The Destruction of the Temple Predicted

13 And as[a] he was going out of the temple courts,[b] one of his disciples said to him, “Teacher, look! What great stones and what wonderful buildings!” And Jesus said to him, “Do you see these great buildings? Not one stone will be left here on another stone that will not be thrown down!”

Signs of the End of the Age

And as[c] he was sitting on the Mount of Olives opposite the temple, Peter and James and John and Andrew asked him privately, “Tell us, when will these things happen, and what will be the sign when all these things are about to be accomplished?” So Jesus began to say to them, “Watch out that no one deceives you! Many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am he,’ and they will deceive many. And when you hear about wars and rumors of wars, do not be alarmed. This must happen, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise up against nation and kingdom against kingdom. There will be earthquakes in various places. There will be famines. These things are the beginning of birth pains.

Persecution of Disciples Predicted

“But you, watch out for yourselves! They will hand you over to councils and you will be beaten in the synagogues and will have to stand before governors and kings because of me, for a witness to them. 10 And the gospel must first be proclaimed to all the nations.[d] 11 And when they arrest you and[e] hand you over, do not be anxious beforehand what you should say, but whatever is given to you at that hour, say this. For you are not the ones who are speaking, but the Holy Spirit. 12 And brother will hand over brother to death, and a father his[f] child, and children will rise up against parents and have them put to death. 13 And you will be hated by all because of my name. But the one who endures to the end—this one will be saved.

The Abomination of Desolation

14 “But when you see the abomination of desolation standing where it should not be” (let the one who reads understand), “then those in Judea must flee to the mountains! 15 The one[g] who is on his[h] housetop must not come down or go inside to take anything out of his house, 16 and the one who is in the field must not turn back to pick up his cloak. 17 And woe to those who are pregnant[i] and to those who are nursing their babies[j] in those days! 18 But pray that it will not happen in winter. 19 For in those days there will be tribulation of such a kind as has not happened from the beginning of the creation that God created until now, and never will happen. 20 And if the Lord had not shortened the days, no human being would be saved.[k] But for the sake of the elect, whom he chose, he has shortened the days.

21 “And at that time if anyone should say to you, “Behold, here is the Christ,’ ‘Behold, there he is,’ do not believe him![l] 22 For false messiahs and false prophets will appear, and will produce signs and wonders in order to mislead, if possible, the elect. 23 But you, watch out! I have told you everything ahead of time!

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Footnotes

  1. Mark 13:1 Here “as” is supplied as a component of the temporal genitive absolute participle (“was going out”)
  2. Mark 13:1 *Here “courts” is supplied to distinguish this area from the interior of the temple building itself
  3. Mark 13:3 Here “as” is supplied as a component of the temporal genitive absolute participle (“was sitting”)
  4. Mark 13:10 Or “Gentiles”; the same Greek word can be translated “nations” or “Gentiles” depending on the context
  5. Mark 13:11 Here “and” is supplied because the participle (“hand you over”) has been translated as a finite verb in keeping with English style
  6. Mark 13:12 The word “his” is not in the Greek text but is implied
  7. Mark 13:15 Some manuscripts have “And the one”
  8. Mark 13:15 Literally “the”; the Greek article is used here as a possessive pronoun
  9. Mark 13:17 Literally “who have in the womb”
  10. Mark 13:17 The words “their babies” are not in the Greek text but are supplied as a necessary clarification
  11. Mark 13:20 Literally “every flesh would not be saved”
  12. Mark 13:21 *Here the direct object is supplied from context in the English translation

The Destruction of the Temple and Signs of the End Times(A)

13 As Jesus was leaving the temple, one of his disciples said to him, “Look, Teacher! What massive stones! What magnificent buildings!”

“Do you see all these great buildings?” replied Jesus. “Not one stone here will be left on another; every one will be thrown down.”(B)

As Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives(C) opposite the temple, Peter, James, John(D) and Andrew asked him privately, “Tell us, when will these things happen? And what will be the sign that they are all about to be fulfilled?”

Jesus said to them: “Watch out that no one deceives you.(E) Many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am he,’ and will deceive many. When you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be earthquakes in various places, and famines. These are the beginning of birth pains.

“You must be on your guard. You will be handed over to the local councils and flogged in the synagogues.(F) On account of me you will stand before governors and kings as witnesses to them. 10 And the gospel must first be preached to all nations. 11 Whenever you are arrested and brought to trial, do not worry beforehand about what to say. Just say whatever is given you at the time, for it is not you speaking, but the Holy Spirit.(G)

12 “Brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child. Children will rebel against their parents and have them put to death.(H) 13 Everyone will hate you because of me,(I) but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved.(J)

14 “When you see ‘the abomination that causes desolation’[a](K) standing where it[b] does not belong—let the reader understand—then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. 15 Let no one on the housetop go down or enter the house to take anything out. 16 Let no one in the field go back to get their cloak. 17 How dreadful it will be in those days for pregnant women and nursing mothers!(L) 18 Pray that this will not take place in winter, 19 because those will be days of distress unequaled from the beginning, when God created the world,(M) until now—and never to be equaled again.(N)

20 “If the Lord had not cut short those days, no one would survive. But for the sake of the elect, whom he has chosen, he has shortened them. 21 At that time if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Messiah!’ or, ‘Look, there he is!’ do not believe it.(O) 22 For false messiahs and false prophets(P) will appear and perform signs and wonders(Q) to deceive, if possible, even the elect. 23 So be on your guard;(R) I have told you everything ahead of time.

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Footnotes

  1. Mark 13:14 Daniel 9:27; 11:31; 12:11
  2. Mark 13:14 Or he

Jesus Speaks about the Future

13 As Jesus was leaving the Temple that day, one of his disciples said, “Teacher, look at these magnificent buildings! Look at the impressive stones in the walls.”

Jesus replied, “Yes, look at these great buildings. But they will be completely demolished. Not one stone will be left on top of another!”

Later, Jesus sat on the Mount of Olives across the valley from the Temple. Peter, James, John, and Andrew came to him privately and asked him, “Tell us, when will all this happen? What sign will show us that these things are about to be fulfilled?”

Jesus replied, “Don’t let anyone mislead you, for many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Messiah.’[a] They will deceive many. And you will hear of wars and threats of wars, but don’t panic. Yes, these things must take place, but the end won’t follow immediately. Nation will go to war against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be earthquakes in many parts of the world, as well as famines. But this is only the first of the birth pains, with more to come.

“When these things begin to happen, watch out! You will be handed over to the local councils and beaten in the synagogues. You will stand trial before governors and kings because you are my followers. But this will be your opportunity to tell them about me.[b] 10 For the Good News must first be preached to all nations.[c] 11 But when you are arrested and stand trial, don’t worry in advance about what to say. Just say what God tells you at that time, for it is not you who will be speaking, but the Holy Spirit.

12 “A brother will betray his brother to death, a father will betray his own child, and children will rebel against their parents and cause them to be killed. 13 And everyone will hate you because you are my followers.[d] But the one who endures to the end will be saved.

14 “The day is coming when you will see the sacrilegious object that causes desecration[e] standing where he[f] should not be.” (Reader, pay attention!) “Then those in Judea must flee to the hills. 15 A person out on the deck of a roof must not go down into the house to pack. 16 A person out in the field must not return even to get a coat. 17 How terrible it will be for pregnant women and for nursing mothers in those days. 18 And pray that your flight will not be in winter. 19 For there will be greater anguish in those days than at any time since God created the world. And it will never be so great again. 20 In fact, unless the Lord shortens that time of calamity, not a single person will survive. But for the sake of his chosen ones he has shortened those days.

21 “Then if anyone tells you, ‘Look, here is the Messiah,’ or ‘There he is,’ don’t believe it. 22 For false messiahs and false prophets will rise up and perform signs and wonders so as to deceive, if possible, even God’s chosen ones. 23 Watch out! I have warned you about this ahead of time!

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Footnotes

  1. 13:6 Greek claiming, ‘I am.’
  2. 13:9 Or But this will be your testimony against them.
  3. 13:10 Or all peoples.
  4. 13:13 Greek on account of my name.
  5. 13:14a Greek the abomination of desolation. See Dan 9:27; 11:31; 12:11.
  6. 13:14b Or it.