Mark 13:14-31

The true sign to watch for Mark 13:14-31: Mark 13:14 described the true sign in these words, "But when ye shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing where it ought not, (let him that readeth understand,) then let them that be in Judaea flee to the mountains." Daniel spoke of the abomination of desolation in Daniel 9:26-27. The Romans were the abomination standing where it ought not to be. They would desolate the city and Temple. Luke wrote, "And when ye shall see Jerusalem compassed with armies, then know that the desolation thereof is nigh." (Luke 21:20)

Jesus provided some pointed information about what to do when the real sign was observed. (1) Flee to the mountains, (2) If you are on the flat housetop do not even go back into the house, (3) Those in the fields should flee from there, (4) The destruction of Jerusalem will be worse for those that are pregnant or those that have small children, and (5) The desolation will be much more difficult if it is in winter. All of this fits perfectly with the destruction the Roman army brought against Jerusalem. The destruction would be a great tribulation when "the sun shall be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, And the stars of heaven shall fall, and the powers that are in heaven shall be shaken." (Mark 13:24-25) Such language was common in the Old Testament to refer to the fall of nations. (Isaiah 13:10; Isaiah 34:4-5) Just as seeing the sprouting of leaves on the fig tree lets you know that summer is near, so also the army surrounding Jerusalem let them know the certainty of coming destruction.