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The Destruction of the Temple
- NARRATOR.
- Jesus [got up] and [started] to leave the Temple with his disciples.
Now the disciples had been talking about the Temple, remarking how it
was decorated with fine stonework and votive offerings. Coming up to
Jesus in an attempt to draw his attention to the Temple buildings, one
of his disciples said to him:
- DISCIPLE.
- Look at the size of these stones! Master, look at the size of these
buildings!
- JESUS.
- You see all these great buildings? All these things that you are
staring at now, the time will come when not a single stone will be left
on another, everything will be destroyed!
- NARRATOR.
- [Later], while sitting on the Mount of Olives facing the Temple;
Peter, James, John and Andrew came up to Jesus privately and questioned
him:
- PETER, JAMES, JOHN and ANDREW.
- Master, tell us; when is this going to happen?...What sign will there
be that all this is about to take place and be fulfilled?... What will
be the sign of your coming and of the end of the world?
Matthew 24:1-3; Mark 13:1-4; Luke 21:5-7
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The Beginning of the Birthpangs
- NARRATOR.
- Jesus then began to tell them:
- JESUS.
- Be careful that you are not deceived by anyone because many will come
using my name saying; "The time is near at hand" and claim, "I
am the Christ, I am he." They will deceive many, refuse to join
them! You will hear of wars, revolutions and rumors of wars; do not be
alarmed or frightened, these are things that must occur, but the end
will not be yet. For nation will fight against nation and kingdom
against kingdom. There will be great earthquakes, famines and plagues in
one place after another. There will be fearful sights and great signs
from heaven. These are only the beginning of the birthpangs. Be on you
guard! But prior to all of this occurring; men will seize you and
persecute you. They will hand you over to the Sanhedrin and to the
synagogues, where you will be beaten. They will imprison you and hand
you over to be tortured and put to death. You will be hated by all the
nations and be brought before kings and governors on account of my name
and that will be your opportunity to bear witness before them since the
Good News must be proclaimed to the nations first.
- And when they lead you away to be handed over, do not worry about
what you are going to say beforehand. Settle it in your hearts that you
are not to prepare your defence in advance. I myself will give you an
eloquence and a wisdom that none of your opponents will be able to
resist or contradict. Instead, say whatever is given to you when the
time comes, because it will not be you speaking, but the Holy Spirit.
You will be hated by all the nations on account of my name. Many will
then fall away and betray one another and hate one another. You will be
betrayed even by parents and brothers, relations and friends and some of
you will be put to death. Brother will betray brother to death and the
father his child. Children will rise against their parents and have them
put to death. You will be hated by all men on account of my name, but
not a hair of your head will be lost. By your endurance, you will win
your lives.
- Many false prophets will arise and mislead many and with the increase
of crime [lawlessness], the love in the majority of people will grow
cold, but the man who stands firm to the end will be saved. And the Good
News of the Kingdom will be preached to the whole world as a witness to
all the nations and then, the end will come.
Matthew 24:4-14; Mark 13:5-13; Luke 21:8-19
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The Great Tribulation of Jerusalem
- JESUS.
- When you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, you must realize that
she will soon be laid desolate. And when you see the disastrous
abomination of which the prophet Daniel spoke, set up in the Holy place,
where it ought not to be [let the reader understand], then those in
Judaea must escape to the mountains. Those in the city must leave it and
those in the country districts must not take refuge in it. If a man is
on the housetop, he must not come down and go into the house to collect
any of his belongings. If a man is in the fields, he must not turn back
to fetch his jacket, for this is the time of vengeance when all that
scripture says must be fulfilled.
- Alas for those with child or with babies at the breast when those
days come. Pray that you will not have to escape in winter or on a
Sabbath. For great misery will descend on the land and wrath on this
people. They will fall by the edge of the sword and be led captive into
every pagan country. And Jerusalem will be trampled on by the pagans
until the age of the pagans is completely over. For in those days, there
will be great distress such as, until now, has been equalled since the
beginning, when God created the world, there never has been nor ever
will be again. And if the time had not been shortened [opt. by the
Lord], no one would have survived. But He did shorten that time for the
sake of the elect, for those whom He had chosen.
Matthew 24:15-22; Mark 13:14-20; Luke 21:20-24
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The Coming of the Son of Man
- JESUS.
- And if anyone says to you then, "look here is the Christ"
or "Look, he's there", do not believe it!. For false Christs
and false prophets will arise and produce great signs and portents
enough to even deceive the chosen, if that were possible. You must
therefore be on your guard, I have forewarned you of everything. If then
they say to you, "look, he's in the desert", do not go there
or "look, he is in some secret location", do not believe it!
For as the lightning, when it strikes in the East illuminates the sky
even to the West, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. Wherever the
corpse is, there will the vultures gather together.
- Immediately after the distress of those days, there will be signs in
the sun and moon and stars. The sun will be darkened, the moon will lose
its brightness and from the sky, the stars will fall come falling from
heaven. On the earth, the nations will be in distress, bewildered by the
roaring of the oceans and its' waves. And men, as a result of
anticipating the things that are coming upon the earth will faint out of
fear for the powers that are in heaven will be shaken. And then, the
sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven and all the peoples of the
earth will beat their breasts and they will see the Son of Man coming in
the clouds of heaven with great power and great glory. He will then send
his angels, with a loud trumpet, to gather his chosen from the four
winds; from one end of heaven to the other, from the ends of the earth
to the ends of heaven. When these things begin to take place, lift up
your heads and look up because your liberation is near at hand.
Matthew 24:23-31; Mark 13:21-27; Luke 21:25-28
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Parable of the Fig Tree
- JESUS.
- Look at the fig tree and indeed all the trees. As soon as their twigs
grow tender and you see them bud, and their leaves come out, you know
that summer is near. So with you, when you see all these things
occurring, know that the Kingdom of God is near and that He is near at
the very gates. I tell you most sincerely, before this generation has
passed away, all these things will have taken place. Heaven and earth
will pass away, but my words will never pass away. But as for the day
and hour, no one knows it! Neither the angels of Heaven, nor the Son, no
one, but only the Father.
Matthew 24:32-36; Mark 13:28-32; Luke 21:29-33
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Remain on the Alert
- JESUS.
- Watch yourselves at all times for fear that your hearts become
weighed down with overeating and drinking, drunkenness and the cares of
this life and that day arrives without your notice. For like a snare, it
will come down on everyone living on the face of the earth. Stay awake,
praying constantly that you are strong enough to escape all these things
that are going to happen and to stand erect, with confidence before the
Son of Man.
Luke 21:34-36
- For as it was in the days of Noah, so will the be coming of the Son
of Man. In those days before the flood, people were eating and drinking,
marrying and being given in marriage right up 'til the day that Noah
entered into the ark. They suspected nothing at all until the flood came
and swept them all away. So it will be when the Son of Man comes. At
that time, two men will be in the fields; one will be taken and the
other left. Two woman will be at the millstone grinding; one will be
taken and the other left. Therefore, be on the lookout, because you do
not know the hour that your master is coming. But you can be quite sure
of this, that if the head of the house had known at what time of the
night the thief was going to arrive, he would have stayed awake and
would not have permitted anyone to break through the wall of his house.
Therefore, you also must be ready, because at an hour that you do not
expect, the Son of Man is coming.
Matthew 24:37-44
- Be on your guard, watch and pray because you do not know when the
time will come. It is like a man taking a journey to a far off land
leaving his house and placing his servants in charge, each having his
own duties to perform and has instructed the doorkeeper to keep watch.
So be on the alert, because you do not know when the master of the house
is returning; in the evening, at midnight, when the cock crows or in the
morning. He must not find you sleeping if he arrives unexpectedly. And
what I say to you, I say to all. Keep on the watch!
Mark 13:33-37
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The Faithful and Wise Servant
- JESUS.
- Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his master has put in
charge of his household, to give them their food at the proper time.
Happy is that servant if his master, when he arrives, finds him at the
work he was assigned to do. I tell you most sincerely, he will place
that servant over all of his possessions. But if that servant is
dishonest and says to himself, "My master is taking his time and
won't be here for a while", and begins to beat his fellow servants
and to eat and drink with drunkards. His master, on a day that he does
not expect and at an hour he does not know, will come and cut him off
and appoint that servant his portion with the hypocrites, where there
will be weeping and grinding of teeth.
Matthew 24:45-51
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Parable of the Ten Bridesmaids
- JESUS.
- Then, the Kingdom of Heaven will be like this: Ten bridesmaids took
their lamps and went to the bridegroom. Five of them were wise and five
of them were foolish. The five that were foolish took only their lamps,
but did not bring any extra oil for their lamps. The five that were wise
not only carried their lamps, but extra flasks of oil for their lamps.
When the bridegroom was late, they all grew drowsy and fell asleep. At
midnight, a cry went out: "Look, the bridegroom is coming, go out
and meet him!" The bridesmaids got up and trimmed their lamps. The
foolish bridesmaids then said to the wise bridesmaids, "Let us have
some of your oil, because our lamps have gone out." But the wise
bridesmaids replied and said, "We can't. There may not be enough
for us and for you. You better go to those who sell the oil and buy some
for yourselves." While they were off buying more oil, the
bridegroom arrived. Those who were ready went into the wedding hall and
the door was shut. Later, the other bridesmaids returned and cried, "Lord,
lord, open the door to us". But he replied, "I tell you most
sincerely, I do not know you". So stay awake, because you do not
know either the day or the hour when the Son of Man will come!
Matthew 25:1-13
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Parable of the Talents
- JESUS.
- The Kingdom of Heaven could be compared to a man who was travelling
to a far off land and summoned his servants and entrusted his property
to them. To one he gave five talents, to another two, and another one,
each man in proportion to his ability. He then set out on his journey.
The man who had received the five talents went out and traded them and
made five more. Likewise, the man who had received the two talents made
an additional two. But the man who had received the one talent went out,
dug a hole in the ground and buried his master's money.
- After a long time had passed, the master of the servants returned and
went through his accounts with them. The man who had received five
talents came forward with an additional five talents. "Sir, you
entrusted me with five talents and look, I have added five more to the
ones I had been given." His master then said, "Well done, good
and faithful servant! You have proved yourself trustworthy in small
matters, I will entrust you with greater. Come, join in your master's
joy." Likewise, the man who had received the two talents come
forward and said, "Sir, you entrusted me with two talents and look,
I have added two more to the ones I had been given." His master
then said to him, "Well done, good and faithful servant! You have
proved yourself trustworthy in small matters, I will entrust you with
greater. Come, join in your master's joy."
- Finally, the man who had received the one talent came forward and
said, "Sir, because I know that you're a hard man, reaping where
you haven't sown and gathering where you haven't scattered, I was
afraid. So I went out and buried your talent in the ground. Here, take
what you had given me back." His master then said to him in reply, "You
wicked and lazy servant! So you knew that I reap where I have not sowed
and gather where I have not scattered! You should have taken my money
and deposited it with the bankers, so that when I returned, I would have
had my money back with interest. Take the talent from him and give it to
the man with the ten talents." For to every one who has, more will
be given and he will have an abundance. But from the man who has not,
even what he has will be taken away. "Throw this good-for-nothing
servant out into the darkness." There, there will be weeping and
grinding of teeth.
Matthew 25:14-30
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The Separating of Mankind
- JESUS.
- When the Son of man comes in his glory and all the holy angels with
him; then, he will sit on the throne of his glory and all the nations
will be gathered and brought before him. He will then separate them, one
from another, just as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He
will place the sheep on his right hand and the goats on his left. Then
the King will say to those on his right hand; 'Come, blessed of my
Father, inherit the kingdom that was prepared for you from the
foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food. I was
thirsty and you gave me drink. I was a stranger and you took me in,
naked and you clothed me. I was sick and you visited me. I was in prison
and came to see me.'
- The righteous will then reply, "Lord, when did we see you hungry
and feed you or thirsty and gave you something to drink? When did we see
you as a stranger and took you in or naked and clothed you? Or when did
we see you sick or in prison and went to visit you?" The King will
reply and say to them, 'I tell you most sincerely, in so far as you have
done it to the least of these my brothers, you have done it to me.' He
will then also say to those on his left hand, 'Depart from me you cursed
into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I
was hungry and you did not feed me. I was thirsty and you gave me
nothing to drink. I was a stranger and you did not take me in, naked and
you did not clothe me, sick or in prison and you did not visit me.' They
will then answer Him and say, "Lord, when did we see you hungry, or
thirsty, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison and did not
minister to you?"
- He will then answer them and say, 'I tell you most sincerely, in so
far as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it
to me.' And they will go away into everlasting punishment and the
righteous, into eternal life.
Matthew 25:31-46
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