Charles Ellicott Commentary Matthew 24:1

"And Jesus went out from the temple, and was going on his way; and his disciples came to him to show him the buildings of the temple." — Matthew 24:1 (ASV)

And Jesus went out — A better reading, following the best manuscripts, is: Jesus departed from the temple and was going on his way when his disciples... St. Mark and St. Luke report the touching incident of the widow’s mite as connected with our Lord’s departure.

His disciples came to him — We may well think of their action as a response to the words they had just heard. Was that house—with all its impressive buildings and great stones, its golden gates and its Beautiful Gate (Acts 3:2), through which they had probably passed, its porticos, its marble cupolas, and the structural and ornamental offerings that had accumulated during the forty-six years since Herod began his work of improvement (John 2:20)—to be left desolate? Would the sight of its glories not lead him to recall those ominous words?

This seems a far more natural explanation than attributing their actions to the mere wonder of Galilean peasants at the splendor of the Holy City. They had seen it too often, we may add, to feel much wonder.