The Olivet Discourse - Matthew 24 and 25
Matthew Text
Comments & Revelation text
Jesus Foretells Destruction of the Temple
24:1
Then
Jesus
went
out
and
departed
from
the
temple,
and
His
disciples came up to show Him the buildings of the temple.
2
And
Jesus
said
to
them,
"Do
you
not
see
all
these
things?
Assuredly,
I
say
to
you,
not
one
stone
shall
be
left
here
upon
another, that shall not be thrown down."
His
disciples,
perhaps
reeling
from
the
preceding
exchanges
and
wanting
to
lighten
the
situation,
brings
Jesus’
attention
to
the
magnificence
of
the
temple,
only
to
be
told
it
will
be
destroyed.
This
prophecy
was
literally
fulfilled
in
A.D.
70
when
the
Romans
destroyed Jerusalem.
Signs of the End of the Age
3
Now
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?"
Mark
13:3
tells
us
it
was
Peter,
James,
John
and
Andrew
that
approached
Jesus
privately.
They
asked
“when
shall
these
things
be?”,
clearly
referring
to
the
destruction
of
the
temple.
The
question
“what
shall
be
the
sign
of
Your
coming”
was
asked
because
Jesus
said
the
Jews
would
not
see
him
again
until
they
acknowledged
him
as
the
Messiah.
You
might
wonder
why
the
disciples
would
ask
about
the
end
of
the
world,
but
the
sign
of
the
end
of
the
“world”
in
the
KJV
is
not
a
good
translation.
The
Greek
word
aion
(G165)
is
better
translated
as
“age”.
This
makes
sense
because
the
“end
of
the
age”
for
the
Jews
would
be
when
the
Messiah
comes,
and
Jesus
said
he
would
not
come
again
until
they
acknowledged
him
as
their
messiah.
Also,
the
destruction
of
the
temple
would
mean
that
the
Jews
could
no
longer
perform
their
sacrificial
ordinances.
To
them,
this
would
be
the
end
of
an
age.
The
disciples’
questions
then
were
very
relevant at that time.
However,
Jesus
didn’t
answer
their
first
question
but
talked
about
the
signs
of
his
second
coming,
which
we
know
is
at
the
end-times.
This
is
confirmed
by
the
use
of
the
word
‘end’
in
verses
6,
13
and
14.
Here,
the
word
used
for
‘end’
is
telos
(G5056),
which
means
exactly
what
you
would
expect
it
to
mean.
Jesus’
response
was
relevant
to
events
they
would
experience, but we can see they also relate to end-times.
The beginning of birth pangs
4 And Jesus answered and said to them: "Take heed that no one deceives you. 5 For many will come in My name, saying, 'I am the Christ,' and will deceive many. 6 And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. 7 For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places. 8 All these are the beginning of sorrows.
Of
these
verses,
4
to
7
parallel
the
four
horsemen
of
the
apocalypse in Revelation 6:
Rev 6:1,2
First seal
- The white horse; a false Christ
Rev 6:3,4 Second seal
- The red horse; wars
Rev 6:5,6 Third seal
-The black horse; famines
Rev 6:7,8
Fourth seal
- The pale horse; death
Jesus
calls
these
events
“the
beginning
of
sorrows”,
or,
“birth
pains”
in
some
translations,
and
represents
the
first
half
of
the
tribulation period.
Here
Jesus
refers
us
to
“the
abomination
of
desolation,
spoken
of
by
Daniel
the
prophet”
and
requires
us
to
understand
it.
Here
are three examples of the abomination of desolation in Daniel:
Daniel 9:27 tells us when the abomination will occur
Daniel 11:31 tells us how the abomination will occur
Daniel 12:11 tells us how long the abomination will be in place
From
Daniel
9:27
we
know
this
will
be
halfway
through
the
end-
time
period
of
seven
years,
and
is
the
beginning
of
the
‘great
tribulation’
The Abomination of Desolation
The Great Tribulation developed Mat 24:15 "Therefore when you see the 'ABOMINATION OF DESOLATION,' spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place" (whoever reads, let him understand), 16 "then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. 17 Let him who is on the housetop not go down to take anything out of his house. 18 And let him who is in the field not go back to get his clothes. 19 But woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days! 20 And pray that your flight may not be in winter or on the Sabbath. .
Matthew 24:15-28 focus on the great tribulation.
Verses
15-20
mark
the
midpoint
of
the
Tribulation
when
the
Antichrist
breaks
his
treaty
with
Israel,
invades
the
nation,
and
desecrates
the Temple.
Verses
15
to
28
are
not
chronologically
sequential
to
verses
9
to
14.
They
are
parenthetical
in
the
sense
that
they
expand
on
the
previous verses with verse 15 identifying the beginning of the great tribulation
27
Jesus will appear to everyone at the same time.
Rev
6:12
I
looked
when
He
opened
the
sixth
seal,
and
behold,
there
was
a
great
earthquake;
and
the
sun
became
black
as
sackcloth of hair, and the moon became like blood.
Rev
6:13
And
the
stars
of
heaven
fell
to
the
earth,
as
a
fig
tree
drops its late figs when it is shaken by a mighty wind.
Rev
6:14
Then
the
sky
receded
as
a
scroll
when
it
is
rolled
up,
and every mountain and island was moved out of its place.
Rev
6:15
And
the
kings
of
the
earth,
the
great
men,
the
rich
men,
the
commanders,
the
mighty
men,
every
slave
and
every
free
man,
hid
themselves
in
the
caves
and
in
the
rocks
of
the
mountains,
Rev
6:16
and
said
to
the
mountains
and
rocks,
"Fall
on
us
and
hide
us
from
the
face
of
Him
who
sits
on
the
throne
and
from
the wrath of the Lamb!
Rev
6:17
For
the
great
day
of
His
wrath
has
come,
and
who
is
able to stand?"
The Great Tribulation
21 For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be. 22 And unless those days were shortened, no flesh would be saved; but for the elect's sake those days will be shortened. 23 "Then if anyone says to you, 'Look, here is the Christ!' or 'There!' do not believe it. 24 For false christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect. 25 See, I have told you beforehand. 26 "Therefore if they say to you, 'Look, He is in the desert!' do not go out; or 'Look, He is in the inner rooms!' do not believe it. 27 For as the lightning comes from the east and flashes to the west, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. 28 For wherever the carcass is, there the eagles will be gathered together
Matthew
24:4-31
describes
period
from
the
beginning
of
the
future Tribulation to the second coming of Christ.
In
the
first
eleven
verses,
4-14
Jesus
lists
eight
key
signs
He
likens
to
birth
pains
that
will
be
the
signs
of
His
coming:
False
Christs
(vv.
4-5);
wars
(vv.
6-7);
famines
(v.
7a);
earthquakes
(v.
7b);
persecution
(vv.
9-10);
false
prophets
(v.
11);
lawlessness
(v. 12); and the worldwide preaching of the gospel (v. 14).
Matthew now describes the signs in the heavens, after the tribulation, that will indicate that the Son of Man is coming.
Jesus
encourages
the
disciples
(and
us)
to
look
for
the
signs,
even
though
the
day
of
His
return
is
unknown.
Nonetheless,
He
encourages them to keep watch and remain faithful.
The Generation that will Not Pass Away
Some scholars argue that the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD fulfilled Jesus’ predictions in Matthew 24. This view is based primarily on Matthew 24:34, which says, “Assuredly, I say to you, this generation will by no means pass away till all these things take place.” Proponents maintain that “this generation” must refer to the generation that originally heard the words of Jesus. The chief problem with this view is that the destruction of Jerusalem did not fulfil all the events described in Matthew 24, so Jesus could not have been referring to that time period. In this context, “this generation” probably refers to those living during the Tribulation who will personally witness the events described in Matthew 24:4-31. Jesus is emphasizing that those who see the signs that He listed, and experience the Great Tribulation, will also witness the Second Coming.The Lesson of the Fig Tree
32 "Now learn this parable from the fig tree: When its branch has already become tender and puts forth leaves, you know that summer is near. 33 So you also, when you see all these things, know that it is near—at the doors! 34 Assuredly, I say to you, this generation will by no means pass away till all these things take place. 35 Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away
9
"Then
they
will
deliver
you
up
to
tribulation
and
kill
you,
and
you
will be hated by all nations for My name's sake.
10
And
then
many
will
be
offended,
will
betray
one
another,
and
will hate one another.
11
Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many.
12
And
because
lawlessness
will
abound,
the
love
of
many
will
grow cold.
13
But he who endures to the end shall be saved.
14
And
this
gospel
of
the
kingdom
will
be
preached
in
all
the
world
as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come.
14 “
then
shall the end come”
The
final
3
1/2
years,
beginning
in
Matthew
24:21,
are
outlined
in some detail.
The
tribulation
to
come
will
be
so
great
that
God
will
shorten
the
time for the sake of the elect, which is the church (Rev 13:7].
The Day of the Lord Begins
29 "Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. 30 Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. 31 And He will send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they will gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.No One Knows That Day and Hour
36 "But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only. 37 But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. 38 For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, 39 and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. 40 Then two men will be in the field: one will be taken and the other left. 41 Two women will be grinding at the mill: one will be taken and the other left. 42 Watch therefore, for you do not know what hour your Lord is coming. 43 But know this, that if the master of the house had known what hour the thief would come, he would have watched and not allowed his house to be broken into. 44 Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.
The
Olivet
Discourse
is
the
last
of
five
discourses
reported
in
Matthew’s
gospel.
The
importance
of
this
discourse
is
that
it
is
the
most
prophetic
of
all
Jesus'
words
in
that
it
provides
some
detail
of
the
end-times.
Parallel
passages
are
found
in
Mark
13
and
Luke
21:5-36,
but Matthew’s account is the most comprehensive.
This discourse is, in my view, essential reading in parallel with some verses of Revelation, and is presented here in support of that view.
In
chapter
23,
we
read
about
Jesus’
tirade
against
the
scribes
and
Pharisees,
given
as
seven
woes
against
them
in
which
He
overwhelmingly refers to them as hypocrites.
The
last
three
verses
are
a
lament
over
Jerusalem,
the
last
of
which
says
For
I
say
to
you,
You
shall
not
see
Me
from
now
on
until
you
say,
"Blessed
is
He
who
comes
in
the
name
of
the
Lord."
This
will
be
at
Jesus’
second
coming
when
the
Jews
will
finally
welcome
Him
as
their Messiah.
Chapter 24 opens with Jesus leaving the temple with His disciples and heading towards the Mount of Olives.
23-26
People
will
be
claiming
to
have
identified
the
Messiah
in
various
places,
but
Jesus
warns
against
believing
such
claims
and the deceptive signs warned of in verse 24.
Matthew 24:45 - 25:46
Jesus
ends
the
Olivet
Discourse
with
four
parables.
The
first
one
concerns
a
wicked
servant
whose
master
punishes
him
upon
his
return
home
(Matthew
24:45-51).
The
next,
the
Parable
of
the
Ten
Virgins,
encourages
readiness
and
watchfulness
(25:1-13).
The
third
parable,
relating
the
story
of
three
servants
and
their
use
(or
misuse)
of
finances,
teaches
faithfulness
in
view
of
the
fact
that
God’s
servants
must
give
an
account
of
themselves
one
day
(25:14-30).
Jesus
ends
His
discourse
by
telling
the
Parable
of
the
Sheep
and
Goats,
which
pictures
the
dividing
of
the
saved
from
the
unsaved
at
the
end
of
the
tribulation
before
the
commencement
of
Christ’s
millennial reign (25:31-46).
Rev
6:9-11
The
fifth
seal
mentions
martyrs
of
old
and
those
to
come.
This
precedes
the
second
half
of
the
tribulation
period
which
Matthew
goes
on
to
talk
about
from
verse
9,
and
Revelation
picks
up
in
the
next
verse,
12.
This
is
omitted
in
Rev:6 but described in Rev 13: The rise of the beasts.
“Sabbath day” - speaking to Jews.
Luke
says
“and
all
the
trees”.
A
fig
tree
is
usually
a
reerence
to
Israel,
but
Luke’s
addition
of
“and
all
the
trees”
suggests
no
reference to Israel alone was intended.
The Great Tribulation - overview
25
Jesus warns us this will happen.
Matthew’s
next
verses,
9-14,
provide
an
overview
of
the
second
half of the tribulation period to the end.
