Jesus' Olivet Directive

CHAPTER 1- RIGHT BEFORE THE PASSOVER.
In the Temple.

As Jesus was leaving the temple, a few days before He was to go to the cross of pain and suffering—i.e., When Jesus had finished all these sayings, he said to his disciples,

“You know that after two days the Passover is coming, and the Son of Man will be delivered up to be crucified.” –Matthew 26:1–2

His disciples called out how magnificent the temple was. And may I suggest that His disciples, seeing as Jesus was preparing to leave the temple… ran after Him. Maybe taking a few quick steps to catch up with Him, to brag about the temple building, in all its splendor, after Jesus spent time ministering there:

Jesus came out from the temple and was going away when His disciples came up to point out the temple buildings to Him. –Matthew 24:1, NASB

As He was going out of the temple, one of His disciples said to Him, “Teacher, behold what wonderful stones and what wonderful buildings!” –Mark 13:1, NASB

And as Jesus always does, He takes the opportunity to redirect their statements [even their thoughts], and he turns his replies into prophetic wisdom and teaching. So, for example, alluding to the near future at the Mount of Olives, when Jesus tells them again—that He will be delivered to His death by crucifixion—by saying the building will be nothing as the Disciples pointed out to Jesus, the magnificence of the temple. Jesus, in response, took the opportunity to prophesize the temple’s future destruction in reply to them. And, in a way, they didn’t expect at first about Himself.

But he answered them, “You see all these, do you not? Truly, I say to you, there will not be left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down.” –Matthew 24:2

And Jesus said to him, “Do you see these great buildings? There will not be left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down.
–Mark 13:2

Imagine, if you will, that you were there with Jesus and His disciples in the temple. You are now an eyewitness to His ministry within the temple - just days before the Passover. You and His disciples are readying to depart the temple and head out to the Mount of Olives with Jesus. As you leave, you hear His disciples remark to Jesus how immense the temple building is of rock and great timbers; then, with Herod the Great's rebuilding, it must have been even more spectacular to the eye.

//

And as with the disciples, you are also impressed with the temple's magnitude. And you reflect on the teachings that this is the 2nd temple from when King Cyrus sent Ezra to rebuild it. And you remember the instruction of the rabbis that in 169 B.C., the temple was desecrated and destroyed by Antiochus IV Epiphanes, and later by Pompey; for which later Herod the Great began throwing a lot of monies to renovate it in 20 B.C. to around 26 A.D . So with the temple's recent renovation, you look up at the temple and all around the courtyard and stand amazed at the temple's grandeur. And then you overhear Jesus’ reply. He responds with prophecy, in that all they gaze upon now — will soon be gone!

Whoa. Jesus’ response wasn't the response the disciples were expecting to hear! They thought that Jesus would agree with their observation, but instead, Jesus tells them just the opposite, the temple's destruction. So then, what did the disciples do next?

We don't have the benefit of the details recorded within the Scriptures, but I submit, for your consideration, that if, like me, they were stopped in their tracks by Jesus’ comments. And I would suggest that all sorts of thoughts and scenarios were going on within their minds! And again, if it were up to me, I would discuss Jesus’ unexpected reply with the brethren. All the while, Jesus continues to walk away from the temple and the disciples.