And he looked up and saw the rich people who were putting their gifts into the offering box.
And he saw a certain poor widow putting two leptons into it.
And he said, “Truly I say to you, this poor widow put in more than any of them,
because all of these people put in gifts out of their abundance, but she, out of her poverty, put in all that she had to live on.”
Jesus Foretells Destruction of the Temple
And as some spoke of the Temple, how it was adorned with beautiful stones and decorative gifts, he said,
“As for these things that you see, the days will come in which there will not be left one stone on top of another that will not be thrown down.”
And they asked him, saying, “Teacher, so when will these things be? And what will be the sign when these things are about to come to pass?”
And he said, “Watch out, so that you are not led astray, because many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am he,’ and, ‘The time has drawn near.’ Do not follow after them.
And whenever you hear about wars and insurrections, do not be terrified, because these things must come to pass first; but the end is not immediately.”
Jesus Foretells Wars and Persecution
Then he said to them, “Group will rise against group, and kingdom against kingdom,
and there will be great earthquakes, and in various places famines and plagues, and there will be terrifying events and great signs from heaven.
“But before all these things, they will lay their hands on you and will persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues and prisons, bringing you before kings and governors because of my name.
It will turn out as an opportunity for you to provide a testimony.
Therefore, settle it in your hearts not to meditate beforehand how to answer,
because I will give you a mouth and wisdom that all your opponents will not be able to withstand or to deny.
But you will even be handed over by your parents, and brothers, and relatives, and friends, and some of you they will cause to be put to death.
And you will be hated by everyone for my name’s sake,
and yet a hair of your head will never ever perish.
By your endurance you will gain your lives.
Jesus Foretells Destruction of Jerusalem
“But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then know that her desolation has drawn near.
Then those who are in Judea must flee to the mountains, and those who are in the midst of her must leave, and do not let those who are in the country enter her,
because those are days of vengeance, to fulfill all that is written.
How terrible it will be for those who are pregnant and for those who are nursing mothers in those days! For there will be great distress upon the land, and wrath against this people.
And they will fall by the mouth of the sword, and will be led captive into all the nations, and Jerusalem will be trampled down by the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.
The Coming of the Son of Man
“And there will be signs in the sun and moon and stars, and on the earth distress among nations, which will be perplexed and anxious because of the roaring of the sea and the waves,
people will be fainting from fear and from the expectation of the things that are coming on the inhabited world, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken.
“And then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory.
But when these things begin to come to pass, look up, and lift up your heads, because your redemption draws near.”
The Lesson of the Fig Tree
And he spoke a parable to them: “Look at the fig tree, and all the trees.
As soon as they sprout leaves, you see it and know for yourselves that summer is already near.
Likewise, you also, when you see these things coming to pass, know that the Kingdom of God is near.
Truly I say to you, this generation will absolutely not pass away until all these things have happened.
Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will absolutely not pass away.
Watch Yourselves
“But watch yourselves, lest your hearts be weighed down with drunken hangovers, and drunkenness, and the cares of this life, and that day come on you suddenly like a snare,
for it will come on all those who live on the face of all the earth.
But stay alert at all times, imploring God that you will have the strength to escape all these things that are about to come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man.”
And every day he was teaching in the Temple, and every night he went out, and spent the night on the mount that is called “Olives.”
And all the people came to him early in the morning in the Temple, to hear him.