When therefore ye shall see the abomination of desolation, which is spoken of through Daniel the prophet, standing in [what is a] holy place, (he that reads let him understand,)
The disciples asked for a sign, and the Lord gave them one they could not miss: something detestable standing where God should be honoured. Everything turns on what that object is, where it stands, and whether Rome fulfilled it in AD 70 or it still waits ahead.
The word "abomination" is not vague. The Old Testament gives it one fixed use, and that use settles what the sign must be.
What is meant by "the abomination of desolation"? "Abomination" is the Scripture title for an idol. So we read of "Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites," and "Chemosh the abomination of Moab" (1 Kings 11:5-7). It is, therefore, an idol set up in the holy place at Jerusalem. This has never happened in the past. True, Antiochus Epiphanes defiled the temple (Dan. 11:31), but this was long before the Lord's prophecy. The only event of note involving the temple since the Lord Jesus spoke was its destruction by the Roman armies under Titus in A.D. 70. So the Lord's prediction has yet to be fulfilled.
"The holy place" is a location, and the Lord had already sentenced that location to rubble. Putting the two statements side by side forces a conclusion about the future.
Of all wrongdoings, idolatry is the one God detests most. It is the open, formal denial of His Godhead. It puts the creature in the place of Himself, the Creator… The "holy place," of course, means the temple. The Lord had announced about the temple then standing, "There will not be left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down" (v. 2). So it follows that in the meantime the temple will have been rebuilt.
Daniel mentions this abomination more than once, so which passage did the Lord point to?
The parenthesis warns that the prediction might be misunderstood — at any rate, it demanded attention. Two passages of the prophecy (Dan. 11:31 and Dan. 12:11) speak of this abomination. I have no hesitation in saying that the first was a foreshadowing of what Antiochus Epiphanes did centuries before Christ. The second is the one meant here, and it is still unfulfilled… "And none of the wicked shall understand, but those who are wise shall understand." In this we have another link with our Lord's words — "let the reader understand."
The sign is not an accident of war. Someone puts it there on purpose, and God answers it.
The abomination that results in desolation is idolatry. The antichrist brings it into the holy place, the temple in Jerusalem. This will happen at the middle of Daniel's seventieth week, and it will lead at once to the three and a half years of "great tribulation." This image to the beast (the head of the revived Roman empire) will be a direct challenge to God, for it gives Rome God's place of Protector of Israel. God will therefore send "a desolator," the king of the north, to sweep over the land of Israel with a sudden thrust like a whirlwind (Dan. 11:40).
Many have read the verse as a description of AD 70. William Kelly answers from Luke's parallel account and from the history of that siege.
The proper prophecy of the past destruction of Jerusalem is a part of Luke 21, not Matthew 24. There our Lord speaks about Jerusalem surrounded by armies. But there is no sign like the setting up of the abomination of desolation, and nothing there calls for such a rapid flight… The Roman officer who came and surrounded the city made no such urgent demand for immediate action. Months passed between the withdrawal of Cestius Gallus and the arrival of the far greater force under the emperor. The destruction of Jerusalem came some years afterwards. That is to say, there was plenty of time to get away — family, friends, baggage and all.
The bracketed line is an instruction to us.
The words clearly imply that many who read might not understand. At the least, our Lord warns readers to make sure they take in His thought… He never discourages reading. He wants understanding. He knew there would be all sorts of ideas floating about, especially about prophecy. As a result, many of God's children make mistakes about it, and many more dread the subject.
- The sign — "abomination" is Scripture's regular word for an idol. So the sign is an idol, not an army.
- The place — the "holy place" means the temple. The Lord had condemned the temple then standing to total ruin, so another must stand there before the sign appears.
- The source — the Lord names Daniel. Commentators point to Daniel 12:11, not Daniel 11:31, which Antiochus Epiphanes had already fulfilled long before He spoke.
- The timing — the antichrist sets the idol up in the middle of Daniel's last seven-year period, and the three and a half years of great tribulation begin. The order to flee is urgent, so commentators keep this apart from the slower Roman siege Luke 21 describes.
- The charge — "let the reader understand" is a caution. The Lord never discourages reading. He wants His words grasped, not left in the fog that surrounds prophecy.
then let those who are in Judaea flee to the mountains;
On the Mount of Olives, Jesus turns from general signs to local orders: a named region, a visible signal, and one command — run. Who is told to flee, from what, and why does God tell them to escape instead of stand and suffer?
Everything before verse 15 is general. From that verse the picture narrows.
From verse 15 we have a much more precise scene, a local scene. We have the holy place, and Daniel, and Judea, and definite local circumstances, and set conduct, once people see the abomination of desolation standing in the holy place. "Let the reader understand." Then those in Judea were to flee to the mountains, because great tribulation comes here when this dishonouring idol stands in the holy place.
The name of that sign is worth unpacking.
The word "abomination" simply means idol. It is called the abomination of desolation because it causes the desolation of Jerusalem and of the Jewish people.
The geography itself limits the audience. Judea is one small region, not the world.
Who can be so bold (to say the least) as to affirm that this is a picture of the church at large? Do you suppose that Christians would ever be thought of as being in the land of Judea alone? Clearly not. All is plain if He is speaking about Jews — godly ones no doubt, but Jews in that particular land. It is not at all a prophetic declaration about the saints of God in different parts of the world.
Why flee rather than stay and suffer? The reason is what God is doing at that moment.
The Lord Jesus does not call the godly Jews to stay and suffer. God is visiting His guilty people at that moment, because of their final apostasy and their bowing down to the man of sin as the true God in His house. So He tells the godly remnant to flee at once, regardless even of clothes or anything else, to save their lives.
The moment the idol stands there, everything changes.
The testimony is over, and the disciples have only to flee… Jerusalem is then handed over to the judgment which awaits it.
Many read this verse as describing the fall of Jerusalem under Rome. These writers point to Luke's account instead. There the sign is an army surrounding the city, and events unfold slowly. That slower pace, they say, rules Matthew out.
The Roman officer who came and surrounded the city did not call for this kind of instant, urgent obedience. Months passed between the withdrawal of Cestius Gallus and the arrival of the far greater force under the emperor. The destruction of Jerusalem took place some years afterwards. That is to say, there was plenty of time to get away — family, friends, baggage and all. There was no need for such an urgent flight.
The flight is not open-ended. It has a set length, and Revelation 12 shows the same scene — a woman who can only run.
The strong man of God, Christ, does not yet exercise His power. The woman has nothing else to do but flee for three and a half years. During that time Satan uses his power on earth with great fury. The only resource of the woman is to flee. Jesus foretold this in Matthew 24:16.
Flight is not abandonment. God has already arranged the destination and the supply:
God provides for the woman both a place and food for 1260 days… The careful counting of the days shows the Lord's tender interest in His sorrowing saints. He counts them up one by one, so to speak.
The warning only helps those who believed it in advance.
What use was the Lord's warning that they were to flee in such circumstances, if the disciples did not understand what He was speaking about, and did not believe His word beforehand? This knowledge and this faith were exactly what set them apart from all their unbelieving countrymen.
- Signal. The idol standing in the holy place is the signal to move. The word means idol, and it desolates Jerusalem and its people.
- Place. From verse 15 the scene is local — Judea and the holy place. The command fits godly Jews in one small land, not Christians across the world.
- Command. Not stand and suffer, but flee at once; the time for witness there has closed and judgment is falling.
- Provision. The flight lasts three and a half years, to a place God has already prepared, with days He counts one by one.
- Faith. The warning only saves those who believed it in advance. Knowing His word and acting on it at once sets them apart from everyone else.
let not him that is on the house come down to take the things out of his house;
The Lord has just pointed to the abomination of desolation standing in the holy place. He tells those in Judea to run, and this verse shows how fast. A man on his roof must not step back inside for his things. Who is this warning for, when does it apply, and why the rush?
The instructions here are local. The holy place, Judea, the mountains — every marker fixes the scene in one country. One writer says this rules out reading the chapter as a message to the church, which is spread over the whole earth.
They are to make for the mountains as fast as they can. All this instruction is plainly for persons living in Judea. Readers who insist on seeing the Church of God in this chapter run into difficulty at every detail of the prophecy. Is the Church of God limited to one land, so that such signs would help it? Is not the Church found in every part of the earth? Once we see that the godly in Judea are in view, all is simple and clear.
One writer names what sets the flight off, then piles up pictures of its speed. A man loses his house; a worker in the field loses even his coat.
For those in Judea, the moment would come when an idol would be set up in the holy place. An idol is what the word "abomination" means here. The Lord uses many pictures to show how urgent it is. The man on the roof was not to go down to take anything out of his house. The man in the fields was not to go back for his clothes. The moment would be so terrible that nothing would matter but flight.
One writer puts the reason for the ban in a single line — the chance has already gone.
"Let him which is on the house-top not come down to take anything out of his house" — it is too late to think about doing this.
Houses there had flat roofs with stairs on the outside. The same detail turns up in the account of the paralysed man carried to Jesus.
They went up by an outside flight of stairs to the flat roof of the house (compare Matt. 24:17). There they removed the tiling or thin stone roofing, which was no hard task and easy to repair. Then they lowered the paralysed man on his bed through the opening into the Master's presence.
Commentators differ here. Some apply the words to the Christians who left Jerusalem before the Roman siege. One writer compares Matthew's account with Luke's and finds the two flights differ in pace and in destination.
In this part of the prophecy, Matthew and Luke are alike in only one way: in both, the faithful are told to flee. But even here the differences are remarkable… In Luke the flight is not to the mountains, nor marked by extreme haste. In fact the Christians withdrew with no special speed to the city of Pella. But when the abomination of desolation is set up, there is not an instant to lose. The flight must be at full speed, and even the slightest delay will be fatal. The place of refuge, too, is not a sheltering city but "the mountains."
The command to run is not abandonment. The God who warns also opens the way out.
The wrath of the devil will have its greatest expression against the nation of Israel. During the great tribulation, against this terrible persecution, God's providence will open a way of escape for the godly. They will be safe by keeping themselves apart from the world. That matches the Lord's own words to His disciples. Looking on to this time, He says, "Let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains."
One writer presses the warning deeper. The danger is not slow legs but a heart still tied to what is left behind.
The Lord adds a short but solemn word: "Remember Lot's wife." It seems that angelic power rescued Lot's wife. She was without question brought out of the doomed city. But that only made her a more striking monument of God's all-searching judgment. There she stands alone. The others perished; she remained a pillar of salt. Moses wrote it down as an imperishable moral memorial of God's hatred of a false heart — a heart that, despite outward deliverance, still gave its affections to a scene marked out for destruction.
- Signal. An idol stands in the holy place. That is the trigger, and the warning goes to one land, Judea, not to a worldwide church.
- Speed. Once the signal comes, the only thing left to do is run — a man on the roof forfeits his house, a man in the field his coat.
- Shelter. The refuge is the mountains, not a walled city, and God's providence opens the way of escape for those who obey.
- Separation. Safety lies in staying apart from the world, not in the goods you save from it.
- Heart. Lot's wife left the city and still lost everything. Her affections stayed behind. Escape on the outside is no escape at all.
and let not him that is in the field turn back to take his garment.
The Lord has just spoken of a daring wickedness set up in the sanctuary at Jerusalem, with unequalled trouble to follow. In between comes an order so urgent that a man in a field must leave even his cloak behind. Three questions follow. Who is He speaking to? When does this happen? And why is there no time to pick up a coat?
One writer notes how the Lord stacks up examples to press the urgency:
The Lord uses many figures to show the urgency of the case. The man on the housetop was not to come down to take anything out of his house. The man in the fields was not to go back to fetch his garments. The moment would be so terrible that nothing would matter except flight.
Another writer asks what this escape actually saves:
"And let the one who is in the field not turn back to take his cloak." Immediate flight is the only hope of safety. What sort of safety? It is the saving of flesh — of natural life. Is this what the Christian is expecting? Not so. The Christian is looking for the coming of Christ, not to save his life, but to change and take him up to heaven.
Who is being warned here? One writer answers from the details themselves:
Those will be terrible times for those who fear God. Fearful persecutions will break out, more severe than anything known before. The Lord tells them to note the signs and take warning. When they see this daring wickedness in the sanctuary in Jerusalem, they are to flee to the mountains with all possible haste. All this instruction is plainly for people living in Judea. Readers who insist on seeing the Church of God in this chapter must run into difficulty at every detail of the prophecy. Is the Church of God confined to one land, that such signs should be of use? Is the Church not spread through every quarter of the earth? Once you see that the godly in Judea are in view, all is simple and clear.
Many have applied these words to the escape of believers when the Romans besieged Jerusalem. One writer gives two reasons against that reading:
People often apply this to the siege of Jerusalem by Titus, and Luke uses roughly similar language of that event, though far from identical. But the prophecy in Luke contains no such urgent appeals for haste. In fact, the advance of the Roman army left the Christians plenty of time to leave the city and take their goods with them. But besides this, the quotation from Daniel fixes the time. There can only be one tribulation exceeding all that have been before, and all that will come after.
One writer points to the compassion inside the command:
The godly are to flee, not staying even to get their clothes. The mountains of Judea are to be their hiding-place. The Lord is so compassionate toward them in their trial that He tells them to pray this will not happen in the winter, or on the Sabbath day. Either would be serious. A winter flight, with no time to fetch an overcoat, would bring much suffering. And a conscientious Jew would face a serious dilemma if the signal came on the Sabbath day.
Luke's account of the same moment adds an older warning:
It is as with Lot. When the signs of judgment become clear, let no one linger, even to collect his belongings before fleeing. "Remember Lot's wife." She had got outside of Sodom, but looked back and became a pillar of salt. She was not decisive but half-hearted in leaving Sodom. The Lord was pressing a moral lesson for everyone, as is usual in Luke. Yet this refers to the same time as Matthew 24:16-18.
- Signal. The daring wickedness set up in the sanctuary is the signal. From that moment the only instruction is flight.
- Speed. The abandoned cloak measures the danger. A man cannot spare the seconds it takes to cross his own field again.
- Place. Housetops, Judea, the Sabbath: every detail fixes this to one land and one people. That is why writers say the Church is not in view here.
- Care. The One who says leave the coat also tells them to pray it will not be winter — the flight is urgent, but not uncared for.
- Lesson. What holds a person back is what they turn round to collect. Lot's wife got out of the city and still looked behind her.