13:1-37. The last things
This difficult
discourse may be better understood if we keep two points in mind, (i) that
Jesus spoke as a prophet, his language reflecting that of the Old Testament
prophets, and (ii) that the vivid language of apocalyptic imagery is used,
presenting spiritual truth about the future in a vivid pictorial way. It will
also help us to identify five ideas in the discourse which, however, often run
into one another:
(i)
Prophecies of the destruction of
Jerusalem (13: 1-2, 14-20)
(ii)
Warnings of persecution to come (13 :9-13)
(iii)
Prophecies of the end of the present age
and the return of the Son of Man (13:7-8,24-27)
(iv)
The need to be spiritually alert (13
:21-23, 28-37) ,
(v) Prophecies of the
dangers of the last days of this age (13 :5-8, 21-22).
The chapter may be
divided into the following sections: 13: 1-4 The Temple and its destruction
5-13 Distress and
persecution ahead
14-23 Horror in Judaea;
the need to be on guard against deception 24-27 Cosmic catastrophe and the
coming of the Son of Man
28-37 The necessity of
spiritual alertness.
How did Mark's original
readers understand this discourse? We may identify the following points which
would be significant for them:
(i) That Jesus had
prophesied hostility and persecution for his followers, prepared the Church for
what actually happened.
(ii) The prophecies of
the final manifestation and victory of the Kingdom of God, however violent and
terrifying the last days of the present age were, strengthened the Christians
to stand firm in• hostile and adverse circumstances.
(iii) The warnings
against false prophets and leaders were important as the first century Church
sought to preserve the traditions which were being handed on from one
generation to another.
In the discourse two
stages in the victory of the Kingdom of God cant be discerned, the second and
final stage not being until the ultimate destruction of evil and the coming of
God's Judgement at the end of the present age. In the letters of Paul, Peter
and James, their understanding of the times in which they lived as being the
first days of the Kingdom and the last of the present age is the same as that
shown in this discourse of Mark's gospel. Comparison may be made with passages
such as 1 Corinthians 3:13-15, 4:5, 6:9, 15:24-28 and 51-55, James 5:7-9, 1
Peter 1 :6-7,13,4:7,12-17,5 :8-11.
What does this
discourse mean for Christians today? It is still clear that we live in a world
in which there are powerful manifestations of evil because the final victory of
the Kingdom has not yet come. Christians must still be prepared to face
hostility from the opponents of the Kingdom and must not be discouraged by
their attacks. The Christian conviction is that nothing can separate us from
the love of God (Romans 8:35-39) whose total destruction of evil is promised to
mankind. The Christian belief is that time is carrying all of us to a destination.
The need for spiritual alertness is just as great now as it was when Mark wrote
to his first century readers. Jesus still says to the Church today, 'Heaven and
earth will pass away but my words will never pass away'.
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