Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Mark 13:2
And Jesus answering said unto him, Seest thou these great buildings? there shall not be left one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down.
2. there shall not be left ] Though now they seem fixed in their places for eternity. And even as He said, less than forty years afterwards, “Zion was ploughed as a field, and Jerusalem became heaps, and the mountain of the House as the high places of the forest” (Mic 3:12). Titus himself was amazed at the massive buildings of Jerusalem, and traced in his triumph the hand of God (Jos. Bell. Jud. vi. 9. 1). At his departure after the capture of the city, he left the tenth legion under the command of Terentius Rufus to carry out the work of demolition, and Josephus tells us ( Bell. Jud. vii. 1. 1) that the whole inclosing walls and precincts of the Temple were “so thoroughly levelled and dug up that no one visiting the city would believe it had ever been inhabited.”
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
2. And Jesus answering said untohim, Seest thou these great buildings?“Ye call Myattention to these things? I have seen them. Ye point to theirmassive and durable appearance: now listen to their fate.”
there shall not be left“lefthere” (Mt 24:2).
one stone upon another, thatshall not be thrown downTitus ordered the whole city andtemple to be demolished [JOSEPHUS,Wars of the Jews, 7.1.1]; Eleazar wished they had all diedbefore seeing that holy city destroyed by enemies’ hands, and beforethe temple was so profanely dug up [Wars of the Jews,7.8.7].
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
And Jesus answering said unto him,…. The Persic version reads, “unto them”; and so Beza’s most ancient copy but as that question is put by one, the reply is made to him:
seest thou these great buildings? how beautiful and strong they are. The Vulgate Latin and Ethiopic versions, add the word all; and the sense is, dost thou take a survey of all these buildings, and of the whole of this stately edifice? and dost thou not admire the strength and grandeur of them? and dost thou not think they will be of long duration, and that the demolition of them is scarcely possible?
There shall not be left one stone upon another. The Syriac and Arabic versions add, “here”: as in Mt 24:9, and so it is read in four of Beza’s copies, and in others:
that shall not be thrown down; [See comments on Mt 24:2].
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
These great buildings ( ). Jesus fully recognizes their greatness and beauty. The more remarkable will be their complete demolition (),
loosened down . Only the foundation stones remain.
Fuente: Robertson’s Word Pictures in the New Testament
Thrown down [] . Rather, loosened down. A very graphic word, implying gradual demolition.
Fuente: Vincent’s Word Studies in the New Testament
1)“And Jesus answering said unto him,” (kai ho Iesous eipen auto) “And Jesus responded to him,” the questioning disciple and those who joined him in questions and observations.
2) “Seest thou these great buildings?” (blepeis tautas tas megales oikodomas) “Do you see these great buildings?” Fix your eyes on the buildings, then remember What I am about to tell you of the future. Do you really appreciate their greatness in size, symmetry, apparent durability, and beauty in structure, Mat 24:2; Luk 21:5.
3) “There shall not be left one stone upon another,“(ou me aphethe lithos epi lithon) “There shall not even be one stone left upon (another) stone,” as first predicted 1Ki 9:7-9; then prophetically affirmed, Psa 79:1; Isa 64:11.
4) “That shall not be thrown down.” (hos ou me katalisthe) “Which will not be overthrown,” into a pile, a heap of disorder, into rubble, Luk 19:44. Such came to pass AD 70, under Titus of Thespasia; Some ruins of which stones may yet be observed today, at the Western Wall in Jerusalem, Mic 3:12; Mat 23:37-39.
WHAT MANNER OF STONES
There are still remaining great stones in the wall of the temple area, at the SE corner, which most likely are a specimen of these. We climb up from the deep ravine of Jehosaphat (a steep of about 130 feet) by the aid of steps, to examine this corner. The manner of stones is to be remarked. They are hewn in a way which shows them to be of most ancient date, being bevelled, that is, faced or cut only at the edge, in a small border, the rest being left cast down, had been piled up again. The corner of the wall instead of being even is rough and jagged, We measured some of these huge blocks, which we found 191/2 feet long by 31/2 high. At the SW corner are the great stones which, doubtless, belong to the great arch of the temple bridge, stretching across the Tyropeon to Zion. These are also bevelled. Three large gray rocks, curved on the lower surface, rest on immense layers of stone-work, and stand out from the wall as if endwise, and broken off. On a line with these is a huge yellow stone, of the same arch, and this, we observed, is set into the adjoining stone of the wall by a joint of eight or ten inches, much concealed by the defacing of the elements. This would prove that the stones stand in their original position. We observed, also, that the immense foundation stones on which the arch rests, are arched at the top to fit, and set back to rest on, One of these ‘ stones of the lower course, seeming as if one block and most closely joined, we measured. One part was 27 feet, and the other 26 feet long by 7 feet high. Josephus speaks of some stones of the temple that were 50 feet long, 24 feet broad, and 16 feet thick,
– Jacobus.
Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary
‘And Jesus said to him, “Do you see these great buildings? There shall not be left here one stone on another that will not be thrown down.”
Jesus dismissed the magnificence of the Temple with a few words. Like Jeremiah before Him (Jer 7:1-15; Jer 26:1-24; compare Mic 3:10-12) He had recognised that the Temple could no longer be accepted as viable because of the behaviour and attitudes of the religious leaders and those who followed them. They could not be allowed to go on. He had pronounced woes on Chorazin and Bethsaida (Mat 11:21; Luk 10:13). How much more was the Temple deserving of woe. And He had already made it clear in His actions with the fig tree, and within the Temple itself, that it was rejected by God. Only one thing could be done with ‘a brigand’s cave’ like this. It had to be visited and destroyed. Compare how He had elsewhere already declared the desolation of Jerusalem’s ‘house’ (Mat 23:38).
The picture Jesus drew was one of total desolation. ‘Not one stone upon another’. While this was hyperbolic and was not intended to be taken absolutely literally, it was certainly intended to be a description of complete devastation, and today there is not a trace of that great building apart from a few remnants of the outer walls and what we occasionally dig up. But the thought must have been appalling to the disciples, and almost considered impossible, that is, if they could even begin to take it in at all. However, Jesus, Who had caused the fig tree to wither, had also by His words spoken to the fig tree basically prayed for this mountain to be ‘cast into the sea’, that is, to be judged and destroyed. (It is worthy of note to remember that this was written down well before the destruction occurred). Indeed the destruction of city and sanctuary after Messiah was cut off was prophetically necessary, as God’s judgment on them, in order to fulfil Scripture (Dan 9:26).
The Temple had failed in its function, which was in any case approaching its end. Instead of lifting the nation up to God it had become to most of them a guarantee of their worldly security, leaving them to carry on as they liked. They thought that God would not allow the destruction of His house (even in its last moments they could not believe that God would not intervene, a belief which resulted in extreme fanaticism). So the Chief Priests were able to sit tight in their complacency, and even the disciples were impressed by its seeming permanence. But once Jesus had offered Himself as a sacrifice for sin its sacrificial function would in fact have ceased to have significance. Its end was therefore inevitable. By then it would have become simply a hindrance. ‘This mountain’ had to be got rid of that men may worship God in Spirit and in truth (Joh 4:20-24).
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
2 And Jesus answering said unto him, Seest thou these great buildings? there shall not be left one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down.
Ver. 2. There shall not be left one stone, &c. ] There is no trusting, therefore, to forts and strongholds; no, though they be munitions of rocks, as Isaiah speaketh. The Jebusites that jeered David and his forces were thrown out of their Sion. Babylon, that bore herself bold upon her twenty years’ provision laid in for a siege, and upon her high towers and thick walls, was surprised by Cyrus. So was this goodly temple by Titus, who left only three towers of this stately edifice unrazed, to declare unto posterity the strength of the place and valour of the vanquisher. But sixty-five years after, Aelius Hadrian inflicting on the rebelling Jews a wonderful slaughter, subverted those remainders, and sprinkled salt upon the foundation.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Mar 13:2 . : a question, do you see? to fix attention on an object concerning which a startling statement is to be made. , great buildings, acknowledging the justness of the admiration and pointing to a feature which might seem incompatible with the statement following: that vast strong pile surely proof against destruction!
Fuente: The Expositors Greek Testament by Robertson
Jesus. See App-98.
Seest. Greek. blepo. App-133.
not = by no means. Greek. ou me (App-106), denoting absolute certainty. The same word as in verses: Mar 13:30, Mar 13:31; not the same as in verses: Mar 13:7, Mar 13:11, Mar 13:14, Mar 7:15, Mar 7:16, Mar 7:19, Mar 7:21, Mar 7:24, Mar 7:33, Mar 7:35.
upon. Greek. epi, App-104.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
And Jesus
Mat 24:3 on the Olivet discourse: (See Scofield “Mat 24:3”).
Fuente: Scofield Reference Bible Notes
there: 1Ki 9:7, 1Ki 9:8, 2Ch 7:20, 2Ch 7:21, Jer 26:18, Mic 3:12, Mat 24:2, Luk 19:41-44, Luk 21:6, Act 6:14, Rev 11:2
Reciprocal: 2Ch 24:13 – in his state Ezr 5:8 – great stones Lam 4:1 – the stones Dan 9:26 – the prince Mat 24:1 – show Luk 19:44 – leave Luk 21:5 – as
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
2
Notwithstanding the seeming indestructible form of the building, Jesus predicted that the time was coming wlien it not only would be wrecked, but the destruction would be so great that all the stones would be scattered out over the ground.
Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary
Mar 13:2. These great buildings. Our Lord takes up the thought of His disciples, and prophecies the complete destruction of this great edifice.
Fuente: A Popular Commentary on the New Testament
Verse 2
There shall not be left, &c.; that is, it shall be utterly destroyed. The expression is probably not intended to mean that literally every single stone should be separated from the rest.
Fuente: Abbott’s Illustrated New Testament
Jesus predicted the complete destruction of the temple buildings (cf. Jer 7:11-14). This happened in A.D. 70 when Titus the Roman destroyed the city of Jerusalem. He razed the buildings and porches on the temple esplanade so thoroughly that no trace of them remains today. Not even their exact location on the temple mount is certain.
"Up to this point during this day, Jesus had acted as God’s Forthteller, applying the truth of God to the scene before Him; with this statement, He turned to predictive prophecy, declaring the near future." [Note: Hiebert, pp. 315-16.]
However this prophecy has not yet attained complete fulfillment. There are still many stones still standing on one another in the temple complex, specifically in its foundations. What Jesus proceeded to predict shows that complete fulfillment would not come until the future (i.e., the Tribulation).