Temple Destruction and Other Signs
1 As Jesus left the temple and was walking away, His disciples came up to Him to point out its buildings.
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“Do you see all these things?” He replied. “Truly I tell you, not one stone here will be left on another; every one will be thrown down.”
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While Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately. “Tell us,” they said, “when will these things happen, and what will be the sign of Your coming and of the end of the age?”
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Jesus answered, “See to it that no one deceives you.
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For many will come in My name, claiming, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will deceive many.
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You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. These things must happen, but the end is still to come.
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Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places.
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All these are the beginning of birth pains.
Witnessing to All Nations
9 Then they will deliver you over to be persecuted and killed, and you will be hated by all nations because of My name.
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At that time many will fall away and will betray and hate one another,
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and many false prophets will arise and deceive many.
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Because of the multiplication of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold.
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But the one who perseveres to the end will be saved.
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And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.
The Abomination of Desolation
15 So when you see standing in the holy place ‘the abomination of desolation,’ spoken of by the prophet Daniel (let the reader understand),
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then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains.
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Let no one on the housetop come down to retrieve anything from his house.
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And let no one in the field return for his cloak.
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How miserable those days will be for pregnant and nursing mothers!
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Pray that your flight will not occur in the winter or on the Sabbath.
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For at that time there will be great tribulation, unseen from the beginning of the world until now, and never to be seen again.
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If those days had not been cut short, nobody would be saved. But for the sake of the elect, those days will be cut short.
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At that time, if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or ‘There He is!’ do not believe it.
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For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and wonders to deceive even the elect, if that were possible.
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See, I have told you in advance.
The Return of the Son of Man
26 So if they tell you, ‘There He is, in the wilderness,’ do not go out, or, ‘Here He is, in the inner rooms,’ do not believe it.
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For just as the lightning comes from the east and flashes as far as the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man.
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Wherever there is a carcass, there the vultures will gather.