Matthew 24:15: whoso readeth and understandeth, let him explaineth

[Koxinga]

I’m sure intensive googling might find some explanation for this, but so far I’ve not found anything that doesn’t refer to the “Obama-nation.”

To wit, Matthew 24:15, “When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand)”

When I was a kid it stressed me out slightly that I didn’t understand.

So what was the “abomination of desolation?”

[fuzzypickles]

@Koxinga

So what was the “abomination of desolation?”

A really wicked band name?

[Ferret_Herder]

Looking at different Bible versions online via the Bible Gateway didn’t help much, other than to say that the Daniel references are Daniel 9:27, 11:31, and 12:11. One reference called it a “sacriligeous object” instead, and the Greek literal translation does appear to be “abomination of desolation”.

[Crotalus]

I have read bible commentary that said it refers to an idol, which fits with what Ferret Herder wrote.

[Nametag]

From Wikipedia (yeah, I know):

The dating and authorship of Daniel has become a matter of debate between mainstream scholars and traditionalists. The traditionalist view holds that the work was written by a prophet named Daniel who lived during the sixth century BC whereas most Biblical scholars maintain that the book was written or redacted in the mid-second century BC and that most of the predictions of the book refer to events that had already occurred.

The second second makes very likely the interpretation that I’ve read, that this refers to the acts of Antiochus Epiphanes, Seleucid king of Syria, who as part of his “Hellenization” program occupied Jerusalem in 168 BC. He entered the Holy of Holies, desecrated the sanctuary, dedicated the Temple itself to Zeus and erected a statue of Zeus therein, and plundered the temple treasures. The “abomination of desolation” might refer to any of these acts, but is most likely the erection of an idol in the temple, or the sacrifice of unclean flesh on the altar of burnt offerings.

[si_blakely]

The reference to Daniel establishes a context - contemporary jewish ears would make the link between the desecration of the temple in 168BC and the prophetic utterance that Jesus is making. Along with other prophecies that Jesus made regarding Jerusalem, his prophesies are often interpreted as being foretelling the destruction of the temple in 70AD by the Romans - the “abomination of desolation” being Roman troops and standards in the temple as it was destroyed and the stones levered apart to find the gold that had melted off the roof.

In terms of some end-times theology, these are also events yet to come (as they also foreshadow the imminent return of Jesus), with a rebuilt temple in Jerusalem being corrupted to the worship of the antichrist (the “abomination of desolation”), and disaster falling again on Jerusalem and Judea.

Si

[Skammer]

I came in to say what has already been indicated – the quote in Matthew is a reference to Daniel.

In Daniel, it is part of a prophecy that is generally understood to refer to the desecration of the Temple by Antiochus Epiphanes. ISTR that in addition to erecting an idol, he sacrifices a pig on the holy altar of the temple.

Those who date Daniel to the 6th c BCE understand this to be a prophetic vision; those who date this part of Daniel to the 2nd c BCE consider this a reflection of the desecration that had already taken place.