God's Word For You is a free Bible Study site committed to bringing you studies firmly grounded in the Bible – the Word of God. Holding a reformed, conservative, evangelical perspective this site affirms that God has provided in Jesus Christ his eternal Son, a way of salvation in which we can live in his presence guilt free, acquitted and at peace.

 
 

LUKE 21: 5 – 38: SIGNS OF THE END

© Rosemary Bardsley 2025

Jesus responded to comments his disciples made about the beauty of the temple by speaking of a time when the temple would be completely destroyed. This prompted them to ask him when that would happen, and what preliminary sign would occur (21:5 – 7).

A. A WARNING NOT TO BE DECEIVED – 21:8, 9

Luke includes a similar warning to those included by Matthew and Mark about the deceptions that will arise about his return and about ‘the end’.

Check out these verses. Make a list of what deceptions Jesus warned us to be alert for.
Luke 21:7, 8:

 

Matthew 24:4, 5:

Matthew 24:23, 24:

 

Mark 13:5, 6:

Mark 13:21 – 23:

 

These deceptions are of two kinds: (1) people who claim to be Christ, but are not; and (2) people who claim that ‘the time is near’, even though Jesus said that only the Father knows about the day and the hour (Matthew 24:36).

 

B. THINGS THAT WILL HAPPEN, BUT ARE NOT THE END

When we read Matthew 24, Mark 13 and Luke 21 we find many things referred to that will or must happen, but are not ‘the end’. They will or must happen before Christ returns, and they will happen with such continuity or regularity that they can never be indicators of ‘the end’ – we cannot point to them and say, ‘Oh, Jesus must be coming soon! Look at all these terrible things that are happening!’

Confusing our understanding is one particular event that was still future when Christ spoke, but occurred within four decades of his speaking: the destruction of the Temple (of which he has just spoken in Luke 21:6, and had mentioned earlier in 19:41 – 44, and the horrific Roman military attacks that occurred in Jerusalem at that time (AD70). It is difficult to separate some of Christ’s predictions of that event from his predictions of ‘the end’.

For some, the destruction of Jerusalem and particularly of the Temple would actually mean ‘the end’. It was the end of the Jewish nation. It was the end of the Temple and the worship that centred on it. Never again has the temple been reconstructed. Without the Temple, never again has the religion of the Jews been able to be practised as required in the laws given to Moses.

Sorting things out. Read Luke 21:9 – 28. List under the following categories the things Jesus said would happen:

[Note: some things belong in more than one category.]

Things that continue to happen between Christ’s ascension and his return:

 

 

Things related to the fall of Jerusalem and the destruction of the Temple:

 

 

Things that will happen as ‘the end’ gets closer:

 

 

Things associated with his final return:

 

 

Apart from the predictions specific to Jerusalem, most of the things Jesus mentioned are global phenomena – things that could happen anywhere, and be seen anywhere.

 

C. SPECIAL INSTRUCTIONS FOR BELIEVERS

In addition to the warnings against false Christ and false reports of his coming, Jesus included special instructions for his followers in the context of the events he has detailed, particularly in the context of the persecution that they will experience.

These instructions were:

[1] ‘Do not be frightened’ – verse 9.

[2] You will suffer persecution because of Jesus’ name – verses 12 – 19. This would include arrest and imprisonment, being brought before various rulers. In this context, Jesus’ instructions are:

2.1 They will be witnesses to those who arrest and question them.

2.2 They are to deliberately decide not to worry in advance about how they are going to defend themselves, because he will give them words and wisdom that their adversaries will not be able to resist or contradict. [Compare Luke 12:11, 12, where Jesus says it is the Holy Spirit who will teach them what to say. This reminds us of the equality and unity of the Spirit and the

Son; it also warns us against attributing to the Spirit anything contrary to the teaching of Jesus.]
2.3 Because of Jesus, they will be hated by ‘all men’; for some of them, this would include their close relatives and friends. So intense is this hatred that some of them will be put to death.

2.4 But this does not mean that they will ‘perish’ – not a hair of their head will ‘perish’. Perishing, in this context, as in John 3:16, is the opposite of eternal life. Even though standing firm for Jesus might mean physical death for some, it also means gaining ‘life’ – that eternal life that is beyond condemnation, beyond the impact of physical death.

[3] There are instructions specific to the attack on Jerusalem – a calamity that could be avoided by escaping from the city promptly.

[4] When they see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and glory, they are to stand up, and lift up their heads – ‘because your redemption is drawing near’ and ‘the kingdom of God is near’.

[5] With all this in mind, ‘be careful’... ‘always be on the watch’ ... so that their hearts will not be weighed down by godless living or the anxieties of life, making them unprepared for that day.

[6] Pray ...that you will be able to escape what is about to happen on that day, and be able to stand before the Son of Man.

Some questions:
Which of the above instructions is important for you in your circumstances at the moment?

Jesus said that when we see him coming ‘your redemption is drawing near’. Read Romans 8:18 – 23 and Ephesians 4:30 for further understanding of what he meant.

 

Suggest which part of his teaching Jesus was referring to in verse 32.

 

What assurance does Jesus give about what he has taught – look at verse 33.

 

What is Jesus saying in verses 34 to 36? Is he suggesting that believers can lose their faith and their salvation? Or is he encouraging us to hold fast to our faith because the continuance of faith is the proof of its integrity?

 

How does what Jesus says here connect with what he said about faith in Luke 17:6 and 18:8, and in the parable of the sower in Luke 8:13 and 14?

 

What kinds of things threaten to erode faith?

 

Look at your own life, your attitudes, expectations and circumstances. Identify anything there that could potentially undermine your faith, and ask the Lord to help you to deal with it appropriately.

 

*

We might think that what Jesus was teaching in the temple would put many people off, but Luke tells us that every morning, early, the people gathered in the temple to hear him teach. This keenness to hear the words of Jesus challenges us to a similar hunger for the truth, a similar commitment to his teaching.