The abomination of desolation, and the true Light

‘So when you see the desolating sacrilege standing in the holy place, as was spoken of by the prophet Daniel (let the reader understand), then those in Judea must flee to the mountains; someone on the housetop must not go down to take what is in the house; someone in the field must not turn back to get a coat. Woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing infants in those days! Pray that your flight may not be in winter or on a sabbath. For at that time there will be great suffering, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be. And if those days had not been cut short, no one would be saved; but for the sake of the elect those days will be cut short. Then if anyone says to you, “Look! Here is the Messiah!” or “There he is!”—do not believe it. For false messiahs and false prophets will appear and produce great signs and omens, to lead astray, if possible, even the elect. Take note, I have told you beforehand. So, if they say to you, “Look! He is in the wilderness”, do not go out. If they say, “Look! He is in the inner rooms”, do not believe it. For as the lightning comes from the east and flashes as far as the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. Wherever the corpse is, there the vultures will gather.

‘Immediately after the suffering of those days

the sun will be darkened,

and the moon will not give its light;

the stars will fall from heaven,

and the powers of heaven will be shaken.

Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see “the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven” with power and great glory. 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 24:15-31

Jesus continues his discourse regarding end times, combining a discussion of the future Siege of Jerusalem, and a more apocalyptic or cosmic sense of what the notion of end times means to his followers. Jesus' discussion of the end of the age in this chapter of Matthew is described as a process with three overlapping stages: the beginning of sorrows, the Great Tribulation, and the coming of the Son of Man. The previous reading, on Saturday, began Jesus' discourse on this subject, answering his apostles' questions regarding the end of the age. In that previous reading, Jesus focused the bulk of discussion of what was to come in Jerusalem, and here he continues.

"So when you see the desolating sacrilege standing in the holy place, as was spoken of by the prophet Daniel (let the reader understand), then those in Judea must flee to the mountains; someone on the housetop must not go down to take what is in the house; someone in the field must not turn back to get a coat. Woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing infants in those days! Pray that your flight may not be in winter or on a sabbath. For at that time there will be great suffering, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be. And if those days had not been cut short, no one would be saved; but for the sake of the elect those days will be cut short." The "desolating sacrilege standing in the holy place" is also known to us in the traditional language of the King James translation as the "abomination of desolation," which was predicted by the prophet Daniel. Jesus' prediction was fulfilled at the destruction of the temple in Jerusalem, which was to occur in A.D. 70. In what is known as the Siege of Jerusalem, the Roman general Titus entered the Most Holy Place, which was a defilement of the temple, the "abomination of desolation." This happened just before Titus ordered the temple to be burned. The words, "let the reader understand" are a code from the author of the gospel to early Christians about the known meaning of what was written. This prophecy is given for these disciples about events in Jerusalem that will occur while most of them are still living.

As Jesus continues, he issues the disciples a warning about what will occur during those times of desolation in Jerusalem. And his warning focuses on following false prophecies and false declarations of the return of the Messiah, or Son of Man. "Son of Man" is an important apocalyptic title also found in the book of Daniel and Daniel's prophecy regarding the end of the age. Jesus' warning stresses predictions of the end of the age in contrast to what will be witnessed in Jerusalem, in order to instruct his followers properly: "Then if anyone says to you, 'Look! Here is the Messiah!' or 'There he is!'—do not believe it. For false messiahs and false prophets will appear and produce great signs and omens, to lead astray, if possible, even the elect. Take note, I have told you beforehand. So, if they say to you, 'Look! He is in the wilderness', do not go out. If they say, 'Look! He is in the inner rooms', do not believe it." Jesus has predicted the destruction of the temple, and the "desolating sacrilege" or "abomination of desolation" in the holy place. But he's giving a warning here to his followers not to be fooled by those declaring the return of the Son of Man at that time. In the previous reading, the disciples asked for a sign of Jesus' coming and the end of the age. Jesus is warning them here not to be fooled by such declarations and appearance of false signs and omens at the time of the destruction of Jerusalem.

"For as the lightning comes from the east and flashes as far as the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. Wherever the corpse is, there the vultures will gather.

‘Immediately after the suffering of those days

the sun will be darkened,

and the moon will not give its light;

the stars will fall from heaven,

and the powers of heaven will be shaken.' "

Jesus reminds his followers of the prophecy of the end of the age and the return of the Son of Man, so that they will know the difference between these events that are to come in Jerusalem and the events signaling the end of the age. Jesus quotes from both Daniel and Ezekiel the prophecies regarding these events of the end of the age. My study bible notes that this event will be "unmistakably visible to all." In many branches of the Church, prayer is directed toward the East, the direction of the rising sun, because "the East symbolizes Christ Himself who is the East of easts, Light of light. The great day of the Lord will be illuminated by the true Light, the 'rising.' The very creation will be transfigured--not destroyed but superseded--by the light of His presence at the end of the age." So, whatever else we may know or not know, it seems the clues we've been given indicate an unmistakable, overwhelming event, not a mystery we'll have to guess at when it occurs.

"Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see 'the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven' with power and great glory. 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." Jesus quotes scripture again to describe the end of the age, from the prophecies of Daniel and of Zechariah. My study bible notes that Jesus moves on from the discussion of the destruction of Jerusalem not only for the sake of his disciples, but also for our sakes - for those of us followers who will come later. The "sign of the Son of Man" is thought by many to be the Cross which is the memorial of his Passion. This "power and great glory" is one of tremendous light, such as at the Transfiguration, brighter than the sun. In Acts 1:9-11, we have the prediction that Jesus' return as Son of Man will occur in the same way the apostles saw him ascend to heaven.

So, once again, we return to the theme of Advent, which is our current focus. We await that Light, as Jesus predicts its return for us in this passage. Over and over again, important notions in these gospels focus on the phenomenon of this glorious Light that transfigures all, the sign of the kingdom. It is a light that is different from what we know and can see as light, a spiritual light with more depth, more dimension, more illumination than the sunlight we need and see everyday. This will be a sign of his coming, we have been told, and in these scriptures we have been given this sign - in the star at his birth, and in the glorious light at the Transfiguration witnessed by his apostles Peter, James and John. And then of course there are the appearances of extraordinary light - and fire that does not consume - in the Old Testament as well. So, as we light up our trees with beautiful light, and we consider Christmas tradition, consider the meaning of the true light. In the Nicene Creed, we know the phrase "Light from Light." When we think of Advent and the celebration of the birth of the baby Jesus, today let us think about that Light, and all the ways in which the Light is there for us, is predicted to return to us, has been written about and recorded for us, and appears in our lives - even metaphorically - to illumine and teach us the way.