Matthew 24:15 Study Archive
When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel
Matthew 24:15
“The Abomination of Desolation”
What is the “Abomination of Desolation”? – “The abomination of desolation was the Roman armies that made Jerusalem desolate for their wickedness in persecuting and crucifying Jesus Christ. And most believers understood this until the last few generations.” (Baptist Website)
Athanasius (296-372)
“And when He Who spake unto Moses, the Word of the Father, appeared in the end of the world, He also gave this commandment, saying, “But when they persecute you in this city, flee ye into another” [Matt. 10:23]; and shortly after He says, “When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place (whoso readeth, let him understand); then let them which be in Judea flee into the mountains: let him which is on the housetop not come down to take any thing out of his house: neither let him which is in the field return back to take his clothes” [Matt. 24:15]. Knowing these things, the Saints regulated their conduct accordingly.” (Defense of His Flight [11])
Augustine (379)
“Luke, to show that the abomination spoken of by Daniel will take place when Jerusalem is captured, recalls these words of the Lord in the same context: When you shall see Jerusalem compassed about with an army, then know that the desolation thereof is at hand (xxi. 20). For Luke very clearly bears witness that the prophecy of Daniel was fulfilled when Jerusalem was overthrown.” (vol. 6, p. 170)
Chrysostom (379)
“Or because he who had desolated the city and the temple, placed his statue within the temple.” (The Ante-Nicene Fathers)
For He brought in also a prophecy, to confirm their desolation, saying, “But when ye shall see the abomination of desolation,spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place, let him that readeth understand.”(12) He referred them to Daniel. And by” abomination” He meaneth the statue of him who then took the city, which he who desolated the city and the temple placed within the temple, wherefore Christ calleth it, “of desolation.” Moreover, in order that they might learn that these things will be while some of them are alive, therefore He said, “When ye see the abomination of desolation.” (Of Matthew 24:1,2)
“And see how He relates the war, by the things that seem to be small setting forth how intolerable it was to be. For, “Then,”saith He, “let them which be in Judaea flee into the mountains.” Then, When? When these things should be, “when the abomination of desolation should stand in the holy place.” Whence He seems to me to be speaking of the armies.” (Homily 76, Number 1)
Pseudo-Chrysostom
“Whence I think that by the abomination of desolation, He means the army by which the city of the holy Jerusalem was desolated.” (Matthew 24:3, Quoted in Golden Chain)
Clement of Alexandria
“For he said that there were two thousand three hundred days from the time that the abomination of Nero stood in the holy city, till its destruction… These two thousand three hundred days make six years four months, during the half of which Nero held sway” (The Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol. 2, p. 334)
Commodianus (250)
“Then doubtless the world shall be finished when he shall appear. He himself shall divide the globe into three ruling powers, when, moreover, Nero shall be raised up from hell, Elias shall first come to seal the beloved ones; at which things the regions of Africa and the northern nation, the whole earth on all sides, for seven years shall tremble. But Elias shall occupy the half of the time, Nero shall occupy half. Then the whore Babylon, being reduced to ashes, its embers shall thence advance to Jerusalem; and the Latin conqueror shall then say, ‘I am Christ, whom ye always pray to;’ and indeed, the original ones who were deceived combine to praise him” (Instructions, xli).
Cyril of Jerusalem
“And again he says, ‘Who opposeth and exalteth himself against al that is called God, or that is worshipped;’ (against every God; Antichrist will forsooth abhor the idols), ‘so that he seateth himself in the temple of God’ (2 Thess. 2: 9). What temple then? He means the temple of the Jews, which has been destroyed. For God forbid that it should be the one in which we are!” (Catechetical Lectures, XV. 15).
Eusebius Pamphilius (325)
“But the number of calamities which every where fell upon the nation at that time; the extreme misfortunes to which the inhabitants of Judea were especially subjected, the thousands of men, as well as women and children, that perished by the sword, by famine, and by other forms of death innumerable,–all these things, as well as the many great sieges which were carried on against the cities of Judea, and the excessive. sufferings endured by those that fled to Jerusalem itself, as to a city of perfect safety, and finally the general course of the whole war, as well as its particular occurrences in detail, and how at last the abomination of desolation, proclaimed by the prophets, stood in the very temple of God, so celebrated of old, the temple which was now awaiting its total and final destruction by fire,– all these things any one that wishes may find accurately described in the history written by Josephus.” (Book III, Ch. 5)
Jerome
“it may be understood of the statue of Caesar, which Pilate set up in the temple; or of the equestrian statue of Adrian, which stood to the present time in the very Holy of Holies. For, according to the Old Scripture, an idol is called ‘abomination;’ “of desolation” is added, because the idol was set up in the desolated and deserted temple.” (Matthew 24:15, Quoted in Golden Chain)
Hippolytus of Rome
“As also it was announced to Daniel: ‘And one week shall confirm a covenant with many. And in the midst of the week it shall be that the sacrifice and oblation shall be removed” — that the one week might be shown to be divided into two. The two witnesses, then, shall preach three years and a half; and Antichrist shall make war upon the saints during the rest of the week, and desolate the world, that was it written may be fulfilled: ‘And they shall make the abomination of desolation for a thousand two hundred and ninety days.’” (Fragments from Commentaries).
Irenaeus of Lyons
“Now I have shown in the third book, that no one is termed God by the apostles when speaking for themselves, except Him who truly is God, the Father of our Lord, by Whose directions the temple which is at Jerusalem was constructed for those purposes which I have already mentioned; in which temple the enemy shall sit, endeavoring to show himself as Christ, as the Lord also declares: ‘But when ye shall see the abomination of desolation, which has been spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place… let those which are in Judea flee to the mountains…’ “ (Against Heresies, V. xxv. 2).
Lactantius
“But that king will not only be most disgraceful in himself, but he will also be a prophet of lies; and he will constitute and call himself God, and will order himself to be worshipped as the son of God; and power will be given him to do signs and wonders, by the sight of which he may entice men to adore him. He will command fire to come down from heaven, and the sun to stand and leave his course, and an image to speak; and these things shall be done at his word; by which miracles even many of the wise shall be enticed by him. Then he will attempt to destroy the temple of God, and persecute the righteous people; and there will be distress and tribulation, such as there never has been from the beginning of the world” (Divine Institutes, V. 17).
Justin Martyr (150)
“…I will mention to you other words also spoken by the blessed David, from which you will perceive that the Lord is called the Christ by the holy spirit of prophecy; and that the Lord, the Father of all, has brought Him again from the earth, setting Him at His own right hand, until He makes His enemies His footstool; which indeed happens from the time that the Lord Jesus Christ ascended into heaven, after He rose from the dead, the times now running on to their consummation; and he who Daniel foretells would have dominion for a time, times, and a half, is even already at the door, about to speak blasphemous and daring things against the Most High” (Dialogue With Trypho, xxxii).
Origen
“The prophecy also regarding Antichrist is stated in the Book of Daniel, and is fitted to make an intelligent and candid reader admire the words as truly divine and prophetic; for in them are mentioned the things relating to the coming kingdom, and continuing to the destruction of the world… What is stated by Paul in the words quoted from him, where he says, ‘so that he sitteth in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God,’ is in Daniel referred to in the following fashion: ‘And on the temple, shall be the abomination of desolations, and at the end of the time an end shall be put to the desolations’ (Dan. 9: 27). So many, out of a greater number of passages, have I thought it right to adduce, that the hearer may understand in some slight degree, the meaning of holy Scripture, when it gives us information concerning the devil and Antichrist” (Against Celsus, VI. 46).
Remigius
“And this we know was so done when the fall of Jerusalem drew near; for on the approach of the Roman army, all the Christians in the province, warned, as ecclesiastical history tells us, [marg. note: Euseb., H. E., iii. 5] miraculously from heaven, withdrew, and passing the Jordan, took refuge in the city of Pella; and under the protection of that King Agrippa, of whom we read in the Acts of the Apostles, they continued some time; but Agrippa himself, with the Jews whom he governed, was subjected to the dominion of the Romans.” (Matthew 24:15, Ibid.)
Tertullian
“Well, but who is the ‘man of sin, the son of perdition,’ who must first be revealed before the Lord comes; ‘who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; who is to sit in the temple of God, and boast himself as being God” (2 Thess. 2: 3-4). According indeed to our view, he is Antichrist; and it is taught us in both the ancient and the new prophecies, and especially by the apostle John, who says that ‘already many false prophets are gone out into the world,’ the fore-runners of Antichrist, who deny that Christ is come in the flesh, and do not acknowledge Jesus (to be the Christ), meaning in God the Creator” (Against Marcion, V. xvi).
Victorinus
“’And he shall make fire come down from heaven in the sight of men.’ Yes, (as I also have said), in the sight of men… He shall cause also that a golden image of Antichrist shall be placed in the temple at Jerusalem, and that the apostate angel should enter, and thence utter voices and oracles. Moreover, he himself shall contrive that his servants and children should receive a mark on their foreheads, or on their right hands, the number of his name, lest anyone should buy or sell them. Daniel had previously predicted his contempt and provocation of God. ‘And he shall place,’ says he, ‘his temple within Samaria, upon the illustrious and holy mountain that is at Jerusalem, an image such as Nebuchadnezzar had made (Dan. 11: 45). Thence here he places, and by and by here he renews, that of which the Lord, admonishing His churches concerning the last times and their dangers, says: ‘But when ye shall see the contempt which is spoken of by Daniel the prophet standing in the holy place, let him who readeth understand’” (Matt. 24: 15). (Commentary on the Apocalypse).
Albert Barnes (1832)
“This is a Hebrew expression, meaning an abominable or hateful destroyer. The Gentiles were all held in abomination by the Jews. Ac. x. 28. The abomination of desolation means the Roman army, and is so explained by Lu, xxi. 20. The Roman army is further called the abomination on account of the images of the emperor, and the eagles, carried in front of the legions, and regarded by the Romans with divine honours” (p. 254)
John Albert Bengel (1742)
“The abomination of desolation – The abomination of profanation was followed by the abomination of desolation. Such is the name given to the Roman army, gathered from all nations; whose military standards the Jews held in abomination as idols, since the Romans attributed divinity to them.” (Bengel, p. 270).
G.C. Berkouwer
“What is noteworthy is that Christ does not speak about this horror as about an event in some ancient past. There is a particularly prominent actuality about what He says. A very relevant admonition is evident: ‘when you see the desolating sacrilege set up… ‘ (Mark 13:14). Christ is not referring back to the tribulations of Israel during the time of Antioch Epiphanes, but to day and tomorrow. When the desolating sacrilege comes, Christ proclaims, ‘then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains.’ Daniel’s words are assumed into a relevant proclamation dealing with a grave crisis affecting Judaea and putting its inhabitants to flight. There is widespread uncertainty as to the precise meaning of this ‘desolating sacrilege,’ but this much is clear: it constitutes an admonition reinterpreting Daniel’s vision. What Daniel says is applied to the imminent destruction of the temple in Jerusalem.” (The Return of Christ, pp. 275-276).
John Broadus (1884)
“It is evident that our Lord interprets the prediction in Daniel as referring to the Messiah, and to that destruction of the city and temple which he is now foretelling; and his interpretation is authoritative for us.” (ibid., vol. 1, p.486)
“We cannot say that v. 15-22 does not at all refer to the times just preceding our Lord’s final coming; but no such reference shows itself.” (idib. p. 488)
John of Damascus
“It should be known that Antichrist is bound to come. Every one, therefore, who confesses not that the Son of God came in the flesh and is perfect God and became perfect man, after being God, is Antichrist. But in a peculiar and special sense he who comes at the consummation of the age is called Antichrist. First then, it is requisite that the Gospel should be preached among all nations, as the Lord said, and then he will come to refute the impious Jews… ‘So that he sitteth in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God.” In the temple of God he said; not our temple, but the old Jewish temple; for he will come not to us, but to the Jews: not for Christ or the things of Christ: wherefore he is called Antichrist” (Exposition of the Orthodox Faith, xxvi).
B.H. Carroll (1947)
“…This same Pilate, at that time Roman Procurator, sent from Caesarea, the seaport of that country on the Mediterranean Sea, a legion of Roman soldiers and had them secretly introduced into the city and sheltered in the tower of Antonio overlooking the Temple, and these soldiers brought with them their ensigns. The Roman sign was a straight staff, capped with a metallic eagle, and right under the eagle was a graven image of Caesar. Caesar claimed to be divine. Caesar exacted divine worship, and every evening when those standards were placed, the Roman legion got down and worshipped the image of Caesar thereof, and every morning at the roll call a part of the parade was for the whole legion to prostrate themselves before that graven image and worship it. The Jews were so horrified when they saw that image and the consequent worship, they went to Pilate, who was at that time living in Caesarea, and prostrated themselves before him and said, ‘Kill us, if you will, but take that abomination of desolation out of our Holy City and from the neighborhood of our holy temple.’ While that was an abomination, Jerusalem was not encompassed with armies. ‘When ye shall see the abomination which makes desolation spoken of by Daniel, the prophet, set up where it ought not to be, and see Jerusalem compassed with armies,’ that is the sign of the destruction of Jerusalem. The greatest desolation ever wrought in the world on a people, was made under that standard and by the Roman power. Therefore, it was the abomination that maketh desolate.” (An Introduction of the English Bible, p. 263-264)
Alfred Edersheim
“The Lord proceeds, in the third part of this discourse, to advertise the disciples of the great historic fact immediately before them, and of the dangers which would spring from it. In truth we have here His answer to their question ‘when shall these things be?’ And with this He conjoins the (then) present application of His warning regarding false Christs (given in verses 4, 5). The fact of which He now advertises them is the destruction of Jerusalem. It will be observed that the question, When shall these things be? is directly answered by the words, When ye shall see” (#Mt 24:15 Lu. 21:20).
“This, together with tribulation to Israel, unparalleled in the terrible past of its history, and unequalled even in its bloody future was about to befall them. Nay, so dreadful would be the persecution that, if Divine mercy had not interposed for the sake of the followers of Christ, the whole Jewish race that inhabited the land would have been swept away. There should have been no flesh saved.”
E.B. Elliott (1851)
“…the abomination of desolation standing in the Holy Place at Jerusalem (a prophecy which doubtless had reference to the time of the consummated iniquity of the Christ-rejecting Jerusalem, and of the Roman besieging army with its idolatrous stands gathering into the sacred precincts of the Jewish city…” (vol. 4, p. 617)
James Farqhuarson (1838)
“Christ expressly names it (the abomination of desolation) as one of the previous signs, whereby those whom He then addressed would become aware of the immediate approach of that destruction of Jerusalem which He Himself foretold, and which, He said, would occur before the generation contemporary with Himself on earth passed away (#Mt 24:34). Besides, Christ, by the term ‘abomination of desolation’ did not mean any temple built to a strange god, or any profane sacrifices. These are indeed abominable; but they are not desolators. Luke has preserved the explanation which Christ Himself gave of those terms (‘when ye see Jerusalem compassed with armies,’ etc. #Lu 21:20), as we shall have occasion afterwards more particularly to show; and Bishop Newton, in his illustration of Christ’s own prophecy, refers to the explanation furnished by Luke and admits that the abomination of desolation signifies the heathen armies.” (Daniel’s Last Vision and Prophecy)
Geneva Bible Notes (1599)
Matthew 24:15 {4} When ye therefore shall see the {f} abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:)
(f) The abomination of desolation, that is to say, the one who all men detest and cannot abide, because of the foul and shameful filthiness of it: and he speaks of the idols that were set up in the temple, or as others think, he meant the marring of the doctrine in the Church.
W.B. Godbey
“Therefore when you may see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet [Daniel 9:27], standing in the holy place, let the one reading take notice then; let those who are in Judea go. to the mountains; and let him who is on the housetop not come down to take things out of his house; and let him who is in the field not turn back to take his garments.” A.D. 66, Gallus, the Roman general, laid siege to Jerusalem, succeeded, A.D. 68, by Vespasian, the emperor, who was succeeded by his son Titus, A.D. 71, who prosecuted the war to its awful end, as the Jews were divided into bloody factions, and were killing one another, and would not surrender to the Romans. Read Josephus, and you will find the horrors of the siege beggared all description — famine raging, people dying in piles; pestilence, arising from the putrefying corpses, sweeping the city with the besom of destruction far more terrific than the sword, which was also devouring them on all sides, till a solid million perished, and a million more were sold into slavery, the city utterly destroyed and left without an inhabitant. After fifty years a Roman colony was founded on the memorable site where Jerusalem once stood, even the name being dropped, and the new Roman city was called Elia Capitolina the ensuing two centuries, till the conversion of the Emperor Constantine, who came thither, revived the city, and restored the sacred name, Jerusalem. When the Roman armies effected all entrance through the walls, they at once set up their battle-flags on the Holy Campus, on the summit of. Moriah, taking possession of the temple and all the holy places. This was the “abomination of desolation” — “abomination,” because the Roman gods were pictured on it, and the soldiers worshipped them as they looked on the flags; and “desolation,” because those battle-flags meant the destruction of Jerusalem. Jesus notified His disciples that the moment they saw these Roman battle-flags floating from the pinnacles of the temple, they should all recognize it as the signal for, them to make their escape. Their flight was to be so sudden that, if on the housetop, they were not. to come down. N. B. — You can now run all over Jerusalem on the flat roofs of the houses, as the narrow streets are overarched, the buildings being continuous, jam up to the wall, which is a part of the contiguous edifice. Consequently they could run to the wall on the roofs of the houses and pass down, thus making their escape, which must be sudden and expeditious, or they would be intercepted and detained.”
Jamieson, Fausset and Brown
“That the abomination of desolation here alluded to was intended to point to the Roman ensigns, as the symbols of an idolatrous and so unclean Pagan power, may be gathered by comparing what Luke says in the corresponding verse (xxi 20); and the commentators are agreed on it.” (Jamieson, Fausset and Brown Commentary, vol. 3 p. 192)
B.W. Johnson (1891)
When therefore ye see the abomination of desolation. This is the sign when Christians should flee from Jerusalem. See #Da 9:27 11:31 12:11. Luke says, “When ye shall see Jerusalem compassed with armies” (#Lu 21:20). This was, therefore, Christ’s explanation of the abomination of desolation. The Roman army, heathen, with heathen images and standards, ready to sacrifice to idols on the temple altar, working the desolation of Jerusalem and the temple, is what is meant. In the holy place. Mark says, “Where it ought not” [Mr 13:14]; around “the holy city” [Mt 4:5].” (People’s New Testament Notes, in loc.)
Rev. J.C. Robertson (1932)
{The abomination of desolation} (to bdelugma tês eremôseôs). An allusion to Da 9:27; 11:31; 12:11. Antiochus Epiphanes erected an altar to Zeus on the altar of Jehovah (1Macc. 1:54,59; 6:7; 2Macc. 6:1-5). The desolation in the mind of Jesus is apparently the Roman army (Lu 21:20) in the temple, an application of the words of Daniel to this dread event. The verb bdelussomai is to feel nausea because of stench, to abhor, to detest. Idolatry was a stench to God (Lu 16:15; Re 17:4). Josephus tells us that the Romans burned the temple and offered sacrifices to their ensigns placed by the eastern gate when they proclaimed Titus as Emperor. {Let him that readeth understand} (ho anaginoskôn noeitô). This parenthesis occurs also in Mr 13:14. It is not to be supposed that Jesus used these words. They were inserted by Mark as he wrote his book and he was followed by Matthew. (Robertson.)
Cecil Sanders (1990)
“When reporting on the Olivet prophecy, Luke did let us know who the abomination of desolation was. He said, ‘And when ye shall see Jerusalem compassed with armies, then know that the desolation thereof is nigh’ (Lk. 21:20). By reading the surrounding verses one cannot deny that this is a parallel account to Matthew’s Olivet Discourse found in chapter 24. Parallel accounts cannot have a different meaning. By combining Luke’s statement with secular history it is clear that Titus and his Roman army were the abomination of desolation. It was fulfilled in A.D.70 when the Romans desecrated and destroyed the Temple and Jerusalem. Matthew 24:15 and Luke 21:20 are parallel accounts speaking of the same event.” (The Future: An Amillennial Perspective, p. 68.)
Philip Schaff (1887)
“Titus (according to Josephus) intended at first to save that magnificent work of architecture, as a trophy of victory, and perhaps from some superstitious fear; and when the flames threatened to reach the Holy of Holies he forced his way through flame and smoke, over the dead and dying, to arrest the fire. But the destruction was determined by a higher decree. His own soldiers, roused to madness by the stubborn resistance, and greedy of the golden treasures, could not be restrained from the work of destruction. At first the halls around the temple were set on fire..”
The Romans planted their eagles on the shapeless ruins, over against the eastern gate, offered their sacrifices to them, and proclaimed Titus Imperator with the greatest acclamations of joy. Thus was fulfilled the prophecy concerning the abomination of desolation standing in the holy place.(Daniel, 9:27; Matt. 24:15; comp. Luke 21:20)” (p. 397-398)
C.H. Spurgeon (1888)
“This portion of our Saviour’s words appears to relate solely to the destruction of Jerusalem. As soon as Christ’s disciples saw “the abomination of desolation,” that is, the Roman ensigns, with their idolatries, “stand in the holy place,” they knew that the time for their escape had arrived; and they did flee to the mountains.” (Matthew: The Gospel of the Kingdom. . p. 215.
John Wesley (1754)
“When ye shall see the abomination of desolation – Daniel’s term is, ‘The abomination that maketh desolate’ (xi. 31); that is, the standards of the desolating legions, on which they bear the abominable images of their idols. Standing in the holy place – Not only the temple, and the mountain on which it stood, but the whole city of Jerusalem, and several furlongs of land round about it, were accounted holy; particularly the mountain on which our Lord now sat, and on which the Romans afterward planted their ensigns.” (in loc)
William Whiston (1737)
“There may another very important, and very providential, reason be here assigned for this strange and foolish retreat of Cestius; which, if Josephus had been now a Christian, he might probably have taken notice of also; and that is, the affording the Jewish Christians in the city an opportunity of calling to mind the prediction and caution given them by Christ about thirty-three years and a half before, that “when they should see the abomination of desolation” [the idolatrous Roman armies, with the images of their idols in their ensigns, ready to lay Jerusalem desolate] “stand where it ought not;” or, “in the holy place;” or, “when they should see Jerusalem any one instance of a more unpolitic, but more providential, compassed with armies;” they should then “flee to the mound conduct than this retreat of Cestius visible during this whole rains.” By complying with which those Jewish Christians fled I siege of Jerusalem; which yet was providentially such a “great to the mountains of Perea, and escaped this destruction. See tribulation, as had not been from the beginning of the world to that time; no, Lit. Accompl. of Proph. p. 69, 70. Nor was there, perhaps, nor ever should be.”–Ibid. p. 70, 71.” (Wars, II, XIX, 6,7)
“Havercamp says here :- “This is a remarkable place; and Tertullian truly says that the entire religion of the Roman camp almost consisted in worshipping the ensigns, in swearing by the ensigns, and in preferring the ensigns before all the [other] gods.” (Wars of the Jews, VI,VI,1)
David Brown (1864)
“That it was written before the destruction of Jerusalem is equally certain; for, when he reports our Lord’s prophecy of that awful event, on coming to the warning about “the abomination of desolation” which they should “see standing in the holy place,” he interposes (contrary to his invariable practice, which is to relate without remark) a call to his reader to read intelligently — “Whoso readeth, let him understand” (Matt. xxiv. 15) — a call to attend to the divine signal for flight, which could be intended only for those who lived before the event.” (Hug, page 316)” (Gospel According to Matthew, intro)
John Calvin
“Inconsequence of the obscurity of this passage it has been twisted in a variety of ways. At the end of the ninth chapter I have shewn the impossibility of its referring to the profanation of the Temple which occurred under the tyranny of Antiochus; on this occasion the angel bears witness to such a complete destruction of the Temple, as to leave no room for the hope of its repair and restoration. Then the circumstances of the time convinces us of this. For he then said, Christ shall confirm the covenant with many for one week, and shall cause the sacrifices and oblation to cease. Afterwards, the abomination that stupifieth shall be added, and desolation or stupor, and then death will distill, says he, upon the astonished or stupefied one. The angel, therefore, there treats of the perpetual devastation of the Temple. So in this passage, without doubt;, he treats of the period after the destruction of the Temple; there could be no hope of restoration, as the law with all its ceremonies would then arrive at its termination. With this view Christ quotes this passage in Matthew 24, while he admonishes his hearers diligently to attend to it. Let him who reads, understand, says he. We have stated this prophecy to be obscure, and hence it requires no ordinary degree of the closest attention. First of all, we must hold this point; the time now treated by the angel begins at the last destruction of the Temple. That devastation happened as soon as the gospel began to be promulgated. God then deserted his Temple, because it was only founded for a time, and was but a shadow, until the Jews so completely violated the whole covenant that no sanctity remained in either the Temple, the nation, or the land itself. Some restrict this to those standards which Tiberius erected on the very highest pinnacle of the Temple, and others to the statue of Caligula, but I have already stated my view of these opinions as too forced. I have no hesitation in referring this language of the angel to that profanation of the Temple which happened after the manifestation of Christ, when sacrifices ceased, and the shadows of the law were abolished. From the time, therefore, at which the sacrifice really ceased to be offered; this refers to the period at which Christ by his advent should abolish the shadows of the law, thus making all offering of sacrifices to God totally valueless. From that time, therefore. Next, from the time at which the stupefying abomination shall have been set up. God’s wrath followed the profanation of the Temple. The Jews never anticipated the final cessation of their ceremonies, and always boasted in their peculiar external worship, and unless God had openly demonstrated it before their eyes, they would never have renounced their sacrifices and rites as mere shadowy representations. Hence Jerusalem and their Temple were exposed to the vengeance of the Gentiles. This, therefore, was the setting up of this stupefying abomination; it was a clear testimony to the wrath of God, exhorting the Jews in their confusion to boast no longer in their Temple and its holiness.” (Commentary)
Adam Clarke (1837)
“Verse 15. The abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel— This abomination of desolation, St. Luke, (Luke 21:20, 21,) refers to the Roman army; and this abomination standing in the holy place is the Roman army besieging Jerusalem; this, our Lord says, is what was spoken of by Daniel the prophet, in the ninth and eleventh chapters of his prophecy; and so let every one who reads these prophecies understand them; and in reference to this very event they are understood by the rabbins. The Roman army is called an abomination, for its ensigns and images, which were so to the Jews. Josephus says, (War, b. vi. chap. 6,) the Romans brought their ensigns into the temple, and placed them over against the eastern gate, and sacrificed to them there. The Roman army is therefore fitly called the abomination, and the abomination which maketh desolate, as it was to desolate and lay waste Jerusalem; and this army besieging Jerusalem is called by St. Mark, Mark 13:14, standing where it ought not, that is, as in the text here, the holy place; as not only the city, but a considerable compass of ground about it, was deemed holy, and consequently no profane persons should stand on it.” (Adam Clarke’s Commentary On Matthew 24)
John Gill (1809)
“Ver. 15. When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, &c.] From signs, Christ proceeds to the immediate cause of the destruction of Jerusalem; which was, “the abomination of desolation”, or the desolating abomination; or that abominable thing, which threatened and brought desolation upon the city, temple, and nation: by which is meant, not any statue placed in the temple by the Romans, or their order; not the golden eagle which Herod set upon the temple gate, for that was before Christ said these words; nor the image of Tiberius Caesar, which Pilate is said to bring into the temple; for this, if true, must be about this time; whereas Christ cannot be thought to refer to anything so near at hand; much less the statue of Adrian, set in the most holy place, which was an hundred and thirty years and upwards, after the destruction of the city and temple; nor the statue of Titus, who destroyed both, which does not appear: ever to be set up, or attempted; nor of Caligula, which, though ordered, was prevented being placed there: but the Roman army is designed; see #Lu 21:20 which was the “the wing”, or “army of abominations making desolate”, #Da 9:27. Armies are called wings, #Isa 8:8 and the Roman armies were desolating ones to the Jews, and to whom they were an abomination; not only because they consisted of Heathen men, and uncircumcised persons, but chiefly because of the images of their gods, which were upon their ensigns: for images and idols were always an abomination to them; so the “filthiness” which Hezekiah ordered to be carried out of the holy place, #2Ch 29:5 is by the Targum called,aqwxyr, “an abomination”; and this, by the Jewish writers {w}, is said to be an idol, which Ahaz had placed upon the altar; and such was the abomination of desolation, which Antiochus caused to be set upon the altar:
“Now the fifteenth day of the month Casleu, in the hundred forty and fifth year, they set up the abomination of desolation upon the altar, and builded idol altars throughout the cities of Juda on every side;” (1 Maccabees 1:54)
And so the Talmudic writers, by the abomination that makes desolate, in #Da 12:11 9:27 to which Christ here refers, understand an image, which they say {x} one Apostomus, a Grecian general, who burnt their law, set up in the temple. Now our Lord observes, that when they should see the Roman armies encompassing Jerusalem, with their ensigns flying, and these abominations on them, they might conclude its desolation was near at hand; and he does not so much mean his apostles, who would be most of them dead, or in other countries, when this would come to pass; but any of his disciples and followers, or any persons whatever, by whom should be seen this desolating abomination, spoken of by Daniel the prophet: not in #Da 11:31 which is spoken of the abomination in the times of Antiochus; but either in #Da 12:11 or rather in #Da 9:27 since this desolating abomination is that, which should follow the cutting off of the Messiah, and the ceasing of the daily sacrifice. It is to be observed, that Daniel is here called a prophet, contrary to what the Jewish writers say {y}, who deny him to be one; though one of {z} no inconsiderable note among them affirms, that he attained to the end, yyawbnh lwbgh, “of the prophetic border”, or the ultimate degree of prophecy: when therefore this that Daniel, under a spirit of prophecy, spoke of should be seen, standing in the holy place; near the walls, and round about the holy city Jerusalem, so called from the sanctuary and worship of God in it; and which, in process of time, stood in the midst of it, and in the holy temple, and destroyed both; then whoso readeth, let him understand: that is, whoever then reads the prophecy of Daniel; will easily understand the meaning of it, and will see and know for certain, that now it is accomplished; and will consider how to escape the desolating judgment, unless he is given up to a judicial blindness and hardness of heart; which was the case of the greater part of the nation.
{w} R. David Kimchi, & R. Sol. ben Melech, in 2 Chron. xxix. 5.
{x} T. Bab. Taanith, fol. 28. 2. & Gloss. in ib.
{y} T. Bab. Sanhedrin, fol. 94. 1. & Megilla, fol. 3. 1. & Tzeror Ham, mor, fol. 46. 4. Zohar in Num. fol. 61. 1.
{z} Jacchiades in Dan. i. 17. (in loc.)
Nathaniel Lardner (1764)
“By the abomination of desolation, or the abomination that maketh desolate, therefore is intended the Roman armies, with their ensigns. As the Roman ensigns, especially the eagle, which was carried at the head of every legion, were objects of worship; they are, according to usual title of Scripture, called an abomination.”
“By standing in the holy place, or where it ought not, needs not to be understood as the temple only, but Jerusalem also, and, any part of the land of Israel.” (A Large collection of Ancient Jewish and Heathen Testimonies.. vol. 1, p. 49)
Thomas Newton (1753)
‘When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth let him understand,). Then let them which be in Judea, flee into the mountains,’ – – ver. 15 and 16. Whatever difficulty there is in these words, it may be cleared up by the parallel place in St. Luke, ‘And when ye shall see Jerusalem compassed with armies, then know that the desolation thereof is nigh. Then let them which are in Judea flee to the mountains,’-xxi – 20, 2 1. So that,’the abomination of desolation’ is the Roman army, and ‘the abomination of desolation standing in the holy place’ is the Roman army besieging Jerusalem. This, saith our Saviour, is ‘the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet,’ in the ninth and eleventh chapters ; and so let every one who readeth those prophecies, understand them. The Roman army is called ‘the abomination,’ for its ensigns and images, which were so to the Jews. As Chrysostom a affirms; “every idol, and every image of a man, was called an abomination’ among the Jews.” For this reason, as Josephus informs us, the principal Jews earnestly entreated Vitellius, governor of Syria, when he was conducting his army through Judea against Aretas, king of the Arabians, to lead it another way; and be greatly obliged them by complying with their request. We farther learn from Josephus, that after the city was taken, the Romans ” brought their ensigns into the temple, and placed them over against the eastern gate, and sacrificed to them there.” The Roman army is therefore fitly called ‘the abomination’ and ‘the abomination of desolation,’ as it was to desolate and lay waste Jerusalem : and this army’s besieging Jerusalem is called ‘ standing where it ought not,’ as it is in St. Mark, xiii. 14; or ‘standing in the holy place,’ as it is in St. Matthew; the city, and such a compass of ground about it, being accounted holy. When therefore the Roman army shall advance to besiege Jerusalem, then let them who are in Judea consult their own safety, and flee into the mountains. His counsel was wisely remembered, and put in practice, by the Christians afterwards. Josephus informs us, that when Cestius Gallus came with his army against Jerusalem, ” many fled from the city, as if it would be taken presently :” and after his retreat, “many of the noble Jews departed out of the city, as out of a sinking ship :” and a few years afterwards, when Vespasian was drawing, his forces towards Jerusalem, a great multitude fled from Jericho aij thn opeinhn — into the mountainous country, for their security. It is probable that there were some Christians among these, but we learn more certainly from ecclesiastical historians, that at this is juncture all who believed in Christ left Jerusalem, and removed to Pella, and other places beyond the river Jordan: so that they all marvellously escaped the general shipwreck of their country, and we do not read any where that so much as one of them perished in the destruction of Jerusalem. Of such signal service was this caution of our Saviour to the believers. (The Prophecy of Matthew 24, Dissertation XIX)
Dr. Stafford North (1998)
“Here is the real sign: “When therefore ye see the abomination of desolation, which was spoken of through Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place” (v.15). This reference is to a passage in Daniel 9:27 where Daniel had spoken of a period of time called “the seventy weeks” which is a figurative way of expressing a time of approximately 490 years.” (Armageddon Again? A Reply to Hal Lindsey, Oklahoma City, OK: Author, 1991, p. 7-10)
Ernest Renan (1897)
“The Romans planted their standards in the place where the sanctuary had stood, and, as was their custom, offered them worship” (Antichrist, p. 260)
Gary Gibbs
“As a result of not responding to God’s call to turn from their abominations, their temple was to be desolated. This prophecy was fulfilled in 70 A.D. when the Roman armies of Titus burned the temple to the ground. This second desolation of the temple perfectly paralleled its first destruction. On both occasions the abominations were done by the apostate people of God and the desolation was an act of judgment performed by a heathen army.” (The Abomination of Desolation)
Theodore Robinson (1928)
“… the Apalling Horror spoken of by the prophet Daniel shall stand erect in the holy place, apparently a reference to the presence of the Roman armies round Jerusalem, and so rightly interpreted by Luke.” (Robinson, p. 198)
Smith’s Bible Dictionary
“Abomination of Desolation, mentioned by our Saviour, (#Mt 24:15,) as a sign of the approaching destruction of Jerusalem, with reference to (#Da 9:27; 11:31; 12:11.) The prophecy referred ultimately to the destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans, and consequently the abomination must describe some occurrence connected with that event ….. Most people refer it to the standards or banners of the Roman army.” (Under Abomination of Desolation)
Marvin Vincent (1996)
Abomination of desolation. The cognate verb means to feel a nausea or loathing for food: hence used of disgust generally. In a moral sense it denotes an object of moral or religious repugnance. See 2 Chronicles 15:8; Jeremiah 13:27; Ezekiel 11:21; Daniel 9:27; 11:31. It is used as equivalent to idol in 1 Kings 11:17; Deuteronomy 7:26; 2 Kings 23:13. It denotes anything in which estrangement from God manifests itself; as the eating of unclean beasts, Leviticus 11:11; Deuteronomy 14:3; and, generally, all forms of heathenism. This moral sense must be emphasized in the New Testament used of the word. Compare Luke 16:15; Revelation 17:4, 5; 21:27. It does not denote mere physical or aesthethic disgust. The reference here is probably to the occupation of the temple precincts by the idolatrous Romans under Titus, with their standards and ensigns. Josephus says that, after the burning of the temple the Romans brought their ensigns and set them over against the eastern gate, and there they offered sacrifices to them, and declared Titus, with acclamations, to be emperor. 22. Should be shortened. Rev., had been shortened. A very picturesque word. The verb is, literally, to dock, to cut off, leaving a stump, as a limb. Wyc., abridged. As a fact, various causes did combine to shorten the siege. Herod Agrippa was stopped in his work of strengthening the walls by orders from the emperor; the Jews, absorbed in their party strifes, had totally neglected preparations to stand a siege; the magazines of corn and provisions were burnt before the arrival of Titus. Titus arrived suddenly, and the Jews voluntarily abandoned parts of the fortification. Titus himself confessed that God was against the Jews, since otherwise neither his armies nor his engines would have availed against their defences. ” WORD STUDIES IN THE NEW TESTAMENT (pp. 154-155)
John Walvoord
“Such a temple will be rebuilt and these prophecies literally fulfilled. If upon this revival of their sacrificial system such a future temple is suddenly desecrated, it would constitute a sign to the nation of Israel of the coming time of great trouble just preceding the second coming.”
F.F. Bruce (1884)
“When the temple area was taken by the Romans, and the sanctuary itself was still burning, the soldiers brought their legionary standards into the sacred precincts, set them up opposite the eastern gate, and offered sacrifice to them there, acclaiming Titus as imperator (victorious commander) as they did so. The Roman custom of offering sacrifice to their standards had already been commented on by a Jewish writer as a symptom of their pagan arrogance, but the offering of such sacrifice in the temple court was the supreme insult to the God of Israel. This action, following as it did the cessation of the daily sacrifice three weeks earlier, must have sensed to many Jews, as it evidently did to Josephus, a new and final fulfillment of Daniel’s vision of a time when the continual burnt offering would be taken away and the abomination of desolation set up” (Bruce, p. 224)
Brant Pitre
“The first point that should strike even the most casual reader of these texts is that the “abomination of desolation,” despite the fact that it is witnessed in several different contexts in Daniel, always refers to a profanation of the Jerusalem Temple. The central characteristic of this profanation, although sometimes curiously ignored by New Testament scholars, should also be highlighted. In all three texts the profanation is carried out by means of the forces cessation of sacrifice, in particular the termination of “the continual burnt offering,” the tamid, which was offered every day in the Temple (Dan 9:27; 11:31; 12:11).” (Jesus, The Tribulation, and the End of Exile, p. 304)
OTHER ABOMINATIONS OF THE TEMPLE
“The first really grave break between the Yishuv [Jewish people] and the Roman Empire came under the Emperor Gaius Caligula (37-41 C.E.) Knowing that the emperor was a fanatic who believed himself to be a god and who accepted the worship of Caesar as his due, the foreign minority at Yavneh (Jamnia) set up an altar to Caesar. The Jews of the city, who would not tolerate idolatry on the soil of Judaea, smashed the altar. The emperor retaliated by ordering, among other things, the erection of an enormous golden image in the Jerusalem Temple itself. When news of the edict spread, it aroused fury throughout the Yishuv: open revolt seemed imminent.” – The Jews in Their Land (David Ben-Gurion Editor)
The Abomination of Desolation
By Francis Gigot
The importance of this Scriptural expression is chiefly derived from the fact that in St. Matthew, xxiv, 15, and St. Mark, xiii, 14, the appearance of the “abomination of desolation” standing in the Holy Place” (Matt.), or where “it ought not” (Mark), is given by Our Lord to His disciples as the signal for their flight from Judea, at the time of the approaching ruin of Jerusalem (Luke, xxi, 20). The expression itself is confessedly obscure. To determine its meaning, interpreters have naturally betaken themselves to the original Hebrew of the book of Daniel; for our first Evangelist distinctly says that “the abomination of desolation” he has in view “was spoken of by Daniel the prophet”; and further, the expression he makes use of, in common with St. Mark, is simply the Greek phrase whereby the Septuagint translators rendered literally the Hebrew words shíqqûç shômem found in Daniel, xii, 11; ix, 27; xi, 31. Unfortunately, despite all their efforts to explain these Hebrew terms, Biblical scholars are still at variance about their precise meaning. While most commentators regard the first“shíqqûç”, usually rendered by “abomination”, as designating anything (statue, altar, etc.) that pertains to idolatrous worship, others take it to be a contemptuous designation of a heathen god or idol. Again, while most commentators render the second “shômem” by the abstract word “desolation”, others treat it as a concrete form referring to a person, “a ravager”, or even as a participial known meaning “that maketh desolate”. The most recent interpretation which has been suggested of these Hebrew words is to the following effect: The phrase shíqqûç shômem stands for the original expression bá` ál shámáyîm (Baal of heaven), a title found in Phoenician and Aramaic inscriptions, and the semitic equivalent of the Greek Zeus, Jupiter, but modified in Daniel through Jewish aversion for the name of a Pagan deity. While thus disagreeing as to the precise sense of the Hebrew phrase usually rendered by “the abomination of desolation”, Christian scholars are practically at one with regard to its general meaning. They commonly admit, and indeed rightly, that the Hebrew expression must needs be understood of some idolatrous emblem, the setting up of which would entail the ultimate desolation of the Temple of Jerusalem (I Mach. i, 57; iv, 38). And with this general meaning in view, they proceed to determine the historical event between Our Lord’s prediction and the ruin of the Temple (A. D. 70), which should be regarded as “the abomination of desolation” spoken of in St. Matthew, xxiv, 15, and St. Mark, xiii, 14. But here they are again divided. Many scholars have thought, and still think, that the introduction of the Roman standards into the Holy Land, and more particularly into the Holy City, shortly before the destruction of the Temple, is the event foretold by Our Lord to His disciples as the signal for their flight from Judea. It is true that the standards were worshipped by the Roman soldiers and abhorred by the Jews as the emblem of Roman idolatry. Yet they can hardly be considered as the “the abomination of desolation” referred to in St. Matthew, xxiv, 15. The Evangelist says that this “abomination” is to stand in the “holy place”, whereby is naturally meant the Temple (see also Daniel, ix, 27, where the Vulgate reads: “there shall be in the Temple the abomination of the desolation”), and the Roman standards were actually introduced into the Temple only after it had been entered by Titus, that, too late to serve as a warning for the Christians of Judea. Other scholars are of the mind that the desecration of the Temple by the Zealots who seized it and made it their stronghold shortly before Jerusalem was invested by Titus, is the even foretold by Our Lord. But this view is commonly rejected for the simples reason that “the abomination of desolation” spoken of by Daniel and referred to in St. Matthew’s Gospel, was certainly something connected with idolatrous worship. Others, finally, interpret Our Lord’s warning to His disciples in the light of the history of attempt to have his own statue set up and worshipped in the Temple of Jerusalem. The following are the principal facts of that history. About A. D. 40, Caius Caligula issued a peremptory decree ordering the erection and worship of his statute in the Temple of God. He also appointed to the government of Syria, bidding him carry out that decree even at the cost of a war against the rebellious Jews. Whereupon the Jews in tens of thousands protested to the governor that they were willing to be slaughtered rather than to be condemned to witness that idolatrous profanation of their holy Temple. Soon afterwards Petronius asked Caligula to revoke his order, and Agrippa I, who than lived at Rome, prevailed upon the Emperor not to enforce his decree. It seems, however, that Caligula soon repented of the concession, and that but for his untimely death (A. D. 41) he would have had his statue set up in Jerusalem (E. Schurer, History of the Jewish People in the Time of Christ, I Div. II, 95-105; tr.). In view of these facts it is affirmed by many scholars that the early Christians could easily regard the forthcoming erection of statue in the Temple as the act of idolatrous Abomination which, according to the prophet Daniel, ix, 27, portended the ruin of the House of God, and therefore see in it the actual sign given by Christ for their flight from Judea. This last interpretation of the phrase “the abomination of desolation” is not without its own difficulties. Yet it seems preferable to the others that have been set for by commentators at large.
The Abomination of Desolation
Baker’s Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology
Abomination That Causes Desolation, the
An expression that occurs three times in the Septuagint of Daniel (9:27; 11:31; 12:11) and twice in the words of Jesus (Matt 24:15; Mark 13:14), where slight linguistic variation exists. Luke’s account of this prophecy (21:20) is more general and speaks of armies surrounding Jerusalem. First Maccabees, quoting Daniel, refers these words to the sacrifice of swine’s flesh on the altar in Jerusalem by Antiochus IV, Epiphanes, in 168 b.c. (1:54). Josephus, without referring to Daniel, recounts this episode in detail (Antiq. 7.5.4). Jesus, in using these cryptic words of Daniel, is also predicting a desecration of the temple, or at lest the temple area, which will parallel the catastrophic event of the past, so well remembered by the Jews of his day.
There have been numerous suggestions as to precisely what Jesus meant by this prophecy. It should be noted that for Jesus, the Abomination has become a personal force rather than an event—he stands (in the holy place [Matt 24:15] where he does not belong [Mark 13:14]). This has caused some to look for a particular historical act by an individual for fulfillment (variously, Pilate, Caligula, or Hadrian, more proximately, or more remotely the Antichrist himself in the endtimes) as the ultimate Abomination. Others have argued, especially in light of Luke 21:20 and Daniel’s words, that either the destruction of Jerusalem in a.d. 70 or the desecration of the temple at that time, whether by the apostate Jews beforehand or the Romans afterward, fulfilled Jesus’ prophetic words.
Given the nature of prophetic utterance, which often includes a more proximate and remote fulfillment, there is no reason why there could not be truth in both of these approaches. Jesus could very well be referring to the end of the age—he was, after all, answering the questions of “when will this happen” (i.e., the destruction of the temple) and “what will be the sign of your coming and the end of the age?” (Matt 24:3)—as well as to the destruction of Jerusalem in a.d. 70. If this is so, then the early Christians were right when they fled Jerusalem in obedience to Jesus’ words (Matt 24:16-20), but were also right when they looked for yet another, more cataclysmic fulfillment in the more distant future that would constitute the end of the age.
Date: 11 Oct 2005
Time: 09:51:23
The abomination of desolation is a deliberate reference from the Flavian emperors to try and prove this happened in the first century, notice it is Titus himself fulfills the new testament destruction of the temple, and Flavius Joseph deliberately hides direct references by using terms “ending of the daily sacrifice” to prove the two works are independent.
Date: 14 Mar 2006
Time: 11:25:30
I am surprised how people wrongly think that the Roman army is the abomination that causes desolation. The abomination was ALWAYS something the Jews themselves had done that RESULTED in their city being rendered desolate. The desolation is the RESULT of the abomination. Isn’t this obvious? Josephus consistently shows how the sedition of Jews who seized control of Jerusalem, and as a result of their own civil war, had defiled the Temple. The robbers (sicarii) instituted their own high priests, made a military fortress out of the Temple, brought Idumeans into the Temple, and covered the Temple and the altars with dead bodies and lakes of blood! They also cut off the daily sacrifice themselves! Vespasian and Titus respected the Temple and wanted it to continue because Rome had invested to have it built by Herod, but the insurrectionists refused!
Date: 15 Jul 2006
Time: 12:22:53
there is so much confusion and lack of knowlege of the abomination of desolation. the past is an example of the future. Gary Gibbs hit the nail right on the head. forced sunday worship will be the casting to the ground of God’s Law.
collin
Date: 30 Dec 2007
Time: 11:56:13
I belive that there is a local application to this reference in Matthew 24, 15 & 16 and that this was fulfilled in the destruction of Jerusalem by Titus. There is however an application and a warning that Jesus gives and that relates to our time and the establishement of a false non-biblical system of worship including men granting absolution of sin and exalting the traditions of men above the authority of the holy scriptures. This system can be understood as “the abomination fo desolation standing in the Holy place”.
Date: 31 Mar 2009
Time: 22:22:14
But sir… It is particularly the proclamation of the forgiveness of sins (absolution) through the lips of men that has replaced the need for sacrifice in the temple! See John 20:22-23.
Date: 05 Jan 2010
Time: 21:36:36
Whatever the term “Abomination of Desolation”means, the fact remains that it all came to pass in AD 70 as the destruction of Jerusalem an its temple was taking place as Jesus’prophecy in Mathew 24, Mark 14 and Luke 21 was fulfilled. Jesus Christ did return in judgement upon Israel and judaismin AD 70.
Date: 17 Jul 2010
Time: 01:20:21
In the end days, Satan will set himself up as King in Jerusalem. This is the abmomination of Desolation for the end times!
Date: 06 Jul 2013
Time: 09:38:40
I believe that Daniel Briggs offers the most compelling argument regarding the prophesy of Daniel and the abomination that leads to desolation,reference
http://www.wcma-usa.org/abomination.html
He explains that there have been many desolations, and in the case of the Romans they did indeed destroy Jerusalem and the temple. However, there was a period after 70 AD that the Temple could have been rebuilt and sacrifices could be made from the Temple mount. However, in 691 AD marks the abomination that leads to desolation when the Islam Dome of the Rock was built over the spot where the Temple was. This location is where God (of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob) said he would put His Name “forever”. Islam is a religion of false gods, i.e. Moon god. Thus the Dome of the Rock and the existing idol worship is an abomination to God. In addition, it has prevented rebuilding of the Temple and prevented sacrifice. Although I believe that Christ fulfilled need for sacrifice. Nonetheless, in context to Daniel, this abomination that resides in His most holy place that bears His Name has continued to leave the Temple Mount desolated up to present day. The next abomination that Daniel speaks of will be in the last 7 days, which will be the 7 years of tribulation and at which time the antichrist will break his covenant with Israel after 3.5 yrs. The link and additional literature reference explains it better than I.