Mark 13
Christian Standard Bible
Destruction of the Temple Predicted
13 As(A) he was going out of the temple,(B) one of his disciples said to him, “Teacher,(C) look! What massive stones! What impressive buildings!” (D)
2 Jesus said to him, “Do you see these great buildings?(E) Not one stone will be left upon another—all will be thrown down.”
Signs of the End of the Age
3 While he was sitting on the Mount of Olives(F) across from the temple,(G) Peter,(H) James,(I) John,(J) and Andrew(K) asked him privately, 4 “Tell us, when will these things happen? And what will be the sign when all these things are about to be accomplished?”
5 Jesus told them, “Watch out that no one deceives you. 6 Many will come in my name,(L) saying, ‘I am he,’(M) and they will deceive(N) many. 7 When you hear of wars and rumors of wars,(O) don’t be alarmed;(P) these things must take place,(Q) but it is not yet the end. 8 For nation will rise up against nation, and kingdom against kingdom.(R) There will be earthquakes in various places, and famines.[a] These are the beginning(S) of birth pains.(T)
Persecutions Predicted
9 “But you, be on your guard! They will hand you over to local courts,[b](U) and you will be flogged(V) in the synagogues.(W) You will stand before governors and kings(X) because of me,(Y) as a witness(Z) to them.(AA) 10 And it is necessary that the gospel(AB) be preached to all nations. 11 So when they arrest you and hand you over, don’t worry beforehand what you will say, but say whatever is given to you at that time, for it isn’t you speaking, but the Holy Spirit.
12 “Brother will betray(AC) brother to death,(AD) and a father his child. Children will rise up against parents and have them put to death. 13 You will be hated by everyone because of my name,(AE) but the one who endures to the end will be saved.(AF)
The Great Tribulation
14 “When you see the abomination of desolation[c](AG) standing where it should not be” (let the reader understand), “then those in Judea(AH) must flee to the mountains. 15 A man on the housetop must not come down or go in to get anything out of his house,(AI) 16 and a man in the field must not go back to get his coat.(AJ) 17 Woe (AK) to pregnant women and nursing mothers in those days!
18 “Pray(AL) it[d] won’t happen in winter. 19 For those will be days of tribulation,(AM) the kind that hasn’t been from the beginning of creation,(AN) which God created, until now and never will be again.(AO) 20 If the Lord(AP) had not cut those days short,(AQ) no one would be saved. But he cut those days short for the sake of the elect,(AR) whom he chose.(AS)
21 “Then if anyone tells you, ‘See, here is the Messiah!(AT) See, there!’ do not believe it. 22 For false messiahs and false prophets will arise and will perform signs and wonders(AU) to lead astray, if possible, the elect. 23 And you must watch! I have told you everything in advance.
The Coming of the Son of Man
24 “But in those days, after that tribulation:(AV) The sun will be darkened, and the moon will not shed its light; 25 the stars(AW) will be falling from the sky, and the powers in the heavens will be shaken.(AX) 26 Then they will see the Son of Man(AY) coming(AZ) in clouds(BA) with great power(BB) and glory.(BC) 27 He will send out the angels(BD) and gather his elect(BE) from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of heaven.(BF)
The Parable of the Fig Tree
28 “Learn(BG) this lesson(BH) from the fig(BI) tree: As soon as its branch becomes tender and sprouts leaves, you know that summer is near.(BJ) 29 In the same way, when you see these things happening, recognize[e] that he[f] is near—at the door.
30 “Truly I tell you,(BK) this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things take place. 31 Heaven and earth(BL) will pass away,(BM) but my words will never pass away.(BN)
No One Knows the Day or Hour
32 “Now concerning that day(BO) or hour no one knows—neither the angels(BP) in heaven nor the Son(BQ) —but only the Father.(BR)
33 “Watch! Be alert![g] For you don’t know when the time(BS) is coming.(BT)
34 “It is like(BU) a man on a journey, who left his house, gave authority to his servants,(BV) gave each one his work, and commanded the doorkeeper to be alert. 35 Therefore be alert,(BW) since you don’t know when the master(BX) of the house is coming—whether in the evening or at midnight or at the crowing of the rooster or early in the morning. 36 Otherwise, when he comes suddenly he might find you sleeping.(BY) 37 And what I say to you, I say to everyone: Be alert!”
Mark 13
International Children’s Bible
The Temple Will Be Destroyed
13 Jesus was leaving the Temple. One of his followers said to him, “Look, Teacher! This Temple has beautiful buildings with very big stones.”
2 Jesus said, “Do you see all these great buildings? Every stone will be thrown to the ground. Not one stone will be left on another.”
3 Later, Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives. He was alone with Peter, James, John, and Andrew. They could all see the Temple. They asked Jesus, 4 “Tell us, when will all these things happen? And what will show us that the time has come for them to happen?”
5 Jesus said to them: “Be careful that no one fools you. 6 Many people will come and use my name. They will say, ‘I am the One.’ And they will fool many. 7 You will hear about wars and stories of wars that are coming. But don’t be afraid. These things must happen before the end comes. 8 Nations will fight against other nations. Kingdoms will fight against other kingdoms. There will be times when there is no food for people to eat. And there will be earthquakes in different places. These things are like the first pains when something new is about to be born.
9 “You must be careful. People will arrest you and take you to court. They will beat you in their synagogues. You will be forced to stand before kings and governors, to tell them about me. This will happen to you because you follow me. 10 But before these things happen, the Good News must be told to all people. 11 When you are arrested and judged, don’t worry about what you should say. Say the things God gives you to say at that time. It will not really be you speaking. It will be the Holy Spirit.
12 “Brothers will turn against their own brothers and give them over to be killed. Fathers will turn against their own children and give them over to be killed. Children will fight against their own parents and cause their parents to be killed. 13 All people will hate you because you follow me. But the person who continues to be strong until the end will be saved.
14 “You will see ‘the horrible thing that destroys.’[a] You will see this thing standing in the place where it should not be.” (You who read this should understand what it means.) “At that time, the people in Judea should run away to the mountains. 15 If a person is on the roof[b] of his house, he must not go down to take anything out of his house. 16 If a person is in the field, he must not go back to get his coat. 17 At that time, it will be hard for women who are pregnant or have nursing babies. 18 Pray that these things will not happen in winter. 19 This is because those days will be full of trouble. There will be more trouble than there has ever been since the beginning, when God made the world. And nothing as bad will ever happen again. 20 God has decided to make that terrible time short. If that time were not made short, then no one would go on living. But God will make that time short to help his special people whom he has chosen. 21 At that time, someone might say to you, ‘Look, there is the Christ!’ Or another person might say, ‘There he is!’ But don’t believe them. 22 False Christs and false prophets will come and perform great wonders and miracles. They will do these things to the people God has chosen. They will do these things to try to fool them, if that is possible. 23 So be careful. For I have warned you about all this before it happens.
24 “During the days after this trouble comes,
‘The sun will grow dark.
And the moon will not give its light.
25 The stars will fall from the sky.
And everything in the sky will be changed.’ Isaiah 13:10; 34:4
26 “Then people will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory. 27 The Son of Man will send his angels all around the earth. They will gather his chosen people from every part of the earth.
28 “The fig tree teaches us a lesson: When its branches become green and soft, and new leaves begin to grow, then you know that summer is near. 29 So also when you see all these things happening, then you will know that the time is near, ready to come. 30 I tell you the truth. All these things will happen while the people of this time are still living. 31 The whole world, earth and sky, will be destroyed, but the words I have said will never be destroyed.
32 “No one knows when that day or time will be. The Son and the angels in heaven don’t know. Only the Father knows. 33 Be careful! Always be ready![c] You don’t know when that time will be. 34 It is like a man who goes on a trip. He leaves his house and lets his servants take care of it. He gives each servant a special job to do. One servant has the work of guarding the door. The man tells this servant always to be watchful. This is what I am now telling you. 35 You must always be ready. You don’t know when the owner of the house will come back. He might come in the evening, or at midnight, or in the early morning, or when the sun rises. 36 He might come back quickly. If you are always ready, then he will not find you sleeping. 37 I tell you this, and I say this to everyone: ‘Be ready!’”
Footnotes
- 13:14 ‘the horrible . . . destroys.’ Mentioned in Daniel 9:27; 12:11 (cf. Daniel 11:31).
- 13:15 roof In Bible times houses were built with flat roofs. The roof was used for drying things such as flax and fruit. And it was used as an extra room, as a place for worship and as a place to sleep in the summer.
- 13:33 ready Some Greek copies continue, “and pray.”
The Christian Standard Bible. Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible®, and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers, all rights reserved.
The Holy Bible, International Children’s Bible® Copyright© 1986, 1988, 1999, 2015 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission.
