Mark 13:14-23-- The Sign of the End

But when you see the abomination of desolation standing where it should not be (let the reader understand), then those who are in Judea must flee to the mountains. The one who is on the housetop must not go down, or go in to get anything out of his house; and the one who is in the field must not turn back to get his coat. But woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days! But pray that it may not happen in the winter. For those days will be a time of tribulation such as has not occurred since the beginning of the creation which God created until now, and never will. Unless the Lord had shortened those days, no life would have been saved; but for the sake of the elect, whom He chose, He shortened the days. And then if anyone says to you, 'Behold, here is the Christ'; or, 'Behold, He is there'; do not believe him; for false Christs and false prophets will arise, and will show signs and wonders, in order to lead astray, if possible, the elect. But take heed; behold, I have told you everything in advance.

Jesus is teaching about the time when the temple and the authorities of Jerusalem would be destroyed.  Up until this point, Jesus spoke of things that would happen before the time of this end, yet the end had not come—false Christs, wars, earthquakes, famines, and those who preached the gospel would be terribly persecuted.  Now Jesus speaks of the time of the end itself.  

The first real indication of “the end” is what Daniel calls “the abomination of desolation” (Daniel 11:31; 12:11).  Daniel 11 is specifically speaking of an event that happened some two hundred years before Jesus speaking this prophecy.  A king named Antiochus ceased the sacrifices in the temple, and established sacrifice to Zeus instead, commanding the Jews to desecrate the temple by offering pigs to Zeus.  The people who remained faithful to God were punished.  Antiochus also called himself a god, naming himself Epiphanes, or, “one who is god on earth.”  

This time, Jesus said, would be repeated—only worse. Thus, the abomination is to cease proper sacrifice to God, to persecute the people of God and to call oneself the proper one to be worshiped instead of God.  Once this person reveals himself, Jesus says, then one is to flee from Judea, into the uninhabited areas for the valley will be overrun with armies.  Jesus, in his compassion for the less fortunate, offers a mourning cry for those who are pregnant at that time.  He also prays that it not be in the winter—for that would cause the trial even worse for God’s people.  

This “tribulation” is a time of terrible persecution—an attempted genocide of God’s people, such has never been seen before, nor will ever be seen again.  The “days” Jesus mentioned is in Daniel 12: 11-12.  The days are that of three and a half years—but Jesus says here that they will be shortened by God in order to preserve the “elect” or the people of  God—otherwise they would all be destroyed.  

Again Jesus warns against false Christs and prophets.  Before he mentioned that they would arise before the end.  But now he mentions them specifically during the period of persecution against all of God’s people.  He tells them to take great care, because during the time of persecution these false teachers and leaders would be easy to believe, (even as they were during the last siege of Jerusalem—see Jeremiah 27) especially because they will have false miracles to “prove” their truth.  Jesus also says that the disciples don’t have to pay attention to them because he has told them all these things ahead of time so they can be prepared for the lies that were to come.  Thus if a prophet says “The Christ is here” or  “Follow me, I am the real king” or “This army will deliver us” or “We will not be persecuted”, the disciples of Jesus know better.

Thus, the end a few main characteristics: 1. Forced ending of the worship of the true God; 2. Forced worship of authority; 3. Severe persecution of God's people; 4. False leaders speaking in God's name.  These characteristics were seen in 70 AD when Rome destroyed Jerusalem over three and a half years.  We also see them against the followers of Jesus by Diocletian in the early fourth century. We also see these same characteristics in the early Reformation and the Thirty Years War in the sixteenth century.  Each of these times were climatic and world-changing.

Today there are many so-called "prophets" and interpreters of the Bible that claim to understand the signs of the end of the world.  They point to economic factors or signs in the sky or a war in the middle east or a pocket of persecution here or there.  All of those things are what Jesus said would be the natural state of the world, "birth pangs".  Those who push these "signs" are but fear-mongers, stirring up strife among God's people and making us all look like fools.

The one sign that Jesus said we should be looking for is a world-wide persecution of the people of God.  Not the rapture, not an easy escape.  Rather, it is the most difficult time for God's people that they must ever endure.  In Revelation, it says that the martyrs of this time are so many that they cannot be counted.  This severest of persecution has not yet been seen, and it has only occasionally been hinted at.

Be not afraid of that which is normal, everyday events.  Trust in the Lord and He will deliver you and provide for you.  For fear of the end and fear of persecution has caused wars and hatreds and strife, which is opposed to God's will.  Trust that whatever the calamity, God will watch over you and care for you.