13:1 As Jesus was leaving the Temple (courts; complex), one of his ·followers [disciples] said to him, “Look, Teacher! ·How big the stones are! [L What stones!] ·How beautiful the buildings are! [L What buildings!]”
13:2 Jesus said, “Do you see all these great buildings? Not one stone will be left on another. Every stone will be ·thrown [torn; pulled] down.”
13:3 Later, as Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives, ·opposite [across from] the Temple [complex], he was alone with Peter, James, John, and Andrew. They asked Jesus,
13:4 “Tell us, when will these things happen? And what will be the sign that they are going to ·happen [be accomplished/fulfilled]?”
13:5 Jesus began to answer them, “·Be careful [Watch out] that no one ·fools [deceives; misleads] you.
13:6 Many people will come in my name, saying, ‘I am ·the One [or he; C Messiah or savior],’ and they will ·fool [deceive; mislead] many people.
13:7 When you hear about wars and ·stories of wars that are coming [rumors/reports of wars], don’t be afraid. These things must happen ·before the end comes [but that is not yet the end].
13:8 Nations will ·fight [L rise up] against other nations, and kingdoms against other kingdoms. There will be earthquakes in ·different [various] places, and there will be ·times when there is no food for people to eat [famines]. These things are ·like the first pains when something new is about to be born [L the beginning of birth pains].
13:9 “You must ·be careful [watch out; be on guard]. People will arrest you and take you to ·court [local councils] and ·beat [flog] you in their synagogues. You will be forced to stand before governors and kings to ·tell them [testify; bear witness] about me, ·because you follow me [on account of me].
13:10 But before these things happen, the ·Good News [Gospel] must be ·told [preached; proclaimed] to all ·people [nations].
13:11 When you are arrested and ·judged [brought to trial], don’t worry ahead of time about what you should say. Say whatever is given you to say at that time, because it will not really be you speaking; it will be the Holy Spirit.
13:12 “Brothers will ·give [betray; hand over] their own brothers to ·be killed [death], and fathers will give their own children to ·be killed [death]. Children will ·fight [rebel; rise up] against their own parents and cause them to be put to death.
13:13 All people will hate you because ·you follow me [L of my name], but those people who ·keep their faith [endure; stand firm; persevere] until the end will be saved.
13:14 “You will see ‘·a blasphemous object that brings destruction’ [T the abomination of desolation; C a phrase taken from Dan. 9:27; 11:31; 12:11, and originally referring to the desecration of the Temple by Antiochus Epiphanes in 168 bc] standing where ·it [or he] should not be.” (You who read this should understand what it means [C probably a reference to the (soon-to-occur) destruction of Jerusalem in ad 70].) “At that time, the people in Judea should ·run away [flee] to the mountains.
13:15 If people are on the roofs of their houses [C roofs in Palestine were flat and used as spare rooms and for storage], they must not go down or go inside to get anything out of their houses.
13:16 If people are in the fields, they must not go back to get their ·coats [cloaks].
13:17 At that time, ·how terrible it will be for [L woe to] women who are pregnant or have nursing babies!
13:18 Pray that these things will not happen in ·winter [bad weather],
13:19 because those days will be full of ·trouble [distress; T tribulation]. There will be more ·trouble [distress; T tribulation] than there has ever been since the beginning, when God made the world, until now, and nothing as bad will ever happen again [Dan. 12:1].
13:20 ·God has decided to make that terrible time short [L If the Lord had not shortened those days…]. Otherwise, no one would ·go on living [survive; L be saved]. But God will make that time short ·to help [for the sake of] ·the people [the elect] he has chosen.
13:21 At that time, someone might say to you, ‘Look, there is the ·Christ [Messiah]!’ Or another person might say, ‘There he is!’ But don’t believe them.
13:22 False ·Christs [Messiahs] and false prophets will ·come [appear; rise up] and perform ·great wonders [signs; miracles] and ·miracles [wonders; marvels]. They will try to ·fool [mislead; deceive] even the ·people God has chosen [elect], if that is possible.
13:23 So ·be careful [watch out; be on guard]. I have warned you about all this before it happens.
13:24 “During the days after this ·trouble [tribulation; distress] comes, ‘the sun will grow dark, and the moon will not give its light.
13:25 The stars will fall from ·the sky [heaven]. And the ·powers of the heavens [celestial bodies] will be shaken’ [Is. 13:10; 34:4; cf. Ezek. 32:7–8; Joel 2:10, 31].
13:26 “Then people will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory [Dan. 7:13].
13:27 Then he will send his angels to gather his ·chosen people [elect] from ·all around the earth [the four winds], from ·every part [the farthest end] of the earth and from ·every part [the farthest end] of heaven [Deut. 30:4; Zech. 2:6].
13:28 “Learn a ·lesson [parable; analogy] from the fig tree: When its branches ·become green and soft [become tender; sprout] and new leaves appear, you know summer is near.
13:29 In the same way, when you see these things happening, you will know that ·the time [or he] is near, ·ready to come [right at the door].
13:30 I tell you the truth, all these things will happen ·while the people of this time are still living [before this generation passes away; C either the generation that sees the destruction of Jerusalem (ad 70), or a future generation of the end times].
13:31 ·Earth and sky will be destroyed [T Heaven and earth will pass away], but the words I have said will never ·be destroyed [pass away].
13:32 “No one knows when that day or ·time [hour] will be, not the angels in heaven, not even the Son. Only the Father knows.
13:33 ·Be careful [Watch out; Be on guard]! Always be ·ready [alert; watching], because you don’t know when that [appointed] time will be.
13:34 It is like a man who goes on a ·trip [journey]. He leaves his house and lets his servants take care of it, giving each one ·a special job [his own work] to do. The man tells the servant guarding the door always to be watchful.
13:35 So ·always be ready [stay alert; keep watching], because you don’t know when the ·owner [master; lord] of the house will come back. It might be in the evening, or at midnight, or ·in the morning while it is still dark [L when the rooster crows], or when the sun rises.
13:36 Always be ready. Otherwise he might come back suddenly and find you sleeping.
13:37 I tell you this, and I say this to everyone: ‘Be ·ready [alert; watchful]!’”
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