While some people were speaking about how the temple was adorned with costly stones and votive offerings, he said, 6 “All that you see here—the days will come when there will not be left a stone upon another stone that will not be thrown down.”
7 Then they asked him, “Teacher, when will this happen? And what sign will there be when all these things are about to happen?” 8 He answered, “See that you not be deceived, for many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am he,’ and ‘The time has come.’ Do not follow them! 9 When you hear of wars and insurrections, do not be terrified; for such things must happen first, but it will not immediately be the end.” 10 Then he said to them, “Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. 11 There will be powerful earthquakes, famines, and plagues from place to place; and awesome sights and mighty signs will come from the sky.
Jesus is in Jerusalem near the end of his public ministry. Some people speak with admiration about how the temple is decorated with beautiful stones and gifts offered to God. The temple was the visible center of Israel’s worship and identity, but Jesus tells them, “there will not be left a stone upon another stone that will not be thrown down (v. 6). This is more than a remark about buildings. It is a prophecy that even this great sign of God’s presence can be removed. God’s plan is not tied forever to one earthly structure, however impressive it appears.
The listeners then ask, “Teacher, when will this happen? And what sign will there be when all these things are about to happen?” (v. 7). In the Old Testament, the fall of Jerusalem and the destruction of the temple are closely linked with judgment and exile (see Lam. 2; 2 Chr. 36), and earlier prophets had warned that such a judgment would come if the people persisted in turning away from God (cf. Jer. 7:12-15; Mic. 3:12). They want some advance notice, some clear indication that will let them prepare.
Jesus does not answer with a calendar or a date. Instead, he begins with a warning about deception: “See that you not be deceived, for many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am he,’ and ‘The time has come.’ Do not follow them!” (v. 8). He will go on to speak about wars, earthquakes, and other disturbances, but he makes it clear that even these do not allow anyone to declare that the end has arrived (v. 9). In anxious times people are quick to trust voices that promise easy answers. But for Luke’s readers, the true Messiah has already come in Jesus. Anyone who later claims to be Christ or to know that the final moment has arrived is therefore false. Jesus says such figures will appear, some even using his name, and he gives a clear safeguard: do not follow them.
He then turns to the wider troubles that his followers will hear about: “When you hear of wars and insurrections, do not be terrified; for such things must happen first, but it will not immediately be the end” (v. 9). Conflicts and uprisings were common in the ancient world and would continue after Jesus’ time. Luke’s Gospel was written for Christians who already lived in the shadow of Jerusalem’s fall. By the time they heard these words, the magnificent temple Jesus had spoken about had been torn down by the Romans and lay in ruins, a sobering reminder that even the holiest building could be destroyed while God’s plan still moved forward in Christ. Jesus acknowledges that these events “must happen” in the sense that they belong to the present age marked by sin and division. Yet he clearly states that they are not, by themselves, the signal that the end has arrived.
Jesus expands the picture further: “Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be powerful earthquakes, famines, and plagues from place to place; and awesome sights and mighty signs will come from the sky” (vv. 10-11). Here he gathers together images that the Old Testament often associates with judgment and the “day of the Lord” (for example, Is. 13:9-13; Joel 2:30-31). Earthquakes, famine, and plague are part of a world that is wounded and unstable. Signs in the sky echo prophetic language in which cosmic disturbances accompany God’s acts in history.
Throughout the centuries, the events Jesus describes here have often been taken on their own as predictions and have stirred fear and constant speculation about the end of the world, even though he clearly teaches elsewhere that no one knows the exact day or hour of the final coming except the Father (Mt. 24:36; Mk. 13:32). Luke, however, presents them within Jesus’ larger teaching: all these things are real, serious, and often painful, but they do not give a calendar for the end. The center of God’s plan is not war, disaster, or deception, but the person of Jesus himself, who will pass through suffering and death and then rise from the dead. His cross and resurrection, not the fall of the temple or the shaking of kingdoms, reveal where history is ultimately going.
In this way, Luke 21:5-11 teaches that impressive religious structures can fall, nations can be shaken, and even the natural world can seem unstable, but none of these is the true “end.” They are signs that this present order is passing, while God’s kingdom, revealed in Christ, is the enduring reality that does not pass away.
Lord Jesus, you spoke truthfully about a world marked by conflict, disaster, and deception. Anchor our hearts in you, so that amid changing events we may see your faithful plan and trust that your kingdom does not pass away. Amen.
____________________
Sources and References
- The Holy Bible, New American Bible, Revised Edition (2011).
- Bernard Orchard et al., A Catholic Commentary on Holy Scripture (1953).
- Faculty of the University of Navarre, The Navarre Bible: Luke (Four Courts/Scepter).
- José Enrique Aguilar Chiu et al., eds., The Paulist Biblical Commentary (2018).
- Raymond E. Brown et al., The New Jerome Biblical Commentary (1990).
Comments