Expositor's Bible Commentary Commentary Mark 13:20

"And except the Lord had shortened the days, no flesh would have been saved; but for the elect`s sake, whom he chose, he shortened the days." — Mark 13:20 (ASV)

The primary temporal reference now shifts back to the End. The language here looks forward to the Great Tribulation that will precede the End. Mark uses language derived from Daniel’s portrayal of the last days (Daniel 12:1; cf. Jeremiah 30:7). Nowhere else does Scripture refer to the shortening of the time of tribulation. The “elect” (GK 1723) are the people of God generally.