Mar 13:14 | KingComments | STEP | The abomination of desolation is the idol working desolation ( ). The Lord here refers to the image of the beast that represents the ruler of the restored Roman Empire. This image will be put into the temple by the antichrist and everyone will have to worship it ( ; ). This is the beginning of the great tribulation that will last three and a half years. Setting up this idol in the temple is the sign for the faithful Jews to flee. The great tribulation will reveal the faithful. It is they who will be warned, a warning they have received by reading in the Word. The Lord states that it is vitally important to read His Word with insight, not for form. In this way we can escape the great misleading. He says it and we must pay attention to it. That is how it is with every misleading that comes to the servant. The only way not to be misled is to read God’s Word and take it to heart. The persecution that will erupt will be so sudden that not a moment should be lost by taking anything out of the house quickly because it might be useful. Wherever anyone is, it is a matter of fleeing as quickly as possible, even leaving behind the coat that is supposed to protect them from the cold of the night. Life is more than protection from the cold. The Lord also takes the vulnerable into account. This time will be particularly hard for the pregnant and those who are nursing babies. They will be weakened and will have to flee quickly. He even takes the weather conditions into account. He tells them to pray that these things will not happen in winter because of the extra need it will cause. They may pray, for God’s ear is open to their need, and He will save them by helping them through it. It doesn’t say here what the Gospel according to Matthew says, that they should also pray that their flight will not happen on a Sabbath ( ). This shows that the experiences of servants are paramount here and not, as in Matthew, the Jewish aspect. The Lord predicts the unprecedented tribulation of those days. There has never been such a tribulation on earth and there never will be again. How great that tribulation must be! It is the time Jeremiah calls “the time of Jacob’s distress” ( ; ; ; ). It is an unparalleled time of tribulation. However, the Lord has set a limit to that tribulation. He has fixed its duration. He has determined the measure, the boundary of the revelation of the lawless one, for the sake of His elect. The tribulation will be limited to three and a half years. Many will perish, but they will miss nothing of the realm of peace. They will participate in (the second phase of) the first resurrection ( ). There will also be a remnant kept alive by Him.

‏ Mark 13:14

The Abomination of Desolation

The abomination of desolation is the idol working desolation (Dan 9:27 ; Dan 11:31 ; Dan 12:11). The Lord here refers to the image of the beast that represents the ruler of the restored Roman Empire. This image will be put into the temple by the antichrist and everyone will have to worship it (2Thes 2:4; Rev 13:12-15). This is the beginning of the great tribulation that will last three and a half years. Setting up this idol in the temple is the sign for the faithful Jews to flee. The great tribulation will reveal the faithful. It is they who will be warned, a warning they have received by reading in the Word.

The Lord states that it is vitally important to read His Word with insight, not for form. In this way we can escape the great misleading. He says it and we must pay attention to it. That is how it is with every misleading that comes to the servant. The only way not to be misled is to read God’s Word and take it to heart.

The persecution that will erupt will be so sudden that not a moment should be lost by taking anything out of the house quickly because it might be useful. Wherever anyone is, it is a matter of fleeing as quickly as possible, even leaving behind the coat that is supposed to protect them from the cold of the night. Life is more than protection from the cold.

The Lord also takes the vulnerable into account. This time will be particularly hard for the pregnant and those who are nursing babies. They will be weakened and will have to flee quickly. He even takes the weather conditions into account. He tells them to pray that these things will not happen in winter because of the extra need it will cause. They may pray, for God’s ear is open to their need, and He will save them by helping them through it. It doesn’t say here what the Gospel according to Matthew says, that they should also pray that their flight will not happen on a Sabbath (Mt 24:20). This shows that the experiences of servants are paramount here and not, as in Matthew, the Jewish aspect.

The Lord predicts the unprecedented tribulation of those days. There has never been such a tribulation on earth and there never will be again. How great that tribulation must be! It is the time Jeremiah calls “the time of Jacob’s distress” (Jer 30:7; Dan 12:1; Mt 24:21; Rev 3:10). It is an unparalleled time of tribulation.

However, the Lord has set a limit to that tribulation. He has fixed its duration. He has determined the measure, the boundary of the revelation of the lawless one, for the sake of His elect. The tribulation will be limited to three and a half years. Many will perish, but they will miss nothing of the realm of peace. They will participate in (the second phase of) the first resurrection (Rev 20:4). There will also be a remnant kept alive by Him.