Hello Everyone,
I decided to pick up the study again and continue forward. I have been away from the study for a long time, the last post was in 2019! How time flies! My hand has become much worse with the depruteyen contracture. I will have a procedure on it soon that will alleviate the symptoms and help me to write pain free with full use of my hand. Retirement is swiftly coming up. I am looking forward to teaching on a more regular basis once I retire. Railroading has made it really hard on a regular life. On with the study!
Mark 13:1-4 Jesus told the disciples about the soon coming destruction of the temple. History has well recorded the event that took place in A.D. 70. The temple was completely destroyed with the soldiers prying the stones of the temple apart to get the gold that melted between them. There has been a misconception regarding the “wailing wall”. It was not part of the temple. Do a little research on the internet on this. Josephus recorded that the soldiers were to destroy the entire city and leave one section of the city wall:
- (1) Now, as soon as the army had no more people to slay or to plunder, because there remained none to be objects of their fury (for they would not have spared any, had there remained any other such work to be done) Caesar gave orders that they should now demolish the entire city and temple, but should leave as many of the towers standing as were of the greatest eminency; that is, Phasaelus, and Hippicus, and Mariamne, and so much of the wall as enclosed the city on the west side. (2) This wall was spared, in order to afford a camp for such as were to lie in garrison; as were the towers also spared, in order to demonstrate to posterity what kind of city it was, and how well fortified, which the Roman valor had subdued; (3) but for all the rest of the wall, it was so thoroughly laid even with the ground by those that dug it up to the foundation, that there was left nothing to make those that came thither believe it had ever been inhabited. (4) This was the end which Jerusalem came to by the madness of those that were for innovations; a city otherwise of great magnificence, and of mighty fame among all mankind. [1]
The “wailing wall” was not a wall of the temple. It was a city wall that was left intact. Josephus also recorded the events surrounding the destruction of the temple. This is a particularly detailed description of the hideous. The important fact that we face is a complete and total destruction of the temple and of the surrounding buildings. This was a direct fulfillment of the prophecy that Jesus gave.
Mark 13:5-10 Jesus took a near prophecy looking at the false messiahs and encapsulates the entire Gentile age that follows. Verse 10 states clearly that the Gospel must be preached to all nations before the end prophecies will happen. We as Christians have dubbed this the “church age”. In practicality, this term is misleading. The “church” is only made up of the believers that are “called out”. It is not a building or a denomination. It is not a set of beliefs, or a massive set of rules governed by systematic theology. The church is simply the believers that God has personally called out for His service. On the flip side of that same coin, the Gentile church has dominated the current age. Some actually think that we have replaced the Jews in the favored position. This my friends is called “replacement theology”. Nothing could be further from the truth.
Let’s talk about the term “nations” for a second. The Jewish mindset on “nations” refers to any people who are not of Jewish descent. When reading through the Bible, you will often run across the word “nations”. Now reread the passage with that in mind. I wonder, who is the one that does the outreach? Jesus did not expect us to do “outreach” programs which would bring people to church! He wanted us to make disciples of all nations (Matthew 28:18-20). As a whole, very few denominations are making disciples of all nations. We are making “church members” of all nations. I am certain that God can tell the difference. We evangelize the world based on our understanding of the Bible and traditional religion.
When the Jerusalem Temple was destroyed, the sacrificial system was also put on hold. From that time forward, we have had a Judeo-Christian group of Gentiles that have moved to the limelight. The Judeo part is a religion based upon a Jewish God and upon a Jewish foundation. The “Christian” part of the word implies that we base our religion on Jesus who is the Messiah (Christ). Prophecy tells us that once Jesus ushers in the Millennial Kingdom, the sacrificial system will be reinstated. Think about that…
I am not certain how to phrase this, once the Gentile Christian Church came into power a few things changed. The Jewish people went from being a powerful nation to become the ones hunted and murdered by the church. This includes the Crusades year 1095, Spanish Inquisition, 1478, A period of “pogroms” took in Russia in the 1920’s where Jews were hunted and exterminated, this was followed by the great Holocaust in the 1940’s. I have missed a few. Now mix in all the wars that took place. One of the main targets of many of the wars was to impose Christian morals on other nations. This included removing Jewish influence and replacing Judaism with Christianity. Jesus warned of the world wars to come and the persecution of His chosen ones (Mark 13:9). We are too quick to condemn the Jews for rejecting the Messiah. I will argue that since we have focused so much on traditionalism and churchism that we have in many ways become more lukewarm than the Jewish people. Our traditions have in many cases weakened and made our practice of faith ineffective.
What is the “Gospel” or the “good news”? Is it a religion where people get kudos for following the rules? Is it serving a great God of good goodies that is ready to bless all those who fly His banner? I think not. The Gospel is quite simply Jesus the Messiah indwelling each believer, changing them from the inside out and forgiving them for failing to follow His instructions. It is moving from a wide path leading to destruction to the narrow path of obedience that leads to and includes eternal salvation. It does not matter what “faith” or group of believers that we are from. If we do not meet this criteria, we are not Christian.
I think that there is a lot of room left in this area yet. One wild card that may take place here is the awakening of the Jews. The Jewish people are starting to wake up to the fact that Jesus is the Messiah. I have long believed that they will wake up fast and hit the road with a vengeance, making up for lost time. Take a look at the following verses from the Jewish perspective, Romans 11:23-29. Focus on Ro 11:23-24, What will happen when the natural branches are grafted back in? Perhaps the reason we have a “faith” problem is because we are not natural branches. Look at Ro 11:25-27 Israel is all going to be saved once the “fullness of the gentiles” is completed, then in 28-32, v. 29 we are told that the gifts and calling are irrevocable. Focusing on this, take a second look at Romans 12:1-2, it gives a whole new meaning to these verses doesn’t it? In a nutshell, watch out when the children of Israel wake up, I don’t believe that we have seen power displayed in evangelism like it will be in that day. As an addendum to this thought:
Romans 11:26–27 (NASB95)
26 and so all Israel will be saved; just as it is written, “The Deliverer will come from Zion, He will remove ungodliness from Jacob.” 27 “This is My covenant with them, When I take away their sins.”
Ungodliness and sin from the biblical perspective is deviating from the instructions of God. Jesus is the Messiah. The “sin” is deviating from following the prophecy and truth that Jesus is the Messiah. Once the Jewish people recognize their Messiah, they will be empowered in a way that has never happened before. Instead of following Torah, they will have the giver of Torah living in them and writing His word upon their very hearts (Jeremiah 31:31-34). Their “ungodliness” is from the Greek word: “neglect or violation of duty toward God, our neighbor or ourselves, joined with and springing from impiety toward God.”[2] Jesus will remove the neglect or violation when he cleanses them with a new heart.
There are some who say that believers will not have to suffer wrath. They claim that we will be exempt of the crisis soon to come with the great tribulation. Jesus said in this passage that we will see wars, famines and earthquakes. This will be followed by intense persecution. Every believer will be subject to becoming a criminal who must plead their case before the courts. This took place in the first few centuries following Jesus’ time on earth. I believe that we will soon see the reality of persecution as a norm of society. We have already seen the precursor to this persecution taking place during the national shut down. Churches willingly had their doors closed and they willingly agreed not to gather for worship. Those who refused to comply were considered the enemy of all mankind.
The time will soon come when those who speak the truth of the Gospel will suffer persecution. It is already taking place in many parts of the world. This persecution will have a few purposes. On the divine scale, it will separate the sheep from the wolves. The wolves will abandon the flock for fear of being persecuted. On that same token, some wolves will infiltrate the church and report from the inside. The intense anger and hate that was displayed during the early stages of the recent outbreak will be magnified when it focuses upon assemblies of believers. This will be especially true if believers are seen to be a threat to mainstream group think.
There is one sad notation that I must make. Many believers are not exercising any kind of spiritual discipline. They are blindly buying what they are being told without making any effort to investigate the truth. Many are so weak in biblical understanding that they are relying solely upon the leaders from pulpits to dictate their fate. Persecution will determine the quality of these Christians. I will wager that when the heat turns up, they won’t show up. Persecution will show who the real flock of God is.
Second half of study:
James 13:11-23 The disciples were soon to find that they were the ones who were persecuted by Rome. The early Christians went through many years of torture. They set the groundwork for building the church. The early sacrifices were soon to take a drastic turn with Constantine. He “christianized” the Roman Empire. In my opinion, this was one of the greatest hindrances to the Christian church. The church thrives where people must be ready to defend their belief in God. To list all the compromises that were involved in this “Christianization” would boggle the mind. It is laid out pretty well in the book “Pagan Christianity” by Frank Viola and George Barna. I highly recommend the book.
The desolation of Jerusalem was quickly approaching. I am certain that many of these prophecies hit hard when people saw the futility of standing against the Roman soldiers. I believe that this is also a “far” prophecy that is looking into the future. When the tribulation hits, we will see many lukewarm or pseudo-Christians fall quickly by the wayside. Persecution will take place and will be directed at believers. We can certainly blame Satan for this persecution. However, much of the persecution will be our own fault. When the Holy Spirit wakes up the sleeping Christians, they will be empowered to speak out the truth of God. We will have a burning need to set the record straight. This will not affect just those we are in contact with, it will also affect our families.
Let’s think in modern times for a minute. Suppose a parent becomes aware of the deviation from morality that our times embraces. They realize that their children are deeply rooted in social media and have been “grafted in” to the morals that social media promotes. Then the parents decide it is time to take away the child’s right to different devices that hook up to these platforms. Many families on every level will be ready for a fight. Recent social uprisings have demonstrated that we are moving in the direction of removing parents from the position of authority. Modern children are taught by society to lash out at the parents in every way available to them. Because of this there is a high probability that children will quickly rise up against the parents in any way possible to get the devices back. If you preach or teach biblical truth as it is written in the Bible, you are going to be hated today.
As a matter of fact, when the parents embrace biblical truth, they may be considered as “antisocial” since they are not bowing to groupthink and social media morality. Imagine the impact if they actually started calling deviations from biblical morality sin! Now more than any other time in history, morality is not coming from Biblical or religious truth. It is imparted through media and the careful indoctrination through our public-school systems. We are not far from a time where those preaching biblical truth will be faced with breaking the law of the land. This will include criminal sentences and overly harsh penalties.
If you don’t believe this, look at the level of censorship that is being exercised in American and social media. There are certain topics that will be censored and blocked almost immediately. If you try to do internet searches on certain topics, the search engines will only generate the accepted web sites. Those who deviate to the wrong side of public understanding are weeded out. I was researching a topic recently and had to go to an “uncensored” web browser to find the scientific studies that I was looking for. The topic had to do with scientific medical studies regarding certain medical practices that have been demanded by our government. Hopefully this statement will avoid the censor engines.
Jesus said that people will be put to death for their belief in Him. That happened once in the Roman times, it will happen again. The Jewish people have had many attempts to exterminate them. They are hated because they are God’s chosen people. We as Bible thumping Christians only have a short time before the focus is on us. The socially compromised Christian has nothing to worry about since they are of no threat to the thinking of the times.
“Abomination of Desolation” could easily be translated as “the detestable thing of devastation”. This removes this from being an ominous act that is inconceivable into a practical description of something soon to happen. It is commonly taught that the destruction of the temple and Jerusalem was one fulfillment of this prophecy. This is the “near” fulfillment. The “far” fulfillment most likely looks forward to the end of the tribulation.
Josephus recorded a horrendous story that included extreme hardship and slaughter of the Jews. This included detailed prophecies by false prophets who prophesied deliverance and real prophets who prophesied destruction. This followed the meticulous detail of the destruction of Jerusalem and the imprisonment of hundreds of thousands of survivors. This account is found in The Wars of the Jews chapters 5-9.
For those who are not familiar with biblical prophecy: With most prophecies there is a “near” fulfillment and a “far” fulfillment. This protected the prophet in the Old Testament times. If a prophet made a prediction and it did not take place the prophet was not to be taken seriously (Deuteronomy 18:20-22). I believe that Jesus is the Torah-giver of the Old Testament. When He gave instructions as the YHVH God, these instructions reflected who He is. Jesus demonstrated that in this passage. The “near” fulfillment of this prophecy takes place at the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 A.D.. This covered a shadow of the fulfillment of the prophecy that He gave.
Many of the elements of this prophecy were met to a degree. One area that was not fulfilled was the heavy influence of the elect. Don’t get men wrong on this. God chose the Jewish people. The slaughter of the Jews during the destruction of Jerusalem was incredible. However, the instructions that Jesus gives looks to a time when the “elect” or those chosen by God are at the forefront.
Many teachers use this passage as a “rapture” passage. I disagree. There will be efforts to rebuild the temple and it will certainly be desecrated once it is rebuilt. The qualifying factor in this passage is the gathering of the elect from the four corners of the earth. When the Millennial Kingdom (1000 year reign) of the Messiah is in place, the temple will be rebuilt and the entire Levitical system will be reinstated. This is obviously clear from Old Testament prophecies. At the end of the Millennial Kingdom, Satan is going to be unleashed for a short time (Rev 20:7-10).
According to the rapturist, there are at least three resurrections. One at the rapture, which is thought to take place at the beginning of the tribulation. The second one is at the end of the tribulation. The third takes place just before the judgment seats. I digress. There are only two resurrections listed in the Bible. The first one takes place immediately following the tribulation. There is only a select group of people that are resurrected. These are the martyrs from the great tribulation (Rev 20:5). These will reign with the Messiah (Christ) for the 1000 years. No one else is raised up. This is specified in the following verse (Rev 20:6). The final resurrection will be end of the Millennium.
Let’s examine Mark 13 again. Ezekiel records doom and gloom through the bulk of his writing. This changes toward the end of the book. He records a new temple that will be built where that the Messiah will reign (Ezekiel 40-43; specifically Ezekiel 43:7; 44:1-2). This will also be followed by the reinstitution of the Levitical system (Ezekiel 43:13-46:22). This temple has not been built yet. If you look at the dimensions of the temple and the footprint that it will put on the land, it would be very difficult to build today. Much of the area that it will cover is densely populated.
There is also a temple listed in Revelation 11:1-2. This one fits better with the description of the tribulation. However, the resurrection does not take place until the completion of the thousand years (Rev 20:11-15). Which one is being discussed? Many feel that the temple will be desecrated during the great tribulation. This is consistent with the scriptures. Yet, remember, context is key to understanding the scriptures. Context eliminates 99.9 percent of all error in scriptural interpretation.
Mark 13:24-27 Jesus sets parameters that help us understand the time of this prophecy. Jesus said that this will take place when He comes in the clouds to gather His elect. Many feel that this is at the rapture. I disagree. Let’s examine some scriptures:
When ancient Hebrew teachers referred to a verse, they referred to the verse in context. The listener was expected to take the entire passage into account and apply the entire passage to the teaching. Jesus quoted from Zechariah:
Zechariah 2:6–13 (NASB95)
6 “Ho there! Flee from the land of the north,” declares the Lord, “for I have dispersed you as the four winds of the heavens,” declares the Lord. 7 “Ho, Zion! Escape, you who are living with the daughter of Babylon.” 8 For thus says the Lord of hosts, “After glory He has sent Me against the nations which plunder you, for he who touches you, touches the apple of His eye. 9 “For behold, I will wave My hand over them so that they will be plunder for their slaves. Then you will know that the Lord of hosts has sent Me. 10 “Sing for joy and be glad, O daughter of Zion; for behold I am coming and I will dwell in your midst,” declares the Lord. 11 “Many nations will join themselves to the Lord in that day and will become My people. Then I will dwell in your midst, and you will know that the Lord of hosts has sent Me to you. 12 “The Lord will possess Judah as His portion in the holy land, and will again choose Jerusalem. 13 “Be silent, all flesh, before the Lord; for He is aroused from His holy habitation.”
The chosen ones or the “elect” according to Zechariah was the Jewish people. The nations that joined the Jews are also considered to be God’s “elect”. The scriptures indicate that whoever touches His people are like someone who touches the pupil of the eye of God. I am sure we all know how sensitive the eye is!
Jesus referred to the time when He will bring judgment on the earth. This refers to the sun, moon and stars being darkened (Isaiah 13:10-11, read entire passage). This theme runs through other biblical prophecies: Ezekiel 32:7; Joel 2:10, 31; 3:15; Isaiah 34:4.
Jesus also referred to the “Son of Man” in a way that identified Jesus as the “Son of Man”:
Daniel 7:13–14 (NASB95)
13 “I kept looking in the night visions, And behold, with the clouds of heaven One like a Son of Man was coming, And He came up to the Ancient of Days And was presented before Him. 14 “And to Him was given dominion, Glory and a kingdom, That all the peoples, nations and men of every language Might serve Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion Which will not pass away; And His kingdom is one Which will not be destroyed.
Jesus used prophecy to identify who He is, What is going to take place when He comes and who He is coming after. Let’s look further into prophecy:
Daniel 12:1–3 (NASB95)
1 “Now at that time Michael, the great prince who stands guard over the sons of your people, will arise. And there will be a time of distress such as never occurred since there was a nation until that time; and at that time your people, everyone who is found written in the book, will be rescued. 2 “Many of those who sleep in the dust of the ground will awake, these to everlasting life, but the others to disgrace and everlasting contempt. 3 “Those who have insight will shine brightly like the brightness of the expanse of heaven, and those who lead the many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever.
Daniel wrote about a single resurrection where the righteous and unrighteous will both be raised. This will take place after a great tribulation that has never taken place before. Jesus taught that there will be one single resurrection of the dead, both the righteous and the unrighteous:
John 5:28–29 (NASB95)
28 “Do not marvel at this; for an hour is coming, in which all who are in the tombs will hear His voice, 29 and will come forth; those who did the good deeds to a resurrection of life, those who committed the evil deeds to a resurrection of judgment.
Paul also taught the same thing:
Acts 24:14–15 (NASB95)
14 “But this I admit to you, that according to the Way which they call a sect I do serve the God of our fathers, believing everything that is in accordance with the Law and that is written in the Prophets; 15 having a hope in God, which these men cherish themselves, that there shall certainly be a resurrection of both the righteous and the wicked.
Paul taught one single resurrection of the righteous and the wicked. John recorded in Revelation that there is a resurrection of the ones who were beheaded during the tribulation. These will reign with the Messiah during the thousand years. Everyone else will be raised after the thousand years:
Revelation 20:4–6 (NASB95)
4 Then I saw thrones, and they sat on them, and judgment was given to them. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony of Jesus and because of the word of God, and those who had not worshiped the beast or his image, and had not received the mark on their forehead and on their hand; and they came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. 5 The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were completed. This is the first resurrection. 6 Blessed and holy is the one who has a part in the first resurrection; over these the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with Him for a thousand years.
The scriptures do not support a rapture. They clearly speak of only one resurrection. This resurrection will take place after the thousand year reign of the Messiah Jesus. When we return to the passage we are studying, Jesus taught that He will eventually return to gather His elect from the four winds. He will also gather them from the farthest end of heaven.
Jesus gave us two clues to His return. The first one is the parable of the fig tree (Mark 13:28-30). The fig tree in the scriptures indicates a time of plenty. The fig itself speaks of the narcissistic attitude of man. The fig is actually a flower which will never bloom. The idea is that the fig tree will not share it’s inner beauty with anyone. This speaks of a time when the entire earth reaches a state of narcissism. We are very close to that state today.
The second clue that we have is “that day or hour no one knows”. There is one Jewish festival that lands between the months. Rosh Hashanah takes place on the first and second day of Tishri. The festival begins when the old month passes and the new one begins. Remember, the new month does not begin until a sliver of the moon is observed the night before. When the sliver of the moon is observed, a new month has begun. There are typically one or two days between months where the moon is not seen. It is unknown between these months the day or the hour until the moon is observed. Once observed, the day and the hour can be established. This holiday is called the “head of the year”.
This holiday is celebrated that evening with 100 blasts of the shofar. It celebrates the beginning of the Jewish new year. Incidentally, the epistles record that the return of the Messiah will take place at the sound of the trumpet (shofar) (1 Cor 15:52; 1 Thess 4:16).
There is a second holiday that is celebrated on Tishri 1. This is Yom Teruah. This holiday is called the “day of judgment”. When Jesus returns to gather the people, living and dead, it will be for judgment of both the righteous and the unrighteous. The first days of Tishri 1-10 are considered to be the “days of awe”. This looks at the awesome judgment of God upon His people.
Tishri 1 is also the beginning of the “civil year”. This means that the new King takes his throne on this day. It becomes the “coronation day”. The Jewish people refer to this as “coronation of God as ruler of the universe”. In ancient days this was the day that the incoming king took the throne.
Are you beginning to see the importance of this date? It happens at a day or hour when no one knows. Secondly, it marks the judgment of God. Third, it marks the coronation of the king. When Jesus returns, He will certainly perform all three of these actions. The Jewish holidays in this case have set the stage for the return of the King, our Messiah. Believers can rest assured that this day will mark the return of Jesus at the end of the age. This is a thumbnail sketch of this festival time. If you choose to look into it, you will find several other aspects of this time that clearly look at King Jesus the Messiah. One thing is for certain, Jesus will return on Tishri 1. What is not clear is what year that it will take place. I am betting that this return will be at the end of the millennium. Jesus will return at another time where a resurrection will not take place. This is at the end of the tribulation. I am convinced that this is at Passover (Rev 19:7-10). It ends the tribulation and ushers in the Millennium (Rev 19-20). But, that is outside of the scope of Mark 13 and will be discussed at a later date.
Mark 13:33-37: Jesus gave us instructions to be ready and to stay alert. He has put believers in charge of His house. I wonder how we fare as believing people? How many believers are ready? I do not believe that Jesus was speaking about the rapture. I believe that He was speaking about the degradation of mankind. How many believers are going to stand on God’s side and keep their house according to His standards?
[1] Flavius Josephus and William Whiston, The Works of Josephus: Complete and Unabridged (Peabody: Hendrickson, 1987), 750–751.
[2] Spiros Zodhiates, The Complete Word Study Dictionary: New Testament (Chattanooga, TN: AMG Publishers, 2000).
