The temple that elicited the admiration of his disciples was beautiful indeed. Herod the Great began to refurbish it in 20/19 BC, and the work was not completed until AD 63 or later. Jesus, however, predicts that the temple will be completely demolished (21:5–6). The Romans fulfilled this prophecy in AD 70. Some scholars have maintained that this saying was attributed to Jesus after the event occurred, but such a view reflects a bias against predictive prophecy.

Jesus now warns his disciples against eschatological enthusiasm and braces them for future persecution (21:7–19). The question of the disciples in verse 7 clearly refers to the date of the fall of Jerusalem, but it also seems to involve the date of the end of this age. The fall of Jerusalem becomes a type for the destruction that …