Jesus foretells the demolition of the temple1As Jesus was walking away from the temple, His disciples drew His attention to the magnificence of the building.2He said to them: "All these buildings you see will be demolished. I tell you the truth, not one stone will be left on another; everything will be destroyed."3Later, when He was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples approached Him privately and said: "Please tell us when these things will take place. And what signs shall we look for that will indicate You are about to come again and this age is about to end?"Signs of the times4Jesus replied: "Be very careful that you allow no one to deceive you.5Many will claim to come in My name saying, 'I am the Christ,' and they will deceive many.6"You will hear news about wars and potential wars, but be sure not to be alarmed. It is inevitable that such events will take place, but this does not mean the end of time has come.7Nations will make war on other nations, kingdoms will oppose other kingdoms. There will be times of famine, and earthquakes will cause destruction in several places.8Yet all such events are only the very beginning of the terrible things that will take place.9"Then My followers will be persecuted, killed and hated simply because they believe in Me.10During the testing times ahead many will deny their faith in Me and will betray those they formerly regarded as brothers. Their love will turn to hatred.11And many false prophets will appear and deceive many people.12-13Wickedness will increase to such an extent that the love of many will grow cold; but he who stands firm in his faith to the very end will be assured of salvation.14"Despite all this, the gospel of the Kingdom will be preached throughout the world, so that all nations may hear the truth; only when that has happened will the end come.15"Pay particular notice of this: the prophet Daniel spoke of the ungodly object that desecrates the holy place.16When you see that this has taken place then you will know it is time for those who live in Judea to flee to the mountains.17-18There will be no time for anyone on the roof of his house to gather his belongings together; neither will those caught out in the open have time to go home for their clothes.19At that time it will be terrible for those who are pregnant or have young babies.20"Pray that you will not have to flee during the winter or on the Sabbath.21But there has never been such a time of distress to match what will happen then, nor will such an event be equalled in the future.22Unless God intervenes to cut short this time, no one would be able to survive. However He will ensure that these days will be restricted for the sake of those He has chosen.23"Should anyone say to you then, 'See, here is the Christ!' or 'He is over there!' do not believe him.24False Christs and false prophets will appear and will even perform great demonic signs and miracles that will deceive some who believe in Me. That hardly seems possible, but it will happen.25And then you will remember this warning that I gave you beforehand.26"If someone tells you the Christ is out in the desert, do not go there to search for Him. If they say, 'He is concealed here', do not believe what they say.27For the Son of Man will come as swiftly as a flash of lighting that can be seen everywhere from east to west.28"You can tell where there is a dead carcass by the vultures that gather in that place. So you will see the evidence that demonstrates that the end is near.29"During the aftermath of these terrible events, 'the sun will be darkened, the moon will give no light, the stars will fall from the skies and the heavens will be shaken.'30"Then the sign of the Son of Man will be seen in the sky, and every nation on earth will mourn. They will behold the Son of Man coming among the clouds in the sky, with power and great glory.31And with the loud sound of the trumpet He will send His angels to gather all those He has chosen from every direction of the earth and every part of heaven.32"Now learn an important lesson from the fig tree. As soon as its branches come into bud, you know that summer approaches.33In the same way, when you see the events I am describing you know that the time is near, as if it was knocking on your door.34"I tell you the truth, all these things will have taken place before the end of this generation.35"The heavens and the earth will end, but My words are eternal and will remain forever.36No one knows the exact timing of the end of all things, not the angels in heaven, not even the Son. This is known only to the Father.The second coming of the Son of Man37"The second coming of the Son of Man will be as it was in Noah's time.38Before the flood, people were living their normal lives, eating, drinking, getting married. It was like this right up to the day when Noah entered the ark.39They had no idea of what was about to happen. Then suddenly the flood came and they were all destroyed. This is what it will be like when the Son of Man comes again.40Two men will be working in a field; one will be taken, the other left.41Two women will be grinding the grain; one will be taken and the other left behind.42"So be on the alert because you do not know when your Lord will come for you.43"However you can understand this analogy: If the owner of the house had known when the thief intended to come and rob him, he would have been ready and waiting for him and would not have allowed the break-in to take place.44In the same way, you must be ready and waiting because the Son of Man will come at a time when you least expect Him.45"Who, then, will be considered to be a faithful and wise servant whom the master can trust to be in charge of the other servants in his household, to ensure they are provided for in the right way and are ready?46That servant will be well rewarded if his master finds him fulfilling his duties diligently when he returns.47I tell you most emphatically, his master will put him in charge of all he possesses.48-49"But what if that servant is evil and says to himself, 'My master has been away a long time,' so he begins to mistreat his fellow servants and indulges in drugs and drink?50His master will come when that servant is totally unprepared and has no expectation of his arrival.51And the master will deal savagely with him and condemn him to be eternally with the other hypocrites, in the place where there will be continual mourning and eternal suffering.
Scripture quoted by permission. The passage above is taken from THE TRUTH VERSION. Copyright © 2009 by Colin Urquhart. All rights reserved worldwide. (The Truth New Testament)