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Prediction of the Destruction of the Temple
(Mark 13:1-2 Matt 24:1-2 Luke 21:5-6) 1 AND as he was going out of the temple, one of his disciples said to him: Master, behold what manner of stones and what buildings are here. 2 And Jesus answering, said to him: Seest thou all these great buildings? There shall not be left a stone upon a stone, that shall not be thrown down. Signs before the End
(Mark 13:3-8 Matt 24:3-8 Luke 21:7-11) 3 And as he sat on the mount of Olivet over against the temple, Peter and James and John and Andrew asked him apart: 4 Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign when all these things shall begin to be fulfilled? 5 And Jesus answering, began to say to them, Take heed lest any man deceive you. 6 For many shall come in my name, saying, I am he; and they shall deceive many. 7 And when you shall hear of wars and rumours of wars, fear ye not. For such things must needs be, but the end is not yet. 8 For nation shall rise against nation and kingdom against kingdom, and there shall be earthquakes in divers places, and famines. These things are the beginning of sorrows. The Coming Fate and Persecution of the Disciples
9 But look to yourselves. For they shall deliver you up to councils, and in the synagogues you shall be beaten, and you shall stand before governors and kings for my sake, for a testimony unto them. 10 And unto all nations the gospel must first be preached. 11 And when they shall lead you and deliver you up, be not thoughtful beforehand what you shall speak; but whatsoever shall be given you in that hour, that speak ye. For it is not you that speak, but the Holy Ghost. 12 And the brother shall betray his brother unto death, and the father his son; and children shall rise up against the parents, and shall work their death. 13 And you shall be hated by all men for my name's sake. But he that shall endure unto the end, he shall be saved. The Desolating Sacrilege
(Mark 13:14-20 Matt 24:15-22 Luke 21:20-24) 14 And when you shall see the abomination of desolation, standing where it ought not: he that readeth let him understand: then let them that are in Judea, flee unto the mountains: 15 And let him that is on the housetop, not go down into the house, nor enter therein to take any thing out of the house: 16 And let him that shall be in the field, not turn back to take up his garment. 17 And woe to them that are with child, and that give suck in those days. 18 But pray ye, that these things happen not in winter. 19 For in those days shall be such tribulations, as were not from the beginning of the creation which God created until now, neither shall be. 20 And unless the Lord had shortened the days, no flesh should be saved: but for the sake of the elect which he hath chosen, he hath shortened the days. False Christs and False Prophets
(Mark 13:21-23 Matt 24:23-28 Luke 17:23-24, 37) 21 And then if any man shall say to you, Lo, here is Christ; lo, he is here: do not believe. 22 For there will rise up false Christs and false prophets, and they shall shew signs and wonders, to seduce (if it were possible) even the elect. 23 Take you heed therefore; behold I have foretold you all things. The Coming of the Son of Man
(Mark 13:24-27 Matt 24:29-31 Luke 21:25-28) 24 But in those days, after that tribulation, the sun shall be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light. 25 And the stars of heaven shall be falling down, and the powers that are in heaven, shall be moved. 26 And then shall they see the Son of man coming in the clouds, with great power and glory. 27 And then shall he send his angels, and shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from the uttermost part of the earth to the uttermost part of heaven. The Time of the Coming. the Parable of the Fig Tree
(Mark 13:28-32 Matt 24:32-36 Luke 21:29-33) 28 Now of the fig tree learn ye a parable. When the branch thereof is now tender, and the leaves are come forth, you know that summer is very near. 29 So you also when you shall see these things come to pass, know ye that it is very nigh, even at the doors. 30 Amen I say to you, that this generation shall not pass, until all these things be done. 31 Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my word shall not pass away. 32 notesmar.html> But of that day or hour no man knoweth, neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but the Father. Conclusion. “Take Heed, Watch!”
33 Take ye heed, watch and pray. For ye know not when the time is. The Parable of the Talents
(Mark 13:34 Matt 25:14-30 Luke 19:11-27) 34 Even as a man who going into a far country, left his house; and gave authority to his servants over every work, and commanded the porter to watch. The Parable of the Flood and Exhortation to Watchfulness
35 Watch ye therefor, (for you know not when the lord of the house cometh: at even, or at midnight, or at the cockcrowing, or in the morning,) 36 Lest coming on a sudden, he find you sleeping. 37 And what I say to you, I say to all: Watch. Gospel Harmony on Mark 13
Prediction of the Destruction of the Temple
(Mark 13:1-2 Matt 24:1-2 Luke 21:5-6) Matthew proceeds with his history in the following terms: “And Jesus went out and departed from the temple; and His disciples came to Him for to show Him the buildings of the temple. And Jesus said unto them, See ye all these things? Verily I say unto you, There shall not be left here one stone upon another which shall not be thrown down.”(Mt 24:1-2) This incident is related also by Mark, and nearly in the same order. But he brings it in after a digression of some small extent, which is made with a view to mention the case of the widow who put the two mites into the treasury,(Mark 12:41-13:2) which occurrence is recorded only by Mc and Luke. For [in proof that Mark’s order is essentially the same as Matthew’s, we need only notice that] in Mark’s version also, after the account of the Lord’s discussion with the Jews on the occasion when He asked them how they held Christ to be David’s son, we have a narrative of what He said in warning them against the Pharisees and their hypocrisy,—a section which Matthew has presented on the amplest scale, introducing into it a larger number of the Lord’s sayings on that occasion. Then after this paragraph, which has been handled briefly by Mark, and treated with great fulness by Matthew, Mark, as I have said, introduces the passage about the widow who was at once so extremely poor, and yet abounded so remarkably. And finally, without interpolating anything else, he subjoins a section in which he comes again into unison with Matthew,—namely, that relating to the destruction of the temple. In like manner, Lc first states the question which was propounded regarding Christ, as to how He was the son of David, and then mentions a few of the words which were spoken in cautioning them against the hypocrisy of the Pharisees. Thereafter he proceeds, as Mc does, to tell the story of the widow who cast the two mites into the treasury. And finally he appends the statement,(Luke 20:16-21:6) which appears also in Matthew and Mark, on the subject of the destined overthrow of the temple. (St. Augustine Harmony of the Gospels 2.76) OF THE HARMONY SUBSISTING BETWEEN THE THREE EVANGELISTS IN THEIR NARRATIVES OF THE DISCOURSE (Mark 13:4-37 Matt 24:3-25-46 Luke 21:7-36) Matthew continues in the following strain: “And as He sat upon the mount of Olives, the disciples came unto Him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of Thy coming, and of the end of the world? And Jesus answered, and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you: for many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many;” and so on, down to where we read, “And these shall go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into life eternal.” We have now, therefore, to examine this lengthened discourse as it meets us in the three evangelists, Matthew, Mark, and Luke. For they all introduce it in their narratives, and that, too, in the same order.(Mt 24:3-25-46 Mark 13:4-37 Luke 21:7-36) Here, as elsewhere, each of these writers gives some matters which are peculiar to himself, in which, nevertheless, we have not to apprehend any suspicion of inconsistency. But what we have to make sure of is the proof that, in those passages which are exact parallels, they are nowhere to be regarded as in antagonism with each other. For if anything bearing the appearance of a contradiction meets us here, the simple affirmation that it is something wholly distinct, and uttered by the Lord in similar terms indeed, but on a totally different occasion, cannot be deemed a legitimate mode of explanation in a case like this, where the narrative, as given by all the three evangelists, moves in the same connection at once of subjects and of dates. Moreover, the mere fact that the writers do not all observe the same order in the reports which they give of the same sentiments expressed by the Lord, certainly does not in any way affect either the understanding or the communication of the subject itself, provided the matters which are represented by them to have been spoken by Him are not inconsistent the one with the other. Again, what Matthew states in this form, “And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations, and then shall the end come,”(Mt 24:14) is given also in the same connection by Mc in the following manner: “And the gospel must first be published among all nations.”(Mark 13:10) Mc has not added the words, “and then shall the end come;” but he indicates what they express, when he uses the phrase “first “in the sentence, “And the gospel must first be published among all nations.” For they had asked Him about the end. And therefore, when He addresses them thus, “The gospel must first be published among all nations,” the term “first” clearly suggests the idea of something to be done before the consummation should come. In like manner, what Matthew states thus, “When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, whoso readeth let him understand,”(Mt 24:15) is put in the following form by Mark: “But when ye shall see the abomination of desolation standing where it ought not, let him that readeth understand.”(Mark 12:14) But though the phrase is thus altered, the sense conveyed is the same. For the point of the clause “where it ought not,” is that the abomination of desolation ought not to be in the holy place. Luke’s method of putting it, again, is neither, “And when ye shall see the abomination of desolation stand in the holy place,” nor “where it ought not,” but, “And when ye shall see Jerusalem compassed with an army, then know that the desolation thereof is nigh.”(Luke 21:20) At that time, therefore, will the abomination of desolation be in the holy place. Again, what is given by Matthew in the following terms: “Then let them which be in Judaea flee into the mountains; and let him which is on the house-top not come down to take anything out of his house; neither let him which is in the field return back to take his clothes,”(Mt 24:16-18) is reported also by Mc almost in so many words. On the other hand, Luke’s version proceeds thus: “Then let them which are in Judaea flee to the mountains.”(Luke 21:21) Thus far he agrees with the other two. But he presents what is subsequent to that in a different form. For he goes on to say, “And let them which are in the midst of it depart out; and let not them that are in the countries enter thereinto: for these be the days of vengeance, that all things which are written may be fulfilled.” Now these statements seem to present differences enough between each other. For the one, as it occurs in the first two evangelists, runs thus: “Let him which is on the house-top not come down to take anything out of his house;” whereas what is given by the third evangelist is to this effect: “And let them which are in the midst of it depart out.” The import, however, may be, that in the great agitation which will arise in the face of so mighty an impending peril, those shut up in the state of siege (which is expressed by the phrase, “they which are in the midst of it”) will appear upon the housetop [or “wall”], amazed and anxious to see what terror hangs over them, or what method of escape may open. Still the question rises, How does this third evangelist say here, “let them depart out,” when he has already used these terms: “And when ye shall see Jerusalem compassed with an army”? For what is brought in after this—namely, the sentence, “And let not them that are in the countries enter there-into “—appears to form part of one consistent admonition; and we can perceive how those who are outside the city are not to enter into it; but the difficulty is to see how those who are in the midst of it are to depart out, when the city is already compassed with an army. Well, may not this expression, “in the midst of it,” indicate a time when the danger will be so urgent as to leave no opportunity open, so far as temporal means are concerned, for the preservation of this present life in the body, and that the fact that this will be a time when the soul ought to be ready and free, and neither taken up with, nor burdened by, carnal desires, is imported by the phrase employed by the first two writers—namely, “on the house-top,” or, “on the wall”? In this way the third evangelist’s phraseology, “let them depart out” (which really means, let them no more be engrossed with the desire of this life, but let them be prepared to pass into another life), is equivalent in sense to the terms used by the other two,” let him not come down to take anything out of his house” (which really means, “let not his affections turn towards the flesh, as if it could yield him anything to his advantage then”). And in like manner the phrase adopted by the one, “And let not them that are in the countries enter thereunto” (which is to say, “Let not those who, with good purpose of heart, have already placed themselves outside it, indulge again in any carnal lust or longing after it”), denotes precisely what the other two evangelists embody in the sentence, “Neither let him which is in the field return back to take his clothes,” which is much the same as to state that he should not again involve himself in cares of which he had been unburdened. Moreover, Matthew proceeds thus: “But pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the Sabbath-day.” Part of this is given and part omitted by Mark, when he says, “And pray ye that your flight be not in the winter.” Luke, on the other hand, leaves this out entirely, and instead of it introduces something which is peculiar to himself, and by which he appears to me to have cast light upon this very clause which has been set before us somewhat obscurely by these others. For his version runs thus: “And take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting, and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day come upon you unawares. For as a snare shall it come on all them that dwell on the face of the whole earth. Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass.”(Luke 21:34-36) This is to be understood to be the same flight as is mentioned by Matthew, which should not be taken in the winter or on the Sabbath-day. That “winter,” moreover, refers to these “cares of this life” which Lc has specified directly; and the “Sabbath-day” refers in like manner to the “surfeiting and drunkenness.” For sad cares are like a winter; and surfeiting and drunkenness drown and bury the heart in carnal delights and luxury—an evil which is expressed under the term “Sabbath-day,” because of old, as is the case with them still, the Jews had the very pernicious custom of rePelling in pleasure on that day, when they were ignorant of the spiritual Sabbath. Or, if something else is intended by the words whichthus appear in Matthew and Mark, Luke’s termsmay also be taken to bear on something else, while no question implying any antagonism between them need be raised for all that. At present, however, we have not undertaken the task of expounding the Gospels, but only that of defending them against groundless charges of falsehood and deceit. Furthermore, other matters which Matthew has inserted in this discourse, and which are common to him and Mark, present no difficulty. On the other hand, with respect to those sections which are common to him and Luke, [it is to be remarked that] these are not introduced into the present discourse by Luke, although in regard to the order of narration here they are at one. But he records sentences of like tenor in other connections, either reproducing them as they suggested themselves to his memory, and thus bringing them in by anticipation so as to relate at an earlier point words which, as spoken by the Lord, belong really to a later; or else, giving us tounderstand that they were uttered twice over by the Lord, once on the occasion referred to by Matthew, and on a second occasion, with which Lc himself deals. (St. Augustine Harmony of the Gospels 2.77) The Desolating Sacrilege
(Mark 13:14-20 Matt 24:15-22 Luke 21:20-24) Luke, in order to show that the abomination of desolation foretold by Daniel had reference to the time of the siege of Jerusalem, repeats these words of our Lord, “When ye shall see Jerusalem encompassed by armies, then know ye that its desolation draws nigh.” [Luke 21:20] (St. Augustine Ep. 199.31.24.15) In Luke it is thus read, “There shall be great distress upon the earth, and wrath upon this people, and they shall fall by the edge of the sword, and shall be led away captive into all nations.” [Luke 21:23] (St. Augustine Ep 199.30.24.21) For let us not suppose that the computation of Daniel’s weeks was interfered with by this shortening of those days, or that they were not already at that time complete, but had to be completed afterwards in the end of all things, for Luke most plainly testifies that the prophecy of Daniel was accomplished at the time when Jerusalem was overthrown. (St. Augustine Ep 199.30.24.21) The Parable of the Talents
(Mark 13:34 Matt 25:14-30 Luke 19:11-27) |
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