Luke 21:8–27

⁸Jesus said, “Be on guard; don’t be deceived. Many men, claiming to speak for me, will come and say, ‘I am he!’ and, ‘The time has come!’ But don’t follow them. ⁹Don’t be afraid when you hear of wars and revolutions; such things must happen first, but they do not mean that the end is near.”

¹⁰He went on to say, “Countries will fight each other; kingdoms will attack one another. ¹¹There will be terrible earthquakes, famines, and plagues everywhere; there will be strange and terrifying things coming from the sky. ¹²Before all these things take place, however, you will be arrested and persecuted; you will be handed over to be tried in synagogues and be put in prison; you will be brought before kings and rulers for my sake. ¹³This will be your chance to tell the Good News. ^14*Make up your minds beforehand not to worry about how you will defend yourselves, ^15*because I will give you such words and wisdom that none of your enemies will be able to refute or contradict what you say. ¹⁶You will be handed over by your parents, your brothers, your relatives, and your friends; and some of you will be put to death. ¹⁷Everyone will hate you because of me. ¹⁸But not a single hair from your heads will be lost. ¹⁹Stand firm, and you will save yourselves.

Jesus Speaks of the Destruction of Jerusalem

²⁰“When you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then you will know that it will soon be destroyed. ²¹Then those who are in Judea must run away to the hills; those who are in the city must leave, and those who are out in the country must not go into the city. ^22*For those will be ‘The Days of Punishment’, to make all that the Scriptures say come true. ²³How terrible it will be in those days for women who are pregnant and for mothers with little babies! Terrible distress will come upon this land, and God’s punishment will fall on this people. ²⁴Some will be killed by the sword, and others will be taken as prisoners to all countries; and the heathen will trample over Jerusalem until their time is up.

The Coming of the Son of Man

^25*“There will be strange things happening to the sun, the moon, and the stars. On earth whole countries will be in despair, afraid of the roar of the sea and the raging tides. ²⁶People will faint from fear as they wait for what is coming over the whole earth, for the powers in space will be driven from their courses. ^27*Then the Son of Man will appear, coming in a cloud with great power and glory.