Olivet Discourse

Biblical Text and Content

The Olivet Discourse appears in all three Synoptic Gospels, a term that refers collectively to Matthew, Mark, and Luke, which are similar in content and structure. The passages are Matthew 24–25, Mark 13, and Luke 21:5–36. A "discourse" is an extended teaching that sets out and expounds a particular theme; the name does not occur in the biblical text itself but was given by later interpreters.

The discourse arises from a conversation about the temple buildings. As Jesus leaves the Jerusalem temple, his disciples point out its buildings, and Jesus replies, "There shall not be left here one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down" (Matthew 24:2). Later, as he sits on the Mount of Olives, the disciples ask when these things will happen and what sign will accompany them. Mark 13:3 identifies those who asked as Peter, James, John, and Andrew. Luke presents the discourse as delivered in the temple, and the Mount of Olives is mentioned separately in Luke 21:37.

The main points of Jesus' teaching are as follows:

• The beginning of sorrows: False christs will appear, and there will be wars, famines, and earthquakes (Matthew 24:4–8).
• Persecution and the preaching of the gospel: The disciples will suffer persecution, and the gospel must first be preached among all nations (Mark 13:10).
• The abomination of desolation: This expression is drawn from the book of Daniel. It is followed by a warning that those who see it should flee to the mountains (Matthew 24:15–22). Luke 21:20 renders the same section as "when ye shall see Jerusalem compassed with armies."
• The coming of the Son of Man: Accompanied by signs in the heavens, the Son of Man comes on the clouds (Matthew 24:30–31).
• The lesson of the fig tree: Just as one knows that summer is near when the fig tree's branch becomes tender, so believers are to discern the signs. The saying "This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled" (Matthew 24:34) appears in this section.
• Watchfulness: No one knows the day or the hour, not even the Son, but only the Father (Mark 13:32–33). Matthew supplements this teaching with the comparison to the days of Noah, the parable of the faithful servant, the parable of the ten virgins, the parable of the talents, and the parable of the sheep and the goats.

Background

The Mount of Olives is a ridge east of Jerusalem, across the Kidron Valley, overlooking the temple. In the Old Testament, Zechariah 14:4 declares that on the day of the LORD "his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives." The temple whose destruction Jesus foretold was the one greatly expanded by Herod, and it was destroyed by the Roman army in AD 70. The Greek word translated "coming" in Matthew 24:3 is parousia, meaning arrival or presence. In the New Testament the word is used chiefly to refer to the Second Coming.

Significance in Scripture as a Whole

The Olivet Discourse is the most extended treatment of eschatology in the Gospels. It takes up the apocalyptic language of the book of Daniel and is frequently read alongside the teaching in 1 Thessalonians 5:1–11 that the day of the Lord comes "as a thief in the night," as well as the visions of judgment in Revelation. Because its content resembles apocalyptic literature, Mark 13 is also called the "Little Apocalypse."

Interpretation and Points of Debate

The chief point of contention is how much of the prophecy was fulfilled in AD 70 and how much refers to the future.

• Preterist interpretation: Holds that most of the content was fulfilled in the destruction of Jerusalem, reading "this generation" as referring to Jesus' contemporaries.
• Futurist interpretation: Regards the main content as events that will occur just before the Second Coming. The dispensationalist position connects the passage with the coming Great Tribulation and the Antichrist, and sometimes reads "the one shall be taken, and the other left" (Matthew 24:40) in relation to the Rapture.
• Dual-fulfillment interpretation: Holds that the prophecies of the temple's destruction and of the end of the world overlap, with the near fulfillment (the destruction of Jerusalem) foreshadowing the distant fulfillment (the Second Coming). Many evangelical interpreters, including those in the Reformed tradition, hold this view.

Interpreters are also divided over whether being "taken" refers to the Rapture or to being swept away in judgment, as in the flood of Noah's day. Moreover, while the passage speaks of signs, it forbids calculating dates (Matthew 24:36; Acts 1:7). Accordingly, the text itself does not identify any particular year or event as the time of the Second Coming.

In the Korean Church

In the Korean church, this passage is frequently used in sermons on the "signs of the last days" and in teaching about the Second Coming. The parable of the ten virgins and the parable of the talents in particular serve as leading texts for teaching watchfulness and faithfulness. In 1992, the Dami Mission and other groups claimed that the Rapture would take place on October 28 of that year, but nothing happened on that day. As a result, so-called date-setting eschatology became a social issue, and many denominations and theologians criticized attempts to set dates, citing Mark 13:32 and other passages.