Matthew 24:21

Matthew 24:21. Great tribulation, etc. Josephus, a Jew by birth and education, but a Roman in religion and sympathies, in describing the siege of Jerusalem, almost repeats the words of our Lord. From this ‘great tribulation' the Jewish Christians escaped by fleeing to Pella. The siege began at the time of the Passover feast, when the city was crowded. Internal dissensions combined with scarcity of food to multiply the horrors. One woman of rank, named Mary, too, killed and roasted her own babe (comp. Deuteronomy 28:53; Deuteronomy 28:56-57), and was discovered only by those who sought to rob her of food ; yet even they shrank back at the sight. The resistance to the Romans was fanatical, despite the bloody discord within the city. When at last it was successfully stormed by Titus, the rage of the Roman soldiers, raised to the utmost by the stubborn resistance, was permitted to wreak itself unchecked upon the inhabitants. The sword made the whole city run with blood; while crucifixions by way of jest were very frequent. Eleven hundred thousand persons perished, the remainder were sold into slavery, or distributed throughout the Roman provinces to be destroyed by wild beasts. Thus the prophecy of Luke 21:24 was literally fulfilled. Yet the Roman leader who conducted these operations was one of the most excellent among the heathen.

Nor ever shall be. This seems to indicate that nothing analogous will occur again. But Matthew 24:22 is so closely connected with this verse, that a double reference is probable even in Matthew 24:15-21, which were most strikingly fulfilled in the first century. The final application would be to a sudden catastrophe before the coming of our Lord, which His people will be enabled to avoid, by recognizing the appearance of the signs He has given. Still these verses, of themselves, shed little light as yet on the subject of the last days. The final catastrophe is more plainly indicated in the subsequent part of the chapter.