1 And as he went forth out of the temple, one of his disciples saith unto him, Teacher, behold, what manner of stones and what manner of buildings! 2 And Jesus said unto him, Seest thou these great buildings? there shall not be left here one stone upon another, which shall not be thrown down. 3 And as he sat on the mount of Olives over against the temple, Peter and James and John and Andrew asked him privately, 4 Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign when these things are all about to be accomplished? 5 And Jesus began to say unto them, take heed that no man lead you astray. 6 Many shall come in my name, saying, I am he; and shall lead many astray. 7 And when ye shall hear of wars and rumors of wars, be not troubled: these things must needs come to pass; but the end is not yet. 8 For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom; there shall be earthquakes in diverse places; there shall be famines: these things are the beginning of travail.

This whole discussion begins with the disciples and Jesus coming out of the temple. It is a magnificent building and definitely one of the wonders of the ancient world at that time. They were impressed again with the awesome architecture and beauty. I read that some of the original foundation stones were some 40 feet long and 12 feet high.  It was one of the wonders of the land. It gleamed in the sun so people could see it for miles around.

 The disciples were not ready to hear Jesus tell them it would be torn down. The temple in Jerusalem was the dwelling place of the earthly manifestation of God in the Holy of Holies. However it was also had a temporary purpose. After the veil was torn in two at Jesus’s crucifixion, it no longer served the purpose it once had in the old Testament. We need not go to priests any longer for forgiveness of sins.  We no longer need to sacrifice animals. Since Pentecost the dwelling of God has come within us when we come to Jesus for salvation. Jesus said that the temple was all going to be destroyed - not one stone would be left standing.

Can you imagine the shock of that statement to those people. God is not interested in human and earthly structures. Sometimes we place so much emphasis in buildings we forget their purpose.

In 70 AD the prophecy came true, the Romans destroyed the temple and killed many people. Modern investigation shows that the present wall has been rebuilt probably on the foundation of the other one. It was destroyed in the life time of some of the hearers of this prophecy and has not been rebuilt since.

Privately now some of the disciples wanted to know when and what will the sign be for this end of the age. They connected the destruction of the temple with the end of the world.

We know the end of the world will be the introduced by the second coming of Jesus Christ. Every generation has thought Jesus was returning in their own life time because of the signs which were made evident.

I believe there is double fulfillment in this prophecy. It was fulfilled in the generation of the disciples and there is yet a greater fulfillment. The time of Christ’s coming will be soon.

Prayer: Lord God, as I look at these verses, I am reminded that our time here is brief.  Give us hearts of wisdom to make each day count for you and your kingdom!