I am a curious person, sometimes it is enough to drive people crazy. It sometimes drives me crazy. I will oftentimes find a problem or not understand something and it won’t leave my mind. And sometimes, after spending a good deal of time trying to figure something out, I have to put it off for later hoping that at that time I will find an answer.
I had to put off this question for a few years and as I read the book Kingdom Come by Sam Storms I found the answer. It would be better to say that he taught me the answer to that question in great detail as I read his book.
The Problem
The problem I had is quite simple. Matthew and Luke give an account of the same discussion in Matthew 24 and Luke 21. Luke gives some detail that is not given in Matthew. The outline is simple.
- Jesus predicts the Destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem.
- The disciples ask when this will happen.
- Jesus tells of political turmoil, famines and earthquakes.
- Great tribulation will occur and many people will fall away.
- False prophets will rise claiming to be the Christ.
- There is an increased lawlessness that leads to a lack of humanity, “the love of many will grow cold”.
- The Son of Man will come. “And then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory.” (Luke 21:27 ESV) – See the same statement in Matthew 24:30.
- Jesus discusses the lesson of the Fig Tree.
- In Luke Jesus says, “Truly, I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all has taken place.” (Luke 21:32 ESV) – See the same statement in Matthew 24:34
Does anyone see what my problem was? In Matthew 24 Jesus discusses His coming, and in Luke 21 this generation would not pass away before all of these things had taken place. Jesus has still not returned and it seems that He told His disciples that He would be coming before their age group had passed. So, what gives?
I set this on the back burner and eventually was given the answer to the great question. Rather than saying that the Bible contradicted itself, I left that question open for later answers. Not to mention that Luke apparently didn’t see any contradiction. A well educated man of his time period surely would have seen the problem that existed between the two paragraphs. It just didn’t make sense to me. The fact is I needed more information and to get out of my mode of thinking.
The Christian Culture We Live In
We live in a Christian culture that is constantly looking for the coming of Christ. That is a good thing. At least until you get scared every time you see a fake news story about chips being implanted in your hand.
In this culture it is hard not to read statements like the one Jesus made here without thinking about the actual Second Coming of Christ. But, what I had to eventually figure out is that this was not about Jesus’ Second Coming at all.
Context Is King
When interpreting any document context is king. I can’t begin to understand an email written to me if I begin in the middle and skip to the end. I have to have some context, especially if the document I’m reading is longer than a few sentences. We approach Scripture with the same attitude. Context is king and in order to understand this passage I need to understand the context.
So, here is the context. Jesus foretold the destruction of the Temple, which occurred exactly as Jesus predicted in 70 AD. After saying this, which was likely a shocker to the Disciples, they asked the logical question. The temple was sturdy, and very well built. The thought of that time period was that it was nearly indestructible. So, they obviously had some questions. The question we read here is “when”. Well, when will this happen? (Luke 21:7). The rest of the chapter, or at least most of it, is Jesus giving an answer to the question “when”.
When Will The Temple Be Destroyed?
If we’re looking at this in context and with some historical aid it all makes perfect sense. He answers their when question by giving them signs of the times. That is, when you see these things occurring, then expect for the temple to be destroyed. What are the signs of that day going to be?
Jesus begins by telling the disciples that many things are going to happen, but they will only be the beginning. So, when He discusses impostors, “wars and rumors of wars”, nation rising against nation, famines, and earthquakes (Matthew 24:6-7). “All these are but the beginning of the birth pains.” (Matthew 24:8 ESV)
In other words, these things are going to be taking place, but the end is not yet come. This is only the beginning. So, don’t be alarmed when you see these things, the end is not yet coming. Interestingly, it is in vogue now to be alarmed at every little thing. This is done even as Jesus is telling His disciples not to get excited at this point. So, we are guilty of doing what we ought not do.
Then He begins discussing a great time of tribulation and persecution, a time when the nations hate His people. He describes a time when people fall away and betray and hate each other. He describes a time when false prophets lead people astray and lawlessness increases. The “love of many will grow cold.” (Matthew 24:12 ESV)
Then Jesus gives the big warning. When they see “the abomination of desolation spoken of by the prophet Daniel, standing in the holy place (let the reader understand), then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains.” (Matthew 24:15-16 ESV)
The Abomination Of Desolation
Since the sign to leave town is “the abomination of desolation spoken of by the prophet Daniel”, it would be helpful to know what that is. Sam Storms is immensely helpful at this point.
“Abomination of Desolation is literally, the abomination that causes desolation. In the Old Testament, “abomination” referred to an object of disgust or hatred, something that causes revulsion; an idolatrous offense or affront to the true worship of God. The Abomination of Desolation is referred to four times in Daniel 8:13; 9:27; 11:31; 12:11. The first and immediate reference was to the Syrian king Antiochus who ruled over Palestine in 175-165 BC. He called himself Theos Epiphanes (“manifest God”) but his enemies called him Epiphanes (“madman; the insane one”).
In 168 BC Antiochus Epiphanes slaughtered 40,000 Jews and plundered the temple. He sacrificed a pig on the altar of burnt offering and sprinkled broth from the unclean flesh all over the holy grounds as an act of deliberate defilement. He then erected an image of Zeus above the altar. It was a sacrilege of indescribable proportions indelibly imprinted on the minds of the Jews in Jesus’ day.
It would appear that Jesus envisioned something of a repeat performance in his day of what happened in 168 BC under Antiochus. When he says “let the reader understand” he means “let the reader of the Old Testament book of Daniel understand” the true meaning and the fulfillment of the coming Abomination of Desolation.” – Sam Storms, Kingdom Come: The Amillenial Alternative; Christian Focus Publications Ltd., 2013, p. 245
If Storms is correct, and I believe that he is, then Jesus was referring to a second act that was similar to the first. This also helps to make some sense of the difference between Matthew and Luke’s account. Matthew is writing to a largely Jewish audience and so he discusses “the Abomination of Desolation”. Luke, on the other hand, is writing to a largely Gentile audience. So, he dumbs it down a bit and says “when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, know that its desolation has come near.” (Luke 21:20 ESV)
The most likely candidate for who is bringing this Abomination of Desolation, according to Storms, Titus and the armies of Rome, though he does give 3 other options that theologians have thought could bring the Abomination of Desolation. Regardless of who it is, the point is clear. Jesus is saying when you see the armies surrounding Jerusalem, or when you see The Abomination of Desolation get out of town.
So They Fled As The Master Had Told Them
One of the helpful things in looking at this passage is to see how it was understood by the Early Church. Jesus is essentially saying to the disciples, do not fight for Jerusalem. When you see these things happening leave town and do so quickly.
“So when you see the abomination of desolation spoken of by the prophet Daniel, standing in the holy place (let the reader understand), then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. Let the one who is on the housetop not go down to take what is in his house, and let the one who is in the field not turn back to take his cloak. And alas for women who are pregnant and for those who are nursing infants in those days! Pray that your flight may not be in winter or on a Sabbath. For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be. And if those days had not been cut short, no human being would be saved. But for the sake of the elect those days will be cut short.” – Matthew 24:15-22 ESV
Interestingly, and just as one would expect, these instructions were kept by early followers of Jesus. It is thought that a man named Symeon, a cousin of Jesus led the Christians into the village of Pella in Perea. It is a mountainous region that lies east of the Sea of Galilee. This happened in late 66 AD. Surrounded by the armies of Commander Cestius, for what seems like no reason at all, the armies withdrew. This gave the Jews the ability to heed Jesus’ advice about the coming destruction of Jerusalem. Incredibly, there was no Christian casualties in the destruction of Jerusalem even though every person within Jerusalem was either killed or taken prisoner (Sam Storms, Kingdom Come: The Amillenial Alternative; Christian Focus Publications Ltd., 2013, p. 249)
So, Cestius retreated and the Jewish Christians took Jesus’ words to heart and left town for the mountains. In this way, Jesus saved their physical lives years after His death. Symeon and those who followed Him seem to have seen this as discussing, not the Second Coming of Christ and the Tribulation at the end of the Age, but as the destruction of Jerusalem. They acted upon that in such a way that makes it obvious what they thought was going to occur.
Can The Horror Of AD 70 Be Tribulation Such As Has Not Been Seen In The World Nor Will Ever Be?
This is an important question. Because the destruction described by Jesus is horrific. “For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be.” (Matthew 24:21 ESV) If we cannot say that this is what is described then we cannot attribute Jesus’ words to the destruction of Jerusalem.
I think that we can. And here are some reasons why.
Hostilities between Israel and Rome had been brewing for years. In 66 AD things intensified. Jerusalem became the last Jewish stronghold and it is said that many thieves and murderers made their way to Jerusalem for refuge. At this time chaos reigned. As had been predicted by Jesus the city became lawless. This led to warring factions within the city itself. They took turns attacking each other. Zealots are said to have killed some 12,000 of the city’s nobles and leading citizens. Cadavers are said to have filled the streets without possibility of burial (Sam Storms, Kingdom Come: The Amillenial Alternative; Christian Focus Publications Ltd., 2013, p. 250). Josephus said it this way,
“The noise of those that were fighting was incessant, both by day and by night; but the lamentation of htose that mourned exceeded the other [i.e., the noise of the fighting]…They, moreover, were still inventing somewhat or other that was pernicious against themselves; and when they had resolved upon anything, they executed it without mercy, and omitted no method of torment or of barbarity.” – Josephus, Wars, 5.31, 35 (quote taken from Storms, Kingdom Come)
A lull in hostilities led to a relaxation of the people and they opened the gates for the Passover season. Titus resumed fighting at about this time and offered clemency to the Jews, to which they refused. So, the city’s storehouses were burned and the water reservoirs were polluted. This led to a horrendous famine in the land. If people went outside the city walls to hunt for food they were killed by the Romans. Oftentimes they were crucified in plain sight of the city.
Josephus tells of people stealing food from their own family members. Mothers were stealing food from their own infants. People were selling their homes for food. They were oftentimes even selling their infants for food. People were eating like scavengers from public sewers and the like. And, if you were suspected of hiding food you underwent extreme torture. Josephus tells of people dying all over the city and the bodies being left there because there was nowhere to put them. He recounts horrendous events like a woman killing her son and roasting him and the smell drew other people who were desperate for food. So, she shared his body. This incited horror and then finally the city was breached by the Romans. (Storms, Kingdom Come pg. 250-252).
Everyone who was left in the city was either killed or made a slave. Then the entire city and temple was demolished. Even though, numerically worse things have happened in history. I have yet to hear of an instance in which this level of cruelty was inflicted upon a people. 100 % of the people were either starved to death, killed, or made slaves. So, I believe that there is good evidence that this is about what happened in AD 70 rather than a coming future tribulation.
The Son of Man Coming Into His Glory
Matthew 24:36, I believe is a change of subject. In Matthew 24:35 Jesus says that Heaven and Earth will pass away but His Words will not. And then Jesus begins a new topic. This may seem strange until we consider that Jesus is still answering the Disciples’ question. He has answered the first half already and now onto the second half of the question.
As He sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will these things be, and what will be the sign of Your coming and of the end of the age?”
Jesus gave incredible signs pointing to the destruction of the temple in 70 AD. So, what signs do you think that He gave for His Second Coming? Incredibly, nothing really. No signs, in fact His Second Coming would be a complete surprise.
“But concerning that day and hour no one knows, not event he angels of Heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only. For as were the days of Noah, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, and they were unaware until the flood came and swept them all away, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. Then two men will be in the field; one will be taken and one left. Two women will be grinding at the mill; one will be taken and one left. Therefore, stay awake, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming.” – Matthew 24:36-42 ESV
All of a sudden the entire passage becomes clear. The reason that Jesus speaks of many signs and then says that there are no signs is because He is speaking of two different events. The first part of this passage deals with answering the first part of the Disciples’ question. The second part of this passage deals with answering the second part of the Disciples’ question. And, all of a sudden I can rest easier knowing that this is not a contradiction in Scripture, but that I had misinterpreted the passage for years.
Concluding Thoughts
My apologies, first, for the rambling. I seem to have gotten carried away with this post. Second, I think that this teaches a very important lesson. Just because I misinterpret Scripture occasionally doesn’t mean that it has mistakes. Oftentimes the supposed discrepancy is a problem that I have in my interpretation of a passage. Other times I just don’t have enough information.
Lastly, this passage went from being a possible Bible problem to being an incredible apologetic passage. There is historical documentation of the salvation of all Christians within Jerusalem due to their heeding of Jesus’ words in Matthew 24 and Luke 21. If this isn’t evidence of the deity of Christ then I don’t know what would count as evidence. All I needed was a little understanding.
R. Dwain Minor
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