Signs of the End^(A)

¹⁴ “So when you see the destructive desecration standing where it should not be (let the reader take note),^[a] then those who are in Judea must flee to the mountains. ¹⁵ Anyone who’s on his housetop must not come down and go into his house to take anything out of it, ¹⁶ and the one who’s in the field must not turn back to get his coat.

¹⁷ “How terrible it will be for women who are pregnant or who are nursing babies in those days! ¹⁸ Pray that it may not be in winter, ¹⁹ because those days will be a time of suffering,^[b] a kind that has not happened from the beginning of creation—which God himself created—until now, and certainly will never happen again. ²⁰ If the Lord had not shortened those days, no one^[c] would survive. But for the sake of the elect whom he has chosen, he has shortened those days.

²¹ “At that time, if anyone says to you, ‘Look here! The Messiah!’,^[d] or, ‘Look there!’ don’t believe it, ²² because false messiahs^[e] and false prophets will have arisen and will produce signs and omens intending to deceive, if possible, the elect. ²³ So be on your guard! I’ve told you everything beforehand.”

Signs of the End^(A)

²⁰ “So when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then understand that its devastation is approaching. ²¹ Then those in Judea must flee to the mountains, those inside the city must leave it, and those in the countryside must not go into it, ²² because these are the days of vengeance when all that is written will be fulfilled.

²³ “How terrible it will be for those women who are pregnant or who are nursing babies in those days!—because there will be great distress in the land^[a] and wrath against this people. ²⁴ They will fall by the edge of the sword and be carried off as captives among all the nations, and Jerusalem will be trampled on by unbelievers^[b] until the times of the unbelievers^[c] are fulfilled.”