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The Abomination of
Desolation
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by Francis A. Beffert
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I would offer this observation on the "abomination
of desolation." While Luke’s account makes it appear to be "Jerusalem
surrounded by armies," I do not believe that to be a correct
understanding.
Jesus said that when they saw the "abomination of
desolation," they were to flee to the mountains [Mt. 24:15ff].
The purpose of surrounding a city was to prevent such a thing.
Therefore, Jesus had to be speaking of something that occurred prior
to Jerusalem becoming surrounded by the legions of Rome. The record of
Josephus supports this objection, as he recorded the fate of those who
attempted to flee the city after the Romans arrived. He stated that a
deserter from the city was found to have swallowed gold before escaping
from the city. As a result, all those who came out of the city were
disemboweled in search of such treasure. Josephus stated that 2,000 such
people were killed in a single night [Josephus; Wars; 5.13.4].
Another point of consideration is that the "holy
place" was the temple. The city being surrounded by the legions of
Rome would not cause the temple to be profaned.
The phrase "abomination of desolation" was a
Hebrew idiom that meant "the abomination that makes or causes
desolation." Therefore, we must look to see what abomination
transpired to make the "holy place" desolate.
Desolation: "The nature of the sanctuary
is to be used by those who come to worship God there. The
abomination does not destroy it; it makes it desolate by causing
pious worshippers to avoid it because of the abomination, and by
thus depriving it of any meaning or purpose" [Kittel’s
Theological Dictionary of the New Testament. Copyright © 1972-1989
By Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co.].
Note Daniel’s prophecy - forces would arise that would desecrate the
sanctuary fortress!
And forces from him will arise, desecrate the
sanctuary fortress, and do away with the regular sacrifice. And they
will set up the abomination of desolation [Daniel 11:31].
It has been established that there were three warring
factions of Jews under John of Giscala, Eleazor and Simon, and their
turning the temple area into a bloodbath. Note that Josephus records
that the desecration of the temple by the warring factions of the Jews
occurred while Titus was in Caesarea.
After a desert march from Egypt, Titus arrived
at Caesarea where he organized his forces. Meanwhile civil strife in
Jerusalem had reached a new climax when another faction was bred
within a faction, like some raving beast, preying on its own flesh.
Eleazar, who had caused the Zealots to withdraw into the sacred
precincts, could not stand submission to John (of Gischala), a
tyrant younger than himself. And so he seceded with a considerable
number of Zealots, seizing the inner court of the temple. They were
well supplied, but with fewer numbers than John’s, and they confined
themselves to their retreat, where they could easily repel his
attacks. Although he lost heavily, John in his rage, made continual
assaults on them, and the temple was defiled with the slaughter.
Then there was Simon, son of Giora, who was
master of the upper and large part of the lower city. He attacked
John with greater vigor, seeing that John was also assailed by
Eleazar from above. But John had the same advantage over Simon that
Eleazar had over John. From his superior height he easily repelled
attacks from below with hand weapons, reserving his machines for
hurling projectiles against the party above him.
The missiles shot by the catapults, stone
throwers, and ‘quick fires’ flew all over the temple, killing
priests and worshipers at the very altar itself. For despite war,
the sacrifices went on, and those who had journeyed from all over
the world to worship there sprinkled the altar with their own blood.
The three warring camps regularly rushed out and
burned each others’ food supplies. Thus the area around the temple
became a mass of ruins, and great stores of grain, which would have
supplied the besieged for years, were destroyed, and the city would
fall to self-imposed famine. Terrorized by the bloody contentions
of the three factions, many prayed that the Romans might come and
deliver them from the internal strife. Day after day the
factions fought, each party devising new ways to destroy the other
[Josephus, The Essential Writings; 1988; pg. 329-330].
But for John, when he could no longer plunder the
people, he betook himself to sacrilege, and melted down many of the
sacred utensils, which had been given to the temple; and also many
of the vessels which were necessary for such as ministered about
holy things … he emptied the vessels of that sacred wine and oil
which the priests kept to be poured on the burnt offerings, and
which lay in the inner court of the temple, and distributed among
the multitude, who, in their anointing themselves and drinking, used
(each of them) about an hin of them; and here I cannot but speak my
mind, and what the concern I am under dictates to me, and it is
this: I suppose that had the Romans made any longer delay in coming
against these villains, the city would either have been swallowed up
by the ground opening up upon them, or been overflowed by water, or
else been destroyed by such thunder as the country of Sodom perished
by, for it had brought forth a generation of men much more
atheistical than were those that had suffered such punishments; for
by their madness it was that all the people came to be destroyed
[Josephus; Wars; 5.13.6].
For there was a certain ancient oracle of those
men, that the city should be taken and the sanctuary burnt, by right
of war, when a sedition should invade the Jews and their own
hands should pollute the temple of God. Now while these Zealots
did not (quite) believe these things, they made themselves the
instruments of their accomplishment [Josephus; Wars; 4.6.2].
Clearly, the "abomination of desolation"
occurred at the hands of the Jews themselves, and took place before
the legions of Rome reached the city.
"... for I venture to affirm, that the
sedition destroyed the city, and the Romans destroyed the
sedition….so that we may justly ascribe our misfortunes on our
own people ..." [Josephus; Wars; 5.6.1].
[Permission is granted to reproduce this article,
provided it is copied in full, and the web site
www.eschatologyreview.com is included. Ron McRay.]
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