As he came out of the temple, one of his disciples said to him,
‘Look, Teacher, what large stones and what large buildings!’ 2Then
Jesus asked him, ‘Do you see these great buildings? Not one stone will
be left here upon another; all will be thrown down.’
3 When he was sitting on the Mount of
Olives opposite the temple, Peter, James, John, and Andrew asked him
privately, 4‘Tell us,
when will this be, and what will be the sign that all these things are
about to be accomplished?’ 5Then
Jesus began to say to them, ‘Beware that no one leads you astray. 6Many
will come in my name and say, “I am he!” and they will lead many
astray. 7When you hear
of wars and rumors of wars, do not be alarmed; this must take place, but
the end is still to come. 8For
nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom; there will
be earthquakes in various places; there will be famines. This is but the
beginning of the birthpangs.
9 ‘As for yourselves, beware; for they
will hand you over to councils; and you will be beaten in synagogues; and
you will stand before governors and kings because of me, as a testimony to
them. 10And the good
news must first be proclaimed to all nations. 11When
they bring you to trial and hand you over, do not worry beforehand about
what you are to say; but say whatever is given you at that time, for it is
not you who speak, but the Holy Spirit. 12Brother
will betray brother to death, and a father his child, and children will
rise against parents and have them put to death; 13and
you will be hated by all because of my name. But the one who endures to
the end will be saved.
14 ‘But when you see the desolating
sacrilege set up where it ought not to be (let the reader understand),
then those in Judea must flee to the mountains; 15the
one on the housetop must not go down or enter the house to take anything
away; 16the one in the
field must not turn back to get a coat. 17Woe
to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing infants in those
days! 18Pray that it may
not be in winter. 19For
in those days there will be suffering, such as has not been from the
beginning of the creation that God created until now, no, and never will
be. 20And if the Lord
had not cut short those days, no one would be saved; but for the sake of
the elect, whom he chose, he has cut short those days. 21And
if anyone says to you at that time, “Look! Here is the Messiah!” or
“Look! There he is!” —do not believe it. 22False
messiahs and false prophets will appear and produce signs and omens, to
lead astray, if possible, the elect. 23But
be alert; I have already told you everything.
24 ‘But in those days, after that
suffering,
the sun will be darkened,
and the moon will not give its light,
25and the stars will
be falling from heaven,
and the powers in the heavens will be shaken.
26Then they will see
“the Son of Man coming in clouds” with great power and glory. 27Then
he will send out the angels, and gather his elect from the four winds,
from the ends of the earth to the ends of heaven.
28 ‘From the fig tree learn its lesson:
as soon as its branch becomes tender and puts forth its leaves, you know
that summer is near. 29So
also, when you see these things taking place, you know that he is near, at
the very gates. 30Truly
I tell you, this generation will not pass away until all these things have
taken place. 31Heaven
and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.
32 ‘But about that day or hour no one
knows, neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. 33Beware,
keep alert; for you do not know when the time will come. 34It
is like a man going on a journey, when he leaves home and puts his slaves
in charge, each with his work, and commands the doorkeeper to be on the
watch. 35Therefore, keep
awake—for you do not know when the master of the house will come, in the
evening, or at midnight, or at cockcrow, or at dawn, 36or
else he may find you asleep when he comes suddenly. 37And
what I say to you I say to all: Keep awake.’
