Prophecy Concerning the Destruction of the Temple, the Scattering of the Jews, and the Coming of the Son of Man (21:5-36).
This passage connects with the last in that the disciples begin to discuss the offerings that had resulted in the building of the glorious Temple which they could see before them, first as they left the Temple, and then as they sat on the Mount of Olives (Marl Luke 13:3-4). These had been great indeed. Tens of thousand of people who flocked to the Temple would be amazed and awed at the splendour of the gifts made to the Temple by the very wealthy. It was one of the wonders of the world. The disciples had been amazed and awed when they had first seen it, and they were equally amazed and awed every time they came to Jerusalem and saw it. It had that kind of splendour that no provincial ever got used to.
Luke here wants us to contrast this amazement at the glory of the gifts of the wealthy with Jesus amazement at the glory of the gift of the widow. Note indeed the contrasts within these verses, which Luke has deliberately associated together:
1). Certain of the Scribes devour widow's houses.
2). The rich toss into the temple treasury of their abundance.
3). The poor widow gives all that she has.
4). Jesus admires the giving of the widow. She has laid up treasure in Heaven.
5). The disciples admire the giving of the rich who display their gifts.
6). Jesus declares that the Gentiles will devour the Temple.
So Jesus tells His disciples to look well at the gifts displayed on the Temple. And that these splendid gifts, admired by all, will in fact be pulled down along with the stonework of the Temple until not one stone is left on another, (while the few lepta of the widow will go on for ever and be remembered in the Day when those who are Christ's receive their reward). It was the sight of the Temple, shining in the sun as they were leaving, that drew the admiring comments from the disciples, and the same splendour as they looked at it from the Mount of Olives (Mark 13:3-4) that made them ask when it would happen, but Luke mentions none of this. He continues the discourse without mentioning the change of place because he wishes a direct contrast to be made with the gift of the widow and for it to be closely connected with the Temple ministry (Luke 21:1-4; Luke 21:37). He wants his readers to see that the Temple is being given its warning.
It is difficult to overstress the splendour of the Temple. It was a huge edifice built on top of the Temple mount. Its building commenced in 19 BC and the main structure was completed within ten years, but the finishing touches went on and were still in progress at this time, not being finished until 64 AD (just in time for its destruction). It was enclosed by a wall of massive stone blocks, each block on average about 1 metre high and five metres long. The front of the Temple was covered in gold plating that shone brilliantly in the sun, and its stones were of glistening white marble. There were stones in the Temple measuring 20 metres by Luke 2:5 metres by Luke 2:25 metres (68 feet by 9 feet by Luke 7:5 feet), while the Temple area itself was about 450 metres (1450 feet) by 300 metres (950 feet). All was on a vast scale. The large outer court, the Court of the Gentiles, which surrounded the inner courts and the Sanctuary on three sides, was surrounded by porticoes built on huge pillars. It was in these colonnades that Rabbis held their schools and debates (Luke 2:46), and the Temple trading took place (Luke 11:15). It would be here that the early church came together for worship.
Steps leading up to the first inner court, the court of the women, demonstrate that it was at a higher level than the outer court. This court was surrounded by balustrades on which were posted the signs warning death to any Gentile who trespassed within. (Two of these inscriptions have been discovered). Beyond this balustrade was the Court of the Women, through which men had to go to reach the court of Israel, and in which were found the thirteen trumpets for collection of funds for the Treasury. A further court, raised above the court of the women, and reached by further steps, was the Court of Israel, and beyond that again was the Priests' Court which contained the great Altar built of unhewn stone.
Within that Court, raised above all, was the holy shrine itself, entered through a porch that was 100 cubits high and 100 cubits wide (a cubit was 45 centimetres or 17:5 inches). The doorway that gave entry was 40 cubits high and 20 cubits wide, and another door, half the size, led into the Holy Place. This was 40 cubits long and 20 cubits wide, and separated from the Most Holy Place by doors over which hung a curtain (the veil). The Most Holy Place was 20 cubits square and 40 cubits high. But the height of the sanctuary was increased by an additional empty room above it which raised the height of the whole to 100 cubits.
Josephus described the holy shrine and its magnificence thus. ‘Now the outward face of the Temple in its front wanted nothing that was likely to surprise men's minds or their eyes, for it was covered all over with plates of gold of great weight, and, at the first rising of the sun, reflected back a very fiery splendour, and made those who forced themselves to look on it turn their eyes away, just as they would have done at the sun's own rays. But this Temple appeared to strangers, when they were at a distance, like a mountain covered with snow, for as to those parts of it which were not gold they were exceeding white.' Some of these great white stones have been unearthed within the last decade.
This was the magnificence that so drew the attention of the disciples as they left the Temple, and then gazed at it from the Mount of Olives (Mark 13:3-4). They had seen it before but they never ceased to marvel at its massiveness and splendour, and as the sun went down they were again struck by the sight of it and began to discuss its marvellous stonework of massive white stones, and the glistening gold of the offerings made by Herod and others that shone in the sun. It drew a sense of wonder from their hearts. And these gifts had been made by great and powerful men. They never ceased being filled with awe. No wonder the widow's lepta seemed unimportant to all but Jesus. But Jesus saw it totally differently, for He knew it all for what it was.
So Luke deliberately make his introduction less personal and explanatory, and less detailed than the other Gospels. He wants all concentration to be on the message, and he wants attention to be maintained on the Temple (Luke 21:37). So while he nowhere contradicts Mark about where the questions and the speech took place, he is simply silent on the matter, thus intentionally linking the words directly with the Temple.
It is clear that in this speech Luke is not only calling on Mark, but also on one or more other sources, and it is interesting that if the identifiable Marcan extracts are removed the discourse is still on the whole a conjoined whole, hinting at this use of another source or sources. That is why he can give us words of Jesus omitted by Mark. Mark seeks to make his version of the speech (a speech which was probably a lot longer and more detailed than either Mark or Luke) carry straight through from the sacking of Jerusalem and the arrival of the Desolating Abomination, to the final coming of the Son of Man, so as to link the two, the initial judgment, which ends with the coming of the Desecrating Desolator, the great Beast of Daniel, being seen as followed by the final judgment and the coming of the glorious Son of Man. But Luke makes clear that there is a period of time of unknown dimension between the two, what Jesus calls ‘the times of the Gentiles' (Luke 21:24). Revelation will later depict this in terms of ‘a thousand years' (Luke 20:4-7), a long period of unknown length which is within the perfection of God's plan, when the martyred people of God will also reign with Jesus above.
But the first three Gospels all make clear that there must be some considerable delay before His coming, although none can know how long. And during this period Jesus makes clear that there will be world catastrophes, ‘worldwide' preaching of the Good News including persecution, and then the defiling of the Temple. It is only when these have taken place that the Son of Man will come.
The passage that now follows divides strictly into two. The first part deals with the answer to the question of the disciples, in response to His comment about what was to happen to the Temple (Luke 21:5-24). The second part deals with the final coming of the Son of Man (Luke 21:25-38). In the Section chiasmus the first part of this passage (Luke 21:5-24) is paralleled by Jesus weeping over Jerusalem (Luke 19:41-44). That parallels the destruction of Jerusalem as described here. The second part of this passage (Luke 21:25-36) parallels His triumphal coming to Jerusalem on an ass (Luke 19:28-40). The entry in Kingly humility on the ass thus parallels the coming of the Son of Man in glory. Jerusalem had refused to receive Him. A desolated Jerusalem would welcome His return.
The first part (Luke 21:5-24) then divides into three parts, the troubles coming on the world found in Luke 21:8-11, the persecution of God's true people and the opportunity to be a testimony through it (including in Mark the proclamation of the Good News to all nations) which is found in Luke 21:12-19, and the taking of Jerusalem and the scattering of the Jews among the nation found in Luke 21:20-24.
Because of his readership and his background Luke is more wary of how he presents Jesus' words about the coming destruction of the Temple than Mark or Matthew, for he wants his readers to understand. Instead of speaking of the ‘Desolating Abomination', a phrase pregnant with significance to Jews, but meaningless to Gentiles, he paraphrases it in terms of Jerusalem being surrounded by armies (accompanied by their idolatrous insignias) which will bring about its desolation. Alternatelt we may see it as signifying that he is quoting further words of Jesus, which Jesus gave in explanation of the phrase ‘desolating abomination' (or ‘the desecration that appals') not recorded by Mark and Matthew. But the ideas are actually the same. The Desolating Abomination in the time of the Maccabees, described in Daniel 11:31 and extended into the future in Daniel 9:27, from which the phrase comes, had been the result of Antiochus Epiphanes, together with his armies, surrounding Jerusalem and desecrating the Temple. That Luke's description in Luke 21:20 does actually refer to the same thing as Mark 13:14; Matthew 24:15 is clear when we make a verse by verse comparison of Luke with Matthew and Mark which we will consider when we come to it.
We note now how Luke, with consummate skill, takes his sources and moulds them into one in the form of a chiasmus, in the way we have constantly seen him do previously, while yet still remaining faithful to the words of Jesus. That these are actually the words of Jesus comes out in the fact that these magnificent words require their author to be a magnificent personality, and as this magnificence is found in the passage in all the first three Gospels it is clearly not that of the writers. It must be found in it being the words of One Who stood out among His generation, along with His other words elsewhere that bear the same stamp. (Comparison with other writings reveals how distinctive Jesus' style was. He spoke as none other spoke). We will now analyse the chiastic construction of the speech.
Analysis of 21:5-28.
a As some spoke of the temple, how it was adorned with goodly stones and offerings, He said (Luke 21:5).
b “As for these things which you behold, the days will come, in which there will not be left here one stone upon another, that will not be thrown down” (Luke 21:6).
c They asked him, saying, “Teacher, when therefore will these things be? and what will be the sign when these things are about to occur?” (Luke 21:7).
d ‘And he said, “Take heed that you are not led astray. For many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am he', and, ‘The time is at hand', do not go after them. And when you shall hear of wars and tumults, be not terrified, for these things must necessarily come about first, but the end is not immediately” (Luke 21:8-9).
e Then he said to them, “Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be great earthquakes, and in many and various places famines and pestilences, and there will be terrors and great signs from heaven” (Luke 21:10-11).
f “But before all these things, they will lay their hands on you, and will persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues and prisons, bringing you before kings and governors for my name's sake” (Luke 21:12).
g “It will turn out to you for a testimony” (Luke 21:13).
h “Settle it therefore in your hearts, not to meditate beforehand how to answer, for I will give you a mouth and wisdom, which all your adversaries will not be able to withstand or to gainsay” (Luke 21:14-15).
i “But you will be delivered up even by parents, and brethren, and kinsfolk, and friends, and some of you they will cause to be put to death” (Luke 21:16).
h “And you will be hated of all men for my name's sake, and not a hair of your head will perish” (Luke 21:17-18).
g “In your patience endurance you will win your souls” (Luke 21:19).
f “But when you see Jerusalem surrounded with armies, then know that her desolation is at hand, then let those who are in Judaea flee to the mountains, and let those who are in the midst of her depart out, and let not those who are in the countryside enter into it” (Luke 21:20-21).
e “For these are days of vengeance, that all things which are written may be fulfilled” (Luke 21:22).
d “Woe to those who are with child and to those who are breast-feeding in those days! For there will be great distress on the land, and wrath to this people. And they will fall by the edge of the sword, and will be led captive into all the nations, and Jerusalem will be trodden down of the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled” (Luke 21:23-24).
c “And there will be signs in sun and moon and stars, and on the earth distress of nations, in perplexity for the roaring of the sea and the billows, men fainting for fear, and for expectation of the things which are coming on the world. For the powers of the heavens will be shaken” (Luke 21:25-26).
b “And then will they see the Son of man coming in a cloud with power and great glory” (Luke 21:27).
a “But when these things begin to come about, look up, and lift up your heads, because your redemption draws near” (Luke 21:28).
We note that in ‘a' the disciples look up at the ‘goodly stones' and ‘offerings' of the Temple, the centre of Jewish worship and deliverance, and in the parallel in complete contrast they are to lift up their heads, watching for their coming redemption and deliverance from above. They are to seek the things which are above where He will shortly be seated at the right hand of God (Luke 22:69), setting their minds on things above and not on things on the earth (Colossians 3:1-2). In ‘b' the things that they now see will be thrown down so that not one stone will be left on another, and in the parallel the Son of Man will come with power and great glory, for it is He Who replaces the glory of the Temple (John 2:18-21). In ‘c' they ask Him for signs, and in the parallel signs are given. In ‘d' will come false dawns to Jerusalem and Israel, and rumours of dreadful things, and in the parallel come the reality of those warnings and the news that rather than the coming of dawn, it is darkness that is coming on Jerusalem and Israel. In ‘e' are outlined the dreadful things coming on the world, and in the parallel reference is made to the days of vengeance. In ‘f' is outlined the future tribulation for the disciples, and in the parallel future tribulation for Jerusalem when the Roman armies invade (called in Matthew, with its aftermath, ‘great tribulation'). In ‘g' the tribulation of the disciples will be a testimony, both to men and God, and in the parallel through their patient endurance they will win their inner life. In ‘h' they will be provided with the means to withstand their adversaries in court, something which they will require, for in the parallel they will be hated of all men for His name's sake. And in ‘i', centrally to what they would now have to face in the future are given the consequences for them, and the warning that they will be hated by family and friends, and some will even be put to death. For this is all a sign of the fire that is now coming on the earth that will revolutionise their future (Luke 12:52-53 with 49), and bring about all that is being described.
As we have previously observed the passage may now be seen as divided into two main parts (with the first part divided into three), the two parts describing first the coming future judgment on Jerusalem, prior to the scattering of the Jews in Jerusalem throughout the world, which came about in 70 AD and what followed, and secondly the glorious appearing of the Son of Man. They are separated by ‘the times of the Gentiles'.