Mark 13

Mark 13:1-13

**10. THE DESTRUCTION OF THE TEMPLE FORETOLD. 13:1-13.

TEXT 13:1-13**

And as he went forth out of the temple, one of his disciples saith unto him, Master, behold, what manner of stones and what manner of buildings! And Jesus said unto him, Seest thou these great buildings? There shall not be left here one stone upon another, which shall not be thrown down. And as he sat on the Mount of Olives over against the temple, Peter and James and John and Andrew asked him privately, Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign when these things are all about to be accomplished? And Jesus began to say unto them, Take heed that no man lead you astray. Many shall come in my name, saying, I am he; and shall lead many astray. And when ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars, be not troubled: these things must needs come to pass: but the end is not yet. For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: there shall be earthquakes in divers places; there shall be famines: these things are the beginning of travail. But take ye heed to yourselves: for they shall deliver you up to councils; and in synagogues shall ye be beaten; and before governors and kings shall ye stand for my sake, for a testimony unto them. And the gospel must first be preached unto all the nations. And when they lead you to judgment, and deliver you up, be not anxious before hand what ye shall speak: but whatsoever shall be given you in that hour, that speak ye: for it is not ye that speak, but the Holy Spirit. And brother shall deliver up brother to death, and the father his child; and children shall rise up against parents, and cause them to be put to death. And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake: but he that endureth to the end, the same shall be saved.

THOUGHT QUESTIONS 13:1-13

What was the motive of the disciple of Jesus in calling attention to the stones and buildings?

What size stones were involved in the prediction of Jesus?

In what year was the prediction of destruction made?when was it fulfilled?

At about what time of the day was the question about the temple asked and answered? What side of the city and temple was in view?

Is there any significance in who asked the questions?

How many questions were asked? (Compare the parallel accounts in Matthew 24:1-22 and Luke 21:5-24).

Why associate the destruction of Jerusalem and the second coming of Christ?

In what particular area of misleading did Jesus speak in Mark 13:5?

Was Jesus saying certain persons would appear as the Messiah?in His first or second advent?

What end is discussed in Mark 13:7? The end of the world?; The end of Jerusalem?; The end of the Jewish nation?

When was Mark 13:8 fulfilled? or is it to be fulfilled?

One translation says the beginning of birth pangs in Mark 13:8 b. What does this mean?

Were the four disciples who heard the words of Mar 13:9 treated in the manner described? was this a fulfillment of the prediction?

Was the gospel ever preached to all the nations? Cf. Colossians 1:23. Why must the gospel first be preached to all nations?

Verses eleven and twelve seems to indicate a promise to be fulfilled in the lifetime of the apostleswas it? How does it fit the context of the worldor the destruction of Jerusalem?

In what sense saved as in Mark 13:13?

COMMENT

TIME.A.D. 30; Tuesday, April 4; the same day after our Lord’s farewell to and final departure from the temple. PLACES.The lesson begins in the temple, as the Lord departs from it, and ends upon the Mount of Olives, over against and over-looking Jerusalem and the temple, from the east.

INTERESTING HISTORY.After the incidents of the widow’s mite (Mark 12:41-43), Certain Greeks desire to see Jesus (John 12:20-27); a voice from heaven (John 12:28-36); reflections on the unbelief of the Jews (John 12:37-50); the scathing rebuke to the Pharisees, scribes and lawyers (Matthew 23:1-36) and the farewell to the temple (Matthew 23:37-39).

PARALLEL ACCOUNTS.Matthew 24:1-22. Luke 21:5-24. LESSON OUTLINE.1. The Temple Doomed. 2. False Christs and Trouble. 3. The Era of Persecution.

ANALYSIS

I.

THE TEMPLE DOOMED, Mark 13:1-4.

The Lord Forsakes the Temple. Mark 13:1; Matthew 24:1; Luke 21:5.

The Temple’s Fate. Mark 13:2; Matthew 24:2; Luke 21:6.

Christ on the Mount of Olives. Mark 13:3; Matthew 24:3.

When shall these things be? Mark 13:4; Matthew 24:3; Luke 21:7.

II.

FALSE CHRISTS AND TROUBLE, Mark 13:5-8.

Beware of Deceivers. Mark 13:5; Matthew 24:4; Luke 21:8.

False Christs. Mark 13:6; Matthew 24:5; Luke 21:8.

Wars and Rumors of Wars. Mark 13:7; Matthew 24:6; Luke 21:9.

Universal Commotion. Mark 13:8; Matthew 24:7; Luke 21:10-11.

III.

THE ERA OF PERSECUTION, Mark 13:9-13.

The Suffering Church. Mark 13:9; Matthew 24:8-13; Luke 21:12-19.

The Gospel Among all Nations. Mark 13:10; Matthew 24:14.

The Divine Helper. Mark 13:11; Luke 21:15.

Saved by Endurance. Mark 13:13; Matthew 24:13.

INTRODUCTION

In order to fully understand the student must have pictured before him the circumstances. On Sunday the Lord had proclaimed probably, for the first time, by his entry into Jerusalem that he was the Messiah King. On Monday and Tuesday, in the temple, before the leaders of the nation, he had for the last time offered them the divine message. When it was rejected he warned them in parables and then, passing from the parable, he delivered the withering denunciations recorded in the twenty-third chapter of Matthew. This discourse has never been surpassed in indignant rebuke, withering denunciation, and tearful sorrow over the coming fate of confirmed sinners who would not be saved. It contains Christ’s last words to the Jewish nation. The contest had been growing fiercer, the opposition of his enemies was more bitter, their plots against his life were working, their utter perverseness was fully manifested, the time for tender appeal had passed by, and the Lord turns upon the Whited Sepulchers, the generation of vipers, the hypocritical pretenders, in a philippic that we believe has never been equalled. But even in the midst of it, like a rift of blue sky in the fearful storm cloud, his love and pity shine forth with wonderful beauty in the pathetic exclamation of verse thirty-seven. In his parting words, Behold, your house is left unto you desolate, he seemed to see the awful picture of a ruined temple and city smoking among the starved and mangled carcasses of the people of Israel; the fearful doom of many that listened to his voice. When this farewell was spoken he turned to depart from a temple that had rejected God and which he never more would enter. As he passed through its courts, his disciples apparently to make an appeal in behalf of so splendid a structure, pointed to the massive stones used in its construction. Then he replied, Not one stone shall be left upon another.

EXPLANATORY NOTES

I.

THE TEMPLE DOOMED.

Mark 13:1. As he went out of the temple. After the solemn and pathetic farewell recorded in the latter part of the twenty-third chapter of Matthew. Those words closed his public ministry to the Jewish nation, and he left the temple never to return. He left it desolate. He probably passed from the exclusively Jewish part to the court of the Gentiles and then the reference was made to the stones of the structure by one of the disciples which drew forth his prediction. What manner of stones and what manner of buildings? Josephus, the Jewish historian, who was present when Jerusalem was destroyed by the Romans nearly forty years after the Lord’s prediction speaks of the immense stones used in the structure. He, in his Antiquities (xv. 11, 3), speaks of the stones of a certain part of the edifice, as being each, in length, 25 cubits (37 to 44 feet); in height, 8 (12 to 14 feet); in breadth, about 12 (18 to 21 feet). In his Wars (5:5, 6), he speaks of some of the stones as 45 cubits in length, 5 in height, and 6 in breadth. Few buildings, in ancient or modern times, have equalled in magnificence Herod’s Temple. With its out-buildings it covered an area of over 19 acres, was built of white marble, was 46 years in building (John 2:20), and employed in its construction 10,000 skilled workmen. Josephus also speaks of the great strength of the structure and tells that the strongest of the batterings was worked against the wall without effect, for five days in succession; the size and joining of the stones were too strong for it, and for all the others. The descriptions vie with each other in describing the splendor of the temple as rebuilt by Herod the Great. Says Farrar: The disciples eagerly pointed to goodly stones and splendid offerings; to the nine gates overlaid with gold and silver, and to the one of Corinthian brass, yet more precious; those graceful and towering porches; those double cloisters and stately pillars; that lavish adornment of sculpture and arabesque; those alternate blocks of red and white marble, recalling the crest and the hollow of sea waves.

Mark 13:2. There shall not be one stone left upon another. At the time this was spoken no event was more improbable than this. The temple was vast, rich, splendid. It was the pride of the nation, and the nation was at peace. Yet in the short space of forty years all this was exactly accomplished. Jerusalem was taken by the Roman armies, under the command of Titus, A.D. 70. The account of the siege and destruction of the city is left us by Josephus. That shall not be thrown down. The fortifications of Jerusalem and its natural advantages rendered it so apparently impregnable, that, after its fall, Titus, the captor, is reported by Josephus (* Wars of the Jews, Mark 6:9; Mark 6:1*) to have said, It was no other than God who ejected the Jews out of these fortifications. Titus ordered the whole city and the temple to be dug up, leaving only two or three of the chief towers, so that those who visited it could hardly believe that it had ever been inhabited (Wars, vii I). Of the temple proper not a vestige remains. It was built, however, upon an immense platform, partly composed of natural masonry. This platform is still standing. The remains which recent explorations have disinterred belong, all of them, to the substructure of the templeits drains, foundations, underground passages, and the like.

Mark 13:3. And as he sat. The words fell on the ears of the disciples, and awed them into silence. It was not till they had crossed to the Mount of Olives that even the foremost and most favored ventured to break it. Jesus paused before passing the ridge of Olivet, and sat down with his disciples to look back upon Jerusalem. The sun was setting, and the whole city, with the surrounding valleys and hillsides alive with the camps of pilgrims, lay beneath him in the evening light. The history of a thousand years, the divine oracles speaking by a thousand voices, the monuments of prophets, patriarchs, and kings, the visitations of angels, miraculous inter-positions in judgment and in blessing, from the offering of Isaac and the building of the temple, were present to him, as he looked upon Moriah and Zion, and heard the murmur and the evening songs of a million people gathered within and around the walls of the holy city. Nowhere on earth was it possible to find another scene of such commanding interest as that which lay before the eyes of Jesus when he turned to look upon Jerusalem for the last time (March.) Over against the temple. On leaving the temple Jesus would descend into the valley of the Kedron, and ascend the opposite slope of the Mount of Olives. Then full in view the temple would rise with its colonnades of dazzling white marble, surmounted with golden roof and pinnacles. At a distance the whole temple looked literally like a mount of snow, fretted with golden pinnacles. Peter, James, John, Andrew. The four fishermen first called, and first named in the lists, the confidential disciples. Asked him privately. Either apart from the multitude, but in the presence of the other disciples, or apart from the other disciples, in a private conference.

Mark 13:4. When shall these things be? The things of which they had heard him speak. The question is given more fully by Matthew (Matthew 24:3). It embraced three points: (1) the time of the destruction of the temple; (2) the sign of his coming; and (3) of the end of the world.Maclear. What shall be the sign? By what signs shall we know when these things shall be accomplished? They wanted some insight into his plans, so that they might know when and how he was to come, and all the events he had foretold should take place, and his kingdom be established.

II.

FALSE CHRISTS AND TROUBLE.

Mark 13:5. Jesus answering them began. Our Lord’s answer to these questions was framed to afford all the information needful to them, or useful for their guidance, but little to gratify a vague curiosity. Neither did he answer their questions categorically, but so intermingled his replies that it required after knowledge and experience to discriminate more than was actually needful for their safety and warning to know. We can now distinguish that he spoke of his coming, not personally, but by the fulfillment of his predictions concerning Jerusalem, and for the final uprooting of that theocracy which had become obstructive to the progress of the gospel; and again of his final coming to judge the world, of which, also, they inquired. Much that our Lord said might be applicable to both these great eventsboth these comings, being, in fact, comings to judgment; but toward the close his language grew more distinctly applicable to his final coming to judge the world (J. Kitto.) Lest any man deceive you. The Lord does not answer when, but by admonitions not to be deceived. It is not given to us to know the times and the seasons. The Lord’s purpose in this first part of his discourse is not to tell what are, but what are not, the premonitions of the great catastrophe to which he here refers.

Mark 13:6. For. Introducing the ground or reason of this unexpected warning (Alexander.) Many shall come. Five tokens are here given, to which the Lord direct the attention of his disciples: (1) The rise of false prophets; (2) wars and rumors of wars; (3) the rising of nation against nation; (4) earthquakes; (5) famines (Cambridge Bible.) In my name. Pretending to be the Messiah. As the destruction of their holy city drew near, and the Messianic hopes of the Jews were at fever-heat, many enthusiasts arose, and awakened false expectations, and drew large numbers after them (Acts 5:36-37; 1 John 2:18). Josephus says that in the reign of Claudius (who died A.D. 54), the land was overwhelmed with deceivers who pretended to be the Christ. The names and abortive efforts of several of these deceivers are given by Josephus and other historians.

Mark 13:7. Ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars. A seeming anti-climax, but a real climax. The rumors of an expected invasion are often more dreadful than the invasion itself.Abbott. Wars and rumors of wars there certainly were during this period; but the prophecy must be interpreted rather than those of which the Hebrew Christians would be most likely to hear as a cause of terror. Such, undoubtedly, were the three threats of war against the Jews by Caligula, Claudius, and Nero; of the first which Josephus says, that it would have brought extermination to the Jewish nation had it not been for Caligula’s death.Alford. Be ye not troubled. (1) As if everything were going to ruin. Be not troubled; for you will be safe, both at the judgment and at the destruction of Jerusalem. Every Christian escaped from that destruction. (2) These things do not prove that the great catastrophe and final consummation is at hand. The end not yet. Neither that destruction of Jerusalem, nor the end of the world. These are not the certain signs of the end, for they occur at other times as well as then.

Mark 13:8. Nation shall rise against nation. Bear in mind the massacres of Caesarea, between Syrians and Jews, in which 20,000 of the latter fell, while in Syria almost every city was divided into two armies, which stood opposed to one another as deadly enemies; the quick succession of the five emperors in Rome within a few years, Nero, Galba, Otho, Vitellius, Vespasian, and the tumults connected therewith in wider and narrower circles. The war-fiend ran riot in Palestine, Syria, Egypt, and throughout the whole Roman empire. The ten years ending with the destruction of Jerusalem was such a period of civil commotion as the world has seldom witnessed. Earthquakes. The principal earthquakes occurring between this prophecy and the destruction of Jerusalem were, (1) a great earthquake in Crete, A.D. 46 or 47; (2) one at Rome on the day when Nero assumed the manly toga, A.D. 51; (3) one at Apamaea in Phrygia, mentioned by Tacitus, A.D. 53; (4) one at Laodicea in Phrygia, A.D. 60; (5) one in Campania.Alford. Famines and troubles. These would naturally follow the devastating civil wars. These woes all precede the awful end of Jerusalem and the Jewish nation.

III.

THE ERA OF PERSECUTION.

Mark 13:9. Take heed to yourselves. Not as a means of escaping from persecution, but as a means of preparing for it, as Christ bade Peter take heed against temptation (Matthew 26:41). For. Before all these things (Luke 21:12); i.e., before these public calamities come, they shall deliver you up to councils; and in the synagogues ye shall be beaten. These refer to ecclesiastical proceedings against them. And ye shall be brought before rulers and kings. Before civil tribunals next. For my sake, for a testimony against them. Rather, unto them; to give you an opportunity of bearing testimony to me before them. In the Acts of the Apostles we have the best commentary on this announcement (Matthew 10:17-18). The martyrdoms and persecutions have ever called attention to the religion of Christ, and opened ways for its promulgation.

Mark 13:10. The gospel must first be published, Preached, proclaimed, which is the proper conception of preaching, Among all nations. The gospel had been published through the Roman world as then known, and every nation had received its testimony before the destruction of Jerusalem. See Colossians 1:6; Colossians 1:23, 2 Timothy 4:17. But further, the gospel has yet to be preached universally for a testimony. And the universal diffusion of it by modern Christian missions is now a leading sign of the end.

Mark 13:11. Take no thought beforehand. Be not anxious, as in the New Version. The idea is: You need not distress yourselves by anxiously considering beforehand how you ought to speak before such high and august personages. Let all your thoughts beforehand be concerned about the publishing, Let your words and thoughts be aggressive; I will take care for the defense. Delivered from care of the future, be occupied with present duty. This verse is best interpreted by such practical illustrations as are afforded by Acts 4:19-20; Acts 5:20-32; Acts 22:3-21, Observe that this direction affords no countenance whatever to preaching the truth without previous preparation. It is simply a warning against allowing the mind to be divided in time of danger between the desire of personal safety and the desire to be faithful to the truth.

Mark 13:12. Brother shall betray the brother to death, and the father the son. As there is nothing that excites such love as the gospel when intelligently received, so there is nothing that occasions such hate as this same gospel when passionately rejected. In that reception or rejection the heart of the heart is concerned.Morison. In missionary lands this is literally fulfilled today, as we all know.

Mark 13:13. Hated of all men. The Roman historian, Tacitus, speaks of the early Christians as a hated race. It is difficult for us in these days to understand how literally this was fulfilled. The most shameful practices were attributed to Christians; and partly in consequence of these falsehoods, partly from hatred of good, they were treated as the offscouring of the earth. Endure unto the end, the same shall be saved. The primary meaning of this seems to be that whosoever remained faithful till the destruction of Jerusalem should be preserved from it. No Christian, that we know of, perished in the siege or after it. But it has ulterior meanings, according to which the end will signify, to an individual, the day of his death (Revelation 2:10), his martyrdom, as in the case of some of those here addressed; to the church, endurance in the faith to the end of all things,Alford.

FACT QUESTIONS 13:1-13

State the five points or events occurring between the close of Mark chapter twelve and the opening of the thirteenth chapter. Cf. John 12:20-50; Matthew 23:1-39.

What occurred when for the last time our Lord offered His divine message and it was rejected?

What is meant by the expression your house is left unto you desolate?

Where were Jesus and His disciples when the disciples made the comment they did about the stones.

Give the length, height and breadth of some of the stones according to Josephus.

What was the area covered by the temple?

How many years was the temple in being built? How many skilled workmen were employed in building the temple?

Give three facts stated in Farrar’s description.

Who said, It was no other than God who ejected the Jews out of these fortifications? Why?

How did Titus accomplish the prediction of Jesus?

There was a long pause between the words of Jesus and the answer of His discipleswhat happened during the pause?

How was it possible for the temple to appear as a mount of snow, fretted with golden pinnacles?

What three points were involved in the question: When shall these things be?

What was the sign of Mar 13:4?

How was the answer of Jesus both adequate and yet disappointing?

What two comings were involved in His answer?

What five tokens are mentioned to which the Lord directs the attention of the disciples?

What caused the Messianic hopes of the Jews to rise to a fever-heat?

What were the three wars and rumors of war especially significant to the Hebrew Christians?

What two reasons are given for not being troubled?

When in particular did nation rise against nation?

Name the five earthquakes in the period between the time of our Lord and 70 A.D.

Specify where and when and to whom the prediction of Mar 13:9 found fulfillment.

Prove scripturally that every nation had received its (the gospel’S) testimony before the destruction of Jerusalem. Cf. Colossians 1:6; Colossians 1:23; 2 Timothy 4:17.

Show how Acts 4:19-20; Acts 5:20-32; Acts 22:3-21 fulfill the 11th verse.

Does verse eleven give some encouragement to the thought of preaching the gospel without preparation? Discuss.

Under what conditions would Mark 13:12-13 be fulfilled?

What two or three ends are possible as of Mar 13:13 b?

Mark 13:1-37

SUMMARY 13:1-37

In this section Mark sets forth his Master as a prophet. At the time that his narrative was composed, some of the predictions recorded in the section had already been fulfilled, but the chief part was yet in the future. He staked the validity of his argument, and the reputation of Jesus as a prophet, partly on the former, but chiefly on the predictions which were yet to be fulfilled, and fulfilled before the eyes of the then living generation. The discourse, as he wrote it out, contained in itself a challenge to that generation of Jews to watch the course of events in their own national history, and to say whether its predictions proved true or false. No generation has lived that was so competent to expose a failure had it occurred, or that would have done so more eagerly. But the events, as they transpired, turned the prophecy into history, and demonstrated the foreknowledge of Jesus. But if Jesus possessed this foreknowledge, his claim to be the Christ the Son of God was miraculously attested thereby; and even his admission that he knew not the day or the hour of his own second coming, detracts nothing from the argument; for foreknowledge is still displayed, notwithstanding this limitation of it, and the limitation itself is known only by his own voluntary admission an admission which is a singular and conclusive proof of his perfect honesty and candor, (J. W. McGarvey)

Mark 13:14-23

**11. THE ABOMINATION OF DESOLATION 13:14-23

TEXT 13:14-23**

But when ye see the abomination of desolation standing where he ought not (let him that readeth understand), then let them that are in Judea flee unto the mountains: and let him that is on the housetop not go down, nor enter in, to take anything out of his house, and let him that is in the field not return back to take his cloke. But woe unto them that are with child and to them that give suck in those days! And pray ye that it be not in the winter. For those days shall be tribulation, such as there hath not been the like from the beginning of the creation which God created until now, and never shall be. And except the Lord had shortened the days, no flesh would have been saved: but for the elect’s sake, whom he chose, he shortened the days. And then if any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is the Christ; or, Lo, there; believe it not: for there shall arise false Christs and false prophets, and shall shew signs and wonders, that they may lead astray, if possible, the elect. But take ye heed; behold, I have told you all things beforehand.

THOUGHT QUESTIONS 13:14-23

Read Daniel 9:27; Daniel 11:37; Daniel 12; Daniel 11 and Matthew 24:15 for help in the meaning of the strange phrase abomination of desolation. Does this refer to an incident at the destruction of Jerusalem or at the end of the world?

Who said let him that readeth understandJesus or Mark?

How could we possibly refer the abomination of desolation to the end of the world when those involved are instructed to flee from Judea to the Mountains?

Why the urgency as suggested in Mark 13:15 through 18.

Are we to believe the destruction of Jerusalem was worse than dropping an atomic bomb on a city? Cf. Mark 13:19.

Who are the elect of Mar 13:20? (This is perhaps one of the most difficult questions to answerbut attempt onemake it thoughtful.)

During what period of time were the false Christs to appear?

The words of Jesus seem to have a direct reference to His apostles is this true? Discuss.

COMMENT

TIMELate Tuesday afternoon, April 4, A.D. 30. PLACEThe Mount of Olives. After the final departure of Jesus from the temple.

PARALLEL ACCOUNTSMat 24:15-28; Luke 21:20-24.

OUTLINE1. What to do when you see the abomination of desolation, Mark 13:14-18. 2. The tribulation of those days, Mark 13:19-20. 3. A warning against false Christs, Mark 13:21-23.

ANALYSIS

I.

WHAT TO DO WHEN YOU SEE THE ABOMINATION OF DESOLATION, Mark 13:14-18.

Those in Judea are to flee to the mountains.

He that is on the housetop should not enter the house for possessions.

He that is in the field should not come to the house for his cloak.

It will be very difficult for those in pregnancy or with young children.

Pray it may not happen in the winter.

II.

THE TRIBULATION OF THESE DAYS, Mark 13:19-20.

More severe than any before or after.

Without the providential help of God the whole Jewish Nation would have been lost.

The severity and time of the tribulation was shortened because of the elect.

III.

A WARNING AGAINST FALSE CHRISTS, Mark 13:21-23.

There shall be many claims to Messiahshipdo not accept them.

False Christs and prophets will perform signs and wondersdo not believe them.

These prophetic warnings and careful details should forearm you against that day.

EXPLANATORY NOTES

I.

WHAT TO DO WHEN YOU SEE THE ABOMINATION OF DESOLATION.

Mark 13:14. But when ye see the abomination of desolation standing where he ought not. In the Authorized Version, after the word desolation, the words spoken of by Daniel the prophet, are introduced, but without sufficient authority. They were probably interpolated from Matthew, where there is abundant authority for them; and thus their omission by Mark does not affect the argument drawn from them in favour of the genuineness of the Book of Daniel, against those, whether in earlier or in later times, who reject this book, or ascribe it to some more recent authorship. The abomination of desolation is a Hebrew idiom, meaning the abomination, that maketh desolate. Luke (Luke 21:20) does not use the expression; it would have sounded strange to his Gentile readers. He says, When ye see Jerusalem compassed with armies, then know that her desolation is at hand. This reference to the Roman armies by Luke has led some commentators to suppose that the abomination of desolation meant the Roman eagles. But this was a sign from without; whereas the abomination of desolation was a sign from within, connected with the ceasing of the daily sacrifice of the temple. It is alluded to by the Prophet Daniel in three places, namely, Daniel 9:27; Daniel 11:31; Daniel 12:11. We must seek for its explanation in something within the temple, standing in the holy place (Matthew 24:15)some profanation of the temple, on account of which God’s judgments would fall on Jerusalem. Now, Daniel’s prophecy had already received one fulfillment (B.C. 168), when we read (1 Macc. i. 54) that they set up the abomination of desolation upon the altar. This was when Antiochus Ephiphanes set up the statue of Jupiter on the great altar of burnt sacrifice. But that abomination of desolation was the forerunner of another and a worse profanation yet to come, which our Lord, no doubt, had in his mind when he called the attention of his disciples to these predictions by Daniel. There is a remarkable passage in Josephus (Wars of the Jews, iv. 6,) in which he refers to an ancient saying then current, that Jerusalem would be taken, and the temple be destroyed, when it had been defiled by the hands of the Jews themselves. Now, this literally took place. For while the Roman armies were invading Jerusalem, the Jews within the city were in fierce conflict amongst themselves. And it would seem most probable that our Lord had in his mind, in connection with Daniel’s prophecy, more especially that at Mark 9:27, the eruption of the army of Zealots and Assassins into the temple, filling the holy place with the dead bodies of their own fellow-citizens. The Jews had invited these marauders to defend them against the army of the Romans; and they, by their outrages against God, were the special cause of the desolation of Jerusalem. Thus, while Luke points to the sign from without, namely, the Roman forces surrounding the city, Matthew and Mark refer to the more terrible sign from within, the abomination of desolationthe abomination that would fill up the measure of their iniquities and cause the avenging power of Rome to come down upon them and crush them. It was after these two signsthe sign from within and the sign from withoutthat Jerusalem was laid prostrate. Therefore our Lord proceeds to warn both Jews and Christians alike, that when they saw these signs they should flee unto the mountainsnot to the mountains of Judea, for those were already occupied by the Roman army (Josephus, lib. iii. cap. xii.), but those further off, beyond Judea. We know from Eusebius (iii. 15) that the Christians fled to Pella, on the other side of the Jordan. The Jews, on the other hand, as they saw the Roman army approaching nearer, betook themselves to Jerusalem, as to an asylum, thinking that there they would be under the special protection of Jehovah; but there, alas, they were imprisoned and slain.

Mark 13:15. Let him that is on the housetop not go down, nor enter in, to take anything Out of his house. The roofs of the houses were flat, with frequently a little dome in the centre. The people lived very much upon them; and the stairs were outside, so that a person wishing to enter the house must first descend by these outer stairs. The words, therefore, mean that he must flee suddenly, if he would save his life, even though he might lose his goods. He must escape, perhaps by crossing over the parapet of his own housetop, and so from housetop to housetop, until he could find a convenient point for flight into the hill country.

Mark 13:16.And let him that is in the field not return back to take his cloke. This was the outer garment or pallium. They who worked in the field were accustomed to leave their cloak and their tunic at home; so that, half-stripped, they might be more free in labour. Thereafter our Lord warns them that in this impending destruction, so suddenly would it come, they must be ready to fly just as they were. It was the direction given to Lot, Escape for thy life; look not behind thee.

Mark 13:17. But woe unto them that are with child and to them that give suck in those days! Women in this condition would be specially objects of pity, for they would be more exposed to danger. The words, Woe to them! are an exclamation of pity, as though it was said, Alas! for them. Josephus (vii. 8) mentions that some mothers constrained by hunger during the siege, devoured their own infants!

Mark 13:18. And pray ye that it be not in the winter. According to the best authorities, your flight is omitted, but the meaning remains very much the same. Matthew (Matthew 24:20) adds, neither on a sabbath. But this would be comparatively of little interest to those to whom Mark was writing. Our Lord thus specifies the winter, because at that season, on account of the cold and snow, flight would be attended with special difficulty and hardship, and would be almost impossible for the aged and infirm.

II.

THE TRIBULATION OF THOSE DAYS.

Mark 13:19. For those days shall be tribulation, such as there hath not been the like from the beginning of the creation. These expressions are very remarkable. To begin with, the tribulation would be so unexampled and so severe that the days themselves would be called tribulation. They would be known ever after as the tribulation. There never had been anything like them, and there never would be again. Neither the Deluge, nor the destruction of cities of the plain, nor the drowning of Pharaoh and his host in the Red Sea, nor the slaughter of the Canaanites, nor the destruction of Nineveh, or of Babylon, or of other great cities and nations, would be so violent and dreadful as the overthrow of Jerusalem by Titus. All this is confirmed by Josephus, who says, speaking of this overthrow, I do not think that any state ever suffered such things, or any nation within the memory of man. St. Chrysostom assigns the cause of all this to the base and cruel treatment of the Son of God by the Jews. The destruction of their city and their temple, and their continued desolation afterwards, were the lessons by which the Jews were taught that the Christ had indeed come, and that this was the Christ whom they had crucified and slain.

Mark 13:20. And except the Lord had shortened the days, no flesh would have been saved: but for the elect’s sake, whom he chose, he shortened the days. St. Matthew’s record (Matthew 24:22) differs from that of St. Mark in the omission of the words the Lord, and the clause whom he chose. If the time of the siege of Jerusalem had lasted much longer, not one of the nation could have survived; all would have perished by war, or famine, or pestilence. The Romans raged against the Jews as an obstinate and rebellious nation, and would have exterminated them. But the Lord shortened the time of this frightful catastrophe, for the elect’s sake, that is, partly for the sake of the Christians who could not escape from Jerusalem, and partly for that of the Jews, who subdued by this awful visitation, were converted to Christ or would hereafter be converted to him. We learn from hence how great is the love of God towards his elect, and his care for them. For their sakes he spared many Jews. For their sakes he created and preserves the whole world. Yea, for their sakes, Christ the eternal Son was made man, and became obedient unto death. All things are yours, and ye are Christ’S, and Christ is God’S. It may be added that a number of providential circumstances combined to shorten these days of terror. Titus was himself disposed to clemency, and friendly towards Josephus. Moreover, he was attached to Bernice, a Jewess, the sister of Agrippa. All these and other circumstances conspired in the providence of God to shorten the days.

III.

A WARNING AGAINST FALSE CHRISTS.

Mark 13:21-22. And then if any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is Christ; or, Lo, there, believe it not; for there shall arise false Christs and false prophets. Josephus mentions one Simon of Gerasa, who, pretending to be a deliverer of the people from the Romans, gathered around him a crowd of followers, and gained admission into Jerusalem, and harassed the Jews. In like manner, Eleazar and John, leaders of the Zealots, gained admission into the holy place, under the pretence of defending the city, but really that they might plunder it. But it seems as though our Lord here looked beyond the siege of Jerusalem to the end of the world; and he warns us that as the time of his second advent approaches, deceivers will arise, to seduce, if it were possible, even the elect. The word to seduce is more properly rendered, as in the Revised Version, to lead astray. Every age has produced its crop of such deceivers; and it may be expected that, as the time of the end draws nearer and nearer, their number will increase. Sometimes those idiosyncrases in them which show themselves in lying wonders, are the result of self-delusion; but still oftener they are deliberate attempts made for the purpose of imposing on the unwary. Sometimes they are a combination of both. In the cases to which our Lord refers there is evidently an intention to lead astray, although it may have had its origin in self-deceit. In our day there is a sad tendency to lead men astray with regard to the great fundamental verities of Christianity. And the words of St. Jerome may well be remembered here: If any would persuade you that Christ is to be found in the wilderness of unbelief or sceptical philosophy, or in the secret chambers of heresy, believe them not.

Mark 13:23. But take ye heed. The ye is here emphatic. The disciples were around him, hanging upon his lips. But his admonition is meant for Christians everywhere, even to the end of the world. (Bickersteth)

FACT QUESTIONS 13:14-24

How do some critics use Mark (Mark 13:14) against the early date of the book of Daniel? How answered?

How does Luke 21:20 help (us Gentiles) in understanding the meaning of the expression abomination of desolation?

Why is it wrong to conclude that the abomination was the Roman eagles?

Show how Daniel’s prophecy had already received one fulfillment.

How does Josephus help us in our understanding of the abomination of desolation?

Why were there so many Jews in Jerusalem when Titus attacked? Why no Christians?

If the occupant was not to come down from the housetop where was he to go? How would this help?

Why return for the cloke?

What words of Josephus help us to appreciate the words of Jesus woe unto them that are with child etc.?

Who would be hindered in a winter flight?

Mention three or four other violent events which are of less violent a character than the overthrow of Jerusalem.

Who confirmed the words of Jesus as in Mark 13:19? Discuss.

Who were the elect of Mar 13:20what great lesson is here for our learning?

Mention one or two of the providential circumstances combined to shorten the days.

Who was Simon of Gerasa?

Who were Eleazar and John?

Show how pertinent the words of Jerome are for our day.

To whom is Mark 13:23 directed?

Mark 13:24-37

**12. THE COMMAND TO WATCH 13:24-37

TEXT 13:24-37**

But in those days, after that tribulation, the sun shall be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall be falling from heaven, and the powers that are in the heavens shall be shaken. And then shall they see the Son of man coming in clouds with great power and glory. And then shall he send forth the angels, and shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from the uttermost part of the earth to the uttermost part of heaven. Now from the fig tree learn her parable: when her branch is now become tender, and putteth forth its leaves, ye know that the summer is nigh; even so ye also, when ye see these things coming to pass, know ye that he is nigh, even at the doors. Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass away, until all these things be accomplished. Heaven and earth shall pass away: but my words shall not pass away. But of that day or that hour knoweth no one, not even the angels in heaven, neither the Son, but the Father. Take ye heed, watch and pray: for ye know not when the time is, It is as when a man, sojourning in another country, having left his house, and given authority to his servants, to each one his work, commanded also the porter to watch. Watch therefore: for ye know not when the lord of the house cometh, whether at even, or at midnight, or at cockcrowing, or in the morning; lest coming suddenly he find you sleeping. And what I say unto you I say unto all, Watch.

THOUGHT QUESTIONS 13:24-37

Just what days are contemplated in Mark 13:24?

Is this prediction of literal events or is this symbolic language? i.e. sunthe moon etc.

Who will see the Son of man when He comes? Why refer to the sunthe moon etc.

Who are the elect?

Who would be in the uttermost part of the heaven?

What is the meaning of the four winds?

Have we learned from the fig tree her parable?

Please specify some of the signs of His coming.

What generation is meant in Mark 13:30?

Why the emphatic statement of Mar 13:31?

Why was it important to say that no one knew the day or the hour?

For what are we to watch and pray? (Please be specific)

Who is the man sojourning in another country?

Has the Lord given to each of us a work to do? List ten separate areas of work for our Lord.

What was the one sin against which our Lord warned us?

COMMENT

TIME.Late Tuesday afternoon, April 4, A.D. 30. PLACE.The Mount of Olives. After the final departure of Jesus from the temple.

PARALLEL ACCOUNTS.Matthew 24:23-42; Luke 21:25-36.

OUTLINE.1. The Coming of the Son of Man. 2. The Lesson from the Fig Tree. 3. Be Ye Always Ready.

ANALYSIS

I.

THE COMING OF THE SON OF MAN, Mark 13:24-27.

The Sun and Moon Darkened. Mark 13:24; Matthew 24:29; Luke 21:25.

The Heavenly Powers Shaken. Mark 13:25; Matthew 24:29.

The Sign of the Son of Man. Mark 13:26; Matthew 24:30; Luke 21:27.

The Saints Gathered. Mark 13:27; Matthew 24:31.

II.

THE LESSON FROM THE FIG TREE, Mark 13:28-31.

The Sign that it is near. Mark 13:28-29; Matthew 24:32-33; Luke 21:29.

This Generation shall not pass. Mark 13:30; Matthew 24:34; Luke 21:32.

Christ’s word sure. Mark 13:31; Matthew 24:35; Luke 21:33.

III.

BE YE ALWAYS READY, Mark 13:32-37.

The Time Known only to the Father. Mark 13:32; Matthew 24:36.

Therefore be Watchful. Mark 13:33; Matthew 24:42; Luke 21:36.

Watchfulness Enforced by Parable. Mark 13:34-37; Matthew 24:43-51.

INTRODUCTION

This is a part of the same prophecy as just considered, foretelling so much of the future as was necessary for the comfort and courage and watchfulness of the disciples then and for all time. The developments of Divine Providence filled up the outline of the divine word, and no man with the word of God in one hand, and the history of the Jews in the other, can fail to see a most minute and perfect correspondence between the two. And so long as the world reads the words of Jesus, and beholds those words fulfilled in Jerusalem, still trodden down of the Gentiles, and in the Jews still scattered and homeless among the nations, it has an argument for the infallibility of the Founder of Christianity, and for the truth of the religion proceeding forth from him and his teaching, which nothing can gainsay or resist. Out of the dust and ashes of the holy city for nineteen hundred years has risen a voice in attestation of the Messiahship of him who was crucified without her walls; and the people who denied the Holy One and the Just in all their dispersion have, for an equal period, been proclaiming him their true though rejected Lord.H. S. Kelsey.

EXPLANATORY NOTES

I.

THE COMING OF THE SON OF MAN.

Mark 13:24. In those days, after that tribulation. In the period of history that lies after the final overthrow of Jerusalem, which is meant by that tribulation. It will help the reader to compare the 24th chapter of Matthew, which is fuller. The following from my Lesson Commentary for 1887 will suggest some hints towards the understanding of these prophecies: As the Lord and his disciples passed out of the temple, after his farewell and prediction of its desolation, in the close of chapter 23, his disciples pointed out the solidity and splendor of the structure, as though in doubt whether such massive walls could be destroyed. The answer was that not one stone should be left on another. When they had reached the Mount of Olives and from its summit looked down on the city and temple, as upon a map, the disciples, still thinking of what he had uttered, asked three questions: 1. When shall these things be? That is, when shall the temple and city be destroyed? 2. What shall be the sign of thy coming? 3. What shall be the sign of the end of the world? The interpreter, in order to understand the Savior’s answer, must keep in mind that not one, but three questions are answered. The answer to the first extends to Mark 13:28. Immediately after follows the answer to the second with various warnings and exhortations, while in the 25th chapter we have given an account of the end of the world and a picture of the judgment day. The present study comes in the answer to the second question and is an exhortation to be ready for Christ’s coming. The sun shall be darkened. Some interpret all that is said of sun, moon and stars literally, as great natural phenomena that shall precede the coming of the Lord. Others suppose that these are symbols of great disturbances in the history of mankind. I believe that a correct interpretation only requires that these words be given their usual symbolic meaning. This is prophecy and prophecy always chooses symbols. While we can never be certain of the exact meaning of unfulfilled prophecy, I believe that this prediction has been a great part fulfilled. The sun is the usual symbol of Christ, the Light of the world, the Sun of Righteousness; the moon, which only shines with the reflected splendor of the sun, is the church, which only shines in the light of Christ. The stars are apostles and other great lights of the church. Without consuming space, I will say that this is the usual meaning of these symbols in New Testament prophecy. As to the application, the Lord is outlining history to the end of the world. When the apostasy began to develop, about three centuries after these words were spoken, the rays of light that came from Christ’s teaching were obscured by the traditions of men, the church therefore ceased to shed her light on mankind, and the apostles were no longer recognized as the great authorities of religious life. They fell from their high place, or from heaven. The Bible was taken from men and what history has pleased to call significantly The Dark Ages came upon the world. Certainly this interpretation is in precise harmony with history. Still, at this time, two-thirds of Christendom are destitute of the Bible and wrapped in the darkness of human tradition. The Sun is still darkened, the moon does not yet give her light, and the stars are not restored to their places in the heavens.

Mark 13:25. The powers that are in heaven shall be shaken. For the interpretation, see comment on Mark 13:24. These powers refer to the spiritual forces that should control mankind.

Mark 13:26. And then shall they see the Son of man. After this spiritual darkening. Therefore, still in the future. As the spiritual darkness seems to be slowly lifting we have in this a cheering omen that the coming draws nearer. I understand this to be a literal coming. They shall see him. See, also, Acts 1:9-11. As the apostles saw the Lord ascend, in like manner shall he return. Certain facts may be noted: (1) The Lord shall come as the Son of man. They that pierced him shall look upon him. (2) His coming shall be seen by all mortals. Every eye shall see him. (3) It will be glorious. He shall ride upon the clouds of heaven and shall have all his holy angels with him.

Mark 13:27. Then shall he send his angels. With a great sound of a trumpet (Matthew 24:31). And shall gather together his elect, etc. As the tribes of Israel were anciently gathered together by sound of trumpet (Exodus 19:13; Exodus 19:16; Exodus 19:19; Leviticus 23:24; Psalms 81:3-5), so any mighty gathering of God’s people, by divine command, is represented as collected by sound of trumpet (Isaiah 27:13; Revelation 11:15); and the ministry of angels, employed in all the great operations of Providence, is here held forth as the agency by which the present assembling of the elect is to be accomplished. The jour winds. Used to denote the quarters of the earth’s surface; i.e., from all parts of the earth. The uttermost part of the earth to the uttermost part of heaven. Probably an allusion to the apparent junction of earth and sky at the visible horizon, but in any case it refers to the whole world.

II.

THE LESSON FROM THE FIG TREE.

Mark 13:28. Learn a parable of the fig tree. More literally, Learn the parable from the fig tree. The fig is a native product of the East, and grows in spontaneous plenty in Palestine. In a warm climate fruit forms a very large proportion of customary food, and hence the fruit tree is a favorite source for illustration. Our Lord spoke this upon the Mount of Olives where fig trees were growing all around him. He was near to Bethphage (or Figville), so-called, probably, from the abundance of this product, It was now about the last of March, and though the time of figs was not yet, the trees were doubtless beginning to verify the words by opening signs of the season. As the sprouting leaf was a sign of the approach of summer, so the events just named foreshadowed the coming of the Son of man.

Mark 13:29. So ye, in like manner, when ye shall see these things come to pass. Rather, coming to pass. Is nigh, even at the doors. That is, the full manifestation of it; for till then it admitted of no full development. In Luke (Luke 21:28) the following words precede these: And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads: for your redemption draweth nigh. Their redemption, in the instance certainly, from Jewish oppression (1 Thessalonians 2:14-16; Luke 11:52), but in the highest sense of these words, redemption from all the oppressions and miseries of the present state at the second appearing of the Lord Jesus.

Mark 13:30. This generation shall not pass (away) till all these things be done, Accomplished. There are two explanations: (1) Generation is taken in its ordinary sense of the persons then living. And the prophecy had one exact fulfillment within that generation. (2) The word translated generation has sometimes the meaning of race or nation; having, it is true, a more pregnant meaning, implying that the character of one generation stamps itself upon the race, as here in this verse also.Alford. The last meaning is, no doubt, correct. The word in the Greek (genea) also means nation. Dean Alford in his Critical Greek Testament says: It may be well to show that the original (genea) has in Hellenistic Greek the meaning of a race or family of people, for this purpose see Jeremiah 8:3 (where genea occurs in the Septuagint Greek); compare Matthew 23:36 with Mark 13:35, and observe that the living generation did not slay Zacharias, so that the whole people were addressed. See also Matthew 12:45 where the sense absolutely requires that the meaning of nation should be attached to the word. See also Matthew 17:17. In all these passages generation is equivalent to nation. Mark 13:30 should therefore read This race shall not pass away until all these things be done; a prediction of the marvelous and miraculous preservation of the Jewish race, despite the awful overthrow of the nation, its dispersion to the ends of the earth, the constant persecution and oft-repeated massacres, such calamities as no other race ever endured, to the end of time as a living witness to the truth of Christ’s testimony. Without a country or a temple, scattered among all nations, persecuted as no other people, the Jews have been preserved through 1900 years separate, distinct, and virtually unchanged; a case without parallel in history.

III.

BE YE ALWAYS READY.

Mark 13:32. Of that day and that hour. Of Christ’s coming. Knoweth no man. The signs of the times are left to us; the times themselves are in the hands of God. Not the angels. neither the Son. The practical lesson of the verse is well put by Dr. Schaff: His voluntarily not knowing the day of judgment, during the days of his flesh, is a warning against chronological curiosity and mathematical calculations in the exposition of Scripture prophecy. It is not likely that any theologian, however learned, should know more or ought to know more on this point than Christ himself, who will judge the quick and the dead, chose to know in the state of his humiliation.

Mark 13:33. Watch and pray. To watch, denotes (1) to be sleepless; (2) to be vigilant.Maclear. In view of the suddenness and unexpectedness of this coming, watch and pray; not be always expecting what will come unexpectedly, nor be seeking to know what cannot be known, but be always in a state of readiness, because, of the uncertainty.

Mark 13:34. For the Son of man. Better, It is as when a man. The whole matter of watching is as in the following parable. Taking a far journey. Sojourning in another country. Gave authority; power to conduct his household, and to manage his affairs while absent. To every man his work. The authority being joined with duty. Even so our Lord left his Church, gave authority to his servants the apostles, and to those who should come after them, and to every man his work, and is now waiting for the consummation of all things. Commanded the porter to watch. After he had given all the orders concerning the internal affairs, he gives finally, at the door, to the porter, the additional command to watch: this is the point of the parable. I do not suppose that the Lord designs any particular official in the church by the porter, rather to enforce the duty of watchfulness.

Mark 13:35. Watch, It is the fundamental law of watchfulness, to be always watching. Ye know not when the master of the house cometh. But with all the obscurity thus intentionally thrown around the day and the hour of Christ’s coming, let us not forget that no obscurity, no uncertainty, hangs around the great event itself, In all that future, which lies before us, these are the only two events of which we are absolutely certain: out own approaching death, our Lord’s approaching advent.Hanna. At even, or at midnight, or at the cockcrowing, or in the morning. The four regular watches, from eventide to daybreak, representing, either periods in the world’s history, or epochs in human life.

Mark 13:36. Lest coming suddenly he find you sleeping. During the night the captain of the temple made his rounds. On his approach the guards had to rise, and salute him in a particular manner. Any guard found asleep when on duty was beaten, or his garments were set on firea punishment, as we know, actually awarded.Edersheim.

Mark 13:37. What I say unto you I say unto all. Though the apostles and the ministry are watchmen and porters, yet all believers are to be incessantly watchful, and for the same reasons.Schaff. Watch. Observe in this chapter the emphasis given to Christ’s exhortation, Watch! Matthew tells us how the Lord sought to impress these lessons of watchfulness and faithfulness still more deeply by the parables of the Ten Virgins (Matthew 25:1-13), and the Talents (Matthew 25:14-30), and closed all with a picture of the awful day when the Son of man should separate all nations one from another as the shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats (Matthew 25:31-46).

FACT QUESTIONS 13:24-37

No man with the word of God in one hand and the history of the Jews in the other, can fail to see ______________ what?

How does Jerusalem and the scattering of the Jews become a grand witness for the infallibility of the Founder of Christianity?

State the three questions of the discipleswhich question is being answered in Mark 13:24?

Why does Johnson choose to use a symbolic meaning for the sun, moon, and stars of Mar 13:24?

Who is represented by the sun, the moonthe stars?

What do the Dark Ages have to do with this prophecy?

What are the powers that are in heaven? How shaken?

Could we believe Christ could come at any time and still believe Johnson’s interpretation of the signs of His coming? Discuss.

Are we nearer to His coming today according to this symbolic interpretation of the signs than when Johnson wrote it seventy-six years ago? Discuss.

What three facts are to be noted in His coming in like manner?

Why was a trumpet used in gathering together His elect? Cf. Matthew 24:31.

What is represented in the expression uttermost part of heaven?

Show how appropriate in time and place was the use of the fig tree for an illustration.

If we were to wait for the literal sun, moon, and stars to be affected, couldn-’t we become negligent in our waiting? Discuss.

Read Luke 21:28 and state what redemption is involved.

How could it be possible that the prophecy of Jesus was fulfilled during the generation of the apostles?

Read Jeremiah 8:3 and Matthew 23:36; Matthew 23:35 and Matthew 12:45; Matthew 17:17what is taught in these verses about the meaning of the word generation?

What case is without parallel in history?

What warning does Christ give to certain theological prophets?

What is involved in the expression watch and pray?

What one subject is developed in the parable?

What are we to do while we watch and wait?

Who is represented by the porter in the parable?

Of what two events are we absolutely certain?

What is represented by the four watches mentioned?

What did Edersheim say about sleeping on duty?

What does Matthew add to this exhortation to watchfulness? Cf. Matthew 25:1-13, Matthew 25:14-30.