Matthew 24:15-21

Jesus' Answer To The Question As To When The Destruction of the Temple That They Had Been Surveying Would Take Place (24:15-21).

We should note first that what is described here refers to the Jews only. Reference is made to ‘those in Judaea', and to those who would not flee on the Sabbath. And escape is thus found in the neighbouring mountains. So this ‘great tribulation' is initially localised in Palestine.

Secondly we should note that this is the only part of Jesus' dissertation which could possibly be the answer to the question as to when the Temple would be destroyed, and as the purpose for giving the question in Matthew 24:3 must be in order to answer it, the answer must be somewhere.

Nevertheless we should note that ‘the holy place' must probably at least initially be seen as referring to Jerusalem, ‘the holy city', for Luke's or Jesus' interpretation of ‘the appalling horror standing where it ought not' is ‘Jerusalem surrounded by armies' (Luke 21:20). And that is so even though the phrase ‘the holy place' can also refer to the Temple on the lips of Jews (see Acts 6:13; Acts 21:28). But in fact ‘the holy city' was called ‘holy' precisely because it contained the Temple with its worship (Psalms 46:4), and the Jews certainly saw Jerusalem as ‘holy'. Jesus thus clearly wanted His disciples to recognise that it was at this time of the investment of Jerusalem that the Temple would be torn down. The consequential sacrilegious destruction of the Temple is thus assumed from the description.

The standards, containing images of the god-emperor and images of an eagle, to which the Roman soldiers offered a kind of worship explain the use of the word ‘Horror', for the word often refers to idolatry, which by this time was a horror to all good Jews. And once the city and the Temple were in process of being taken that would certainly be the time to flee, for once they were finally taken Roman reprisals would range far and wide, and might even do so while the siege was going on, on any Jews who could be found. The Romans were not noted for their mercy to rebels. Thus all in Judaea are advised to flee at the first signs of the investment of Jerusalem.

Analysis.

a “When therefore you see the desolating abomination (or ‘the appalling horror') which was spoken of through Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place (let him who reads understand)” (Matthew 24:15).

b “Then let those who are in Judaea flee to the mountains” (Matthew 24:16).

c “Let him who is on the housetop not go down to take out things that are in his house” (Matthew 24:17).

c “And let him who is in the field not return back to take his cloak” (Matthew 24:18).

c “But woe to those who are with child and to those who are breast-feeding in those days!” (Matthew 24:19).

b “And pray you that your flight be not in the winter, nor on a sabbath” (Matthew 24:20).

a “For then will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, nor ever will be” (Matthew 24:21).

Note that in ‘a' the appalling horror will stand in the holy place, and in the parallel this is to result in unparalleled tribulation. In ‘b' those in Judaea are to flee to the mountains, and in the parallel they are to pray that their flight not be at an inconvenient time. Centrally and repeated threefold in ‘c' are the warnings and woe on those caught up in the events.