Mark 13:1-4

The Destruction of the Temple

13:1 Now ¹  as Jesus ²  was going out of the temple courts, one of his disciples said to him, “Teacher, look at these tremendous stones and buildings!” ³  13:2 Jesus said to him, “Do you see these great buildings? Not one stone will be left on another. ⁴  All will be torn down!” ⁵ 

Signs of the End of the Age

13:3 So ⁶  while he was sitting on the Mount of Olives opposite the temple, Peter, James, John, ⁷  and Andrew asked him privately, 13:4 “Tell us, when will these things ⁸  happen? And what will be the sign that all these things are about to take place?”

[13:1]  ¹ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “now” to indicate the transition to a new topic.

[13:1]  ² tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[13:1]  ³ sn The Jerusalem temple was widely admired around the world. See Josephus, Ant. 15.11 [15.380-425]; J. W. 5.5 [5.184-227] and Tacitus, History 5.8, who called it “immensely opulent.” Josephus compared it to a beautiful snowcapped mountain.

[13:2]  ⁴ sn With the statement not one stone will be left on another Jesus predicted the total destruction of the temple, something that did occur in a.d. 70.

[13:2]  ⁵ tn Grk “not one stone will be left here on another which will not be thrown down.”

[13:3]  ⁶ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the implied result of previous action(s) in the narrative.

[13:3]  ⁷ tn Grk “and James and John,” but καί (kai) has not been translated since English normally uses a coordinating conjunction only between the last two elements in a series of three or more.

[13:4]  ⁸ sn Both references to these things are plural, so more than the temple’s destruction is in view. The question may presuppose that such a catastrophe signals the end.