“When you see the desolating abomination spoken of through Daniel the prophet standing in the holy place (let the reader understand), 16 then those in Judea must flee to the mountains, 17 a person on the housetop must not go down to get things out of his house, 18 a person in the field must not return to get his cloak. 19 Woe to pregnant women and nursing mothers in those days. 20 Pray that your flight not be in winter or on the sabbath, 21 for at that time there will be great tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the world until now, nor ever will be. 22 And if those days had not been shortened, no one would be saved; but for the sake of the elect they will be shortened. 23 If anyone says to you then, ‘Look, here is the Messiah!’ or, ‘There he is!’ do not believe it. 24 False messiahs and false prophets will arise, and they will perform signs and wonders so great as to deceive, if that were possible, even the elect. 25 Behold, I have told it to you beforehand. 26 So if they say to you, ‘He is in the desert,’ do not go out there; if they say, ‘He is in the inner rooms,’ do not believe it. 27 For just as lightning comes from the east and is seen as far as the west, so will the coming of the Son of Man be. 28 Wherever the corpse is, there the vultures will gather."
Jesus answered the disciples’ question about the destruction of the Temple, “Tell us, when will this happen, and what sign will there be of your coming, and of the end of the age (Mt.. 24:3)?” Jesus told the disciples that there will be birth pangs (v. 8) with more intense sufferings for the early Christian Church than experienced before. They will know this when the desolating abomination (v. 15) is violating the sanctuary; “The king erected the desolating abomination upon the altar of burnt offerings, and in the surrounding cities of Judah they built pagan altars (1 Macc. 1:54; Dan. 11:31).”
The Judaean mountains were an integral part of the kingdom of Judah so those in the lower regions of Judah should flee to the mountains. That inhabitants should go to higher ground and not turn back (v. 18) is a reference to Lot’s wife (Gen 19:17, 26). Escape would be difficult in Winter or on the Sabbath when everyone had gathered for worship. The great tribulation (v. 21) is a reference to Daniel; “It shall be a time unsurpassed in distress since the nation began until that time. At that time your people shall escape, everyone who is found written in the book (Dan. 12:1).” God shortened the time of great tribulation so that the elect could be saved. Jesus told his disciples these things so that even though God was in control they should prepare themselves for trials. The Messiah will come suddenly and with power. His coming will be as clear to see as vultures around carrion.
Almighty God, grant us the grace to respond to your call to become your adopted sons, the faith to believe in all that your Son said and revealed to us, and the hope to desire the Kingdom of Heaven and eternal life. This we pray through Christ our Lord. Amen!
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References
Chiu, José Enrique Aguilar, et al. The Paulist Biblical Commentary. Paulist Press, 2018.
Faculty of the University of Navarre. The Navarre Bible: New Testament Expanded Edition. Expanded Edition, Four Courts / Scepter, 2008.
Brown, Raymond Edward, et al. The New Jerome Biblical Commentary. Upper Saddle River, NJ, United States, Prentice Hall, 1990.
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