The Abomination of Desolation

Matthew 24:15-25

¹⁵“So when you see the abomination of desolation spoken of by the prophet Daniel, standing in the holy place (let the reader understand),

¹⁶then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains.

¹⁷Let the one who is on the housetop not go down to take what is in his house,

¹⁸and let the one who is in the field not turn back to take his cloak.

¹⁹And alas for women who are pregnant and for those who are nursing infants in those days!

²⁰Pray that your flight may not be in winter or on a Sabbath.

²¹For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be.

²²And if those days had not been cut short, no human being would be saved. But for the sake of the elect those days will be cut short.

²³Then if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or ‘There he is!’ do not believe it.

²⁴For false christs and false prophets will arise and perform great signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect.

²⁵See, I have told you beforehand.

So here’s the problem whenever you attempt a verse by verse study of any book of the Bible. You run into those passages that are sticky and complicated. Because they deal with the End Times, Matthew 24 and 25 are just such chapters. In no way will I be able to thoroughly cover this topic in these brief devotionals. That would require a detailed study of Daniel (which we have already done) and The Revelation. But since these are the verses at hand there will be at least an attempt at making sense of what we read.

As Jesus privately teaches His disciples about the End His words become dire. This is not going to be an easy time for anyone and even believers will need to keep their eyes open and their hearts directed toward God. The days will be filled with struggle and pain and apparently that struggle and pain will continue to intensify as the time for His return draws closer. Since He spoke these words His followers have been watching the signs and awaiting His return, believing it to be imminent. Just imagine what life would have been like had you been around to see the Crusades, the great plagues that have swept the world over the last 2,000 years, the famines that regularly take over different countries, or the natural disasters that have decimated various regions throughout the world. You would have been certain the End was near. And you would not have been wrong! The End is near.

With difficult circumstances comes vulnerability. When we struggle we are easy prey for those who come along and promise better times. We’ve seen it over and over throughout the world’s history. A man will rise who promises food in our pantry and peace on our borders. We want that – desperately. So we look to him to lead us and take us to the Promised Land. But it never really works. Humans will fail you every time. Their power is an illusion. They are counting on the fact that when you are hungry or scared you will grasp at anything.

Jesus warns His followers in no uncertain terms. This is going to happen. Don’t be surprised or caught off guard. When you struggle there is only one safe direction to look and that is to Jesus Himself. Anything else, anyone else will lead only to pain and disappointment. I’m not going to try and define the abomination of desolation because it isn’t necessary. There have been numerous designation made over the centuries. But in the end, it doesn’t matter. That abomination is anything that drags you away from the Living God. There is only One Savior and He is enough.