The Bible recounts Jesus’ sermon on the Mount of Olives (called the Olivet Discourse) in Matthew 24:1-26:2, Mark 13:1-37, and Luke 21:5-36. This intimate conversation was held between Jesus and His disciples. It happened on the Tuesday of what we regard as Holy Week, the eight days encompassing Palm Sunday through Resurrection Sunday. On Monday of that week, Jesus taught in the temple. On Tuesday, He taught in the temple for the last time, and as He left the temple, the chief priests and scribes sought how to kill Him. (Mark 14:1) When He departed the temple, He went and sat on the Mount of Olives, and His disciples followed.
For our purpose, we will focus on the following portions of Jesus’ discourse to His disciples: Matthew 24:1-44, Mark 13:1-37, and Luke 21:5-36.
Why Did Jesus Give the Olivet Discourse?
Jesus’ disciples were close by Him after He left the temple in Jerusalem. When He sat on the Mount of Olives (directly east across the Kidron valley opposite the temple), His disciples questioned Him about certain things and events. Jesus’ answers to them are what form the Olivet Discourse.
In Matthew 24:1-3, His Olivet Discourse began before Jesus reached the Mount of Olives when, as He left the temple, His disciples “came to point out to Him the buildings of the temple.” Mark 13:1 adds, “one of His disciples said to Him, ‘Look, Teacher, what wonderful stones and what wonderful buildings!’” Jesus answered, “Do you see these great buildings? There will not be left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down.”
Mark 13:3-4 introduces us to the Olivet Discourse as it occurred on the Mount of Olives, “And as He sat on the Mount of Olives opposite the temple, Peter and James and John and Andrew asked him privately, ‘Tell us, when will these things be, and what will be the sign when all these things are about to be accomplished?’” Matthew 24:3 adds that the disciples asked, “Tell us, when will these things be, and what will be the sign of Your coming and of the end of the age?” His disciples asked Jesus a two-fold question:
a. “When will these things be?”
b. “What will be the sign of Your coming and of the end of the age?”
Was Jesus Talking about the End Times at the Olivet Discourse?
His disciples’ questions hastened Jesus’ discourse, so let’s look at Jesus’ answers to determine His focus. The Olivet Discourse passages have baffled biblical scholars and lay theologians for years. We cannot presume within the space of this article to give a concluding interpretation. Yet we will look at a possibility based on the greater context of the Scriptures (Scripture best interprets Scripture) and on the immediate context of the passage.
Jesus was headed to the Cross. Two days after He spoke these words to His disciples, He would be arrested at the same location, thrust into two kangaroo courts, and the next day he would die by crucifixion. While loving (John 13:1), His words to His disciples were pointed and meaningful. They still expected Jesus to restore the kingdom physically, and He left them with great truths to remember and cling to when they received the Holy Spirit shortly after His resurrection (Acts 1:8). Later on the Mount of Olives, they would see their Lord Jesus ascend into heaven (Luke 24:50-51).
In Matthew 23:37-39, Jesus lamented over Jerusalem, where He had spent the past few days teaching in the temple. His answer encompassed a close and distant future for the church. The near is described in Matthew 24:1-35 and the far in Matthew 24:36-51, for He knew the two events (the destruction of the temple and His second coming) were not simultaneous. Based on their question, the disciples had assumed everything would happen at once or in quick succession. The disciples would have understood the events Jesus’ described in Matthew 24:1-35 to be within the timeframe of their lives.
The destruction of the temple in 70 AD was only the beginning, and included with His revelation was Jesus’ admonition to the disciples not to be led astray (Matthew 24:4, cf. v. 5).
“Many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the Christ, and they will lead many astray’” (v. 5). At the time, there were various false messiahs in Israel, as reported by Josephus. Two are noted in Acts 5:35-37.
“You will hear of wars and rumors of wars…but the end is not yet…” (v. 6-7a). Rome fought several wars along her eastern front in the Apostles’ days. Uprisings were prevalent as well.
“…and there will be famines and earthquakes in various places” (v. 7b). A famine was prophesied (Acts 11:27-30) and occurred in 45-47 AD. And earthquakes rumbled in Laodicea (60-61 AD) and Pompeii (62 AD).
Jesus reiterated, “All these are but the beginning of the birth pains” (v. 8).
“Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and put you to death, and you will be hated by all nations for my name’s sake (v. 9). Along with many Christians being martyred in the years preceding 70 AD, Stephen’s death by stoning is recorded in Acts 7:54-60. James, John’s brother, was also stoned to death (62 AD). It is reliably reported that Peter was crucified (upside down) by Nero. Nero also beheaded Paul in the mid-60s.
“And then many will fall away and betray one another and hate one another. And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray. And because lawlessness will be increased, the love of many will grow cold” (vv. 10-12). In Hebrews, the author warns the early Christians not to let their love grow cold, leading to apostasy (Hebrews 3:7-4:13, Hebrews 6:4-8, Hebrews 10:26-31, Hebrews 12:25-29).
“But the one who endures to the end will be saved” (v. 13). The destruction of the temple and the ransacking of Jerusalem was soon to come. Christ commends them to endure and reassures His disciples (cf. vv. 23-28).
“And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come (v. 14). When we think of the “whole world,” we picture all the nations of the twenty-first-century world. The Greek word used by Matthew is oikoumene, meaning “the whole of the Roman Empire.” The Apostle Paul used the same word when he said the Gospel had been preached to the oikoumene except for Spain (Romans 15:14-32 and Romans 16:25-27). Therefore, within these verses’ context, plus the corroborating Romans passage on the “whole world,” verse 14 saw its fulfillment in 70 AD when Rome sacked Jerusalem and destroyed the temple.
It’s likely that “the end” mentioned here is not the end of the age but the end of the time of the Jews.
Matthew 24:15-22 speaks of the abomination of desolation and short-lived tribulation (for the sake of the saints) and the flight from Jerusalem when it occurs.
Verses Matthew 14:23-28 comprise a fiercely disputed passage:
Then if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or ‘There he is!’ do not believe it. For false christs and false prophets will arise and perform great signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect. See, 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 shines as far as the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. Wherever the corpse is, there the vultures will gather.
Rome had surrounded the city; food supplies were nil at best, and some of the inhabitants resorted to cannibalism. After their long and successful siege, Titus mounted his Roman army’s standards (emblems) at the Eastern gate when Rome entered Jerusalem. He then made sacrifices for the Empire, which further despoiled the remainder of Jerusalem. In verse Matthew 14:28, “vultures” is better stated as “eagles.” The Roman standard was a long pole with the figure of an eagle at its top, the symbol for Rome. Jesus probably referenced the gathering of the eagles (vultures) as Rome in a besieged and ruined Jerusalem. We can consider this, then, as the abomination of desolation.
The imagery Jesus employed in verses 29-31 is not unlike what the ancient prophets used (Isaiah 13:10; Ezekiel 32:7). The Old Testament’s vivid descriptors often referred to the severity of God’s oncoming judgment. The Son of Man is Jesus as the Judge of heaven, and His judgment of the Jews for failing to believe in Him was cataclysmic. Their generation indeed did not pass away before the fall of Jerusalem in 70 AD.
Because of the Greek sentence construction beginning with verse 36, we know Jesus has completed His dialogue on the events of 70 AD. Jesus then turns His attention to the second part of the disciples’ question in verses 36-44—the distant future of the church and His second coming. He used day in its singular form (as opposed to the days of tribulation seen in the first century), and He said, “But concerning that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only.” Jesus’ humanity ruled this declaration, for as God, He would surely know.
Until He comes, life will go on, and we are to stay alert and keep busy with kingdom work. “For as were the days of Noah, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, and they were unaware until the flood came and swept them all away, so will be the coming of the Son of Man…Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect” (Matthew 24:37-44).
I must reiterate. This article does not claim to be definitive in its conclusions. Many renowned biblical scholars see the text differently. As believers, we are to listen to our Lord Jesus with great intent and pure motives. Again, we are to stay alert and occupy ourselves with kingdom work for His glory. (Luke 19:13; Revelation 16:15) If we knew when He would return, what would we do? Jesus is wisdom, and because He did not reveal the date of His second coming, we are to rest in that and trust Him.
Photo Credit: Unsplash/David Boca
Learn more about the meaning and significance behind the Easter holiday and Holy Week celebrations:
What is Lent? and When Does Lent Start?
What is Ash Wednesday? and When is Ash Wednesday?
What is Palm Sunday?
What is Maundy Thursday?
What is Good Friday? and When is Good Friday?
What is Holy Saturday?
What is Easter? and When is Easter Sunday?
Easter Bible Verses
The Resurrection of Jesus
Easter Prayers
