There are three main Olivet accounts, Matthew 24, Luke 21, and Mark 13.
Surely it cannot be too hard to fathom what Jesus meant here?
In Luke we see Jesus coming out of the Temple after teaching, and responding to some people who are in awe of the Temple:
5 When some were speaking about the temple, how it was adorned with beautiful stones and gifts dedicated to God, he said, 6 “As for these things that you see, the days will come when not one stone will be left upon another; all will be thrown down.”
Some followers (who appear to be the disciples) then ask him:
“Teacher, when will this be, and what will be the sign that this is about to take place?”
So, Jesus explains that the temple, (built in 515BC under Zerubbabel, and known as Herod's Temple) will be comprehensively destroyed and the disciples ask when this will happen and what indications will there be that it is about to happen.
Correct?
Mat 24:1 And Jesus went out, and departed from the temple: and his disciples came to him for to shew him the buildings of the temple.
Mat 24:2 And Jesus said unto them, See ye not all these things? verily I say unto you, There shall not be left here one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down.
This is the only place where Jesus mentions the overthrow of Jerusalem,and He said that because the disciples said,look at these lovely buildings,and Jesus said they are coming down.There was no need for Jesus to go in to detail about the overthrow of Jerusalem,for what benefit would that be.They are spiritual,or would be in a short time.
Mat 24:3 And as he sat upon the mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world?
Jesus has not come yet,and how could it be the end of the world back then in the first century.
There are two attacks on Jerusalem,at two different time periods.
The first attack because Israel rejected Christ,so God allowed the Roman Empire to overthrow Jerusalem,and scatter the Jews in to the nations.
The second attack because Israel accepted Christ,and God brought His people back to their land,which Israel became a nation again in 1948,and will turn them to the truth that Jesus is their Messiah,and the Gentile nations will come together,and establish a kingdom that believes in no personal God,and spiritual evolution through nature,and persecute all people that hold the testimony of Jesus Christ.
God will give the world their way for 7 years,and cause all people that do not love Him to follow a kingdom based on the exaltation of people,and does not regard any god,and turn Israel to the truth that Jesus is their Messiah,and the last three and one half years they persecute all people who hold the testimony of Jesus,and at the end of that time,all those who remain will be gathered unto Christ,and then the world will attack Israel,and God comes back with His saints,and saves Israel,and defeats the world.
Israel is blinded in part,they acknowledge the Old Testament,but not the New,for the majority,but the nation must turn to Jesus,until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in,when salvation is no longer available to the Gentiles,and so all Israel shall be saved,and physical Israel will become spiritual.
First attack because they rejected Christ,very little mentioned,and it does not go in to detail.
Second attack because they accepted Christ,a lot of scriptures,and in detail.
Mat 24:4 And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you.
Mat 24:5 For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many.
It is a physical overthrow of Jerualem,so why would Jesus warn them about spiritual deception,for the Roman Empire did not overthrow them to bring forth spiritual deception,or because of them accepting Christ,for they rejected Christ,but because the Jews revolted.God allowed the Roman Empire to be victorious because Israel rejected Christ.
Mat 24:6 And ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet.
Mat 24:7 For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places.
Mat 24:8 All these are the beginning of sorrows.
These things can only be known with advanced technology,for the saints have to be able to observe the world,and what goes on in the world to see,and hear,of these things,happening.
Such was the case with Daniel,who did not understand what was told him,but was told they would understand at the end time,for they can observe the world.
Dan 12:4 But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased.
Dan 12:8 And I heard, but I understood not: then said I, O my Lord, what shall be the end of these things?
Dan 12:9 And he said, Go thy way, Daniel: for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end.
Mat 24:9 Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name's sake.
Mat 24:10 And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another.
Mat 24:11 And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many.
Mat 24:12 And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold.
Mat 24:13 But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.
Mat 24:14 And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.
The saints shall be hated of all nations,and the Gospel preached in to all the world,as a witness to all nations,then shall come the end,for the saints will be gathered unto Jesus,and the world defeated by God.
1Co 15:24 Then cometh the end, when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when he shall have put down all rule and all authority and power.
Mat 24:15 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)
Mat 24:16 Then let them which be in Judaea flee into the mountains:
Mat 24:17 Let him which is on the housetop not come down to take any thing out of his house:
Mat 24:18 Neither let him which is in the field return back to take his clothes.
Mat 24:19 And woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days!
Mat 24:20 But pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the sabbath day:
Mat 24:21 For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.
Mat 24:22 And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect's sake those days shall be shortened.
Mat 24:23 Then if any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is Christ, or there; believe it not.
Mat 24:24 For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.
Mat 24:25 Behold, I have told you before.
God warns us of the new age movement(1 Timothy 4:1-5),that will unify the religions,with an interpretation of the Bible,Islam,and Judaism,to fit that format(2 Timothy 4:2-4).
The Bible says the saints cannot be gathered unto Christ until there is a falling away first,and the man of sin claims to be God.
God is giving the world 7 years to have their way,and cause all people that do not love Him to follow the beast kingdom.
The man of sin will establish peace in the Middle East,and the Gentiles will come together and say,Peace and safety,and the remainder of Jews in the world will go back to Israel,for God said He will bring the whole house of Israel back to their land,and leave none of them in the nations.
The Jews will rebuld their temple,with no hassle from the Palestinians,and for three and one half years repentance,and salvation is still available to the Gentiles,and there will be a unified religious system,with an interpretation of all religions to fit that religious system,and the ten horn kingdom,the world split in to ten sections with a leader in each section.
They will say all is vaild for spiritual enlightenment,and a hate crime for anybody to try to convert someone to their religion punishable in the international criminal court system,and will be the time they will not endure the truth of the Bible,but according to their own lusts,spiritual evolution through nature.
This is the falling away first when they will not want to hear the truth of the Bible,but according to the unified religious system,and it is a hate crime to try to convert someone to their religion,and Christianity rapidly declines in impacting the world with the truth.
The religion of Islam will respond harshly,and there will be a clash between Islam and the world,in which nuclear weapons devastate the Arab nations,which the man of sin plucks up 3 horns by the roots.
That war will be so terrible that it leaves the world without hope to achieve peace on earth,and they are in despair,and turn to the man of sin for the solution,who has been promoting the new age movement and the harnessing of nature for power,and he convinces the world that he harnessed the power of nature and obtained power,and the false prophet will do miracles in the sight of people to convince the world that the beast did achieve power through nature,and gave this power to the false prophet,and will share this power with whoever follows him.
The Bible calls the miracles,and great wonders,lying wonders,that will appear so real that if it were possible for the elect to be deceived,they would be deceived,but it is not possible for they know the truth.
The world regained hope,and surety,that there will be peace on earth,and believe that the New Age Christ can establish his kingdom,and no foe can stop him,and the deadly wound was healed,and they say,who is like unto the beast,and who can make war with him.