Before partaking of the last Passover, the Lord prepared His disciples for what was to come after His death and resurrection. Starting in Mark 13, He prophesied concerning the destruction of the temple and of Jerusalem (at the hands of Titus and the Roman army in 70 A.D.). Then He prophesied concerning the rising up of many claiming to be the Messiah, to deceive and lead many astray. Wars would follow, both civil wars and international wars; these will continue until the consummation of this age, at the end of the great tribulation. The disciples would be persecuted, some to death.
Having given His disciples many prophecies concerning the end times, He then gave them a charge:
But you, beware.... Beware, be alert.... Watch therefore.... Watch!
(Mark 13:23, 33, 35, 37)
He also gave them the parable of the fig tree. In Mark 11:13-14, Jesus had cursed the fig tree, signifying the nation of Israel, for its lack of fruit for Him, and the tree withered and died (Mark 11:20-21). Now He prophesied concerning life returning to the barren fig tree; its branch becoming tender, and then putting forth leaves, being the sign that summer is near. From the time of the destruction of Jerusalem, the nation of Israel seemed dead and barren. But the reformation of the nation of Israel in the years after the Second World War, and then the later restoration of Jerusalem to Israel after the 6 Days War in 1967, show that life is returning to the withered tree, and that leaves are beginning to come forth.
Watch therefore, for you do not know when the Master of the house comes, whether in the evening or at midnight or at cockcrowing or in the morning; lest He come suddenly and find you sleeping. And what I say to you, I say to all: Watch!
(Mark 13:35-37)
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