One of the most perplexing phrases in the bible is “the abomination that causes desolation.” Is it a pig sacrificed on the altar in a newly built Temple like I had always heard? Or, the antichrist setting up an image of himself to worship? Is it even in our future?
The first mention of the abomination that causes desolation is in Daniel 9. Gabriel has just given him a prophecy of 70 weeks…a mercy period…that would start when the decree was issued to rebuild Jerusalem. Cyrus issued that decree in 457BC. Counting 69 “weeks” from that date would place us in 27AD, the year that Jesus was baptized..the Anointed One begins his ministry. During the final week…halfway through…the anointed one is destroyed, and puts an end to sacrifices and offerings…which is exactly what Jesus’ death did. 3 1/2 years later, Stephen was stoned, ending the 70 weeks probationary period for Israel and now the gospel…the invitation into the Kingdom was sent to the Gentiles. Then, the last verse says that “and on the temple shall be the abomination of desolations; and at the end of time an end shall be put to the desolation.” LXX
Jesus is the next to speak of this in His Mt. Olivet Discourse:
“So when you see the abomination of desolation spoken of by the prophet Daniel, standing in the holy place(let the reader understand), then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. Let the one who is on the housetop not go down to take what is in his house, and let the one who is in the field not turn back to take his cloak. And alas for women who are pregnant and for those who are nursing infants in those days! Pray that your flight may not be in winter or on a Sabbath. For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be.” Matt. 24:15-21
There are some contextual clues in this context that make it evident this is not speaking of something in our future.
1. “Let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains.” It is something that those in Judea will personally witness and are to flee to the mountains. This is speaking of a specific geographical context.
2. “Let the one who is on the housetop not go down to take what is in his house.” The people who will witness this live in a culture where they would spend time on their housetop. Houses in Jesus’ day had flat roofs where families would relax, eat, visit, and do various other activities on their roofs. This is speaking to a specific cultural context.
3. “Pray that your flight not take place in the winter or on the Sabbath.” The flight to the hills would be more difficult during the winter. But, his reference to the Sabbath is also specific to their context. There were laws against traveling beyond a certain distance on the Sabbath. If they fled on the Sabbath, they could be stopped by the religious leaders for violating the law. This is speaking to a specific religious culture.
5. “For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be.” This implies that the world will go on. This is the worst tribulation the world has seen, or ever will see.
These are clear contextual clues regarding this abomination…none of which have anything to do with us or most modern cultures. I wonder how many of us women have lived in some amount of fear that we would be pregnant during the tribulation! But, it’s obvious Jesus is speaking to a different land with a different culture and a different religious structure…He isn’t talking about something that was going to happen to us.
But what is the abomination that causes desolation? “When you see the abomination of desolation standing in the holy place.” There is strong agreement throughout church history that this took place between the time the armies of Titus surrounded Jerusalem and the destruction of the Temple, but little agreement as to what the event actually was. An abomination in the OT was often related to some type of desecration of worship, either by outright false worship or by profaning true worship.
There are several possibilities:
1 Zealots. They took over the holy place, desecrating it, while better priests looked on in horror and wept. They also allowed criminals to roam freely in the Holy of Holies and even committed murder in the holiest place. Their actions climaxed in the winter of 67-68 when a clown named Phanni was placed in as high priest.This caused Ananus, a retired priest to weep and lament, “It would have been far better for me to have died before I had seen the house of God laden with such abominations and its unapproachable and hallowed places crowded with the feet of murderers.”(1)
2. Idumeans. They were from the land that had once been the ancient kingdom of Edom and came at the request of the Zealots but were hindered from entering the city by the Romans. Once in Jerusalem, they took out their frustration on the inhabitants of the city. They and the Zealots killed over 8000 Jews. It is believed their real target was Ananus. He and other priests were killed and their corpses mocked by those who stood on them. Josephus declared, “I should not mistake if I said the death of Ananus was the beginning of the destruction of the city….”(2)
3. Romans set up an worship and offered sacrifice in the Temple. It was the armies of the Romans that surrounded the city and that makes this possibility quite plausible. Eventually, Titus destroyed Jerusalem and the Temple and his soldiers set up ensigns and offered sacrifices to them.
The problem with these three possibilities is that this would have been a bit too late to escape. Josephus reports that not one single Christian died in the destruction or siege. They had all heeded Jesus’ words and fled. If the actions of the Zealots or Idumeans were the abomination that causes desolation, it’s unlikely that no Christian was killed by their hand. It’s also unlikely that the Romans setting up ensigns and sacrificing to them was the abomination because this was near the end of the war and destruction and Christians had already fled Jerusalem.
There are two other possibilities that seem more likely:
4. Luke gives us a little more information on this. He writes, “When you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then you know that its desolation has come near.” (Luke 21:21) This seems to indicate that the armies surrounding Jerusalem…Titus’ armies…were the abomination that causes desolation. Romans were considered an abomination and they did cause no small amount of desolation. General Cestius surrounded Jerusalem but then momentarily retreated. During this retreat, the believers in Jerusalem fled. Cestius then returned and not long after, Titus replaced him and there was no more chance for escape from the city. Others see this as a time frame…that the armies weren’t necessarily THE abomination…but that upon the sight of them, the desolation is near.
5. Jews. I find this possibility the most compelling. According to the Old Covenant, only someone posing as an official religious representative of God could defile the temple. After the death of Christ, the sacrifices offered at the temple were an abomination because they denied the atoning work of Christ…they had become a false worship…they were an act of idolatry. Revelation refers to Jerusalem as the harlot.
Also, when Jesus cleansed the temple, He was engaging a prophetic act, but it was also a priestly act as well. Priests would examine a house alleged to be leprous. If it was found to be leprous, it was to be destroyed…”He shall break down the house, its stones and timber and all the plaster of the house, and he shall carry them out of the city to an unclean place.” Lev. 14:45 Jesus, as the High priest after the order of Melchizedek, had examined the house of Jerusalem and found it leprous. He then left the temple and declared it desolate and that it would be torn down with not one stone left upon another.
The historical and geographical context of this passage is ancient Judea; the religious context is the Old Covenant Jerusalem. This is not the historical, geographical, or religious context in which we live. Therefore, it is not something that will happen in our lives. Jesus is continuing the discourse He began on Monday of His final week…the coming judgment on Jerusalem and the signs His followers should look for to know when it happens.
Endnotes:
1. Gary Demar. (1999). Last Days Madness. Powder Springs, CO: American Vision, p. 104.
2. Gary DeMar. Last Days Madness, p. 105
