“The end of all history”
Sunday, 26th July 2015
Matthew 24: 1 – 14
Deaf Christian Fellowship of NSW
The Jewish Temple in Jerusalem was one of the biggest and most magnificent buildings in the ancient world.
Around it were many colonnades and courtyards and smaller buildings being restored and renovated from the old second temple by
King Herod in early 19 BC, was an attempt to reconcile the Jews to King Idumaen as the Greek name for the ancient kingdom of
Edom, rather than to glorify God. As various Arab groups, notably the Nabataeans pressed the old Edom, more migrants settled in
Judah and the area they occupied became known as Idumaea. Judas Maccabaeus has successful campaigns against these people,
and John Hyrcanus subdued them in 126 BC, placed them under Antipater as governor, and compelled them to be circumcised.
Antipater was the grandfather of King Herod the Great. In the New Testament mention only about Idumean people in Mark 3: 8.
Verse 1 tells us that the disciples admired the
magnificent buildings around the Second Temple which
King Herod the Great built to extend these more areas.
This restoration took place for 10 years to finish (9 BC),
the work continued until AD 64. The temple area filled
one sixth of the city of Jerusalem. Its front was covered
with gold. Some of its stones were thirty feet long and
twelve feet wide. Herod had helped the Jews remodel and beautify it, no doubt to stay on friendly terms with his subjects. Next to
inner temple, where the sacred objects were kept and the sacrifices offered, there were a large areas called the court of the Gentiles.
(Where the money-changers and merchants had their booths)
Verse 1 .…..Therefore, it was not surprising that one of Jesus’ disciples exclaimed: “What massive stones! What magnificent
buildings!”(Mark 13:1) It surely seemed as if the temple buildings could never be destroyed. Read also in Luke 21: 5.Some of his
disciples were remarking about how the temple was adorned with beautiful stones and with gifts dedicated to God.
Verse 2 …. Yet Jesus told His disciples that every one of those stones would be thrown. (See Luke 19: 41 – 44 and Luke 21: 6 
But Jesus said, “As for what you see here, the time will come when no one stone will be left on another; every one of them will be
thrown down.” And the forty years later (AD 70), when the Romans destroyed Jerusalem; they destroyed the temple completely, too
and since that time, the temple has never been rebuilt.
Verse 3 ….. Peter, James, John and Andrew (Mark 1: 16 -20) were amazed at Jesus’ statement (Mark 13: 3), that the temple would
be destroyed. They asked Jesus the question. According to Matthew 24: 3, “Tell us, when will these things happen?”, the disciples
also asked Him, “And what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?” and see Luke 21: 7. The disciples asked
both of these questions together, because they supposed that the destruction of Jerusalem and the end of the world would come at
the same time.But Jesus answered their question in two parts. To understand this chapter, we must not confuse the two parts of
Jesus’ answer as listed below:The Destruction of Jerusalem (AD 70)
The end of the world at Christ’s second coming
Matthew 24: 4 – 28, 32 – 35
Matthew 24: 29 - 31, 36 – 44
Mark 13: 5 – 23, 28 – 31
Mark 13: 24 – 27, 32 – 37
Luke 21: 8 – 24, 29 – 33
Luke 21: 25 – 28, 34 - 36
.We must also keep in mind that although Jesus knew when the destruction of Jerusalem would come (Mark 13: 30), He did not know
when the end of the world would come. (Mark 13: 32) Only God Himself knows that. But we can understand from that the signs that
preceded the destruction of Jerusalem are similar to the signs that will precede the end of the world. In other words, the destruction
of Jerusalem is a foretaste of the events that will occur at the end of the world. Therefore, even the parts of this chapter that refer to
the destruction of Jerusalem can also serve as a warning to us about what will happen at the end of the world.
2.
Verses 4 – 14
…… The disciples wanted to know “when these
things would happen?” But Jesus tells something more important;
“Watch” (Mark 13: 5, 37 = verse 5 applied to the disciples and verse
37 applied to everyone. “Be guard” or be alert at the end of the world.
Firstly, in verse 4 – 5 …. Turn on the disciples’ lives, they were warned of false prophets and teachers that they tried to deceive
and seduce them into following ‘new Christs’ and ‘new gospels’, having thereby lost their faith in the true Christ and His Gospel of
the kingdom. Many of these false ‘Christs’ did appear before the fall of Jerusalem. (Acts 5: 36 -37 about an imposter (possible a
messianic pretender) named Theudas.1 in some time before AD 6 gathered a band of 400 men, but he was killed and his followers
dispersed and the another Theudas. 2 as a magician who led the followers to the Jordan (AD 44 - 66) and he was put to death, his
head was brought to Jerusalem.
Secondly of verse 6 mentioned that would be “wars and rumours of wars” which involved between nations during the Roman
Empire and neighbouring Europe and eventually toward Palestine and Jerusalem in AD 62 and the final collapse of Jerusalem in AD
70 under the Roman conquest led by General Vespasian and his son Titus of Rome.
Thirdly, Jesus said in verse 7 that would be “earthquakes in various places and famines.” Indeed, there were severe famines in
various parts of the Roman Empire before the destruction of Jerusalem. (Acts 11: 28) According to Roman historians, there were
also several earthquakes in different parts of the Empire and Europe during that time. Also “pestilences in various places and
fearful events” (Luke 21: 11). According to Luke 21: 11, Jesus also said that there would be “great signs from heaven” before the
destruction of Jerusalem. According to both Roman and Jewish historians, these signs did take place. For example, according to the
Jewish historian named Josephus, a comet appeared over Jerusalem for many nights with a tail shaped like a sword.
Fourthly in verses 8 – 9 ….. Yet all things were only the “beginning of birth pains.” These events that occurred before and in time
of destruction of Jerusalem by persecution and terrible siege, lasting nearly four years by enemies controlled by Roman armies. The
city was hard to capture and was defended with fanatical zeal, The Romans made a sustained attempt to starve its habitants into
submission. Parents were reduced to cannibalism.
Verses 10-12 ….All these things came to pass before the destruction of Jerusalem facing many sources of persecution, deception
and suffering of believers and an increase of wickedness as the love of most grow cold.
Verse 13 tells us of the endurance of Christians into death by martyrdom by persecutors under Nero of Rome. Christians finished
their course of faith to attain the crown of eternal life in Christ Jesus their Lord.
Verse 14 ….. It is not certain, whether “all nations” means every single small tribe in the world, or whether it means ‘people throughout
the world’ in general sense. (See Romans 1: 5, 8; 10: 17 – 18: Colossians 1: 6, 23b) Some Bible scholars believe that by saying “all
nations”, Jesus meant all known nations at the time of the Roman Empire. If this is so, then the prophecy of Matthew 24: 14 was
fulfilled before the destruction of Jerusalem. In this case, the word “and then the end will come.” In Matthew 24: 14 would refer to the
end of Jerusalem and its temple in Ad 70, as an allusion to the end of the world.
Comment:However, it’s possible that Jesus’ prophecy in Matthew’s writing in chapter 24 refers both the destruction of Jerusalem
in AD 70 and to the end of the world, in which case it can be interpreted on two levels like as a mirror.
On one level, the prophecy was partially fulfilled in time of Roman Empire (local) during the destruction of
Jerusalem; on another level, the prophecy will be fulfilled fully when Jesus Christ will come in power and
glory to end the historical world (global wide or cosmic) as much possible consummation of all things.by
GOD, the Ultimate Reality.