Pray that you may be able to stand before the Son of Man (Luke 21a)*

Luke 21:5-38
Key verse: “Be always on the watch, and pray that you may be able to escape all that is about to happen, and that you may be able to stand before the Son of Man." (Luke 21:36).

Introduction:

In our daily conversations, the words ‘punishment’ or ‘vengeance’ are barely used, because no one wants to talk or think about these concepts. In today’s passage, Jesus prophesied the temple’s destruction. And according to history, the temple was destroyed in AD 70, just as he said. This event had lasting effects on the rest of Israel’s history and served as God’s testimony to the world for what He would do to those who fail to honor Him. At the same time, God turned His hope towards the Gentiles, in order to fulfill His purpose for the world. Now we, as Gentiles and also as believers, have been chosen to uphold God’s purpose. As Jesus taught his disciples, he is still teaching us today, so that we may carry out what God first purported through His firstborn son, Israel. How can we do this? We have to have a firm understanding of the world’s future that is yet to unfold and also be ready to tackle all of life’s troubles that lie in between now and the end of time.

1.       The destruction of the Jerusalem temple (Luke 21:5-7, 20-24)

Not one stone will be left on another (5-7). A few days before Jesus was arrested, he was teaching in the temple. Some of his disciples marveled at its beauty and magnificent adornment. Jesus said this to them:

"As for what you see here, the time will come when not one stone will be left on another; every one of them will be thrown down." (Luke 21:6).

This temple was being rebuilt in place of the temple built by Zerubbabel in BC 500 (Ezra 3). Out of his zeal, Herod the Great started rebuilding it in BC 20. Within ten years, the majority of the construction was finished, though various adornments and additions continued even after his death around AD 66. According to Josephus’ record, Herod expanded the temple’s foundation much bigger than the original and used huge stones, sizing 37.5x12x18 feet. The temple was well-adorned and magnificent in size. It was said in those days that “He that has not seen the temple of Herod has never beheld anything glorious.” It looked so glorious, sturdy, and even invincible. However, Jesus told his disciples that it would be so totally destroyed that not even one stone would be left on top of another. This statement might have surprised the disciples in two ways: how could such ‘solid and massive stones’ be destroyed to the point of not leaving one stone on another? They could not imagine that anything but an immense power could displace such massive stones. It might be as powerful as some catastrophic force of the nature. Second, the temple’s destruction signaled God’s judgment and that that judgment’s coming was considered to be set in stone, according to Jesus’ description of its outcome. This prophecy reminded them of what had happened to the original temple built by Solomon. As Isaiah prophesied, Judah was defeated by King Nebuchadnezzar (BC 587) and the majority of the Israelites were taken into captivity in Babylon. They lost their county and the temple was totally destroyed. All the articles in it were taken to Babylon. This was God’s punishment for their violation of the covenant. So the temple’s coming destruction implied Israel’s total annihilation. So the disciples asked:

"Teacher," they asked, "when will these things happen? And what will be the sign that they are about to take place?" (Luke 21:7).

They wanted to know the time when the destruction would come and what would be the sign of its coming.

The temple’s desolation (Luke 21:20-24)

After addressing some other concerns, Jesus began to address their original question, i.e. the temple’s destruction.

"When you see Jerusalem being surrounded by armies, you will know that its desolation is near.” (Luke 21:20).

In Mark 13 and Matthew 24, the sign of the end times was to be the abomination that causes desolation, standing in the holy place. This desecration of the temple would be the sign of God’s impending judgment. However, in Luke, the coming desolation was symbolized by armies surrounding Jerusalem. This was more practical and pertinent information for the disciples, who would actually face the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple. Luke did not mention the abomination at all; he might have been thinking two things. First, as Jesus was crucified, Luke mentioned that the temple curtain was torn, which was a form of abomination. Second, the abomination that causes desolation was to be the sign of the end of ages, just before Jesus’ second coming. In this way, Jerusalem’s destruction was seen as an example of what was yet to come, pointing to the day of God’s future vengeance on the world. In other words, all the surrounding events that led to the causes and extent of Jerusalem’s destruction served as the model for God’s judgment over the world. We will look at Jerusalem’s destruction from this perspective.

“Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains, let those in the city get out, and let those in the country not enter the city.” (Luke 21:21).

This was a direct warning for Jesus’ disciples to flee Jerusalem when the Roman army surrounded it. Despite God’s plea through Christ’s love, Israel and her leaders killed the Messiah. Even after murdering their King, as we noted in the first several chapters of Acts, the Israelite leaders were unwilling to repent and respond to the Apostles’ message. They systematically persecuted the believers, soon after Stephen’s martyrdom. However, for the believers, Stephen’s death was the beginning of their dispersion outward from Jerusalem to other areas. In the fourth century, Eusebius wrote this: “But the people of the church in Jerusalem had been commanded by a revelation, vouchsafed to approved men there before the war, to leave the city and to dwell in a certain town of Perea called Pella.” Jesus taught this same principle that, after the full delivery of the Gospel of salvation, if the people’s rejection of Christ became unambiguously clear, then the disciples were to leave to move on to other towns (Luke 10:10-12). If this happened, it was considered that that town’s sin was mature for God’s judgment. The nation of Israel as a whole rejected Jesus and had to bear the consequence of their rejection of God’s grace, love, and justice.

“For this is the time of punishment in fulfillment of all that has been written.” (Luke 21:22).

The NASB reads, “because these are days of vengeance, so that all things which are written will be fulfilled.” This describes God’s punishment for man’s violation of His justice and goodness. When He gave Israel the covenant of the law so that they may receive His blessing, He gave them two messages, one of blessing for obedience to the Lord (Deuteronomy 28:1-14) and the other of curses for disobedience to His commands (). Regarding the His delivery of judgment on disobedience, God said this to Israel:

“The LORD will bring a nation against you from far away, from the ends of the earth, like an eagle swooping down, a nation whose language you will not understand, … They will lay siege to all the cities throughout your land until the high fortified walls in which you trust fall down. They will besiege all the cities throughout the land the LORD your God is giving you. Because of the suffering that your enemy will inflict on you during the siege, you will eat the fruit of the womb, the flesh of the sons and daughters the LORD your God has given you. Even the most gentle and sensitive man among you will have no compassion on his own brother or the wife he loves or his surviving children, and he will not give to one of them any of the flesh of his children that he is eating. It will be all he has left because of the suffering your enemy will inflict on you during the siege of all your cities." (Deuteronomy 28:49, 52-55).

God implemented this covenant punishment for the first time by bringing King Nebuchadnezzar to destroy Solomon’s temple. But in His grace, after Israel’s fifty year exile, God moved King Darius’ heart to allow the temple to be rebuilt by Zerubbabel. Yet He kept Israel under subjugation to other great kingdoms, i.e. the Persian Empire, the Greek Empire, and finally the Roman Empire. In this way, He gave them many opportunities to repent and return to Him. However, as King Herod rebuilt a second temple out of his zeal, Israel’s leaders rode along with his passion and became so proud of the temple, believing that having such a great temple was a sign of God’s full approval of their righteousness. Likewise, when it became obvious that their renewal was impossible through their own efforts, God sent Jesus, the promised one (2 Samuel 7:12-13; John 1:14). Jesus rebuked them of their sins many times and offered loving renewal in exchange. However, they also rejected him, the Son of God. We cannot think of this process as being anything but God’s love for sinners. Isaiah described God’s heart in this way: “All day long he held out his hand to Israel” (Isaiah 65:2; Rom 10:21).

God was finally ready to implement the covenant curse. He is the God of righteous and holiness; He would not endure sin forever. He will surely keep an account of all the wrongs men have committed against Him. When He brings His judgment, no one will be able to bear it; it will be thorough. Jesus gave his disciples a glimpse of what would it be like at the time of God’s judgment.

“How dreadful it will be in those days for pregnant women and nursing mothers! There will be great distress in the land and wrath against this people. They will fall by the sword and will be taken as prisoners to all the nations.” (Luke 21:23-24).

As we noted above, this is a reiteration of what God said through Moses. God’s purpose has not changed since He called the nation Israel to be His people; He wants His people to follow His laws and honor Him as their Lord. When it became evident that the Israelites could not attain righteousness by their own will, God sent Jesus to redeem them. However, in their self-righteousness, they killed Jesus, the Son of God. God’s vengeance was fully due to them and would bring judgment in only a matter of time. As Jesus prophesied, the Roman army came and surrounded the city of Jerusalem and its entire population perished. Josephus, a governor of northern Israel at the time, was captured and witnessed what happened in that city, describing it in this way:

“her name was Mary; her father was Eleazar, of the village Bethezub, which signifies the House of Hyssop. She was eminent for her family and her wealth, and had fled away to Jerusalem with the rest of the multitude, and was with them besieged therein at this time. This put the poor woman into a very great passion, and by the frequent reproahces and imprecations she cast at these rapacious villains, she had provoked them to anger against her; (204) but none of them, either out of the indignation she had raised against herself, or out of the commiseration of her case, would take away her life; As soon as she had said this she slew her son; and then roasted him, and ate the one half of him, and kept the other half by her concealed.” [Josephus i.war:4(201)].

How can one determine if this was God’s due justice? No one can fathom such vengeance, but it is true and real. This will surely come upon those who reject God’s grace and justice. Shall anyone take God’s grace and justice lightly? How long will His judgment last?

Jerusalem will be trampled on by the Gentiles, until the time of the Gentiles is fulfilled.

The aftermath of God’s judgment will last until the end of ages, for the Gentiles will continue to respond right up until close to Jesus’ second coming. As we know, even now on the Temple Mount, where God’s temple should be, stands a pagan temple. The message of God’s judgment stands against what we see on the Temple Mount today. God chose Israel as His firstborn son, but the Israelites failed to follow Him and disobeyed His word. The consequence of their past disobedience remains on the Temple Mount in the present. This is the message given to the whole world, the rest of God’s children; however, He is patient and will not bring judgment on mankind, until the message of His grace through Christ is fully delivered to the world.

What does this tell us?

The temple builders failed to meet God’s righteousness. He wanted to be among His chosen people when He told them to build a tabernacle exactly like the one in heaven. He wanted to preserve this relationship through His covenant. Though men failed to keep the covenant, God, in His love and patience, offered His Son as the fulfiller of that covenant, so that He may keep His chosen people as His children. Yet in their efforts to build up their own righteousness by building up the temple, they rejected God’s gracious offer of Jesus as their Savior. All of the temple builders surely failed to meet God’s standard and would surely be judged.

Judging the firstborn son provided a clear message that the rest of God’s children would also face His judgment in time, unless they accepted Jesus. Despite the Father’s best provision, Israel, God’s firstborn son, failed and suffered His judgment. Here, God’s will was made very clear; He would judge the rest of His children, unless they accepted Christ, the only way for them to become righteous. In this sense, Jewish history over the last two millennia and even the current condition of the Temple Mount speaks of God’s stern will to judge the world in His time.

The world has only one hope: Jesus, the only Redeemer. All of the nations of the world must be humbled for no nation is better than the Jews, God’s firstborn son. The moment one nation, kingdom, or tribe tries to build up their own righteousness, they will surely fail. God’s judgment on them is certain. Christ is the only hope for the whole world.

2.       The coming of the Son of Man (Luke 21:10-11, 25-31)

Scripture not only says that Jerusalem would be trampled on by the Gentiles until the time of the Gentiles was fulfilled (24b), but it also gives the destruction of God’s Temple in Jerusalem as the sign of the end of Israel’s role in God’s salvation program. From this point on, the age of the Gentiles is where we are today, moving toward the Lord’s coming. How things would evolve up to the time of His coming is described in v10-11 and v25-31.

V10-11 is a quick glance of what was yet to come.

“Then he said to them: "Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be great earthquakes, famines and pestilences in various places, and fearful events and great signs from heaven.” (Luke 21:10-11).

There are three things to note here; first, is the conflicts that exist among nations and kingdoms. In Greek, the word ‘nation’ is ethnos. Each ethnic people group makes some kind of effort to survive or rule over other ethnic groups. Such conflicts are often between different ethnic backgrounds and can be experienced everywhere. Ethnic conflicts cause trouble between countries, as well as within a country. The best example is when Aryan supremacy made great attempts to eradicate other ethnic peoples in early 20^th century Germany. The ones who suffered the most from their efforts were the Jews.  Another type of conflict is discord among kingdoms. Kingdoms are units that hold the highest authority over people. A kingdom’s main authority is political, undergirded by military power. We know that human history is rife with many wars among nations and kingdoms.

Second, signs are things that naturally happen on earth, i.e. earthquakes, famines, and pestilences. The earth’s stability will be removed. The punishments that God prescribed for violating the covenant begin with famine. So the first line of punishment would be to take away the blessing that God gave to nurture and sustain lives, threatening all life on earth.

Third, there are cosmic or heavenly signs. These are described in more detail in V25-26

"There will be signs in the sun, moon and stars. On the earth, nations will be in anguish and perplexity at the roaring and tossing of the sea. People will faint from terror, apprehensive of what is coming on the world, for the heavenly bodies will be shaken.” (Luke 21:25-26).

The final signs will come from heaven. The heavenly bodies will be shaken as the Lord’s Glory approaches the earth. As a result of this, the earthly elements, especially the seas, will roar and toss. All of this will be totally beyond human control, so that no one can fail to notice such changes. Until this time, the people of the world will enjoy and rely on what God set up from the beginning of creation, i.e. the sun, moon, stars, seas, seasons, and time. These events are so reliable that everyone takes them for granted, but as Jesus’ return approaches, all of these will be shaken from their set courses and be totally chaotic; no one would know or understand that they cannot control or manage these immense world changes. All people will faint from terror! 2 Peter 3:10 pictures His coming in this way:

“The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything done in it will be laid bare.” (2 Peter 3:10).

Peoples’ heart will melt away for they would be fully exposed to the Lord’s glory and they will not be able to withstand it. However, it will be different for believers:

“At that time they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. When these things begin to take place, stand up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near." (Luke 21:27-28).

But for us believers, it is the time of redemption, the ending of all our sufferings and the beginning of our eternal joy in God’s glory. Heavenly signs will surely cause terror to all of the people on earth. However, for believers, these would be a sign of hope and joy, proclaiming Jesus’ coming is drawing near!

This is a very brief or concise description of what was yet to come. Now that we know what things are coming before we meet Christ, what should we do?

3.       What should Jesus’ disciples do?

Watch out so that you are not deceived (Luke 21:8-9)

“He replied: "Watch out that you are not deceived. For many will come in my name, claiming, 'I am he,' and, 'The time is near.' Do not follow them. When you hear of wars and uprisings, do not be frightened. These things must happen first, but the end will not come right away." (Luke 21:8-9).

The first and perhaps most important warning Jesus gave to his disciples over the entire period between the time of his ministry and the end of time is this - to watch out for those coming in his name, i.e. false messiahs, or false saviors. Jesus’ disciples would be more vulnerable to this temptation, because they knew Jesus and would have been eagerly waiting for his coming. However, the false prophets would falsely read the times, which would be saturated with news of wars and uprisings. Immediately after the 9/11 attacks, church attendance swelled sizably. I guess that people wanted to know if 9/11 was a sign of something that was yet to come, and how they could be prepared, in case of any other unforeseen disasters. Wars and uprisings would not be signs of the end, so the disciples did not need to be frightened; instead, they must have a longer outlook, one that not only included wars and uprisings, but also other hardships of life! The more eagerly one wishes to escape from pains and hardships of life, the more easily he or she may be duped by these false messiahs. So it is vital to have a clear view of one’s life, particularly one’s attitude toward pains and other hardships in life, as we look forward to seeing Christ’s coming in his glory.

He or she must have an enduring character as they move toward the goal, the Lord’s coming. Whenever we talk about false messiahs, we tend to think of those who have already been labeled as cultic, such as Scientology and Jehovah’s Witnesses. Far more common than these threats, however, is a theology that promotes ‘an easy and comfortable life’ as the goal of the Christian faith. There are quite a number of people who, in an effort to find such a church that promises and provides them with a peace-and-rest gospel, jump from one to the other. Though Jesus offered an invitation to those who are heavy burdened in life, if an easy life is the goal of the church, then it will arrest the church’s maturity and that of its members at the entry level. Eventually, all believers must mature in order to see and hope for the Lord’s coming, in which witnessing and persecutions play an inevitable part. Some have said life involved with University Bible Fellowship is hard. In some sense, I agree, but actually, it is not the church that makes life hard. Hardships come from believing in the hope of Christ’s coming. In this private talk with his disciples, Jesus did not give them any words of relief at all; rather, he taught them to anticipate hardship and encouraged them to endure and persevere all hardships in order to participate in his glory.  

Bearing testimony to the world comes by faith (Luke 21:10-19)

But before all these began to happen, something would happen for the disciples.

"But before all this, they will seize you and persecute you. They will hand you over to synagogues and put you in prison, and you will be brought before kings and governors, and all on account of my name.” (Luke 21:12).

Because the disciples served Jesus as their Lord, all the authorities of this world would challenge them. They would seize, persecute, and put them in prison; the believers would be brought before various authorities such as governors and kings, because of Jesus’ name. This was indicative of their resistance against and rejection of Jesus’ Lordship as professed by his disciples. Why would this happen?

“And so you will bear testimony to me.” (Luke 21:13).

Bearing witness to the world was the life mission of Jesus’ disciples, since this was how God wanted to spread the good news to the world. That is, that the truth of salvation must be conveyed to the world, not just in words, but through actions as well. They were to defend the Gospel truth, the message of salvation, through their lives. This must happen before God’s wrath was coming soon, leading to the Lord’s coming. This is more clearly said in Matthew 24 -

“And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.” (Matthew 24:14).

How can one handle persecutions?

“But make up your mind not to worry beforehand how you will defend yourselves. For I will give you words and wisdom that none of your adversaries will be able to resist or contradict.” (Luke 21:14-15).

This is strong language, calling for them to make a decision in faith not to go by our own ideas, understanding, or decisions, but to depend totally on the Holy Spirit’s guidance. A decision to depend on God and His guidance is so vital in order for us to overcome fear and to be effective witnesses to the all worldly authorities. Though the disciples were not as educated as those authorities in terms of worldly knowledge and wisdom, yet when they depended on the Holy Spirit’s guidance, they would be able to defeat or thwart any ill-conceived wisdom, reasons, and logics. Therefore, they needed to make a firm decision not to rely on human wisdom and knowledge. Instead, they must rely on God during this time of utter vulnerability. Would anyone else come to help them in such crises of life?

“You will be betrayed even by parents, brothers and sisters, relatives and friends, and they will put some of you to death. Everyone will hate you because of me.” (Luke 21:16-17).

When one’s life is on the line, even their most beloved family members cannot overcome their fear of death; instead, they will choose to stand against the believers. Since there won’t be anyone to help, it is all the more vital to maintain a relationship with the Lord through trust and reliance. This was how Jesus stood firm on the cross; likewise, Stephen remained faithful when he was being stoned to death (Acts 7:55-56). Don’t rebuke or blame these family members or become bitter because of their betrayal! This is the ultimate test for believers! None of us shall fail!

“But not a hair of your head will perish. Stand firm, and you will win life.” (Luke 21:18-19).

In his power, Jesus gave them firm assurance that he could save their lives. Here, “win” has various meanings. The most common one is ‘to procure or to buy’ and such meanings imply the idea that suffering and full trust in the Lord is required in order to receive God’s grace and salvation. Simply, for the disciples, persecution and being a witness for Jesus, even to the point of death, were due parts of their lives. Here, the turning point to beating such challenges in life is to ‘make up’ one’s mind not to depend on our own wisdom and power, but to depend on Jesus and His Sprit.

Be certain of Jesus’ coming in his power and glory

“He told them this parable: "Look at the fig tree and all the trees. When they sprout leaves, you can see for yourselves and know that summer is near. Even so, when you see these things happening, you know that the kingdom of God is near.”” (Luke 21:29-31).

Jesus told this short parable to describe the certainty of his prophecy. I admit that I have never doubted that, tomorrow morning, the sun will rise from the east. Since the beginning of human history, it has risen from the east and set in the west, daily. Spring always yields to summer; it has never failed people’s expectations or faith. So no human being has ever doubted its stability and reliability. People think that these processes were mechanically set in motion to go on forever. As much as the change of seasons is reliable, so also will Jesus’ prophecy be fulfilled. Actually, it was not some natural force that set these planets in motion, but God set them in place by His word in the beginning. Since then, the sun, moon, and stars have been running their courses, mandating summer to follow after spring. The God who set the course of this earth by His word gave this prophecy through His Son, Jesus. So, Jesus’ word is as much reliable as the seasons changing. In the middle of March, here on the east coast, snow came with the cold. However, I do not doubt that spring is here and summer is coming soon. Summer is the time of flourishing trees and plants. We are to look at these signs with great expectation for a similar flourishing time in our lives as the Lord Jesus comes in his glory. We should  be reminded of this hope and vision as we experience summers every year.

"Truly I tell you, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened. Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.” (Luke 21:32-33).

Jesus’ prophecy on persecutions, wars, feminine, pestilence, and shaking of the heavenly bodies are true and will be fulfilled for the people of this generation!

There are various opinions about what ‘this generation’ means. Among the most commonly accepted and reasonable theories is that the generation mentioned is the one that would see the signs signifying the beginning of the end-time events. Once they saw the first signs of this series of events, then that generation would experience the entire series of events, extending to the Lord’s return. If this is true, then Jesus was speaking to his disciples of a prophecy that was totally irrelevant to them. I would like to connect this to what Jesus said about the time of the Gentiles. This is the generation that belongs to the time of the Gentiles, who will surely hear the Gospel message (*See note). Thus, this generation is the final generation before Jesus comes again in his glory. The people of this generation shall surely go through these troubles of life and cannot escape from them. There are various troubles that people must face, resulting in the taking away or not allowing of any peace or rest. These ‘signs’ are another form of what God had prescribed for the nation of Israel for their unbelief, as we noted in our study of Jerusalem’s destruction (Deuteronomy 28:15-68).  

What should the disciples do? Or what should we do?

Our understanding of the totality of our lives must include these things: wars, rumors of wars, famine, earthquake, pestilence, and the shaking of the heavenly bodies including the sun, moon, and stars. It is like we are living in exile among unbelieving people. While they are driven by fear, uncertainty, and anxiety, we must be prepared and stand tall to handle these events by faith, for only we have certainty for our lives. Jesus gives us this warning:

"Be careful, or your hearts will be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness and the anxieties of life, and that day will close on you suddenly like a trap. For it will come on all those who live on the face of the whole earth.” (Luke 20:34-35).

If we give just a little room to despair, it will weigh us down, along with the people who surround us, so that we will be trapped in sin as the Lord appears! I have had so many moments of being weighed down by despair. These are moments when I am exposed to all ungodly acts or behaviors. What should we do? I like to quote;

“The head of Ephraim is Samaria, and the head of Samaria is only Remaliah's son. If you do not stand firm in your faith, you will not stand at all." (Isaiah 7:9 NIV).

If you do not stand firm in your faith, you will not stand at all! It is an all–or-nothing principle. We must stand for Christ with a wholehearted and committed heart. Jesus is coming and we shall see him; for now, we must bear witness to the world! Pains and sorrows? They shall pass. For us, glorious days are waiting.

“Be always on the watch, and pray that you may be able to escape all that is about to happen, and that you may be able to stand before the Son of Man." (Luke 21:36).

It is interesting to say that we are to be always watching since Jesus gave us the signs of the end times. Isn’t it true that we can enjoy life as long as we do not see the signs that he mentioned? Don’t be fooled. Jesus says that we are to be always on the watch, for it is possible for any of us to see the Lord, even tomorrow!

May God bless you richly in the hope that we have in the Lord!

*This generation:

One thing we know is that, whenever Luke uses the word ‘generation’, particularly in regards to prophecies concerning judgment, it most often refers to unbelieving people with a particular characteristic, i.e. unbelief and rejection of Christ (Luke 7:31; 9:41; 11:29-32; 11:50-51; 16:8; 17:25). Such an understanding is also revealed in Luke 11:50-51. Here, Jesus said that ‘this generation’ will be responsible for the blood shed by all previous generations, starting with Abel and ending with Zechariah. In reviewing the context of this statement, it is obvious that Jesus was likely not referring to those who were right with him, but rather to those who had rejected him as their Savior. By seeing this generation as being responsible for the bloodshed of the previous generation, we can determine two things; first, Jesus was referring to two different generations, the one before his coming and the one that received his message. In doing so, he set himself up as the dividing point between those two generations. Second, when Jesus said that this generation was responsible, he did not mean just those who were listening to him right there; he meant the generation that rejects his message. In other words, the generation would be characterized by their rejection of Jesus. So it was not just specific to the time or the people, but a specific ‘kind of people’ that would reject his message, regardless of time or race. This becomes clearer when we review Jesus’ prophecy about God’s judgment. As for Israel, God’s chosen son, the temple’s destruction was His final judgment, holding them responsible for the sins of their ancestors, for He had been putting off His judgment until He gave His final message of salvation. The same principle would be applied to the whole human race. God will put off His judgment until the full message of salvation is delivered in Christ to the ends of the earth. Only after this would He bring His final judgment, i.e. the end time events that Jesus mentioned in this passage. So v32 can be understood by regarding the generation as inclusive of the time and people ranging from Jesus’ time to the end of the ages and would be characterized by their unbelief in Christ. All of the events that Jesus mentioned will surely occur in this generation; they shall not get by without experiencing the various forms of God’s judgment, as seen in the temple’s destruction.