The End of the Age

"Therefore when you see the 'abomination of desolation,' spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place" (whoever reads let him understand), "then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. Let him who is on the housetop not go down to take anything out of his house. And let him who is in the field not go back to get his clothes. But woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days! And pray that your flight may not be in winter or on the Sabbath. For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be. And unless those days were shortened, no flesh would be saved; but for the elect's sake those days will be shortened. Then if anyone says to you, 'Look, here is the Christ!' or 'There!' do not believe. For false christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect. See, I have told you beforehand. Therefore, if they say to you, 'Look, he is in the desert!' do not go out; or 'Look, he is in the inner rooms!' do not believe it. For as the lightning comes from the east and flashes to the west, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. For wherever the carcass is, there the eagles will be gathered together."

"Immediately after the tribulation 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 the heavens 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 His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they will gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other."

- Matthew 24:15-31

Starting with yesterday's reading (Do you not see all these things?), Jesus begins a discourse in answer to his disciples' questions about Jesus' prediction of the destruction of the temple, and about the end of the age and his return. In yesterday's reading, Jesus spoke of his prediction for Jerusalem and what will befall them within their lifetimes. In today's he continues his discussion of what will happen in Judea, and also begins to touch on predictions regarding the end of the age and of his return.

"Therefore when you see the 'abomination of desolation,' spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place" (whoever reads let him understand) . . . My study bible notes on this verse: "Daniel's prophecy of the abomination of desolation was fulfilled in A.D. 70, when the Roman general Titus, before ordering the temple burned, entered the Most Holy Place, thus defiling the temple. Jesus quotes this prophecy so that the disciples might know these things will happen while most of them are still alive. Whoever reads, let him understand are code words from the author to early Christians about the known meaning of what is written." The predictions of the "abomination of desolation" can be read in Daniel 9:27; 11:31, and 12:11. Clearly, the events of the siege of Jerusalem and the destruction of the temple are linked with apocalyptic events, that concern also the end of the age. In one can be found hints of the other. In this sense, we are in "end times" and have been so since the initiation of this time.

"then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. Let him who is on the housetop not go down to take anything out of his house. And let him who is in the field not go back to get his clothes. But woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days! And pray that your flight may not be in winter or on the Sabbath." Clearly, these are warnings about the great destruction in Jerusalem that is to come. He is foreshadowing for them the nature of the destruction and the siege. The early Jerusalem church heeded the warnings, and left the city before the greatest destruction and thus survived this calamity.

"For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be. And unless those days were shortened, no flesh would be saved; but for the elect's sake those days will be shortened. " My study bible gives reference to the words "for the elect's sake" in the book of Isaiah: Thus says the LORD, 'As the new wine is found in the cluster, And one says, 'Do not destroy it, for there is benefit in it,' So I will act on behalf of My servants in order not to destroy all of them. I will bring forth offspring from Jacob, and an heir of My mountains from Judah; Even My chosen ones shall inherit it, and My servants will dwell there.' So, this is a reference to those who will form this new Church, who will survive, and take it to the world.

"Then if anyone says to you, 'Look, here is the Christ!' or 'There!' do not believe. For false christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect. See, I have told you beforehand. Therefore, if they say to you, 'Look, he is in the desert!' do not go out; or 'Look, he is in the inner rooms!' do not believe it.'" At this time, great temptation to believe in false hope and false prophets led to many predictions and searches for the return of the Messiah. But Jesus is warning them about all of this - not to believe any of it. His return will be something specific and recognizable.

"For as the lightning comes from the east and flashes to the west, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. For wherever the carcass is, there the eagles will be gathered together." My study bible (which is the Orthodox Study Bible) notes here: "How will Christ come back? The event will be unmistakably visible to all. In the Orthodox Church we pray in 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' (Is. 60:1, 3; Mal. 4:2; Luke 1:78; 2 Pet. 1:19). The very creation will be transfigured -- not destroyed but superseded -- by the light of His presence at the end of the age." We are given a distinct preview of what this Second Coming will be like, so that we (and his disciples in Jerusalem) are not fooled. This will be an unmistakable event.

"Immediately after the tribulation 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 the heavens will be shaken." My study bible references Daniel 7:11 and Ezekiel 32:7 for this verse. Clearly, Jesus is quoting from prophecy so that his disciples and followers may understand what the Second Coming will be like, and they will not be fooled by the tribulation they will endure in Jerusalem. The words previously quoted (in the previous paragraph), referring to the "carcass" and the "gathering of eagles" are often interpreted as referring to the siege of Jerusalem, and the eagles as the imperial sign of Rome. But given the quotations from Daniel 7:11 regarding the death of the beast, I am inclined to wonder if Jesus is not still referring to this apocalyptic event - which he began in the previous verse.

"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 His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they will gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other." My study bible gives references to this prediction from Daniel 7:13-14 and Zechariah 12:12. It also has a note, which refers to verses 29-31, the verses that pertain to his return: "After he speaks about Jerusalem, he moves on to his own Second Coming, not for their sakes only, but for all of us who come after them. The sign of the Son of Man (v. 30) in his Second Coming is thought by many to be his glorious Cross, the memorial of his Passion. His power and great glory will be brighter than the sun, which will be darkened. The Lord Jesus will come from heaven in the same way the Apostles saw him ascend to heaven (Acts 1:11)." Whatever is going to happen, it will happen in a way in which there is no mistaking what transpires - but this is not yet to be. Many people I have met are concerned with world events, and see in them potentials or possibilities of the end of the age. But truly, it is my opinion that we have been in what might be called "end times" from the point of Jesus advent on earth. We are all faced with a great question: what will we choose? In this "spiritual battle" it is a case of hearts and minds. It takes place within us, and clearly Jesus' ministry was a battle for hearts and minds. It all comes down to that. What we see taking place in the world is in some ways a reflection of that battle. What do we choose? How do we choose it? Do we ally with the God of love, to learn the righteousness and all that is encompassed in that word, "love?" Certainly, Jesus has railed in these chapters against greed, predatory behavior, those who would mislead for their own gain rather than being good spiritual leaders, and a whole host of the things that make for spiritual blindness and hard-heartedness. Our world suffers from these things, we are afflicted by this and by pain in many forms. But we still have this choice. We are tempted - as were those in the great tribulation in Jerusalem - to ponder themes of the end of the age, and the Second Coming. But they endured, and we endure. We have his words that teach us what that event will be like. But I have also heard others refer to the "second coming" as that event which takes place inside of ourselves, each time we open the door to his knock. The Book of Revelation is known by its theme of Apocalypse. But its most potent words may be this verse, which I often quote: "Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come into him and dine with him, and he with Me" (Revelation 3:20). Let us remember that in any tribulation, in all our calamities and troubles, this is what we are taught: to open the door of the heart to this knock. He has warned that speculation of the time of these events is futile; instead we are to be faithful disciples, to follow him, to remain awake to what it is we are to be about.