This Sunday, the lectionary invites us to ponder Luke 21:5-19. The English Standard Version supplies the heading “Jesus Foretells Destruction of the Temple” to verses 5-9, and the heading “Jesus Foretells Wars and Persecution,” to verses 10-19.
The Temple was on Mount Moriah, in Jerusalem. That’s the old name. Today’s name, in Hebrew, is Har HaBayit. In Arabic, it’s Haram-al-Sharif. It was the Second Temple to function continuously on that site.
The first Temple had been built by King Solomon, son of King David. It was built and furnished according to God’s own design. It was the abode of the God of Israel,[1] the maker of heaven and earth; the one who made men and women; equal, in his image; the one who called Abraham out of Ur of the Chaldees to enter the Promised Land; the one who formed the twelve tribes of Israel out of Jacob; the one who is the Father of Jesus.
About 3,000 years ago,[2] the first Temple was completed. It began operations – which included much singing and killing and burning of animals and sacrifices of incense and grains such as wheat and barley. And a lot of washing for purification. And priests – who could only be selected from among the tribe of Levi.
About 370 years later,[3] King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon destroyed the first Temple. He force-marched most of the inhabitants of Jerusalem to Babylon. In the early years of their exile, they dreamed of returning to Jerusalem and re-centring their lives around the Temple.[4] But most of them gave up the dream and settled in Babylon.
About 47 years later,[5] King Cyrus of Persia successfully invaded Babylon. Cyrus encouraged exiles to return to their homelands and rebuild and restore operations of their temples. Two years later, Sheshbazzar, a prince of Judah,[6] returned from Babylon to Jerusalem with some others. Within a few months, the priest Zerubbabel began working to restore the Temple.[7]
About 23 years later,[8] the Temple, now called the Second Temple, was rededicated to God. Feast-day operations and limited daily operations resumed.
About 58 years later,[9] Ezra returned from Babylon with his fellow Levites. They resumed Temple-based priestly tasks like teaching, dedicating babies, collecting taxes, condemning infected homes, and certifying people who had been cured of skin diseases.
The Temple returned to being central to Jewish identity. For 600 years, during feasts, Jews travelled long distances to the Temple, praising God in songs along the way, expressing joyful longing to be in his Temple.[10]
About 20 years before Jesus was born,[11] King Herod – one of the most insecure and murderous men in history – began expanding and rebuilding the Temple. He added huge amounts of white marble and gold to the outside of the Temple. 10 years later, it reflected so much light that if you stared at it, your eyes would hurt. The work continued with expanding the area of the Temple platform of Mount Moriah.[12] It was completed in 63 AD.
The Temple was a very grand structure. It was the pride of Jews everywhere. Jesus was a frequent visitor. Our passage is in Luke’s account of the last day Jesus spent in it, the last day of his public ministry.
On that day, Jesus heard someone boasting about the Temple. He responded with a shocking prediction. He said soon the Temple would be completely destroyed. He said false leaders would appear, would claim to be him, returned, to liberate them. He said these leaders would start civil wars. He said to treat all such leaders as liars.
Jesus was referring to the expectation most Jews had, that a liberator would come in the last days and free them from the suffering they were subjected to by the government and religious elites of the day.
Their expectation was fanned by a popular class of writings called “apocalyptic works.” Such works describe the present very negatively and tell of supernatural solutions to the problems of the present, often accompanied by disasters like earthquakes, floods, fires, famines, wars.
Jesus said that after the Temple was destroyed, such disasters would happen. He said that we should view them positively, as events ordained by God, to remind mankind that God is the master of destiny, not men. He said that one day, God will bring the whole world to an end.
Jesus added that his disciples – us – will have to endure much suffering. Will be treated very badly. Will be beaten, imprisoned – as Luke tells us the first Christians were, in his second book, the book of Acts.[13]
Jesus said we will be abused by members of our own ethnic groups, even our own families, and by state officials. He said we will be hated but we can be fearless – because he will give us words to say; wise words which will overcome our enemies. He said we should view the suffering which will come as opportunities to “bear witness to him.” He ended by saying, “by your endurance you will gain your lives.”
In 70 AD, Jesus’ prediction came true. The Romans completely destroyed the Temple.[14] And all of Jerusalem. They set fire to everything.
The Jews, during their 70-years in Babylon, didn’t have a Temple. Since the destruction of the Temple in 70 AD, the Jews haven’t had a Temple.
But some Jews, and some Christians, want to build another Temple. Why would God want the Temple – and priests and sacrifices – restored?
Why do people want to build and to destroy large, grand structures – whether the Temple in Jerusalem or Hagia Sophia in Istanbul or Babri Masjid in India or the Kremlin in Moscow or the Imperial Palace in China or the White House in Washington or the Presidential Palace in Sri Lanka or the Parliament building in Kathmandu?
What are we witnesses to? Why would people want to harm us?
Might it be because we are peacemakers, people who refuse to take any side but God’s, people who dare to declare that nothing is permanent?
Fred Craddock, a preacher and theologian, wrote some comments on today’s passage. I’ve summarized his thoughts in these words:
“Those who suffer obtain relief by a vision of the end of the misery in this present world, and the beginning of the age to come.” [15]
Let me repeat that:
“Those who suffer obtain relief by a vision of the end of the misery in this present world, and the beginning of the age to come.”
Sometimes, destruction ends misery and forces beginnings which lead to satisfaction, wellness, and joy.
Peace be with you.
Further reading: The Four Temples in the Bible, published in Bible, History, Archaeology.
[1] See Ezekiel 10.
[2] In 957 BC. I’m relying on this chronology: https://www.esv.org/resources/esv-global-study-bible/chart-15-03/.
[3] In 586 BC.
[4] See especially Psalm 137, “By the rivers of Babylon.”
[5] In 539 BC.
[6] See Ezra 1:8.
[7] See Ezra 3. Also note that the Second Temple is sometimes called Zerubbabel’s Temple, just as the first Temple is sometimes called Solomon’s Temple.
[8] In 516 BC.
[9] In 458 BC.
[10] Psalms 120-134 are known as Pilgrimage Psalms, also known as Songs of Ascent.
[11] In 19 BC.
[12] He built massive retaining walls and filled in valleys. The area of the platform more than doubled, from about 17 acres to about 36 acres.
[13] Stephen was stoned to death (Acts 7); some (James?) were sawn in two (Hebrews 11). And many more.
[14] In 691 AD, Muslims completed building the Dome of the Rock on Mount Moriah. While they were constructing it, they said prayers in a small prayer house there. Within about 10 years of completing the Dome, they completed a mosque, called Al-Aqsa. The name means “the furthest mosque” or “the supreme mosque.”
[15] Adapted from Fred Craddock.
To learn more about Rama, click here.