page_title: Abomination of desolation
section_title: New Testament
hierarchical_section_title: Abomination of desolation / New Testament
caption_attribution_description: Deutsch: Rom, Titusbogen, TriumphzugEnglish: Rome, Arch of Titus, triumphal procession
context_page_description: "Abomination of desolation" is a phrase from the Book of Daniel describing the pagan sacrifices with which the 2nd century BCE Greek king Antiochus IV replaced the twice-daily offering in the Jewish temple, or alternatively the altar on which such offerings were made. In the 1st century CE it was taken up by the authors of the gospels in the context of the Roman destruction of Jerusalem and the temple in the year 70, with Mark giving Jesus a speech concerning the Second Coming, Matthew 24:15-16 adding a reference to Daniel, and Luke Luke 21:20-21 giving a description of the Roman armies; in all three it is likely that the authors had in mind a future eschatological event, and perhaps the activities of some anti-Christ.
context_section_description: In 63 BCE the Romans captured Jerusalem and Judea became an outpost of the Roman Empire, but in 66 CE the Jews rose in revolt against the Romans as their ancestors had once done against Antiochus. The resulting First Jewish–Roman War ended in 70 CE when the legions of the Roman general Titus surrounded and eventually captured Jerusalem; the city and the temple were razed to the ground, and the only habitation on the site until the first third of the next century was a Roman military camp. It was against this background that the gospels were written, Mark around 70 AD and Matthew and Luke around 80-85.  It is almost certain that none of the authors were eyewitnesses to the life of Jesus, and Mark was the source used by the authors of Matthew and Luke for their "abomination of desolation" passages. 
  Chapter 13 of Mark's gospel is a speech of Jesus concerning the return of the Son of Man and the advent of the Kingdom of God, which will be signaled by the appearance of the "abomination of desolation." It begins with Jesus in the temple informing his disciples that "not one stone here will be left on another, all will be thrown down;" the disciples ask when this will happen, and in Mark 13:14 Jesus tells them: "[W]hen you see the abomination of desolation standing where he ought not to be (let the reader understand), then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains..." Mark's terminology is drawn from Daniel, but he places the fulfilment of the prophesy in his own day, underlining this in Mark 13:30 by stating that "this generation will not pass away before all these things take place." While Daniel's "abomination" was probably a pagan altar or sacrifice, the grammar in Mark uses a masculine participle for "standing", indicating a concrete historical person: several candidates have been suggested, but the most likely is Titus. 
  Matthew 24:15-16 follows Mark 13:14 closely: "So when you see the abomination of desolation spoken of by the prophet Daniel, standing in the holy place (let the reader understand), then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains", but unlike Mark he uses a neutral participle instead of a masculine one, and explicitly identifies Daniel as his prophetic source. Luke 21:20-21 drops the "abomination" entirely: "But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then know that its desolation has come near. Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains, and let those who are inside the city depart, and let not those who are out in the country enter it." In all three it is likely that the authors had in mind a future eschatological (i.e., end-time) event, and perhaps the activities of some anti-Christ.
caption: Arch of Titus in Rome, showing spoils from the Jewish Temple in Jerusalem
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