Matthew Chapter Twenty-Four
Destruction of the Temple Predicted, 24:1-28
Occasion of the Prediction, 1-3.
(Mark 13:1-4; Luke 21:5-7)
1. went out and departed.—Went out of the temple and departed from its vicinity. This was his final departure from the temple, and the preceding discourse denunciatory of the scribes and Pharisees contained the last words which he spoke therein—sad foreshadowing of the doom which impended over the unhappy city.
to show him the buildings.—As he had already departed from the temple when the disciples came to show him the buildings of the temple, the buildings referred to must have been the walls and fortifications surrounding the outer court and constituting the defenses of the temple. They were very massive and well calculated to excite the admiration of the Galilean disciples.
2. one stone upon another.—The reply of Jesus to the admiring expressions of the disciples was as brief as it was astonishing. With the simple statement that "there shall not be left here one stone upon another that shall not be thrown down," he dropped the subject until the astonished disciples brought it up again.
3. as he sat upon the mount.—Struck dumb by his announcement, the disciples seem to have said no more until, having climbed the slope of the Mount of Olives, on the way toward Bethany, Jesus took a seat and looked back over the city. Then they come to him "privately" and ask, "When shall these things be, and what shall be the sign of thy coming and of the end of the world?" Their question is twofold, having reference first to the time, and secondly to the sign by which they might know that the event was near. He had said nothing about his own coming or the end of the world, but they inferred from the strength of the temple walls that the time when all these stones would be thrown down could not be sooner than the end of the world and the second coming of the Son of man. So much of this inference as was incorrect he corrected in the course of his answer: for he makes a very clear distinction, as we will see, between the time of his final coming and that of the destruction of the temple. The question had been propounded by the four fishermen, Peter, James, John, and Andrew (Mark 13:3), and only these four were present to hear the remarkable discourse which begins with the fourth verse of this chapter and ends with chapter twenty-fifth.
Warning Against False Christs, 4; 5.
(Mark 13:5, 6; Luke 21:8
4, 5. many shall come.—They were to come previous to the end (Verse 6), and were to come claiming to be the Christ, thus denying the Christhood of Jesus. We have no history of the appearance of such persons, but this furnishes no evidence against the fulfillment of the prediction; for even Jesus does not appear in secular history until after his Church had become a power in the world; and as the false Christs left no institutions behind them, they naturally escaped the notice of the historians of the time.
Wars and Providential Calamities, 6-8.
(Mark 13:7, 8; Luke 21:9-11)
6, 7. wars and rumors of Wars.—Not wars in distant nations, but wars particularly affecting the Jews, as appears from the warning, "see that ye be not troubled" (verse 6), and from the fact that the coming trouble of the Jews was the subject of discourse. The nations and kingdoms which were to rise up against each other were those whose military movements would affect the peace of Judea. History is more satisfactory in reference to this prediction than in reference to the false Christs. Alford, in commenting on this paragraph, takes the pains to enumerate three threats of war made against the Jews by as many Roman emperors; three uprisings of Gentiles against Jews, in which many thousands of the latter perished; an indefinite number of famines referred to by Roman writers; at least one pestilence, during which thirty thousand persons perished in Rome alone; and five earthquakes. These have been gleaned from the writings of Josephus, Tacitus, Suetonius, and other unbelieving writers, and they sufficiently attest the literal fulfillment of the Savior's prediction. This fulfillment served the double purpose of answering as a sign in reference to the destruction of the temple, and of confirming the faith of the disciples in the foreknowledge of Jesus.
Sufferings and Success of the Disciples, 9-14.
(Mark 13:9-13; Luke 21:12-19)
9. Then shall they deliver you.—"Then" means, not after the preceding events, but at the time in which they are transpiring. The delivering up to be afflicted commenced with the imprisonment of Peter and John (Acts 4:1-3), and the killing, with the death of Stephen. These persecutions were cotemporary with the events of the preceding paragraph, and preceded "the end" mentioned in verse 6, Peter, James the elder, James the younger, Paul, and a great many who were not apostles, having been killed before the destruction of the temple.
hated of all nations.—That this part of the prediction was fulfilled, appears not only in the persecutions of the time, but in the statement of the Roman historian Tacitus, that the Christians were "a class of men hated on account of their crimes." (Annals, xv. 44.)
10. many be offended.—Many of the disciples themselves. The mere allusions to passing events which we find in the epistles give sufficient evidence that this prediction was fulfilled. For example, among the sufferings of Paul, were some at the hands of false brethren (2 Cor. 11:26); the Galatian disciples were taught by false teachers to regard him as an enemy (Gal. 4); and some persons in the church at Corinth denied his authority and sought to bring him into contempt (1 Cor. 9:1-4; 2 Cor. 10:1, 10).
11. many false prophets.—The epistles of Paul show that many false prophets did arise. He speaks of men in the Jerusalem church who were "false brethren unawares brought in, who came in privily to spy out our liberty." (Gal. 2:1-4.) In Corinth there were "false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ," and ministers of Satan transformed into ministers of righteousness. (2 Cor. 11:3-15)
The same apostle warns Timothy against similar characters (1 Tim. 1:3-7, 19, 20; 2 Tim. 3:8, 9), and to Titus he writes, "There are many unruly and vain talkers and deceivers, specially they of the circumcision; whose mouths must be stopped, who subvert whole houses, teaching things which they ought not for filthy lucre's sake." (Tit. 1:10, 11.) The testimony of Peter and Jude is also very explicit on the same point, for they speak in words of terrifying earnestness concerning bad characters infesting the churches, "wandering stars to whom is reserved the blackness of darkness forever." (Jude, and 2 Peter 2)
12. love of many shall wax cold.—It is the universal experience of the Church, that when iniquity abounds the love of many grows cold; and it is also true that under such circumstances the love of some grows warmer, thus reserving and concentrating a sufficient amount of warmth to produce a reaction by and by, and to save the body from utter destruction.
13. endure to the end.—The end here referred to is not the end of the city and the temple; for endurance to this end was impossible with those who were killed for the truth, and those who died a natural death; nor would endurance to the end of the city insure salvation, unless the salvation promised is salvation from the destruction of life attendant on the siege and sacking of the city; and to say that he who endured to the end of that destruction would be saved from it would be a mere truism. The end, then, is not the end mentioned before in verse 6, but the end of life; and the promise is, that he who would resist the false prophets, and would not allow his love to be cooled by the abounding iniquity, until the end of his life, would be saved. (See the same promise in 10:22.)
14. then shall the end come.—Here the nature of the case forbids us to understand "the end" as the end of life, just as, in the preceding verse, it requires this meaning. Here it is used again in the sense of verse 6, for the destruction of the temple, or, as the apostles had expressed it, "the end of the world" (ἀίων, age), verse 3. That the gospel was "preached in all the world" before that event, is declared by Paul when he says, "Be not moved away from the hope of the gospel, which you have heard, and which was preached to every creature which is under heaven." (Col. 1:23.) Of course the language of both Jesus and Paul must be understood with reference to the Geography of the earth as then known; and we should doubtless also understand Paul as meaning, not that every creature had actually heard the gospel, but that it had been preached so universally as to be accessible to all. Paul's declaration was written in the year 63 A. D., about seven years before "the end."
The Signal for Flight, 15-22.
(Mark 13:14-20; Luke 21:20-24)
15. the abomination of desolation.—Many conflicting interpretations of this passage have been suggested by the commentators (see Alford for a statement of them); but after considering them all, I am constrained to adopt the one most commonly received. It is derived from a comparison of this verse with the parallel in Luke, where the idea is expressed in unfigurative language: "When you shall see Jerusalem compassed with armies, then know that the desolation thereof is nigh." (Luke 21:20.) The armies referred to are unquestionably the Roman armies which finally besieged and destroyed the city. They are called the abomination of desolation because, being heathen armies, they were an abomination to the Jews, and because they brought desolation on the country. The "holy place" in which they were to stand is the holy territory round about the holy city. It is a remarkable confirmation of this interpretation, that Josephus attaches the same significance to the words in question. With evident reference to the "abomination of desolation spoken of by Daniel the prophet" (Dan. 11:31), he says, "Daniel also wrote concerning the Roman government, and that our country should be made desolate by them." (Antiquities, B. x. ch. xi. § 7.) whoso readeth.—This note of warning, which we also find in Mark's narrative, must be either a remark of Jesus addressed to the reader of Daniel, or a remark of the two evangelists addressed to their own readers. In favor of the latter supposition is the consideration that a reader of Daniel, unless guided by this speech of Jesus, could not understand the abomination of desolation as the sign which Jesus here makes it, while the reader of the gospel narrative would if he would only accept the words of Jesus. Moreover, Mark, in his report, does not mention the writings or name of Daniel (see Mark 13:14), and this makes it almost certain that this remark does not refer to the reading of Daniel. We conclude, then, that the parenthesis was thrown in by Matthew and Mark to fix the attention of their readers on the passage, so that those Christians who would be in Judea at the time might remember the sign and flee as here directed.
16. flee into the mountains.—This direction is give, not to men in general, but to Christians who would be "in Judea." They were to flee to the mountains, because there they would find the safest retreat from the bodies of armed men who would be desolating the land.
17-20. on the housetop... in the field.—In these verses are four admonitions, all indicating the haste with which the disciples were to flee to the mountains on the appearance of the "abomination of desolation." The man on the housetop was not to "take the things out of his house," because he would be delayed in packing them up, and the attempt to carry them would impede his flight. The man in the field was not even to go home for his extra clothing, for the same reason. Women with child and those with infants at the breast (19) would be unfortunate, because they could not flee rapidly. They were to pray that the flight should not be in the winter nor on the Sabbath-day, because the former would impede them by its rains, and the latter by the shortness of the Sabbath-day's journey. It is here noticeable that Jesus expected his Jewish disciples to continue, at least until after the destruction of the temple, to observe the Sabbath, and even the tradition in reference to a Sabbath-day's journey; and it is a fact that at least the chief part of them did so.
21. such as was not... nor ever shall be.—The statement that there would then be tribulation "such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be," is to be understood literally. It is fully confirmed by the narrative of Josephus, who was an eyewitness of the siege of Jerusalem. In order to appreciate the facts, it is necessary to read his very graphic account, and enter into all the details: we quote from him only the following expression of opinion, and call attention to the striking coincidence between it and the words of Jesus: "It appears to me that the misfortunes of all men from the beginning of the world, if they were compared to those of the Jews, are not so considerable as they were." (Preface to Wars, § 4.)
22. no flesh be saved.—As it is Jewish flesh alone whose sufferings are the subject of discourse, this passage means that but for the shortening of those days no Jewish flesh would be saved; and it follows that the elect, for whose sake those days were to be shortened, were the elect Jews, or Jewish Christians. The Romans made no distinction between believing and unbelieving Jews, but slaughtered all alike. The only safety for Christian Jews, then, was in flight, and even this might not have saved them but for the providences by which those days were "shortened."
Another Warning against False Christs and False Prophets, 23-28.
(Mark 13:21-23)
23, 24. false Christs and false prophets.—The former reference to these pretenders (verse 5) was indefinite as regards the time of their appearance, but this shows that some of them would appear at the time of flight just preceding the final catastrophe.
signs and wonders.—These may have been either pretended signs and wonders, or real signs and wonders of which these men pretended to give the interpretation. That a great many such signs and wonders and such prophets did appear during the siege of Jerusalem, and for some years previous, is attested by Josephus in the remarkable chapters already referred to under verse 21 above.
deceive the very elect.—The elect are those who would maintain their faith in Christ, and who, however they might be puzzled and distressed by the signs and wonders of the pretenders, could not be deceived into the recognition of false Christs. The believer in Jesus in all ages and countries has this advantage, that no pretenders can present credentials equal to his, nor give us ground for such confidence in them as we have in him.
25, 26. go not forth... believe it not.—The reference is not to the appearance of false Christs, but to reported appearances of the true Christ. (Comp. verse 27 below.) Jesus had said much about coming again, which was but imperfectly understood by his disciples, and it would be quite natural in times of great commotion and tribulation among his disciples for the report to go abroad that he had come.
27. as the lightning.—The comparison here introduced enforces the warning of the previous verse. Men will not need to be told, "Behold, he is in the desert;" or "Behold, he is in the secret chamber;" for his coming will be like lightning, in that it will shine forth instantly from the east to the west, and all men will see him at the same moment.
28. the carcass... the eagles.—There is nothing in the three verses next preceding this which can be represented by a carcass or by carrion birds (αέτοι, vultures) flocking to it. The reference is to the false Christs and false prophets of verse 24. The carcass is the decaying Jewish nation, and the eagles or vultures are the false Christs and false prophets who would flock together and prey upon the sufferings and fears of their countrymen. If the for (γαρ) is correctly omitted by the critics, this removes the appearance of close connection with the preceding verse, and tends to confirm our interpretation.
Argument of Section 5
It is impossible for a candid person to study the history of the Jewish nation from the death of Jesus to the destruction of Jerusalem, and compare it with the predictions contained in the preceding section, without being overwhelmed with the evidences which it furnishes of the divine foreknowledge of Jesus. And if such is the force of the evidence to us, who depend for our knowledge of the events on the fragmentary historical records which have come down to us, what must it have been to those who stood in the midst of the stirring events themselves, with the open pages of Matthew in their hands? As sign after sign appeared, they were able to read it in the book as plainly as they saw it with their eyes. We are not slow, therefore, to believe the statement of Eusebius, that the whole body of the church at Jerusalem removed from the city before the final siege began. (Ec. Hist. B. iii. ch. v.) Nor can we fail to recognize these fleeing Christians among those persons of whom Josephus speaks when he says, that "Many of the most eminent of the Jews swam away from the city as from a ship when it was going to sink." (B. ii. ch. xx. § 1.) This flight occurred at the very crisis at which Jesus had warned his disciples to flee to the mountains (verses 15-22); that is, after Cestius Gallus, having laid siege to Jerusalem, with every prospect of taking it, suddenly, as Josephus expresses it, "retired from the city without any reason in the world." (Book ii. ch. xix. §§ 6, 7.)
Second Coming of the Son of Man, 24:19-25:46
Description of His Coming, 29-31.
(Mark 13:24-27; Luke 21:25-27)
29. Immediately after.—The events of this paragraph were to take place "after the tribulation of those days;" that is, after the tribulation connected with the siege and sacking of Jerusalem already mentioned in verse 21. This makes it entirely certain that this coming of the Son of man did not take place during the siege of the city, nor at the time of its destruction. It is equally certain that they have not transpired since that time. It follows, therefore, that the term "immediately" must be understood in a modified sense. The difficulty in the case was anticipated by the apostle Peter when he wrote of the scoffers who would arise in the last days, and say, "Where is the promise of his coming? For since the fathers fell asleep all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation." The apostle answers, "Be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness." (2 Pet. 3:4-9.) This is equivalent to an inspired comment on the term in question, and proves that it is used in an unusual sense. It proves, in other words, that the one group of events was to be immediately after the other, not as it would appear to men, but as it appears to God.
sun be darkened.—Frequently in the Old Testament the darkening of the sun and moon is used as a symbol for the gloom which spreads over the country in a time of war, or pestilence, or other great public calamity. (See, for examples, Isa. 13:10; Joel 2:10.) But the words of the text correspond so strictly with other descriptions of the second coming as to leave but little probability that they have a figurative meaning. Peter declares that "the heavens shall pass away with a great noise" (2 Pet. 3:10); Paul says, "As a vesture thou shalt fold them up, and they shall be changed" (Heb. 1:12); and John, in his vision of the second coming, saw "a great white throne and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away, and there was found no place for them" (Rev. 20:11). The disappearance of the visible heavens and earth, so that something entirely different will appear in their places, is to occur simultaneously with the final coming of the Son of man.
30. the sign of the Son of man.—The sign is not something preceding his appearing, but the appearing is itself the sign. The term is used in its usual N. T. sense—that of a miraculous sign. Mark and Luke both use the words "they shall see the Son of man." (Mark 13:26; Luke 21:27.).
all the tribes mourn.—To those who are unprepared for it, this will be the most mournful of all days; and that all the tribes of the earth shall mourn, implies that portions, and perhaps large portions, of all tribes of men will be found thus unprepared. The term "all" is not to be construed as including all individuals. (1 Thess. 4:15-17.)
31. send his angels.—The fact that the angels will be employed in gathering together the elect from all parts of the earth, is declared both here and in the parable of the tares (Matt. 13:41); but in what way their ministry will be exercised to this end, we know not.
Parable of the Fig-tree, 32-35.
(Mark 13:28-31; Luke 21:29-33)
32, 33. So likewise.—The point of comparison in the parable is here clearly stated. As you know that summer is nigh when the fig-tree puts forth leaves, "so likewise" when you see "all these things" you will know that it is nigh. The comparison, however, is still obscure until we determine what things are included in "all these things," and what is meant by the it which was to be near when "all these things" had been seen. The object designated by it is one of the previously mentioned events, and yet it is distinguished from "all these things." The term all, then, is not to be construed as including every single event previously mentioned, seeing that one of them is expressly excluded. Furthermore, the fact that the occurrence of the other events was to be a sign that the excepted one was drawing near, shows that the latter was to be the last of the series. But the last event of the series is the coming of the Son of man, accompanied by the darkening of the heavenly bodies, and the gathering together of the saints. This is the event, then, which was to be near when all the others had been seen.
This conclusion is confirmed when we inquire for the grammatical antecedent of the pronoun it. The pronoun is not expressed in the original, but is understood, and its gender is to be determined by that of its antecedent. The antecedent must be either the word "coming" in the expression, "coming of the Son of man" (verse 27), or the word "Son" in the expression, "Son of man," in the more immediate context, verse 30. On either supposition the sense of the passage is the same; for when the Son of man is near, his coming is near; but the former reference requires the neuter pronoun it, as in our English text, while the latter requires the masculine pronoun he. The latter is the more natural and obvious, and is, I think, the correct reference, and the text should be rendered, "So likewise, when ye shall see all these things, know that he is near, even at the door." This rendering is not only required by the syntax of the passage, but it also makes the passage more harmonious within itself. It is persons that come to the door, and are "even at the door," and not events. Such language can be used in reference to events only when the events are personified. The passage, then, taught the disciples that when they should have seen all of the preceding events except the chief one, which was the Son of man coming in the clouds, they might know that he was near. His coming would still be in the future, but it would be near at hand, in that same divine sense in which it was to be "immediately after the tribulation of those days."
34. This generation.—Some very superior scholars understand the word rendered generation (γενεὰ) to mean race and the passage to mean, this Jewish race shall not pass away till all these things be fulfilled. (See Alford.) But, as we have just seen, the expression "all these things" designates things to be witnessed and experienced by the Jews, and it would be a mere truism to say that their race would not pass away till all of their own experiences had terminated. The true key to the interpretation of this much disputed passage is found in the expression "all these things," repeated from the preceding verse. It must here have the same meaning as there; for an identical expression repeated in consecutive sentences always has the same meaning, except when something is introduced in the new connection to force upon it a different meaning. There is certainly nothing of the kind here. We therefore conclude, that in the two statements, "This generation shall not pass till all these things be fulfilled," and, "When ye see all these things, know that he is near," the expression all these things has the same meaning. But in the latter instance, as we have shown under verse 33, it means all the events previously mentioned in the speech except the coming of the Son of man. This last event, then, is not included in "all these things; "and it is not one of the things which were to take place before that generation passed away.
35. not pass away.—The declaration contained in this verse is intended to emphasize the absolute certainty of all that Jesus had just predicted. The passing away of prophetic words would be their passing into oblivion through failure to be fulfilled.
Uncertainty of the Day, 36-41.
(Mark 13:32-37; Luke 21:34-36)
36. of that day and hour.—The day and hour of the coming of the Son of man. This is clear, both from the fact that this coming is the subject of remark in the two preceding paragraphs (29-35), and from the fact that after asserting that no man knows the hour, he adds, "But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be." (37.) The object of this remark, and of the entire paragraph, was to prevent a misconception of the previous remarks that his coming would be "immediately after the tribulation of those days," and that when they should have seen all of the signs given, they might "know that he is near, even at the door." It was to prevent the strict construction of those words which has been the mistake of many expositors, both ancient and modern.
37-39. as the days of Noe.—The point of comparison with the days of Noah is not the wickedness of the world at the time of the second coming, for all the practices mentioned, eating, drinking, marrying, and giving in marriage, are in themselves innocent. But it is the suddenness with which the event will come to an unexpecting world. As "they knew not until the flood came and took them all away, so shall the coming of the Son of man be."
40, 41. one taken, the other left.—One changed in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye (1 Cor. 15:52), and then caught up into the clouds to meet the Lord in the air (1 Thess. 4:17); the other left to be consumed in the conflagration of the earth (2 Pet. 3:10), and then called up to the resurrection of condemnation (John 5:29).
41. two women grinding.—The millstones of the ancients were turned by hand. In the upper millstone and near its edge was inserted a wooden pin which served as a handle. Two persons, seated on opposite sides of the mill, gave this stone the necessary rotation by alternately seizing the handle and each turning it halfway around.
Watchfulness Enjoined, 42-51
42. Watch therefore.—The exhortation to watchfulness is based on the uncertainty of the day as declared in the previous paragraph and here repeated for the sake of emphasis: "for you know not what day your Lord doth come." Unlike the day of the destruction of Jerusalem, there is no sign by which its near approach will be certainly known.
43, 44. he would have watched.—The comparison between the coming of Jesus and that of a thief is the more striking from the dissimilarity between the two characters. There is but one point of comparison—the uncertainty of the time of their coming. As the goodman of the house, had he known what hour the thief would come, would have watched and have prevented his house from being broken into, so we, by watching for the coming of the Son of man, may prevent it from finding us unprepared.
45-47. faithful and wise servant.—The figure is now changed from that of a householder watching against a thief, to that of a servant appointed in his master's absence to take the oversight of his fellow-servants. This servant represents persons who, like the apostles whom Jesus was addressing, occupy positions of authority in the Church. The words, "he shall make him ruler over all his goods," are descriptive of the literal promotion of the faithful servant, and indicate that a promotion analogous to this will be enjoyed by the faithful officer in the Church. The number of faithful ones who will be found will prevent a literal promotion of each one over all the Master's goods; hence this point in the parable is not a point of significance in the interpretation.
48-51. that evil servant.—From the reward of the faithful servant the speaker here passes to the fate of the evil servant, still retaining the idea of one in authority. The evil servant, encouraged by the apparent delay of his master's coming to think that all danger is in the distance, begins to exercise tyranny and to give himself to dissipation. His master comes upon him unexpectedly, and punishes him with the utmost severity. In stating the punishment, Jesus passes from the figure to the reality, and merges the parable in the description: cutting him asunder (51) terminates the parable which had been itself almost a description, and the description begins with appointing him his portion with the hypocrites, where shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. At this point it may be well to remind the reader that all the warnings in reference to his second coming, given by Jesus in the preceding as well as in the following divisions of this discourse, are equally applicable to our departure to meet him. Whether he first comes to us, or we first go to him, the result will be the same, for as we are at death we will be at his coming, seeing that it is concerning the deeds done in the body that we will be judged. (2 Cor. 5:10.)
The New Testament Commentary: Vol. I - Matthew and Mark.
Occasion of the Prediction, 1-3.
(Mark 13:1-4; Luke 21:5-7)
1. went out and departed.—Went out of the temple and departed from its vicinity. This was his final departure from the temple, and the preceding discourse denunciatory of the scribes and Pharisees contained the last words which he spoke therein—sad foreshadowing of the doom which impended over the unhappy city.
to show him the buildings.—As he had already departed from the temple when the disciples came to show him the buildings of the temple, the buildings referred to must have been the walls and fortifications surrounding the outer court and constituting the defenses of the temple. They were very massive and well calculated to excite the admiration of the Galilean disciples.
2. one stone upon another.—The reply of Jesus to the admiring expressions of the disciples was as brief as it was astonishing. With the simple statement that "there shall not be left here one stone upon another that shall not be thrown down," he dropped the subject until the astonished disciples brought it up again.
3. as he sat upon the mount.—Struck dumb by his announcement, the disciples seem to have said no more until, having climbed the slope of the Mount of Olives, on the way toward Bethany, Jesus took a seat and looked back over the city. Then they come to him "privately" and ask, "When shall these things be, and what shall be the sign of thy coming and of the end of the world?" Their question is twofold, having reference first to the time, and secondly to the sign by which they might know that the event was near. He had said nothing about his own coming or the end of the world, but they inferred from the strength of the temple walls that the time when all these stones would be thrown down could not be sooner than the end of the world and the second coming of the Son of man. So much of this inference as was incorrect he corrected in the course of his answer: for he makes a very clear distinction, as we will see, between the time of his final coming and that of the destruction of the temple. The question had been propounded by the four fishermen, Peter, James, John, and Andrew (Mark 13:3), and only these four were present to hear the remarkable discourse which begins with the fourth verse of this chapter and ends with chapter twenty-fifth.
Warning Against False Christs, 4; 5.
(Mark 13:5, 6; Luke 21:8
4, 5. many shall come.—They were to come previous to the end (Verse 6), and were to come claiming to be the Christ, thus denying the Christhood of Jesus. We have no history of the appearance of such persons, but this furnishes no evidence against the fulfillment of the prediction; for even Jesus does not appear in secular history until after his Church had become a power in the world; and as the false Christs left no institutions behind them, they naturally escaped the notice of the historians of the time.
Wars and Providential Calamities, 6-8.
(Mark 13:7, 8; Luke 21:9-11)
6, 7. wars and rumors of Wars.—Not wars in distant nations, but wars particularly affecting the Jews, as appears from the warning, "see that ye be not troubled" (verse 6), and from the fact that the coming trouble of the Jews was the subject of discourse. The nations and kingdoms which were to rise up against each other were those whose military movements would affect the peace of Judea. History is more satisfactory in reference to this prediction than in reference to the false Christs. Alford, in commenting on this paragraph, takes the pains to enumerate three threats of war made against the Jews by as many Roman emperors; three uprisings of Gentiles against Jews, in which many thousands of the latter perished; an indefinite number of famines referred to by Roman writers; at least one pestilence, during which thirty thousand persons perished in Rome alone; and five earthquakes. These have been gleaned from the writings of Josephus, Tacitus, Suetonius, and other unbelieving writers, and they sufficiently attest the literal fulfillment of the Savior's prediction. This fulfillment served the double purpose of answering as a sign in reference to the destruction of the temple, and of confirming the faith of the disciples in the foreknowledge of Jesus.
Sufferings and Success of the Disciples, 9-14.
(Mark 13:9-13; Luke 21:12-19)
9. Then shall they deliver you.—"Then" means, not after the preceding events, but at the time in which they are transpiring. The delivering up to be afflicted commenced with the imprisonment of Peter and John (Acts 4:1-3), and the killing, with the death of Stephen. These persecutions were cotemporary with the events of the preceding paragraph, and preceded "the end" mentioned in verse 6, Peter, James the elder, James the younger, Paul, and a great many who were not apostles, having been killed before the destruction of the temple.
hated of all nations.—That this part of the prediction was fulfilled, appears not only in the persecutions of the time, but in the statement of the Roman historian Tacitus, that the Christians were "a class of men hated on account of their crimes." (Annals, xv. 44.)
10. many be offended.—Many of the disciples themselves. The mere allusions to passing events which we find in the epistles give sufficient evidence that this prediction was fulfilled. For example, among the sufferings of Paul, were some at the hands of false brethren (2 Cor. 11:26); the Galatian disciples were taught by false teachers to regard him as an enemy (Gal. 4); and some persons in the church at Corinth denied his authority and sought to bring him into contempt (1 Cor. 9:1-4; 2 Cor. 10:1, 10).
11. many false prophets.—The epistles of Paul show that many false prophets did arise. He speaks of men in the Jerusalem church who were "false brethren unawares brought in, who came in privily to spy out our liberty." (Gal. 2:1-4.) In Corinth there were "false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ," and ministers of Satan transformed into ministers of righteousness. (2 Cor. 11:3-15)
The same apostle warns Timothy against similar characters (1 Tim. 1:3-7, 19, 20; 2 Tim. 3:8, 9), and to Titus he writes, "There are many unruly and vain talkers and deceivers, specially they of the circumcision; whose mouths must be stopped, who subvert whole houses, teaching things which they ought not for filthy lucre's sake." (Tit. 1:10, 11.) The testimony of Peter and Jude is also very explicit on the same point, for they speak in words of terrifying earnestness concerning bad characters infesting the churches, "wandering stars to whom is reserved the blackness of darkness forever." (Jude, and 2 Peter 2)
12. love of many shall wax cold.—It is the universal experience of the Church, that when iniquity abounds the love of many grows cold; and it is also true that under such circumstances the love of some grows warmer, thus reserving and concentrating a sufficient amount of warmth to produce a reaction by and by, and to save the body from utter destruction.
13. endure to the end.—The end here referred to is not the end of the city and the temple; for endurance to this end was impossible with those who were killed for the truth, and those who died a natural death; nor would endurance to the end of the city insure salvation, unless the salvation promised is salvation from the destruction of life attendant on the siege and sacking of the city; and to say that he who endured to the end of that destruction would be saved from it would be a mere truism. The end, then, is not the end mentioned before in verse 6, but the end of life; and the promise is, that he who would resist the false prophets, and would not allow his love to be cooled by the abounding iniquity, until the end of his life, would be saved. (See the same promise in 10:22.)
14. then shall the end come.—Here the nature of the case forbids us to understand "the end" as the end of life, just as, in the preceding verse, it requires this meaning. Here it is used again in the sense of verse 6, for the destruction of the temple, or, as the apostles had expressed it, "the end of the world" (ἀίων, age), verse 3. That the gospel was "preached in all the world" before that event, is declared by Paul when he says, "Be not moved away from the hope of the gospel, which you have heard, and which was preached to every creature which is under heaven." (Col. 1:23.) Of course the language of both Jesus and Paul must be understood with reference to the Geography of the earth as then known; and we should doubtless also understand Paul as meaning, not that every creature had actually heard the gospel, but that it had been preached so universally as to be accessible to all. Paul's declaration was written in the year 63 A. D., about seven years before "the end."
The Signal for Flight, 15-22.
(Mark 13:14-20; Luke 21:20-24)
15. the abomination of desolation.—Many conflicting interpretations of this passage have been suggested by the commentators (see Alford for a statement of them); but after considering them all, I am constrained to adopt the one most commonly received. It is derived from a comparison of this verse with the parallel in Luke, where the idea is expressed in unfigurative language: "When you shall see Jerusalem compassed with armies, then know that the desolation thereof is nigh." (Luke 21:20.) The armies referred to are unquestionably the Roman armies which finally besieged and destroyed the city. They are called the abomination of desolation because, being heathen armies, they were an abomination to the Jews, and because they brought desolation on the country. The "holy place" in which they were to stand is the holy territory round about the holy city. It is a remarkable confirmation of this interpretation, that Josephus attaches the same significance to the words in question. With evident reference to the "abomination of desolation spoken of by Daniel the prophet" (Dan. 11:31), he says, "Daniel also wrote concerning the Roman government, and that our country should be made desolate by them." (Antiquities, B. x. ch. xi. § 7.) whoso readeth.—This note of warning, which we also find in Mark's narrative, must be either a remark of Jesus addressed to the reader of Daniel, or a remark of the two evangelists addressed to their own readers. In favor of the latter supposition is the consideration that a reader of Daniel, unless guided by this speech of Jesus, could not understand the abomination of desolation as the sign which Jesus here makes it, while the reader of the gospel narrative would if he would only accept the words of Jesus. Moreover, Mark, in his report, does not mention the writings or name of Daniel (see Mark 13:14), and this makes it almost certain that this remark does not refer to the reading of Daniel. We conclude, then, that the parenthesis was thrown in by Matthew and Mark to fix the attention of their readers on the passage, so that those Christians who would be in Judea at the time might remember the sign and flee as here directed.
16. flee into the mountains.—This direction is give, not to men in general, but to Christians who would be "in Judea." They were to flee to the mountains, because there they would find the safest retreat from the bodies of armed men who would be desolating the land.
17-20. on the housetop... in the field.—In these verses are four admonitions, all indicating the haste with which the disciples were to flee to the mountains on the appearance of the "abomination of desolation." The man on the housetop was not to "take the things out of his house," because he would be delayed in packing them up, and the attempt to carry them would impede his flight. The man in the field was not even to go home for his extra clothing, for the same reason. Women with child and those with infants at the breast (19) would be unfortunate, because they could not flee rapidly. They were to pray that the flight should not be in the winter nor on the Sabbath-day, because the former would impede them by its rains, and the latter by the shortness of the Sabbath-day's journey. It is here noticeable that Jesus expected his Jewish disciples to continue, at least until after the destruction of the temple, to observe the Sabbath, and even the tradition in reference to a Sabbath-day's journey; and it is a fact that at least the chief part of them did so.
21. such as was not... nor ever shall be.—The statement that there would then be tribulation "such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be," is to be understood literally. It is fully confirmed by the narrative of Josephus, who was an eyewitness of the siege of Jerusalem. In order to appreciate the facts, it is necessary to read his very graphic account, and enter into all the details: we quote from him only the following expression of opinion, and call attention to the striking coincidence between it and the words of Jesus: "It appears to me that the misfortunes of all men from the beginning of the world, if they were compared to those of the Jews, are not so considerable as they were." (Preface to Wars, § 4.)
22. no flesh be saved.—As it is Jewish flesh alone whose sufferings are the subject of discourse, this passage means that but for the shortening of those days no Jewish flesh would be saved; and it follows that the elect, for whose sake those days were to be shortened, were the elect Jews, or Jewish Christians. The Romans made no distinction between believing and unbelieving Jews, but slaughtered all alike. The only safety for Christian Jews, then, was in flight, and even this might not have saved them but for the providences by which those days were "shortened."
Another Warning against False Christs and False Prophets, 23-28.
(Mark 13:21-23)
23, 24. false Christs and false prophets.—The former reference to these pretenders (verse 5) was indefinite as regards the time of their appearance, but this shows that some of them would appear at the time of flight just preceding the final catastrophe.
signs and wonders.—These may have been either pretended signs and wonders, or real signs and wonders of which these men pretended to give the interpretation. That a great many such signs and wonders and such prophets did appear during the siege of Jerusalem, and for some years previous, is attested by Josephus in the remarkable chapters already referred to under verse 21 above.
deceive the very elect.—The elect are those who would maintain their faith in Christ, and who, however they might be puzzled and distressed by the signs and wonders of the pretenders, could not be deceived into the recognition of false Christs. The believer in Jesus in all ages and countries has this advantage, that no pretenders can present credentials equal to his, nor give us ground for such confidence in them as we have in him.
25, 26. go not forth... believe it not.—The reference is not to the appearance of false Christs, but to reported appearances of the true Christ. (Comp. verse 27 below.) Jesus had said much about coming again, which was but imperfectly understood by his disciples, and it would be quite natural in times of great commotion and tribulation among his disciples for the report to go abroad that he had come.
27. as the lightning.—The comparison here introduced enforces the warning of the previous verse. Men will not need to be told, "Behold, he is in the desert;" or "Behold, he is in the secret chamber;" for his coming will be like lightning, in that it will shine forth instantly from the east to the west, and all men will see him at the same moment.
28. the carcass... the eagles.—There is nothing in the three verses next preceding this which can be represented by a carcass or by carrion birds (αέτοι, vultures) flocking to it. The reference is to the false Christs and false prophets of verse 24. The carcass is the decaying Jewish nation, and the eagles or vultures are the false Christs and false prophets who would flock together and prey upon the sufferings and fears of their countrymen. If the for (γαρ) is correctly omitted by the critics, this removes the appearance of close connection with the preceding verse, and tends to confirm our interpretation.
Argument of Section 5
It is impossible for a candid person to study the history of the Jewish nation from the death of Jesus to the destruction of Jerusalem, and compare it with the predictions contained in the preceding section, without being overwhelmed with the evidences which it furnishes of the divine foreknowledge of Jesus. And if such is the force of the evidence to us, who depend for our knowledge of the events on the fragmentary historical records which have come down to us, what must it have been to those who stood in the midst of the stirring events themselves, with the open pages of Matthew in their hands? As sign after sign appeared, they were able to read it in the book as plainly as they saw it with their eyes. We are not slow, therefore, to believe the statement of Eusebius, that the whole body of the church at Jerusalem removed from the city before the final siege began. (Ec. Hist. B. iii. ch. v.) Nor can we fail to recognize these fleeing Christians among those persons of whom Josephus speaks when he says, that "Many of the most eminent of the Jews swam away from the city as from a ship when it was going to sink." (B. ii. ch. xx. § 1.) This flight occurred at the very crisis at which Jesus had warned his disciples to flee to the mountains (verses 15-22); that is, after Cestius Gallus, having laid siege to Jerusalem, with every prospect of taking it, suddenly, as Josephus expresses it, "retired from the city without any reason in the world." (Book ii. ch. xix. §§ 6, 7.)
Second Coming of the Son of Man, 24:19-25:46
Description of His Coming, 29-31.
(Mark 13:24-27; Luke 21:25-27)
29. Immediately after.—The events of this paragraph were to take place "after the tribulation of those days;" that is, after the tribulation connected with the siege and sacking of Jerusalem already mentioned in verse 21. This makes it entirely certain that this coming of the Son of man did not take place during the siege of the city, nor at the time of its destruction. It is equally certain that they have not transpired since that time. It follows, therefore, that the term "immediately" must be understood in a modified sense. The difficulty in the case was anticipated by the apostle Peter when he wrote of the scoffers who would arise in the last days, and say, "Where is the promise of his coming? For since the fathers fell asleep all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation." The apostle answers, "Be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness." (2 Pet. 3:4-9.) This is equivalent to an inspired comment on the term in question, and proves that it is used in an unusual sense. It proves, in other words, that the one group of events was to be immediately after the other, not as it would appear to men, but as it appears to God.
sun be darkened.—Frequently in the Old Testament the darkening of the sun and moon is used as a symbol for the gloom which spreads over the country in a time of war, or pestilence, or other great public calamity. (See, for examples, Isa. 13:10; Joel 2:10.) But the words of the text correspond so strictly with other descriptions of the second coming as to leave but little probability that they have a figurative meaning. Peter declares that "the heavens shall pass away with a great noise" (2 Pet. 3:10); Paul says, "As a vesture thou shalt fold them up, and they shall be changed" (Heb. 1:12); and John, in his vision of the second coming, saw "a great white throne and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away, and there was found no place for them" (Rev. 20:11). The disappearance of the visible heavens and earth, so that something entirely different will appear in their places, is to occur simultaneously with the final coming of the Son of man.
30. the sign of the Son of man.—The sign is not something preceding his appearing, but the appearing is itself the sign. The term is used in its usual N. T. sense—that of a miraculous sign. Mark and Luke both use the words "they shall see the Son of man." (Mark 13:26; Luke 21:27.).
all the tribes mourn.—To those who are unprepared for it, this will be the most mournful of all days; and that all the tribes of the earth shall mourn, implies that portions, and perhaps large portions, of all tribes of men will be found thus unprepared. The term "all" is not to be construed as including all individuals. (1 Thess. 4:15-17.)
31. send his angels.—The fact that the angels will be employed in gathering together the elect from all parts of the earth, is declared both here and in the parable of the tares (Matt. 13:41); but in what way their ministry will be exercised to this end, we know not.
Parable of the Fig-tree, 32-35.
(Mark 13:28-31; Luke 21:29-33)
32, 33. So likewise.—The point of comparison in the parable is here clearly stated. As you know that summer is nigh when the fig-tree puts forth leaves, "so likewise" when you see "all these things" you will know that it is nigh. The comparison, however, is still obscure until we determine what things are included in "all these things," and what is meant by the it which was to be near when "all these things" had been seen. The object designated by it is one of the previously mentioned events, and yet it is distinguished from "all these things." The term all, then, is not to be construed as including every single event previously mentioned, seeing that one of them is expressly excluded. Furthermore, the fact that the occurrence of the other events was to be a sign that the excepted one was drawing near, shows that the latter was to be the last of the series. But the last event of the series is the coming of the Son of man, accompanied by the darkening of the heavenly bodies, and the gathering together of the saints. This is the event, then, which was to be near when all the others had been seen.
This conclusion is confirmed when we inquire for the grammatical antecedent of the pronoun it. The pronoun is not expressed in the original, but is understood, and its gender is to be determined by that of its antecedent. The antecedent must be either the word "coming" in the expression, "coming of the Son of man" (verse 27), or the word "Son" in the expression, "Son of man," in the more immediate context, verse 30. On either supposition the sense of the passage is the same; for when the Son of man is near, his coming is near; but the former reference requires the neuter pronoun it, as in our English text, while the latter requires the masculine pronoun he. The latter is the more natural and obvious, and is, I think, the correct reference, and the text should be rendered, "So likewise, when ye shall see all these things, know that he is near, even at the door." This rendering is not only required by the syntax of the passage, but it also makes the passage more harmonious within itself. It is persons that come to the door, and are "even at the door," and not events. Such language can be used in reference to events only when the events are personified. The passage, then, taught the disciples that when they should have seen all of the preceding events except the chief one, which was the Son of man coming in the clouds, they might know that he was near. His coming would still be in the future, but it would be near at hand, in that same divine sense in which it was to be "immediately after the tribulation of those days."
34. This generation.—Some very superior scholars understand the word rendered generation (γενεὰ) to mean race and the passage to mean, this Jewish race shall not pass away till all these things be fulfilled. (See Alford.) But, as we have just seen, the expression "all these things" designates things to be witnessed and experienced by the Jews, and it would be a mere truism to say that their race would not pass away till all of their own experiences had terminated. The true key to the interpretation of this much disputed passage is found in the expression "all these things," repeated from the preceding verse. It must here have the same meaning as there; for an identical expression repeated in consecutive sentences always has the same meaning, except when something is introduced in the new connection to force upon it a different meaning. There is certainly nothing of the kind here. We therefore conclude, that in the two statements, "This generation shall not pass till all these things be fulfilled," and, "When ye see all these things, know that he is near," the expression all these things has the same meaning. But in the latter instance, as we have shown under verse 33, it means all the events previously mentioned in the speech except the coming of the Son of man. This last event, then, is not included in "all these things; "and it is not one of the things which were to take place before that generation passed away.
35. not pass away.—The declaration contained in this verse is intended to emphasize the absolute certainty of all that Jesus had just predicted. The passing away of prophetic words would be their passing into oblivion through failure to be fulfilled.
Uncertainty of the Day, 36-41.
(Mark 13:32-37; Luke 21:34-36)
36. of that day and hour.—The day and hour of the coming of the Son of man. This is clear, both from the fact that this coming is the subject of remark in the two preceding paragraphs (29-35), and from the fact that after asserting that no man knows the hour, he adds, "But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be." (37.) The object of this remark, and of the entire paragraph, was to prevent a misconception of the previous remarks that his coming would be "immediately after the tribulation of those days," and that when they should have seen all of the signs given, they might "know that he is near, even at the door." It was to prevent the strict construction of those words which has been the mistake of many expositors, both ancient and modern.
37-39. as the days of Noe.—The point of comparison with the days of Noah is not the wickedness of the world at the time of the second coming, for all the practices mentioned, eating, drinking, marrying, and giving in marriage, are in themselves innocent. But it is the suddenness with which the event will come to an unexpecting world. As "they knew not until the flood came and took them all away, so shall the coming of the Son of man be."
40, 41. one taken, the other left.—One changed in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye (1 Cor. 15:52), and then caught up into the clouds to meet the Lord in the air (1 Thess. 4:17); the other left to be consumed in the conflagration of the earth (2 Pet. 3:10), and then called up to the resurrection of condemnation (John 5:29).
41. two women grinding.—The millstones of the ancients were turned by hand. In the upper millstone and near its edge was inserted a wooden pin which served as a handle. Two persons, seated on opposite sides of the mill, gave this stone the necessary rotation by alternately seizing the handle and each turning it halfway around.
Watchfulness Enjoined, 42-51
42. Watch therefore.—The exhortation to watchfulness is based on the uncertainty of the day as declared in the previous paragraph and here repeated for the sake of emphasis: "for you know not what day your Lord doth come." Unlike the day of the destruction of Jerusalem, there is no sign by which its near approach will be certainly known.
43, 44. he would have watched.—The comparison between the coming of Jesus and that of a thief is the more striking from the dissimilarity between the two characters. There is but one point of comparison—the uncertainty of the time of their coming. As the goodman of the house, had he known what hour the thief would come, would have watched and have prevented his house from being broken into, so we, by watching for the coming of the Son of man, may prevent it from finding us unprepared.
45-47. faithful and wise servant.—The figure is now changed from that of a householder watching against a thief, to that of a servant appointed in his master's absence to take the oversight of his fellow-servants. This servant represents persons who, like the apostles whom Jesus was addressing, occupy positions of authority in the Church. The words, "he shall make him ruler over all his goods," are descriptive of the literal promotion of the faithful servant, and indicate that a promotion analogous to this will be enjoyed by the faithful officer in the Church. The number of faithful ones who will be found will prevent a literal promotion of each one over all the Master's goods; hence this point in the parable is not a point of significance in the interpretation.
48-51. that evil servant.—From the reward of the faithful servant the speaker here passes to the fate of the evil servant, still retaining the idea of one in authority. The evil servant, encouraged by the apparent delay of his master's coming to think that all danger is in the distance, begins to exercise tyranny and to give himself to dissipation. His master comes upon him unexpectedly, and punishes him with the utmost severity. In stating the punishment, Jesus passes from the figure to the reality, and merges the parable in the description: cutting him asunder (51) terminates the parable which had been itself almost a description, and the description begins with appointing him his portion with the hypocrites, where shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. At this point it may be well to remind the reader that all the warnings in reference to his second coming, given by Jesus in the preceding as well as in the following divisions of this discourse, are equally applicable to our departure to meet him. Whether he first comes to us, or we first go to him, the result will be the same, for as we are at death we will be at his coming, seeing that it is concerning the deeds done in the body that we will be judged. (2 Cor. 5:10.)
The New Testament Commentary: Vol. I - Matthew and Mark.