Matthew 24:9-14 – The Acts of the Apostles Foretold
|| Mark 13:9-13; Luke 21:12-19
MT24:9 {MK13:9 “But, (LK21:12 before all these things[1]) you look after yourselves:[2] they will turn you over to Sanhedrins[3] (LK21:12 and synagogues[4] and prisons) to be beaten and flayed. And you will stand before kings and governors[5] on my account (LK21:12 and on account of my name[6]) as a testimony to them.”} “They will hand you over to oppression[7] and kill you[8] and you will be hated by all nations for my name. MT24:10 And then many will stumble[9] and they will betray one another and hate one another. {MK13:12 Brother, relatives, and friends will hand you over to death. Children will turn against parents and put them to death.} MT24:11 Many false prophets will rise[10] and mislead many. MT24:12 Because of increasing lawlessness[11] the love of many will cool.[12] MT24:13 But the one who endures completely[13] will be saved. {LK21:18 Not a hair of your head will perish. LK21:19 By your endurance you will acquire your souls.[14]} MT24:14 And this good news of the Kingdom will be preached[15] {MK13:10 first} in the whole inhabited earth for a testimony to all the nations. And then The End[16] will come. {MK13:11 And when they lead you away to hand you over do not worry beforehand. (LK21:14 Do not premeditate a defense[17] regarding what you will say.) The holy Pneuma will speak for you. LK21:15 I shall give you a mouth of wisdom so all those lying about you will not be able to resist or contradict.}
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[1] Before all these things: Jesus foretells the very events recorded in the Book of Acts. These are the things the Apostles will experience before “the end” of Jerusalem and her Temple in the year 70 CE.
[2] You look after yourselves: The Apostles asking the question.
[3] Sanhedrins: Note the occurrences of “you” (meaning the disciples or Apostles) and now this word “Sanhedrin.” This proves Jesus has in mind the experience of his own Jewish followers as these finally occurred in the Book of Acts (Acts chs 2-8). He is discussing those events prior to the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD when any such “Sanhedrins” ceased to exist.
[4] Synagogues: Note Jesus still has his Jewish disciples in mind. See this fulfillment in Acts chs 4, 5, 16, 22-26 (John 16:1, 2).
[5] Before kings and governors: Again this foretold experience of the disciples can be read in Acts chs 4-7, 22-26.
[6] My name: There is a singular “name” for which Christians are hated. Note this is not the Father’s name here, that is Yahweh, or Jehovah. It is rather the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene (Acts 3:6; 4:10; 24:5; 1 Peter 4:14). A word search on “name” will show it pertains to “Jesus” almost always, and seldom the Father.
[7] Oppression: The Greek THLIPSIN root meaning is squeeze or press and so oppression. It may mean persecution or personal tribulation as an external or internal pressure. (See DNTT Volume 2, page 807: “press, squeeze, crush.”) The word is later used by the Nazarene when referring to “great oppression.” (Matthew 24:21) Compare Genesis 3:15; Romans 16:20.
[8] Kill you: This begins with the first martyr Stephen in Acts chs 7, 8.
[9] Many will stumble: Jesus foretells the stumbling of many during those decades leading up to the year 70. However, such stumbling has occurred throughout the centuries right to the present as a result of those false prophets and their predictions that “The Time Is At Hand!”
[10] Many false prophets will rise: See the writings of Josephus on the rise of false prophets preceding the destruction of Jerusalem. They may be false prophets because they proclaim “the appointed time is near” and point to various dates for the Return of Christ. These are dates foretold but which do not materialize in the manner predicted.
[11] Lawlessness: This lawlessness may be inside the Church itself as Jesus uses this word in his parable of the Wheat and Tares (Zizania) at Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43. Paul uses the word to describe the apostate “man of lawlessness” at 2 Thessalonians 2:3-12. Surely, this “lawlessness” includes false predictions claiming, “The Time Is At Hand.”
[12] The love of many will cool: Jesus counsels the Angelic Presbyter of Ephesus on this at Revelation 2:1-3. There “love” is highly associated with “works” and these must be foremost those of faith and charity as 1 John 3:23 shows.
[13] Endures completely: Or, to the end. This word “end” (TELOS) is without the Greek article and cannot be the same as “the end” elsewhere in Jesus’ answer. This is the “end” of the Christian race of endurance for each of these Apostles (Luke 21:19; Revelation 2:10).
[14] You will acquire your souls: Your future immortal life as a spiritual person or soul in heaven (1 Corinthians 15:45-52; Acts 2:27, 31).
[15] The Kingdom will be preached: Compare Colossians 1:23 and Acts 2:5. Before the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 the Kingdom Gospel had been preached throughout the known Roman world and to representatives of all the nations. This particular preaching campaign is that of the early disciples leading up to “the end” of Jerusalem.
[16] The End: The SYNTELEIAS the disciples had in mind with the destruction “the end” of the Jewish Temple Age. Here Jesus uses TELOS. Note this is the last occurrence of the word “end” and it is not used again later when the Nazarene’s focus turns to his own Arrival or Parousia.
[17] Do not premeditate a defense: Peter, Stephen and Paul are good examples of these defenses in the Book of Acts.
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