Deuteronomy 28:50-68

28:50 a nation of stern appearance that will have no regard for the elderly or pity for the young. 28:51 They ¹  will devour the offspring of your livestock and the produce of your soil until you are destroyed. They will not leave you with any grain, new wine, olive oil, calves of your herds, ²  or lambs of your flocks ³  until they have destroyed you. 28:52 They will besiege all of your villages ⁴  until all of your high and fortified walls collapse – those in which you put your confidence throughout the land. They will besiege all your villages throughout the land the Lord your God has given you. 28:53 You will then eat your own offspring, ⁵  the flesh of the sons and daughters the Lord your God has given you, because of the severity of the siege ⁶  by which your enemies will constrict you. 28:54 The man among you who is by nature tender and sensitive will turn against his brother, his beloved wife, and his remaining children. 28:55 He will withhold from all of them his children’s flesh that he is eating (since there is nothing else left), because of the severity of the siege by which your enemy will constrict ⁷  you in your villages. 28:56 Likewise, the most ⁸  tender and delicate of your women, who would never think of putting even the sole of her foot on the ground because of her daintiness, ⁹  will turn against her beloved husband, her sons and daughters, 28:57 and will secretly eat her afterbirth ¹⁰  and her newborn children ¹¹  (since she has nothing else), ¹²  because of the severity of the siege by which your enemy will constrict you in your villages.

The Curse of Covenant Termination

28:58 “If you refuse to obey ¹³  all the words of this law, the things written in this scroll, and refuse to fear this glorious and awesome name, the Lord your God, 28:59 then the Lord will increase your punishments and those of your descendants – great and long-lasting afflictions and severe, enduring illnesses. 28:60 He will infect you with all the diseases of Egypt ¹⁴  that you dreaded, and they will persistently afflict you. ¹⁵  28:61 Moreover, the Lord will bring upon you every kind of sickness and plague not mentioned in this scroll of commandments, ¹⁶  until you have perished. 28:62 There will be very few of you left, though at one time you were as numerous as the stars in the sky, ¹⁷  because you will have disobeyed ¹⁸  the Lord your God. 28:63 This is what will happen: Just as the Lord delighted to do good for you and make you numerous, he ¹⁹  will take delight in destroying and decimating you. You will be uprooted from the land you are about to possess. 28:64 The Lord will scatter you among all nations, from one end of the earth to the other. There you will worship other gods that neither you nor your ancestors have known, gods of wood and stone. 28:65 Among those nations you will have no rest nor will there be a place of peaceful rest for the soles of your feet, for there the Lord will give you an anxious heart, failing eyesight, and a spirit of despair. 28:66 Your life will hang in doubt before you; you will be terrified by night and day and will have no certainty of surviving from one day to the next. ²⁰  28:67 In the morning you will say, ‘If only it were evening!’ And in the evening you will say, ‘I wish it were morning!’ because of the things you will fear and the things you will see. 28:68 Then the Lord will make you return to Egypt by ship, over a route I said to you that you would never see again. There you will sell yourselves to your enemies as male and female slaves, but no one will buy you.”

Daniel 9:26-27

9:26 Now after the sixty-two weeks,

an anointed one will be cut off and have nothing. ²¹ 

As for the city and the sanctuary,

the people of the coming prince will destroy ²²  them.

But his end will come speedily ²³  like a flood. ²⁴ 

Until the end of the war that has been decreed

there will be destruction.

9:27 He will confirm a covenant with many for one week. ²⁵ 

But in the middle of that week

he will bring sacrifices and offerings to a halt.

On the wing ²⁶  of abominations will come ²⁷  one who destroys,

until the decreed end is poured out on the one who destroys.”

Zechariah 13:7-8

13:7 “Awake, sword, against my shepherd,

against the man who is my associate,”

says the Lord who rules over all.

Strike the shepherd that the flock may be scattered; ²⁸ 

I will turn my hand against the insignificant ones.

13:8 It will happen in all the land, says the Lord,

that two-thirds of the people ²⁹  in it will be cut off and die,

but one-third will be left in it. ³⁰ 

Zechariah 14:1-2

The Sovereignty of the Lord

14:1 A day of the Lord ³¹  is about to come when your possessions ³²  will be divided as plunder in your midst. 14:2 For I will gather all the nations against Jerusalem ³³  to wage war; the city will be taken, its houses plundered, and the women raped. Then half of the city will go into exile, but the remainder of the people will not be taken away. ³⁴ 

Matthew 21:40-42

21:40 Now when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those tenants?” 21:41 They said to him, “He will utterly destroy those evil men! Then he will lease the vineyard to other tenants who will give him his portion at the harvest.”

21:42 Jesus said to them, “Have you never read in the scriptures:

‘The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone. ³⁵ 

This is from the Lord, and it is marvelous in our eyes’? ³⁶ 

Matthew 22:7

22:7 The ³⁷  king was furious! He sent his soldiers, and they put those murderers to death ³⁸  and set their city ³⁹  on fire.

Matthew 23:35-38

23:35 so that on you will come all the righteous blood shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah son of Barachiah, ⁴⁰  whom you murdered between the temple and the altar. 23:36 I tell you the truth, ⁴¹  this generation will be held responsible for all these things! ⁴² 

Judgment on Israel

23:37 “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, ⁴³  you who kill the prophets and stone those who are sent to you! ⁴⁴  How often I have longed ⁴⁵  to gather your children together as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but ⁴⁶  you would have none of it! ⁴⁷  23:38 Look, your house is left to you desolate!

Matthew 27:25

27:25 In ⁴⁸  reply all the people said, “Let his blood be on us and on our children!”

Luke 19:41-44

Jesus Weeps for Jerusalem under Judgment

19:41 Now ⁴⁹  when Jesus ⁵⁰  approached ⁵¹  and saw the city, he wept over it, 19:42 saying, “If you had only known on this day, ⁵²  even you, the things that make for peace! ⁵³  But now they are hidden ⁵⁴  from your eyes. 19:43 For the days will come upon you when your enemies will build ⁵⁵  an embankment ⁵⁶  against you and surround you and close in on you from every side. 19:44 They will demolish you ⁵⁷  – you and your children within your walls ⁵⁸  – and they will not leave within you one stone ⁵⁹  on top of another, ⁶⁰  because you did not recognize the time of your visitation from God.” ⁶¹ 

Luke 21:20-24

The Desolation of Jerusalem

21:20 “But when you see Jerusalem ⁶²  surrounded ⁶³  by armies, then know that its ⁶⁴  desolation ⁶⁵  has come near. 21:21 Then those who are in Judea must flee ⁶⁶  to the mountains. Those ⁶⁷  who are inside the city must depart. Those ⁶⁸  who are out in the country must not enter it, 21:22 because these are days of vengeance, ⁶⁹  to fulfill ⁷⁰  all that is written. 21:23 Woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing their babies in those days! For there will be great distress ⁷¹  on the earth and wrath against this people. 21:24 They ⁷²  will fall by the edge ⁷³  of the sword and be led away as captives ⁷⁴  among all nations. Jerusalem ⁷⁵  will be trampled down by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled. ⁷⁶ 

Luke 23:28-31

23:28 But Jesus turned to them and said, “Daughters of Jerusalem, ⁷⁷  do not weep for me, but weep for yourselves ⁷⁸  and for your children. 23:29 For this is certain: ⁷⁹  The days are coming when they will say, ‘Blessed are the barren, the wombs that never bore children, and the breasts that never nursed!’ ⁸⁰  23:30 Then they will begin to say to the mountains, ⁸¹  ‘Fall on us!’ and to the hills, ‘Cover us!’ ⁸²  23:31 For if such things are done ⁸³  when the wood is green, what will happen when it is dry?” ⁸⁴ 

[28:51]  ¹ tn Heb “it” (so NRSV), a collective singular referring to the invading nation (several times in this verse and v. 52).

[28:51]  ² tn Heb “increase of herds.”

[28:51]  ³ tn Heb “growth of flocks.”

[28:52]  ⁴ tn Heb “gates,” also in vv. 55, 57.

[28:53]  ⁵ tn Heb “the fruit of your womb” (so NAB, NRSV); NASB “the offspring of your own body.”

[28:53]  ⁶ tn Heb “siege and stress.”

[28:55]  ⁷ tn Heb “besiege,” redundant with the noun “siege.”

[28:56]  ⁸ tc The LXX adds σφόδρα (sfodra, “very”) to bring the description into line with v. 54.

[28:56]  ⁹ tn Heb “delicateness and tenderness.”

[28:57]  ¹⁰ tn Heb includes “that which comes out from between her feet.”

[28:57]  ¹¹ tn Heb “her sons that she will bear.”

[28:57]  ¹² tn Heb includes “in her need for everything.”

[28:58]  ¹³ tn Heb “If you are not careful to do.”

[28:60]  ¹⁴ sn These are the plagues the Lord inflicted on the Egyptians prior to the exodus which, though they did not fall upon the Israelites, must have caused great terror (cf. Exod 15:26).

[28:60]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “will cling to you” (so NIV); NLT “will claim you.”

[28:61]  ¹⁶ tn The Hebrew term תּוֹרָה (torah) can refer either (1) to the whole Pentateuch or, more likely, (2) to the book of Deuteronomy or even (3) only to this curse section of the covenant text. “Scroll” better reflects the actual document, since “book” conveys the notion of a bound book with pages to the modern English reader. Cf. KJV, NASB, NRSV “the book of this law”; NIV, NLT “this Book of the Law”; TEV “this book of God’s laws and teachings.”

[28:62]  ¹⁷ tn Or “heavens.” The Hebrew term שָׁמַיִם (shamayim) may be translated “heaven(s)” or “sky” depending on the context.

[28:62]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “have not listened to the voice of.”

[28:63]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “the Lord.” See note on “he” in 28:8.

[28:66]  ²⁰ tn Heb “you will not be confident in your life.” The phrase “from one day to the next” is implied by the following verse.

[9:26]  ²¹ sn The expression have nothing is difficult. Presumably it refers to an absence of support or assistance for the anointed one at the time of his “cutting off.” The KJV rendering “but not for himself,” apparently suggesting a vicarious death, cannot be defended.

[9:26]  ²² tc Some witnesses (e.g., the Syriac) understand a passive verb and the preposition עִם (’im, “with) rather than the noun עַם (’am, “people”), thus reading “the city and the sanctuary will be destroyed with the coming prince.”

[9:26]  ²³ tn The words “will come speedily” are not in the Hebrew text but have been added in the translation for clarity.

[9:26]  ²⁴ sn Flood here is a metaphor for sudden destruction.

[9:27]  ²⁵ tn Heb “one seven” (also later in this line).

[9:27]  ²⁶ tn The referent of the Hebrew word כְּנַף (kÿnaf, “wing”) is unclear here. The LXX and Theodotion have “the temple.” Some English versions (e.g., NAB, NIV) take this to mean “a wing of the temple,” but this is not clear.

[9:27]  ²⁷ tn The Hebrew text does not have this verb, but it has been supplied in the translation for clarity.

[13:7]  ²⁸ sn Despite the NT use of this text to speak of the scattering of the disciples following Jesus’ crucifixion (Matt 26:31; Mark 14:27), the immediate context of Zechariah suggests that unfaithful shepherds (kings) will be punished by the Lord precisely so their flocks (disobedient Israel) can be scattered (cf. Zech 11:6, 8, 9, 16). It is likely that Jesus drew on this passage merely to make the point that whenever shepherds are incapacitated, sheep will scatter. Thus he was not identifying himself with the shepherd in this text (the shepherd in the Zechariah text is a character who is portrayed negatively).

[13:8]  ²⁹ tn The words “of the people” are supplied in the translation for clarity (cf. NCV, TEV, NLT).

[13:8]  ³⁰ sn The fractions mentioned here call to mind the affliction of God’s people described by Ezekiel, though Ezekiel referred to his own times whereas Zechariah is looking forward to a future eschatological age. Ezekiel spoke of cutting his hair at God’s command (Ezek 5:1-4) and then of burning a third of it, striking a third with a sword, and scattering the rest. From this last third a few hairs would survive to become the nucleus of a new Israel. It is this “third” Zechariah speaks of (v. 9), the remnant who will be purified and reclaimed as God’s covenant people.

[14:1]  ³¹ sn The eschatological day of the Lord described here (and through v. 8) is considered by many interpreters to refer to the period known as the great tribulation, a seven year time of great suffering by God’s (Jewish) people culminating in the establishing of the millennial reign of the Lord (vv. 9-21). For other OT and NT references to this aspect of the day of the Lord see Amos 9:8-15; Joel 1:15–2:11; Isa 1:24-31; 2:2-4; 4:2-6; 26:16–27:6; 33:13-24; 59:1–60:22; 65:13-25; Jer 30:7-11; 32:36-44; Ezek 20:33-44; Dan 11:40; 12:1; Matt 24:21, 29; 25:31-46; Rev 19:11-16.

[14:1]  ³² tn Heb “your plunder.” Cf. NCV “the wealth you have taken.”

[14:2]  ³³ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[14:2]  ³⁴ tn Heb “not be cut off from the city” (so NRSV); NAB “not be removed.”

[21:42]  ³⁵ tn Or “capstone,” “keystone.” Although these meanings are lexically possible, the imagery in Eph 2:20-22 and 1 Cor 3:11 indicates that the term κεφαλὴ γωνίας (kefalh gwnia") refers to a cornerstone, not a capstone.

[21:42]  ³⁶ sn A quotation from Ps 118:22-23.

[22:7]  ³⁷ tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[22:7]  ³⁸ tn Grk “he sent his soldiers, destroyed those murderers.” The verb ἀπώλεσεν (apwlesen) is causative, indicating that the king was the one behind the execution of the murderers. In English the causative idea is not expressed naturally here; either a purpose clause (“he sent his soldiers to put those murderers to death”) or a relative clause (“he sent his soldier who put those murderers to death”) is preferred.

[22:7]  ³⁹ tn The Greek text reads here πόλις (polis), which could be translated “town” or “city.” The prophetic reference is to the city of Jerusalem, so “city” is more appropriate here.

[23:35]  ⁴⁰ sn Spelling of this name (Βαραχίου, Baraciou) varies among the English versions: “Barachiah” (RSV, NRSV); “Berechiah” (NASB); “Berachiah” (NIV).

[23:36]  ⁴¹ tn Grk “Truly (ἀμήν, amhn), I say to you.”

[23:36]  ⁴² tn Grk “all these things will come on this generation.”

[23:37]  ⁴³ sn The double use of the city’s name betrays intense emotion.

[23:37]  ⁴⁴ tn Although the opening address (“Jerusalem, Jerusalem”) is direct (second person), the remainder of this sentence in the Greek text is third person (“who kills the prophets and stones those sent to her”). The following sentences then revert to second person (“your… you”), so to keep all this consistent in English, the third person pronouns in the present verse were translated as second person (“you who kill… sent to you”).

[23:37]  ⁴⁵ sn How often I have longed to gather your children. Jesus, like a lamenting prophet, speaks for God here, who longed to care tenderly for Israel and protect her.

[23:37]  ⁴⁶ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” to indicate the contrast present in this context.

[23:37]  ⁴⁷ tn Grk “you were not willing.”

[27:25]  ⁴⁸ tn Grk “answering, all the people said.” This construction is somewhat redundant in English and has been simplified in the translation.

[19:41]  ⁴⁹ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “now” to indicate the transition to a new topic.

[19:41]  ⁵⁰ tn Grk “he.”

[19:41]  ⁵¹ sn When Jesus approached and saw the city. This is the last travel note in Luke’s account (the so-called Jerusalem journey), as Jesus approached and saw the city before entering it.

[19:42]  ⁵² sn On this day. They had missed the time of Messiah’s coming; see v. 44.

[19:42]  ⁵³ tn Grk “the things toward peace.” This expression seems to mean “the things that would ‘lead to,’ ‘bring about,’ or ‘make for’ peace.”

[19:42]  ⁵⁴ sn But now they are hidden from your eyes. This becomes an oracle of doom in the classic OT sense; see Luke 13:31-35; 11:49-51; Jer 9:2; 13:7; 14:7. They are now blind and under judgment (Jer 15:5; Ps 122:6).

[19:43]  ⁵⁵ sn Jesus now predicted the events that would be fulfilled in the fall of Jerusalem in a.d. 70. The details of the siege have led some to see Luke writing this after Jerusalem’s fall, but the language of the verse is like God’s exilic judgment for covenant unfaithfulness (Hab 2:8; Jer 6:6, 14; 8:13-22; 9:1; Ezek 4:2; 26:8; Isa 29:1-4). Specific details are lacking and the procedures described (build an embankment against you) were standard Roman military tactics.

[19:43]  ⁵⁶ sn An embankment refers to either wooden barricades or earthworks, or a combination of the two.

[19:44]  ⁵⁷ tn Grk “They will raze you to the ground.”

[19:44]  ⁵⁸ tn Grk “your children within you.” The phrase “[your] walls” has been supplied in the translation to clarify that the city of Jerusalem, metaphorically pictured as an individual, is spoken of here.

[19:44]  ⁵⁹ sn (Not) one stone on top of another is an idiom for total destruction.

[19:44]  ⁶⁰ tn Grk “leave stone on stone.”

[19:44]  ⁶¹ tn Grk “the time of your visitation.” To clarify what this refers to, the words “from God” are supplied at the end of the verse, although they do not occur in the Greek text.

[21:20]  ⁶² map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[21:20]  ⁶³ sn See Luke 19:41-44. This passage refers to the events associated with the fall of Jerusalem, when the city is surrounded by armies.

[21:20]  ⁶⁴ tn Grk “her,” referring to the city of Jerusalem (the name “Jerusalem” in Greek is a feminine noun).

[21:20]  ⁶⁵ sn The phrase its desolation is a reference to the fall of the city, which is the only antecedent present in Luke’s account. The parallels to this in Matt 24:15 and Mark 13:14 refer to the temple’s desolation, though Matthew’s allusion is clearer. They focus on the parallel events of the end, not on the short term realization in a.d. 70. The entire passage has a prophetic “two events in one” typology, where the near term destruction (a.d. 70) is like the end. So the evangelists could choose to focus on the near time realization (Luke) or on its long term fulfillment, which mirrors it (Matthew, Mark).

[21:21]  ⁶⁶ sn Fleeing to the mountains is a key OT image: Gen 19:17; Judg 6:2; Isa 15:5; Jer 16:16; Zech 14:5.

[21:21]  ⁶⁷ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[21:21]  ⁶⁸ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[21:22]  ⁶⁹ tn Or “of punishment.” This is a time of judgment.

[21:22]  ⁷⁰ tn The passive construction with the infinitive πλησθῆναι (plhsqhnai) has been translated as an active construction for simplicity, in keeping with contemporary English style.

[21:23]  ⁷¹ sn Great distress means that this is a period of great judgment.

[21:24]  ⁷² tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[21:24]  ⁷³ tn Grk “by the mouth of the sword” (an idiom for the edge of a sword).

[21:24]  ⁷⁴ sn Here is the predicted judgment against the nation until the time of Gentile rule has passed: Its people will be led away as captives.

[21:24]  ⁷⁵ tn Grk “And Jerusalem.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[21:24]  ⁷⁶ sn Until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled implies a time when Israel again has a central role in God’s plan.

[23:28]  ⁷⁷ sn The title Daughters of Jerusalem portrays these women mourning as representatives of the nation.

[23:28]  ⁷⁸ sn Do not weep for me, but weep for yourselves. Judgment now comes on the nation (see Luke 19:41-44) for this judgment of Jesus. Ironically, they mourn the wrong person – they should be mourning for themselves.

[23:29]  ⁷⁹ tn Grk “For behold.”

[23:29]  ⁸⁰ tn Grk “Blessed are the barren, and the wombs that have not borne, and the breasts that have not nursed!”

[23:30]  ⁸¹ sn The figure of crying out to the mountains ‘Fall on us!’ (appealing to creation itself to hide them from God’s wrath), means that a time will come when people will feel they are better off dead (Hos 10:8).

[23:30]  ⁸² sn An allusion to Hos 10:8 (cf. Rev 6:16).

[23:31]  ⁸³ tn Grk “if they do such things.” The plural subject here is indefinite, so the active voice has been translated as a passive (see ExSyn 402).

[23:31]  ⁸⁴ sn The figure of the green wood and the dry has been variously understood. Most likely the picture compares the judgment on Jesus as the green (living) wood to the worse judgment that will surely come for the dry (dead) wood of the nation.