in Jesus would stand in front of kings and rulers.

In these circumstances, the Christians would be able to declare what God has done on their behalf. They would not need to make plans about how they should defend themselves. God would show them what to say. They would speak by means of the *Holy Spirit in them (Mark 13:11). Their enemies would not be able by their arguments to overcome the Christians.

The *gospel of *Christ will divide families. Close relatives will become enemies. They will hand Christians over to their enemies. But God is in control and he will work out his purposes. Some of the Christians will die. Then they will go to be with the *Lord Jesus.

People hate Christians because Christians believe in Jesus Christ. But the people of this world cannot hurt Christians unless God allows it. Men may kill the body but they can do nothing more. The real life of a Christian is with the *Lord Jesus. To those Christians who continue to the end, God promises *eternal life.

Verses 20-24 Jesus told the *disciples that armies would surround Jerusalem. The armies would destroy the city. This is not a *prophecy about the end of the present age. It refers to *AD 66 to 70 when the *Romans destroyed Jerusalem. God permitted the *Romans to punish Jerusalem.

It would be normal for people from the country to go into the city in time of war. But Jesus warned his *disciples not to go into the city. Those people who were in the city should come out of it. They should go into the mountains. When the *Romans began to gather round Jerusalem, many of the Christians escaped to Pella. Pella was a town in the region called Decapolis. This region was east of the River Jordan and south of the Sea of Galilee. They were safe there.

As Jesus had said, it was a terrible time. The *Romans killed many thousands of people. And they took several thousands as prisoners. They sent their prisoners into foreign countries. Josephus, a *Jewish writer in the first century, wrote that the *Romans killed 1  100  000 people. He also says that they took 97  000 prisoners. These numbers are probably too large. But they do show how terrible it was.

Jerusalem would be in the control of other nations. This would continue until the times of the nations ended. It is not clear what this means. However, it is my belief that those times are now ending. That is because Jerusalem is not now under the control of the nations.

Verses 25-28 The subject now changes to the time when Jesus will come again. Before he comes there will be strange events in the sky. Matthew and Mark tell us that the sun and the moon will lose their light. They say that stars will seem to fall from the sky. The heavens will shake (Matthew 24:29, Mark 13:24). There will be major effects on the seas and on the earth. All these things will frighten people. These things will cause confusion and terror among the people.

Then Jesus will come with power and great *glory. He will not come in secret. People everywhere will see him as he comes in a cloud. The *disciples saw Jesus as he rose into the cloud. Men in white clothes (actually *angels) told them that Jesus had gone to heaven. They said that he would come again in the same way (Acts 1:9-11).

The people who believe in Jesus will see the strange events in the skies. To them these events show that Jesus will come soon. Unlike other people, they can be confident. When Jesus comes, he will complete the process of *salvation. He will send his *angels to gather those people who belong to him (Matthew 24:31, Mark 13:27).

Verses 29-33 In the spring, new leaves grow on the *fig and other trees. Then it will soon be summer. The new leaves show that summer is near. So, the events in the sky and the sea will show that God’s *kingdom is near. This means that Jesus the king will come soon.

Verse 32 mentions the ‘people of this time’. That cannot mean those people who lived at the same time as Luke. So it probably means the people who live at the time of the strange events in the sky. Those strange events have not happened yet. The ‘people of this time’ is our translation of a particular word in the original language. This word could mean a type or nation of people. Perhaps it means that there will still be *Jews or Christians at that time. The word could mean the normal life of a man. Then the events would last for no more than the period of a man’s life.

One day, God will destroy this earth and sky. But what Jesus said will always last. We can be sure that all these events will happen. It will be as Jesus has spoken.

Verses 34-36 The *Lord Jesus will come suddenly. It will be a surprise to the whole world. They will not prepare themselves for him to come. But those people who belong to Jesus should prepare themselves. They should live as if they expect Jesus to come at any time. They should not give themselves to too much food and drink. They should not let the affairs of this world make them anxious. They should pray for God to help them to be strong in *faith. They should pray that finally they would be able to stand in front of the *Lord Jesus. To stand before the Son of Man means to possess complete *salvation.

Verses 37-38 Each day, Jesus taught in the *temple. But he did not stay in Jerusalem. At night, he went out to the hill called the Mount of Olives.

Jesus was popular with the people. A large number of them came to the *temple early each day to hear him.

© 2013, Wycliffe Associates (UK)

This publication is in EasyEnglish Level B (2800 words).

December 2013

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var w2 = new Array;w2[0]=’<b%3Etemple</b%3E ~ a special building for the worship of God. The Jews had a temple in Jerusalem for the worship of the real God. But at other temples, people worshipped false gods.