Charles Spurgeon Commentary Matthew 24

And Jesus went out, and departed from the temple: and his disciples came to him for to shew him the buildings of the temple.

Ah, me! the rejected king took but slight interest in the temple of which his disciples thought so much. To them the appearance was glorious; but to their Lord it was a sad sight. His Father's house, which ought to have been a house of prayer for all nations, had become a den of thieves, and soon would be utterly destroyed.

And Jesus said unto them, See ye not all these things? verily I say unto you, There shall not be left here one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down.

And it was so. Josephus tells us that Titus at first tried to save the temple, even after it was set on fire, but his efforts were of no avail; and at last he gave orders that the whole city and temple should be leveled, except a small portion reserved for the garrison.

Yet the stones of the temple were such as people very seldom see, so exceedingly great; they looked as if, once in their place, they would stand there throughout eternity, but all are gone, according to our Lord's prophecy.

And Jesus went out, and departed from the temple: and his disciple came to him to show him the buildings of the temple.

And Jesus said to them, Do you not see all these things? Truly I say to you, There shall not be left here one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down.

The King, having finished his first discourse in the temple, left it, never to return: Jesus went out, and departed from the temple.

His ministry there was ended. As his disciples moved away with him towards the Mount of Olives, they called his attention to the great stones of which the temple was constructed, and the costly adornments of the beautiful building. To them the appearance was glorious; but to their Lord it was a sad sight. His Father's house, which ought to have been a house of prayer for all nations, had become a den of thieves, and soon would be utterly destroyed: Jesus said to them, Do you not see all these things? Truly I say to you, There shall not be left here one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down.

Josephus tells us that Titus at first tried to save the temple, even after it was set on fire, but his efforts were of no avail; and at last he gave orders that the whole city and temple should be leveled, except a small portion reserved for the garrison.

This was so thoroughly done that the historian says that there was nothing to make those that came there believe it had ever been inhabited. We sometimes delight in the temporal prosperity of the Church as if it were something that must certainly endure; but all that is external will pass away or be destroyed. Let us only reckon that to be substantial which comes from God, and is God's work. The things which are seen are temporal.

The King, having finished His final discourse in the temple, left it, never to return. Jesus went out and departed from the temple. His ministry there was ended. As His disciples moved away with Him towards the Mount of Olives, they called His attention to the great stones of which the temple was constructed and the costly adornments of the beautiful building. To them the appearance was glorious, but to their Lord it was a sad sight.

His Father’s house, which ought to have been a house of prayer for all nations, had become a den of thieves and would soon be utterly destroyed. Jesus said to them, “See ye not all these things? verily I say unto you, there shall not be left here one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down.” Josephus tells us that Titus at first tried to save the temple, even after it was set on fire, but his efforts were of no avail, and at last he gave orders that the whole city and temple should be levelled, except a small portion reserved for the garrison. This was so thoroughly done that the historian says that “There was left nothing to make those that came there believe it had ever been inhabited.”

We sometimes delight in the temporal prosperity of the Church as if it were something that must certainly endure, but all that is external will pass away or be destroyed. Let us only reckon that to be substantial which comes from God and is God’s work. “The things which are seen are temporal.”

The little procession continued ascending the Mount of Olives until Jesus reached a resting-place from which He could see the temple (Mark 3:3). There He sat down, and the disciples came to Him privately, saying, “Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world?”

These are the questions that have been asked in every age since our Savior’s day. There are two distinct questions here, perhaps three. The disciples inquired first about the time of the destruction of the temple, and then about the sign of Christ’s coming, and of “the consummation of the age” (R.V. margin).

The answers of Jesus contained much that was mysterious and that could only be fully understood as what He foretold actually occurred. He told His disciples some things that related to the siege of Jerusalem, some that concerned His Second Advent, and some that would immediately precede “the end of the world.”

When we have clearer light, we may possibly perceive that all our Savior’s predictions on this memorable occasion had some connection with all three of these great events.