Luke 21:20-32

Butler's Comments

SECTION 3

Precise Signs of Destruction (Luke 21:20-32)

20But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then know that its desolation has come near. 21Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains, and let those who are inside the city depart, and let not those who are out in the country enter it; 22for these are days of vengeance, to fulfil all that is written. 23Alas for those who are with child and for those who give suck in those days! For great distress shall be upon the earth and wrath upon this people; 24they will fall by the edge of the sword, and be led captive among all nations; and Jerusalem will be trodden down by the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.

25 And there will be signs in sun and moon and stars, and upon the earth distress of nations in perplexity at the roaring of the sea and the waves, 26men fainting with fear and with foreboding of what is coming on the world; for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. 27 And then they will see the Son of man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. 28Now when these things begin to take place, look up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.

29 And he told them a parable: Look at the fig tree, and all the trees; 30as soon as they come out in leaf, you see for yourselves and know that the kingdom of God is near. So also when you see these things taking place, you know that the Kingdom of God is near. 32Truly, I say to you, this generation will not pass away till all has taken place.

Luke 21:20-21 Pagan Profanation: Jesus now lists a number of things that will be plainly observable to the generation then living. He prophesies there will be immediate signs that Judaism is forsaken and desolated and that the end has come for Jerusalem (cf. Matthew 24:15-34; Mark 13:14-30). The first of these immediate signs will be when Jerusalem is surrounded by armies. Matthew and Mark call it the desolating sacrilege spoken of by the prophet Daniel (cf. Daniel 9:27; Daniel 11:31; Daniel 12:11, see our comments there in Daniel, College Press). Daniel predicted the desecration of the Temple and the city by Romans armies as the consequence of the Jew's rejecting their Anointed Prince 490 years after the restoration of the Jewish commonwealth in 457 B.C. (Daniel 9:24-27). After a series of Jewish uprisings and riots, the city of Jerusalem was first besieged in November A.D. 66 by the Roman legate of Syria, Cestius Gallus. He had marched to Judea in November, 66 A.D., with the Twelfth Legion and surrounded the city on orders from the emperor, Nero. Gallus occupied the northern edge of Jerusalem, called Bezetha, but concluded his forces were too small to take the rest of the city so he withdrew. The Jews, assuming Divine providence had intervened to spare the city, took no advantage of the opportunity to flee. In fact, many Jews living in the immediate environs outside the city fled into the city for what they thought would be protection. Meanwhile, on the way back to Syria Gallus and his forces were ambushed by Jewish insurgents in the pass at Beth-horon and the Romans suffered great losses. Christians, remembering Jesus-' prophecy, fled to Pella when Cestius Gallus returned to Syria. Eusebius writes in his History, 111:5:3, ... the people of the church in Jerusalem, being commanded to leave and dwell in a city of Perea, called Pella, in accordance with a certain oracle which was uttered before the war to the approved men there by way of revelation..

Nero sent his general, Vespasian, with 60,000 men to Judea in the Spring of 67 A.D. Vespasian conquered all of Judea and was about to besiege Jerusalem, when he was called back to Rome after Nero's suicide. Vespasian became emperor and sent his son, Titus, to Judea to put down the Jewish revolt. July 24, 70 A.D., Titus recaptured the Tower of Antonia at the northern edge of the Temple courts. August 5, he caused the daily sacrifices of the Jewish priests to cease. August 27, the Temple gates were burned. August 29, (the anniversary of Babylonian destruction of Solomon's temple in 587 B.C.), the sanctuary itself was set on fire. While the sanctuary was burning, Roman soldiers brought their legionary standards into the Temple area and offered sacrifices to the Roman emperor there! On September 26, A.D. 70, the whole city was in Titus-' hands. All during the siege and assaults on the city by the Romans, the Jews within the city had been reduced to such desperation there were atrocities the Jews perpetrated upon one another almost too horrible and gruesome to recount.

Luke 21:22-24 Terrible Tribulations and Deceiving Deliverers: Jesus specifically and categorically says of this terrible holocaust, ... for these are days of vengeance, to fulfill all that is written.. Moses wrote that this would happen should the Jews reject The Prophet (cf. Deuteronomy 18:15-18; Deuteronomy 28:15-68); Daniel prophesied these things would come to pass because the Jews would cut off their Anointed One, (cf. Daniel 9:24-27); Jesus proclaimed they would Fill up the measure of their fathers. that upon them would come all the righteous blood shed on earth.. (Matthew 23:31-36) because they were going to kill the Son of God. Luke records Jesus as saying: For great distress shall be upon the earth and wrath upon this people. Matthew and Mark record that Jesus said further: For then will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the creation which God created until now, and never will be. This is one of the points of the Olivet Discourse which causes major confusion. Many readers insist that such language cannot be referring to the destruction of Jerusalem, even though that event was certainly terrible in its time. First, there have been many tribulations since the destruction of Jerusalem much worse in statistics than that one. For example, two world wars caused more death and destruction than that. Nazi Germany killed approximately 8,000,000 Jews during World War IIthat is certainly more than the estimated 1,500,000 slain and captured in 70 A.D. Then there is Hiroshima and Nagasaki; the prisons of Russian Siberia and Chinese Mongolia.

But the term, such as, in the description of Jesus, really does not refer to the statistical magnitude of the tribulationit refers rather to the kind of tribulation. Jesus is anticipating the uniqueness of the cause and effect of the suffering and afflictionnot the quantity or number who suffered. It is hardly possible for any tribulation to exceed in magnitude that of the flood of Noah's day when there were only eight survivors! We must explain what Jesus said, then, by quality or uniqueness. Perhaps these suggestions will help us understand why Jesus intended this great tribulation to be applied to the destruction of Jerusalem and Judaism:

a.

This tribulation involved the final destruction of what once had been God's holy nation. This had never happened before. God rescued a remnant from captivity and restored their nationality. It will never happen again, since the Church of Christ is now God's holy nation (1 Peter 2:9) and it will never be destroyed (Matthew 16:18; Daniel 2:44).

b.

The circumstances of the Jews trapped in Jerusalem was unique in all of history. God had withdrawn His presence. They were abandoned to their own evil. The residents turned on one another in hatred and panic, and inflicted on themselves atrocities more horrible than even the Romans could invent!

c.

It was a tribulation suffered only by those Jews who had rejected Christ. Those who believed Jesus (especially this prophecy of Jerusalem's destruction), were saved from the disaster of 70 A.D.

Still, how can we accept this statement that there was never such tribulation before or after 70 A.D.? Consider the following possibilities:

a.

The Bible was written for all timethe atomic age as well as that of bows and arrows. For Jesus to try to compare the tribulation of Roman warfare with Hiroshima would mean nothing to the apostles. So, Jesus is simply saying, In the frame-of-reference of what you apostles know and can visualize, Jerusalem's suffering is going to be the greatest. This is no contradiction of Jesus-' omniscience. He is, in fact, condescending to the human limitations of the apostles. He did this at other times. He told them a few hours later, I have many things to say to you which you are not presently able to bear (John 16:12 f.).

b.

The holocaust of 70 A.D. was unique in the way Jews tortured, murdered, and despised their fellow Jews. Jerusalem was really self-destroyed. Titus, the Roman general, made every effort to spare the people, the city and the Temple; but the Jews were implacable in their intentions to never surrender to the Romans again. Titus eventually could wait no longer and went into Jerusalem, killing and burning.

c.

It may be that this great tribulation which began with the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 A.D., has continued with more or less intensity up to the present time! The Jews, since 70 A.D., have, in many lands and many centuries suffered great tribulation.

Matthew and Mark add, And if those days had not been shortened, no human being would be saved; but for the sake of the elect, whom he chose, those days will be shortened (Matthew 24:22; Mark 13:20). Titus first thought to build a siege wall and starve the Jews all to death or let them all die of disease. But then, with pressing business back in Rome beckoning, he stormed the city, killed, burned and took thousands of Jews captive. Thus many thousands of Jews were saved alive who would have otherwise perished (cf. Josephus, Wars, 12:1).

Luke records that Jesus specifically predicted the great tribulation would involve the death of many Jews, but many would also be led captive among all the nations. Jesus then makes a statement, recorded by Luke alone, which has been the focus of much confusing comment by alleged students of eschatology. Jesus said, ... and Jerusalem will be trodden down by the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled (Luke 21:24 b). By the word until Jesus is indicating that the desolation of Jerusalem would continue as long as God sees fit. That is the question-how long will that be? There is a passage in Romans 11:25-26 which should provide a clue. That passage says, ... a hardening has come upon part of Israel, until the full number of the Gentiles come in, and so all Israel will be saved.. This passage makes it clear that at the time all Israel has been saved, the full number of the Gentiles (the times of the Gentiles. fulfilled) will have come in. So the question really focuses on all Israel's salvation. It is plain from the New Testament that Israel is the church of Jesus Christ. Paul says in Romans 9:8 ... it is not the children of the flesh who are the children of God, but the children of the promise are reckoned as descendants.. Paul writes in Galatians 3:29, And if you are Christ'S, then you are Abraham's offspring, heirs according to promise. The until then points to a time when God will have grafted into true spiritual Israel, all that through faith in Christ and obedience of that faith shall be saved. That is the end of time. Jerusalem will be trodden down by the Gentiles until the end of the world. The Jews had their time. They were allotted 490 years from the reestablishment of the Jewish commonwealth (457 B.C. to fulfill their messianic destiny and bring the Messiah into the world and complete God's redemptive program (34 A.D.) (cf. Daniel 9:24-27, see our comments there in Daniel, College Press). They rejected the Messiah and crucified Him. So the kingdom was taken from the Jews and given to others (cf. Matthew 21:43). God gave His kingdom to a mixture of all races and tribes and languages which would produce the fruits of repentance. In this kingdom neither circumcision nor uncircumcision counts for anything, but a new creation. Those who walk by this rule are the Israel of God (cf. Galatians 6:15-16). God has not absolutely rejected the Jews, neither have the Jews totally rejected Christa hardening has taken place only in part. There are still Jews coming to God through Christ today. But that is the only way God will accept anyone (cf. John 5:23; John 14:6; Hebrews 10:10; Hebrews 10:12-14, etc.), from now until the end of time. Genetic Jewishness counts nothing with Godnever did, never shall (cf. Romans 2:28-29; Romans 4:9 ff; Romans 9:22-26; Galatians 3:6-9, etc.); it has always been faith that made anyone a child of God. When the Jews were given their allotted time and when the apostles had completed the first part of Jesus-' Great Commission and had taken the gospel to Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria (Acts 1:8), and they had, for the most part, rejected it, then the gospel of the kingdom was delivered to the Gentiles (see Acts 13:46). The time allotted for the Gentiles (and any Jews who will now believe in Christ, for they are no longer His chosen but are as the Gentiles) is until Christ delivers up the kingdom to God after destroying every authority and power (cf. 1 Corinthians 15:23-28), and that is the end of time.

Until the end of time Jerusalem will be trodden down by the Gentiles. Geographical Jerusalem and national Israel will be characterized as Gentile so long as the present world exists. So long as a Jew will not come to Jehovah by faith in Jesus Christ, he is a heathen, an unbeliever, one who crucifies Christ afresh and for him there is no possibility of repentance before God unless through Jesus Christ (cf. Hebrews 6:1-8; Hebrews 10:1-31). There is no grace of God for anyone outside of Christ, not even in Judaism (cf. Galatians 5:2-6). Jews in Jerusalem today, outside of Christ, are as Gentile as any unbeliever practicing any form of idolatry, because God's covenant is in Christ!

At this point in the discourse Jesus warned that another of the signs indicating the imminent destruction of Jerusalem would be false Christ's and false prophets showing signs and wonders attempting to lead many astray, even the elect. These pseudo-Christs would try to convince many to follow them into different places of alleged safety. But Jesus exhorts His listeners to take heed, I have told you all things beforehand (cf. Matthew 24:23-27; Mark 13:21-23). Then Jesus adds, For as the lightning comes from the east and shines as far as the west, so will be the coming of the Son of man (Matthew 24:27). What Jesus is saying is this: Do not follow the pseudo-Christs; their signs will be obscure, deceitful and false. When the Son of man comes in His judgment upon this city, the signs will be unmistakable. The signs which I have told you will be as clearly visible as the lightning! This interpretation of the Son of man's coming in Matthew 24:27 is in harmony with Jesus-' next statement, Wherever the body is, there the eagles (Gr. aetoi, vultures) will be gathered together (Matthew 24:28). Vultures easily ascertain where deadness is and hasten to devour them. The Romans pounced on the rotting carcass of Judaism. The Jews expected a Messiah to appear from out of nowhere and deliver them from the Romans. Those Jews besieged within the walls of Jerusalem were especially vulnerable to false prophets and false Christs. Jesus said this would be a sign that Jerusalem was about to be wiped out. The real Messiah did come in 70 A.D. with His army to destroy (not deliver) Jerusalem. The reader is referred to Matthew 22:7 where Jesus is plainly parabolizing the destruction of the Jewish nation at the hands of the King's troops who destroyed and burned their city (see also, Isaiah 10:5-10; Jeremiah 27:5-7). This reference to the destruction of Jerusalem as a coming of the Son of man is imperative for the proper understanding of the next section of Jesus-' discourse.

Before continuing with the narrative, however, it is necessary at this point to include a few brief notes from Josephus-' account of the destruction of Jerusalem in his, Wars, Books V and VI:

1.

Three different political parties of the Jews were within the city fighting one another for the three years of siege.

2.

They fought one another with such malice and abandon that thousands of innocent Jews were slain in their cross-fire. Even priests and worshipers in the Temple courts were slain in the very act of offering sacrifices.

3.

These factions burned storehouses filled with food, polluted water reservoirs to keep others from having them, and thus caused the starvation of thousands of their countrymen.

4.

Anyone who sought to escape the city, if caught by the Jews, was slain by having his throat cut.

5.

Burial of dead bodies within the city was impossible so they simply let the cadavers rot, tramped over them, or threw them over the walls.

6.

Some Jews tried to swallow their gold and escape the city, hoping to pass it after escape. Both their own countrymen, and later the Romans, caught on to their ruse. When such people were captured trying to escape, they were thrown to the ground and disemboweled alive and their gold taken from their intestines while they writhed in death throes.

7.

Robbers plundered stores, homes, government buildings, torturing anyone found inside for food or other articles of value.

8.

Children pulled the very morsels of food out of the mouths of their aged parents, and parents did the same to children.

9.

Many Jews sold their homes, their children, anything they possessed, for one measure of wheat or barley.

10.

One method of Jews torturing Jews was to drive wooden spikes up their private parts and this for no reason at all except they wished to express some anger.

11.

Romans crucified Jews who escaped at the rate of 500 per day, They ran out of wood with which to make crosses so many were crucified.

12.

Tens of thousands died of rampant disease and pestilences.

13.

Some Jews leaped from the tops of the walls of Jerusalem, broke bones, mangled bodies, and many died. If they did survive and escape, they ate food, when they could find any, so much and so rapidly, they died.

14.

Dead bodies were stacked in great heaps as high as houses.

15.

Blood ran down the gutters and narrow streets of Jerusalem ankle deep.

16.

Some ate from public sewers, cattle and pigeon dung, wood, leather shields, hay, clothing, and things even scavenger animals would not eat.

17.

Book VI:3:4, documents the incident of a woman roasting her own infant son and eating his flesh to stay alive (cf. Deuteronomy 28:53).

18.

Many false prophets went throughout the city telling people to take refuge in the Temple. As a result, 10,000 were slain and burned when Titus burned the Temple.

19.

After the woman (mentioned above) ate the flesh of her own child, the whole city was full of this horrid action immediately Josephus says.

20.

The Romans, upon capturing the entire city, slew every living person they came into contact withthey obstructed the very streets with their dead bodies, and made the whole city run down with blood, to such a degree that the fire of many houses was quenched with these men's blood.

21.

Josephus records that 1,100,000 perished and 97,000 were taken captive at this destruction of Jerusalem. Some estimates go as high as a total of 2,000,000.

22.

Josephus concludes, ... thus the city was thoroughly laid even with the ground.. Only three towers and a little part of one wall was left by Titus to memorialize his victory over the Jews.

Luke 21:25-28 Potentates Plummeting: Luke says, And there will be signs in sun and moon and stars.. etc. Matthew says, Immediately after the tribulation of those days.. (Matthew 24:29) and Mark says, But in those days, after that tribulation.. (Mark 13:24). The very strong indication that this text (Luke 21:25-28 parallels Matthew 24:29-31; Mark 13:24-27) is a continuation of the prophecy of the destruction of Jerusalem and Judaism may be seen from: (a) Immediately does not usually make room for much of a time gapcertainly not a gap of over 2000 years; (b) When these things begin to take place.. (Luke 21:28) surely is not referring to the Second Coming for there will be no signs pointing to its nearnessit will be instantaneous; (c) and the further statement, ... this generation will not pass away till all these things take place (Luke 21:32; Matthew 24:34; Mark 13:30) undoubtedly includes the sun and moon being darkened, stars falling from heaven, perplexity and distress of nations and the powers of the heavens being shaken.

Now this section is difficult for the Occidental mind, but not for the Oriental. The careful Bible student will find much help in understanding this simply by giving attention to context, comparable passages from the Old Testament and Biblical word usage. This section is plainly couched in what is called apocalyptic language, similar to that of the Old Testament prophets and Revelation when predicting the coming of God in judgment upon pagan nations (and even upon the Jewish nation). Apocalyptic language is characterized by its figurativeness, symbolism and drama. The apocalyptic language of Jesus here should be interpreted in light of the following considerations:

a.

Sun, moon, and stars darkened or falling from heaven is often stated symbolically in the Old Testament to picture any inexpressible calamity such as an overturning of kingdoms or cities or kings or religious potentates thought otherwise to be invincible. It is clear that Isaiah 13:10; Isaiah 14:12 ff; Isaiah 24:23; Isaiah 34:1-4; Jeremiah 4:23-28; Jeremiah 15:9; Joel 2:10; Joel 2:30 to Joel 3:21; Amos 4:9; Micah 3:6; Habakkuk 3:11, and others, refer to the fall of kingdoms and kings in such terms, This kind of imagery goes back at least as far as Joseph and his brothers (cf. Genesis 37:9 ff.). They understood it then.

b.

Luke says, distress of nations. in perplexity at the roaring of the sea and the waves.. This is picturing the distress of the wicked as these calamities of the destruction of Jerusalem roll over them like waves of the sea. Isaiah 57:20-21 uses the same symbolism. It may also refer to the overwhelming flood of the Roman army to come upon Jerusalem (see Jeremiah 6:23 ff. describing the flood of Babylonians about to come upon Jerusalem in 606 B.C.).

c.

The powers of the heavens being shaken.. is apparently a figurative prophecy of the shaking down of the system of Judaism and the obsolete priesthood (cf. Hebrews 8:13; Hebrews 12:25-29; Hebrews 13:13-14 with Isaiah 14:12 ff; Isaiah 24:21-23).

d.

Then will appear the signs of the Son of man.. or as Luke puts it, And then they will see the Son of man coming in a cloud with power and great glory.. Jesus plainly told His apostles some of them would not taste death before they see the kingdom of God come with power and before they saw the Son of man coming in His kingdom (cf. Mark 9:1; Matthew 16:28). He is saying here that when the destruction of Jerusalem occurs it will be unmistakable evidence to His followers, at least, that the Son of man has come to keep His word about taking the kingdom from the Jews.

e.

Luke says men will be fainting with fear and with foreboding.. Matthew says, then all the tribes of the earth will mourn. Jews had been scattered all over the world ever since the Babylonian captivity. These would certainly mourn and faint with fear when they learned of Jerusalem's obliteration by the Romans because they would fear the same treatment. This probably refers also to the prediction of Zechariah (Luke 12:10). There the Jews are predicted as mourning over the crucifying of their Messiah. John refers to this prophecy at the crucifixion (cf. John 19:37). The destruction of Jerusalem was God's wrath upon the nation for crucifying (cutting off) the Messiah (cf. Daniel 9:24-27).

f.

This is probably what Jesus meant when He said the same thing to the High Priest warning him of the consequences of crucifying the Messiah (cf. Matthew 26:64)the destruction of Judaism.

g.

Matthew and Mark add the words: And he will send out his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other, (Matthew 24:31; Mark 13:27). Luke says it this way, When these things (the signs that could be determined about the fall of Jerusalem and the release of the Jewish strangle-hold on the kingdom) begin to take place. your redemption is drawing near. Luke does not say, ... your redemption is here in the twinkling of an eye! When the fall of Judaism is accomplished, the fruitless fig tree will have been withered, and a great obstacle standing in the way of the gospel unto the whole world will be removed (cf. Matthew 21:18-22; Mark 11:12-14; Mark 11:20-25). From that time God will signally build up His kingdom. It shall be fully and exclusively established and recognized when the Jewish system comes to an end. This note of Luke in Luke 21:28, ... now when these things begin to take place.. is parallel to his note in Luke 21:31, So also, when you see these things taking place.. and both of them refer to the visible destruction of Jerusalem. Isaiah predicted that God would create a new land or nation with one stroke. in one day before the old nation had passed away (Isaiah 66:7-9). But Isaiah also predicted that this new nation (the church) would go forth and look on the dead bodies of the men that have rebelled against me.. (Isaiah 66:24). These prophecies, we believe, refer to the establishment of the New Israel, the church, on the day of Pentecostand the subsequent destruction of the old order, Judaism, (see our comments, Isaiah, Vol. III, College Press).

Luke 21:29-32 Readily Recognizable: With the parable of the fig tree, Jesus was using an illustration his disciples, as outdoors men, could readily understand. As Russell Boatman says, in What The Bible Says About The End Time, College Press, A budding tree, whatever its specie, is a sign that -spring has sprung-' and -summer is nigh.-' Thus He was telling His disciples that when they should see the things He had enumerated, they should know the fall of Jerusalem was at hand. The signs of Jerusalem's destruction and God's judgment of the Jewish establishment (the rule of Herod and the rule of the High Priest and the Pharisees) will be as easily recognizable as the signs that summer is drawing near. Matthew records it, ... when you see all these things you know that he is near, at the very gates (Matthew 24:33)Luke's parallel verse says, ... when you see these things take place, you know that the kingdom of God is near.. (Luke 21:31). When the signs were seen, Jesus-' followers would know that the Son of man was at the gates of Jerusalem with His army for judgment. They would know that the kingdom of God had come in its power and destroyed the usurpation of the wicked husbandmen who tried to take the kingdom (vineyard) for themselves. Paul wrote to encourage Hebrew Christians not to go back to Judaism (in the book of Hebrews), but to hold fast to Christianity, and so much more as they were seeing the Day approaching (Hebrews 10:25). What Day could Jewish Christians see approaching? The answer is, of course, the approaching destruction of Judaism and Jerusalemcertainly not the Second Coming of Christ. Their redemption would be the breaking of the strangle-hold of Judaism from the throat of the infant Church, allowing it to survive the Judaizers.

This generation shall not pass away till all these things take place, writes Matthew. Luke says, Truly, I say to you, this generation will not pass away till all has taken place. The first thing the careful student will do is compare the same usage of the word generation in Matthew 11:16; Matthew 12:41; Matthew 23:35-36; cf. Matthew 16:28; Mark 9:1; Luke 9:27. Generation does not mean race as some have thought. It plainly means a life-span of some 35-40 years. All these things.. refers back to all the tribulations predicted from Matthew 24:4 through Matthew 24:34, from Mark 13:5 through Mark 13:30 and from Luke 21:8 through Luke 21:32. Notice the significant and continued use of these (contemporary things) all the way through the afore mentioned sections. But after Matthew 24:34 and Mark 13:30 and Luke 21:32 Jesus begins using that to refer to His Second Coming when heaven and earth is to pass away.

Summarizing, it is clear that all Jesus has predicted in His Olivet Discourse up to this point applies strictly to the destruction of Jerusalem and Judaism. Note the following points:

a.

All these things.. indicates all which He has said prior is said of the destruction of Jerusalem.

b.

Up to this point in the discourse, Jesus says everything that is to happen is to happen in those days (plural). Everything after this point (after Matthew 24:34; Mark 13:30; Luke 21:32) is in that day (singular). The phrase, that day (singular) is a widely used phrase in the New Testament to speak of the end of the world and judgment.

c.

The conjunction But in Matthew 24:36; Mark 13:32; Luke 21:34 is a definite word separating that which has been predicted earlier and able to be known, from that which follows the conjunction which cannot be known by signs.