• Original Article: https://www.noachide.ca/wiki/doku.php?id=the_prophecies_of_jesus#the_second_temple_will_be_destroyed
• Updated in 2024-01 with new information.

Jesus Foretells Destruction of the Temple

1 Jesus left the temple and was going away, when his disciples came to point out to him the buildings of the temple. 2 But he answered them, “You see all these, do you not? Truly, I say to you, there will not be left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down.”Matthew 24:1-2 (ESV)

Jesus Foretells Destruction of the Temple

And as he came out of the temple, one of his disciples said to him, “Look, Teacher, what wonderful stones and what wonderful buildings!” 2 And Jesus said to him, “Do you see these great buildings? There will not be left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down.”Mark 13:1-2 (ESV)

Many upon hearing these words assume that the prophecy is with respect to the buildings of the temple itself. The charge then becomes what about the western wall, the guardhouse, and many other structures and walls left standing on the temple mount? Christians will often defend this by saying the walls or guardhouses don't count. As ironic as this statement is, new evidence suggests it is a response to a strawman.

When we analyze Jesus' prophecy in Matthew 24:2 (and the same prophecy in the other Christian gospels) we see that special reference is made to the stones of the building using special language; this language is found to be a scriptural reference. An educated Jew of the 1st century would understand these references immediately however we in the modern day would not understand them upon hearing. Let us examine the scriptures to unravel the mystery of the Prophecy of the Destruction of the Temple, how Christians got it wrong, how Jesus's prophecy failed, and what this means for Christians and Jews everywhere.

• His disciples marveled at the stones of the buildings. Jesus said they would be thrown down. What would this mean to someone living in Jerusalem in the 1st century?

Also see:

• Other Destruction Prophecies
  • Ezekiel 7:20
  • Jeremiah 26:18
  • Micah 3:12
  • 1 Kings 9:7-8 (why has the lord done this)
  • Daniel 9:26-27 (cut off)

Behold, days are coming,’ declares the LORD, ‘when I will fulfill the good word which I have spoken concerning the house of Israel and the house of Judah. In those days and at that time I will cause a righteous Branch of David to spring forth; and He shall execute justice and righteousness on the earth. In those days Judah shall be saved, and Jerusalem shall dwell in safety; and this is the name by which she shall be called: the LORD is our righteousness.’ For thus says the LORD, ‘David shall never lack a man to sit on the throne of the house of Israel; and the Levitical priests shall never lack a man before Me to offer burnt offerings, to burn grain offerings, and to prepare sacrifices continually.Jeremiah 33:14-18 (NASB)

On October 13th 2006, 71 Jewish religious leaders re-established the ancient Sanhedrin. This used to be the supreme religious court that resided on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem, prior to its destruction by the Romans in 70A.D. Many cities had smaller sanhedrins, but the Supreme Court in Jerusalem was called the Great Sanhedrin. It is this Great Sanhedrin that has now been re-established. There were three places on the Temple Mount, mentioned in Mishnah Middot 5.4, where they used to meet over 1900 years ago. The most well-known location was the so-called Chamber of Hewn Stone. This chamber was located to the southeast of the Temple, as can be seen on this model of Herod’s Temple Mount (image A)“The New Sanhedrin and the Temple Mount”
Leen Ritmeyer (2007)
https://www.ritmeyer.com/2007/03/11/the-new-sanhedrin-and-the-temple-mount/

Jesus Weeps over Jerusalem

41 And when he drew near and saw the city, he wept over it, 42 saying, “Would that you, even you, had known on this day the things that make for peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes. 43 For the days will come upon you, when your enemies will set up a barricade around you and surround you and hem you in on every side 44 and tear you down to the ground, you and your children within you. And they will not leave one stone upon another in you, because you did not know the time of your visitation.” Jesus Cleanses the Temple

45 And he entered the temple and began to drive out those who sold, 46 saying to them, “It is written, ‘My house shall be a house of prayer,’ but you have made it a den of robbers.”Luke 19:41-46 (ESV)