The Widow’s Two Mites(A)

21 And He looked up (B)and saw the rich putting their gifts into the treasury, and He saw also a certain (C)poor widow putting in two (D)mites.[a] So He said, “Truly I say to you (E)that this poor widow has put in more than all; for all these out of their abundance have put in offerings [b]for God, but she out of her poverty put in (F)all the livelihood that she had.”

Jesus Predicts the Destruction of the Temple(G)

(H)Then, as some spoke of the temple, how it was [c]adorned with beautiful stones and donations, He said, “These things which you see—the days will come in which (I)not one stone shall be left upon another that shall not be thrown down.”

The Signs of the Times and the End of the Age(J)

So they asked Him, saying, “Teacher, but when will these things be? And what sign will there be when these things are about to take place?”

And He said: (K)“Take heed that you not be deceived. For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am He,’ and, ‘The time has drawn near.’ [d]Therefore do not [e]go after them. But when you hear of (L)wars and commotions, do not be terrified; for these things must come to pass first, but the end will not come immediately.”

10 (M)Then He said to them, “Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. 11 And there will be great (N)earthquakes in various places, and famines and pestilences; and there will be fearful sights and great signs from heaven. 12 (O)But before all these things, they will lay their hands on you and persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues and (P)prisons. (Q)You will be brought before kings and rulers (R)for My name’s sake. 13 But (S)it will turn out for you as an occasion for testimony. 14 (T)Therefore settle it in your hearts not to meditate beforehand on what you will [f]answer; 15 for I will give you a mouth and wisdom (U)which all your adversaries will not be able to contradict or [g]resist. 16 (V)You will be betrayed even by parents and brothers, relatives and friends; and they will put (W)some of you to death. 17 And (X)you will be hated by all for My name’s sake. 18 (Y)But not a hair of your head shall be lost. 19 By your patience possess your souls.

The Destruction of Jerusalem(Z)

20 (AA)“But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then know that its desolation is near. 21 Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains, let those who are in the midst of her depart, and let not those who are in the country enter her. 22 For these are the days of vengeance, that (AB)all things which are written may be fulfilled. 23 (AC)But woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days! For there will be great distress in the land and wrath upon this people. 24 And they will fall by the edge of the sword, and be led away captive into all nations. And Jerusalem will be trampled by Gentiles (AD)until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.

The Coming of the Son of Man(AE)

25 (AF)“And there will be signs in the sun, in the moon, and in the stars; and on the earth distress of nations, with perplexity, the sea and the waves roaring; 26 men’s hearts failing them from fear and the expectation of those things which are coming on the earth, (AG)for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. 27 Then they will see the Son of Man (AH)coming in a cloud with power and great glory. 28 Now when these things begin to happen, look up and lift up your heads, because (AI)your redemption draws near.”

The Parable of the Fig Tree(AJ)

29 (AK)Then He spoke to them a parable: “Look at the fig tree, and all the trees. 30 When they are already budding, you see and know for yourselves that summer is now near. 31 So you also, when you see these things happening, know that the kingdom of God is near. 32 Assuredly, I say to you, this generation will by no means pass away till all things take place. 33 (AL)Heaven and earth will pass away, but My (AM)words will by no means pass away.

The Importance of Watching(AN)

34 “But (AO)take heed to yourselves, lest your hearts be weighed down with [h]carousing, drunkenness, and (AP)cares of this life, and that Day come on you unexpectedly. 35 For (AQ)it will come as a snare on all those who dwell on the face of the whole earth. 36 (AR)Watch therefore, and (AS)pray always that you may [i]be counted (AT)worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass, and (AU)to stand before the Son of Man.”

37 (AV)And in the daytime He was teaching in the temple, but (AW)at night He went out and stayed on the mountain called Olivet. 38 Then early in the morning all the people came to Him in the temple to hear Him.

Footnotes

  1. Luke 21:2 Gr. lepta, very small copper coins
  2. Luke 21:4 NU omits for God
  3. Luke 21:5 decorated
  4. Luke 21:8 NU omits Therefore
  5. Luke 21:8 follow
  6. Luke 21:14 say in defense
  7. Luke 21:15 withstand
  8. Luke 21:34 dissipation
  9. Luke 21:36 NU have strength to

A Woman Whose Husband Had Died Gave All She Had (A)

21 Jesus looked up and saw rich men putting their money into the money box in the house of God. He saw a poor woman whose husband had died. She put in two very small pieces of money. He said, “I tell you the truth, this poor woman has put in more than all of them. For they have put in a little of the money they had no need for. She is very poor and has put in all she had. She has put in what she needed for her own living.”

Jesus Tells of the House of God (B)

Some people were talking about the house of God. They were saying that the stones were beautiful and that many gifts had been given. Jesus said, “As for these things you see, all these stones will be thrown down. Not one will be left on another.” They asked Jesus, “Teacher, when will this take place? What are we to look for to show us these things are about to happen?” He said, “Be careful that no one leads you the wrong way. For many people will come in My name. They will say, ‘I am the Christ.’ The time is near. Do not follow them. When you hear of wars and fighting in different places, do not be afraid. These things have to happen first, but the end is not yet.”

10 Then Jesus said to them, “Nations will have wars with other nations. Countries will fight against countries. 11 The earth will shake and break apart in different places. There will be no food. There will be bad diseases among many people. Very special things will be seen in the sky that will make people much afraid.

12 “But before all this happens, men will take hold of you and make it very hard for you. They will give you over to the places of worship and to the prisons. They will bring you in front of kings and the leaders of the people. This will all be done to you because of Me. 13 This will be a time for you to tell about Me. 14 Do not think about what you will say ahead of time. 15 For I will give you wisdom in what to say and I will help you say it. Those who are against you will not be able to stop you or say you are wrong.

16 “You will be handed over by your parents and your brothers and your family and your friends. They will kill some of you. 17 All men will hate you because of Me. 18 Yet not one hair of your head will be lost. 19 But stay true and your souls will have life.

Days of Trouble and Pain and Sorrow

20 “When you see armies all around Jerusalem, know that it will soon be destroyed. 21 Those in the country of Judea must run to the mountains. Those in the city must leave at once. Those in the country must not go into the city. 22 People will be punished in these hard days. All things will happen as it is written.

23 “It will be hard for women who will soon be mothers. It will be hard for those feeding babies in those days. It will be very hard for the people in the land and anger will be brought down on them. 24 People will be killed by the sword. They will be held in prison by all nations. Jerusalem will be walked over by the people who are not Jews until their time is finished.

Jesus Will Come Again in His Shining-Greatness

25 “There will be special things to look for in the sun and moon and stars. The nations of the earth will be troubled and will not know what to do. They will be troubled at the angry sea and waves. 26 The hearts of men will give up because of being afraid of what is coming on the earth. The powers of the heavens will be shaken. 27 Then they will see the Son of Man coming in the clouds with power and much greatness. 28 When these things begin to happen, lift up your heads because you have been bought by the blood of Christ and will soon be free.”

The Picture-Story of the Fig Tree

29 Jesus told them a picture-story. He said, “Look at the fig tree and all the other trees. 30 When you see their leaves coming out, you know summer is near. 31 In the same way, when you see these things happening, you will know the holy nation of God is near. 32 For sure, I tell you, that the people of this day will not die before all these things happen.

33 “Heaven and earth will pass away, but My Words will not pass away. 34 Watch yourselves! Do not let yourselves be loaded down with too much eating and strong drink. Do not be troubled with the cares of this life. If you do, that day will come on you without you knowing it. 35 It will come on all people over all the earth. 36 Be sure you watch. Pray all the time so that you may be able to keep from going through all these things that will happen and be able to stand before the Son of Man.”

37 Everyday Jesus taught in the house of God. At night He went to the Mount of Olives and stayed there. 38 Early in the morning all the people came to the house of God to hear Him.

The Widow’s Offering(A)

21 As Jesus looked up, he saw the rich putting their gifts into the temple treasury.(B) He also saw a poor widow put in two very small copper coins. “Truly I tell you,” he said, “this poor widow has put in more than all the others. All these people gave their gifts out of their wealth; but she out of her poverty put in all she had to live on.”(C)

The Destruction of the Temple and Signs of the End Times(D)(E)

Some of his disciples were remarking about how the temple was adorned with beautiful stones and with gifts dedicated to God. But Jesus said, “As for what you see here, the time will come when not one stone will be left on another;(F) every one of them will be thrown down.”

“Teacher,” they asked, “when will these things happen? And what will be the sign that they are about to take place?”

He replied: “Watch out that you are not deceived. For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am he,’ and, ‘The time is near.’ Do not follow them.(G) When you hear of wars and uprisings, do not be frightened. These things must happen first, but the end will not come right away.”

10 Then he said to them: “Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom.(H) 11 There will be great earthquakes, famines and pestilences in various places, and fearful events and great signs from heaven.(I)

12 “But before all this, they will seize you and persecute you. They will hand you over to synagogues and put you in prison, and you will be brought before kings and governors, and all on account of my name. 13 And so you will bear testimony to me.(J) 14 But make up your mind not to worry beforehand how you will defend yourselves.(K) 15 For I will give you(L) words and wisdom that none of your adversaries will be able to resist or contradict. 16 You will be betrayed even by parents, brothers and sisters, relatives and friends,(M) and they will put some of you to death. 17 Everyone will hate you because of me.(N) 18 But not a hair of your head will perish.(O) 19 Stand firm, and you will win life.(P)

20 “When you see Jerusalem being surrounded by armies,(Q) you will know that its desolation is near. 21 Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains, let those in the city get out, and let those in the country not enter the city.(R) 22 For this is the time of punishment(S) in fulfillment(T) of all that has been written. 23 How dreadful it will be in those days for pregnant women and nursing mothers! There will be great distress in the land and wrath against this people. 24 They will fall by the sword and will be taken as prisoners to all the nations. Jerusalem will be trampled(U) on by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.

25 “There will be signs in the sun, moon and stars. On the earth, nations will be in anguish and perplexity at the roaring and tossing of the sea.(V) 26 People will faint from terror, apprehensive of what is coming on the world, for the heavenly bodies will be shaken.(W) 27 At that time they will see the Son of Man(X) coming in a cloud(Y) with power and great glory. 28 When these things begin to take place, stand up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.”(Z)

29 He told them this parable: “Look at the fig tree and all the trees. 30 When they sprout leaves, you can see for yourselves and know that summer is near. 31 Even so, when you see these things happening, you know that the kingdom of God(AA) is near.

32 “Truly I tell you, this generation(AB) will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened. 33 Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.(AC)

34 “Be careful, or your hearts will be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness and the anxieties of life,(AD) and that day will close on you suddenly(AE) like a trap. 35 For it will come on all those who live on the face of the whole earth. 36 Be always on the watch, and pray(AF) that you may be able to escape all that is about to happen, and that you may be able to stand before the Son of Man.”

37 Each day Jesus was teaching at the temple,(AG) and each evening he went out(AH) to spend the night on the hill called the Mount of Olives,(AI) 38 and all the people came early in the morning to hear him at the temple.(AJ)