Immediate Context of Matthew 24

The immediate context of Matthew 24 should be considered in order to see the subjects Christ had been dealing with and the things that immediately followed: “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which on the outside appear beautiful, but inside they are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness. Even so you too outwardly appear righteous to men, but inwardly you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness. Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you build the tombs of the prophets and adorn the monuments of the righteous, and say, If we had been living in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partners with them in shedding the blood of the prophets. Consequently you bear witness against yourselves, that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets. Fill up then the measure of the guilt of your fathers. You serpents, you brood of vipers, how shall you escape the sentence of hell? Therefore, behold, I am sending you prophets and wise men and scribes; some of them you will kill and crucify, and some of them you will scourge in your synagogues, and persecute from city to city, that upon you may fall the guilt of all the righteous blood shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah, the son of Berechiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar. Truly I say to you, all these things shall come upon this generation. O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, the way a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were unwilling. Behold, your house is being left to you desolate! For I say to you, from now on you shall not see Me until you say, BLESSED IS HE WHO COMES IN THE NAME OF THE LORD! AND Jesus came out from the temple and was going away when His disciples came up to point out the temple buildings to Him. And He answered and said to them, Do you not see all these things? Truly I say to you, not one stone here shall be left upon another, which will not be torn down. And as He was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, Tell, us when will these things be, and what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age? And Jesus answered and said to them, See to it that no one misleads you. For many will come in My name, saying, I am the Christ, and will mislead many. And you will be hearing of wars and rumors of wars; see that you are not frightened, for those things must take place, but that is not yet the end. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and in various places there will be famines and earthquakes. But all these things are merely the beginning of birth pangs. Then they will deliver you to tribulation, and will kill you, and you will be hated by all nations on account of My name. And at that time many will fall away and will deliver up one another and hate one another. And many false prophets will arise, and will mislead many. And because lawlessness is increased, most people’s love will grow cold. But the one who endures to the end, he shall be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in the whole world for a witness to all nations, and then the end shall come” (Matt. 23:27-24:14 NASB).

Christ was deliberately leaving the temple when He predicted its destruction. He had pronounced woes against the religious Jews. The temple, which was a marvelous structure, had been rebuilt. The Son of God saw what neither the religious Jews nor His disciples saw. The Jews could not see what Christ saw because of their empty formalism. The disciples saw only the outward beauty of the temple. They in essence said, “Look at the temple,” and Christ in essence said, “Look at the temple’s destruction.” The Savior was not impressed by the disciples’ appeal. Beautiful buildings are of no value when Ichabod (I Sam. 4:21—the glory has departed) has been written over the doorway. Christ’s message only two days before His death at Calvary revealed the major eschatological events of His second coming. Those events are mentioned in Matthew 24.

Like the Pharisees of Christ’s first advent, the religion of most people is only external. It has many external performances, but the performers do not have their hearts motivated by the correct Persons—God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Such performers are described in the Old Testament: “The toil of a fool so wearies him that he does not even know how to go to a city” (Eccl. 10:15 NASB). The New Testament shows that external performances without a heart made alive by the Holy Spirit are valueless: “For he is not a Jew who is one outwardly; neither is circumcision that which is outward in the flesh. But he is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is that which is of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the letter; and his praise is not from men, but from God” (Rom. 2:28, 29 NASB). Outward success is the only thing that matters to the hypocrite. Therefore, the joy of the hypocrite is himself. When his affections are raised, he thinks God is pleased with his affections; therefore, he is affected with his own affections. The more religious a person is apart from grace the more ignorant he is of God and the truths proclaimed by God’s men.

Preceding the Savior’s pronouncement of judgment on that generation of religious Jews, “Jesus said to them, Did you never read in the Scriptures, THE STONE WHICH THE BUILDERS REJECTED, THIS BECAME THE CHIEF CORNER stone; THIS CAME ABOUT FROM THE LORD, AND IT IS MARVELOUS IN OUR EYES? Therefore I say to you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you, and be given to a nation producing the fruit of it. And he who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces; but on whomever it falls, it will scatter him like dust” (Matt. 21:42-44 NASB). The Jews were stumbling over Jesus Christ, the true Stone. He is the stumbling Stone to the Jews and religionists, but He will be the smiting Stone when He comes as King of kings and Lord of lords.

The chief priests and elders of Matthew 21 manifested their opposition to Christ. After Christ said the publicans and harlots would go into the kingdom before the religious Jews, He gave the parable of the wicked husbandmen. The wicked husbandmen not only killed the servants, but also killed the heir, the Son of God. Christ told them the kingdom of God would be taken from them and given to a nation bringing forth the fruit thereof. The kingdom will be given to the people gathered out of the nations (I Pet. 2:9, 10; II Pet. 1:10, 11).

The Jewish nation was bidden to repent (Matt. 22). This was a general call to repentance. The Lord then called other guests who took the place of those generally called. This is further described in Romans 11. God is now visiting the Gentiles to take out of them a people for His name (Acts 15:13-17). The believing Gentiles become Jews inwardly through regeneration and conversion (Rom. 2:29). The children of the kingdom (Matt. 8:11, 12) through their unbelief were cut off from the nationally covenanted kingdom.

Christ’s discourse that contained nothing but woes to the religious Jews concluded with hope for Israel: “For I say to you, from now on you shall not see Me until you say, BLESSED IS HE WHO COMES IN THE NAME OF THE LORD” (Matt. 23:39 NASB). There is no hope for the vipers to whom Christ spoke (Matt. 23:33), but God will save a remnant according to the election of grace (Rom. 11:1-5). (See Ezek. 16:60-63.) God’s covenant purpose cannot be hindered. He never starts anything He cannot finish, and He brings nothing into existence He does not control. Israel has been blinded until all the chosen Gentiles are in the ark of safety. All of those chosen to salvation within national Israel will be saved. The Deliverer will come and take away their sins (Rev. 7).

The kingdom that was taken from Israel (Matt. 21:43) was not God’s reign in the heart (John 10). It was not the assembly (church), and it cannot be the gospel (Rom. 1:16, 17). None of these were taken from the Jews. Religionists misconceive the kingdom to be spiritual, not material. They misinterpret many passages of Scripture that mention the kingdom: (1) “Thy kingdom come…” (Matt. 6:10 NASB), (2) “…the kingdom of God has come upon you” (Matt. 12:28 NASB), (3) “I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven…” (Matt. 16:19), (4) “…the kingdom of God will be taken away from you…” (Matt. 21:43 NASB), (5) “The kingdom of God has come near to you” (Luke 10:9 NASB), (6) “…the kingdom of God has come upon you” (Luke 11:20 NASB), (7) “…your Father has chosen gladly to give you the kingdom” (Luke 12:32 NASB), (8) “…the kingdom of God is in your midst” (Luke 17:21 NASB), (9) “…the kingdom of God is near” (Luke 21:31 NASB), (10) “for the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit” (Rom. 14:17 NASB), (11) “…transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son” (Col. 1:13 NASB), (12) “…by His appearing and His kingdom” (II Tim. 4:1 NASB), (13) “…such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God” (Gal. 5:21 NASB), and (14) “for in this way the entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ will be abundantly supplied to you” (II Pet. 1:11 NASB). There is perfect harmony between all these Scripture references. They must be considered in order to correctly handle the word of God.

The original choice of one nation has not been revoked. Therefore, the continued selection of a nation, in some sense (I Pet. 2), identified with Abraham enables Christians to appreciate the reason God confined the kingdom to one nation and will ultimately give it to one people—His spiritual people. The elect from among the Gentiles constitute the heirs who will reign with Christ. They are engrafted into the olive tree (Rom. 11). The people to whom the kingdom will be given must stand closely connected with the Jewish nation. They must be adopted as Abraham’s seed.

After the completion of the fullness of the Gentiles, God will again deal with His people He has not forsaken (Rom. 1). The fullness of the Gentiles must not be confused with the times of the Gentiles. The former refers to Christ visiting the Gentiles to take out of them a people for His name (Acts 15:7-19). The latter began with Nebuchadnezzar and will continue until the establishment of the kingdom at Christ’s second advent. Both are drawing to a conclusion.

The last words of Christ before the Olivet discourse in Matthew 24 began with Matthew 23:34-24:3. Following Christ’s ironical statement, “Fill up then the measure of the guilt of your fathers” (Matt. 23:32 NASB), He called the Jews a generation of vipers. He told them to make up what was lacking in their fathers’ guilt. The only thing left was the crucifixion of the Heir, Jesus Christ. This was spoken only two days before Christ’s crucifixion. The serpent’s seed was destined to crucify the seed of the woman: “And I will put enmity Between you and the woman, And between your seed and her seed; He shall bruise you on the head, And you shall bruise him on the heel” (Gen. 3:15 NASB). The religious Jews could not escape the damnation of hell (Matt. 23:33). He knew they were the children of the Devil: “You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own nature; for he is a liar, and the father of lies” (John 8:44 NASB). The Jews not only killed the prophets but they would also crucify the Son of God and persecute His servants. When Christians are persecuted Christ is also persecuted.

Christ’s final public address dealt with Israel’s present and prophetic future (Matt. 23:37-39). Jerusalem was the center of Israel. The condition of the whole nation could be measured by Jerusalem. Repetition of words like “Jerusalem, Jerusalem” reveals the passion of the speaker. The Lord used repetitious language for emphasis—“Simon, Simon” and “truly, truly.” This passage of Scripture also portrays the Jews’ final rejection of Christ, the Davidic palace left desolate, Christ’s departure from the Jews, and His return to the Jews in the future. The removal of desolation implied by Christ’s return and Israel’s only hope is expressed in the last statement of Matthew 23:39—“BLESSED IS HE WHO COMES IN THE NAME OF THE LORD!” There was no hope for the apostates to whom Christ spoke, but there is hope for the remnant of the election of grace.

Matthew 23:37-39 is not a prayer. Christ did not pray for what He knew would not happen. How could those whom God would save perish? A king wills the welfare of his subjects, but he will not acquit those in prison for their crime. The statement “I wanted to gather your children together, the way a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were unwilling” (v. 37) cannot refer to internal regeneration by the sovereign Holy Spirit. It refers to the external ministry of the prophets (Acts 7:51-53). Men are damned because they will not be saved. They will not be saved because they are depraved. The will is enslaved by depravity.

The words of Christ made those Pharisees neither hungry nor thirsty for righteousness. The removal of Christ’s presence and message made them long for neither Him nor His message. Therefore, Christ’s withdrawal left their houses and God’s house desolate. He walked away from the temple and pronounced judgment on the temple because it was no longer God’s house. It was the house of the people.

The time had arrived when the rejected Stone would become the chief cornerstone for the temple that would grow into a holy temple for the Lord. However, this building is not the kingdom. It is the assembly that Jesus Christ is continuing to build. The visible aspect of the assembly is guilty of the same sins of which the Lord accused the religious Pharisees. Every Christian should check his position, his surroundings, the practices he sanctions, and the teaching he endorses. Does your minister espouse you to one husband, or have you forsaken the Lord, the fountain of living water?

The presence of the Holy Spirit is the abiding demonstration that Christ is rejected by the world. Christians are under natural influences that keep them outwardly correct without enjoying the whole counsel of God. God’s word leads Christians to expect failure and departure from truth. The Bible constantly warns them of apostasy (Acts 20:28-30; I Tim. 4:1; II Tim. 3:1-5, 12, 13; II Pet. 2:1, 3, 17; I John 2:18-26; Jude 16-18). In the days of the apostles, declension had set in with no hope of recovery. While great religious bodies are boasting of their position and progress with Laodicean complacency, spiritually minded Christians are distressed by such so-called progress at the expense of Christ and truth. Faithful Christians find themselves in a position of isolation in proportion to the measure of their fidelity to Christ. The question for every exercised heart is how he can put himself right so as to be in the current of the Holy Spirit in accordance with the Lord’s will in an evil day. The answer is given in II Timothy 2:19-26—“Nevertheless, the firm foundation of God stands, having this seal, The Lord knows those who are His, and, Let everyone who names the name of the Lord abstain from wickedness. Now in a large house there are not only gold and silver vessels, but also vessels of wood and of earthenware, and some to honor and some to dishonor. Therefore, if a man cleanses himself from these things, he will be a vessel for honor, sanctified, useful to the Master, prepared for every good work. Now flee from youthful lusts, and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart. But refuse foolish and ignorant speculations, knowing that they produce quarrels. And the Lord’s bond-servant must not be quarrelsome, but be kind to all, able to teach, patient when wronged, with gentleness correcting those who are in opposition, if perhaps God may grant them repentance leading to the knowledge of the truth, and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, having been held captive by him to do his will” (II Tim. 2:19-26 NASB).