Matthew 24:15 states, “Therefore when you see the ‘abomination of desolation,’ spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the set apart place” (whoever reads, let him understand), “then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains.”

Most Believers interpret this prophecy to mean that a third temple will be built in Jerusalem. According to their reasoning, a third temple must exist in Jerusalem in order for it to be desolated. Is this so?

In the Bible, the word “abomination” is used to refer to sin, which includes defiling the temple with something unclean (Deut. 23:18), idolatry (Deut. 28:15) and homosexuality (Lev. 18:22), etc, etc, etc. The phrase, the “abomination of desolation,” in verse 15 is a quotation from Daniel 9:27; 11:31 and 12:11. (cf. Mark 13:14) In Daniel, however, this phrase is more clearly translated, “the abomination that makes desolate.” Daniel’s prophecy regarding “the abomination that makes desolate” was initially fulfilled about 165 BC when Antiochus Epiphanes, the Greek ruler of Syria, placed an altar to the pagan god Zeus in the temple and sacrificed a pig, an unclean animal, on the altar of burnt offerings. As a result, the temple became “desolate” and the Jews would no longer worship there.

Of course, the fact that Yeshua prophesied, “Therefore when you see the ‘abomination of desolation,’ spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the set apart place” (whoever reads, let him understand), “then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains.” proves that there was to be a second fulfillment of Daniel’s prophecy that would occur in the future!

Notice that the word “therefore” in Yeshua’s statement, “Therefore when you see the ‘abomination of desolation,’…” is used as a conjunction. This means that Yeshua had already addressed the prophecy regarding the abomination that makes desolate in a previous statement. Of course, in order to identify the right statement we must work backwards and examine each Scripture one by one! Verse 14 states, “And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come.” Obviously, the gospel of the kingdom is not “the abomination that makes desolate.” Verse 13 states, “But he who endures to the end shall be saved.” Again, this is not it! Verse 12 states, “And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold.” Clearly, this is it! The context proves that the phrase, “the abomination of desolation,” refers back to lawlessness! Why?

The word “lawlessness” was translated from the ancient Greek word “anomia”- a word derived from the root word “nomos,” which means “law” and the prefix “a,” which means, “against” or “in opposition to.” Significantly, when the Old Testament was translated into Ancient Greek in the 3rd century B.C., the translators rendered the Hebrew word “Torah” as “nomos.” Thus, the word “anomia” means, “against Torah” or “in opposition to Torah” and this Scripture is better translated, “And because opposition to Torah will increase, the love of many will grow cold.” The Complete Jewish Bible states, “and many people’s love will grow cold because of increased distance from Torah.” 1 John 3:4 makes the definition of the word “lawlessness” even more clear; it states, “...sin is lawlessness” or “sin is Torahlessness.”

Of course, since the context proves that the phrase, “the abomination of desolation,” which is sin, refers back to Torahlessness, it stands to reason that Yeshua’s statements in verses 13 and 14 are interjectory thoughts! Thus, the entire prophecy regarding the abomination that makes desolation, including the interjectory thoughts, is better translated: “And because Torahlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold. (“But he who endures to the end shall be saved. “And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come.) “Therefore when you see the ‘abomination of desolation,’ spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the set apart place” (whoever reads, let him understand), “then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains.”

Why did Yeshua pause for a moment to address thoughts that were not directly related to the main context? The answer is found within the context! The disciples had asked Him, “Tell us, when will these things be? And what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?” (vs. 3) His answer included a series of terrifying prophetic events, starting with false christs (vv. 4-5) and building up to Torahlessness! It was immediately after He spoke of Torahlessnees that He addressed His interjectory thoughts! Why?

In order to understand why Yeshua spoke His interjectorily thoughts immediately after He spoke of Torahlessness, we must first understand how the first-century Jews thought of Torah! The fact is that most Jews held Torah in the highest esteem! It defined who they were as a people! They couldn’t imagine life without it! They knew that it held the key to eternal life (John 5:39)! Yeshua’s initial prophesies were extremely disturbing! They must have taken Him a few minutes to develop and, as one might imagine, as He revealed them one by one, the intensity level of the disciples increased more and more! Then, when Yeshua prophesied, “And because Torahlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold…,” the disciples must have been shaken to their very core, so shocked that they were unable to speak! That is why Yeshua paused for a moment, because it was necessary to reassure them that, regardless of their circumstances, God would save His people! Then, after calming His people down, He immediately returned to the main context connecting Torahlessness to the abomination that makes desolate with the word “Therefore!”

The New Testament teaches that the temple symbolizes both the individual believer (1 Cor. 3:16-17; 6:19-20; 2 Cor. 6:16-18) and the congregation (Eph. 2:14-22; 2 Thess. 2:4). And incredibly, this interpretation is consistent with that teaching! Thus, Yeshua’s prophecy regarding the abomination that makes desolate refers to a future event when the Body of Messiah was to become desolate as a result of Torahlessness or sin!

I believe that the the way to interpret the Bible is that the Scriptures that need interpretation, like Matthew 24:15 and the Scriptures that seem to suggest that there will be future sacrifices must be interpreted by those Scriptures that need no interpretation, like "we are the temple!" In other words, those Scriptures that speak of sacrifices being ended in the future must be understood in light of the fact that we are the temple!

Acts 17:24 states, "God, who made the world and everything in it, since He is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands."

Jeremiah 3:12 states, “Go and proclaim these words toward the north, and say: ‘Return, backsliding Israel,’ says YHVH; ‘I will not cause My anger to fall on you. For I am merciful,’ says YHVH; ‘I will not remain angry forever.” Here, God commands His ministers to preach the gospel (Matt. 24:14) to the house of Israel which is, in effect, His proposal of remarriage to them! Matthew 10:5-6 states, “These twelve Yeshua sent out and commanded them, saying: “Do not go into the way of the Gentiles, and do not enter a city of the Samaritans. But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.”

Verse 13 states, “Only acknowledge your iniquity, That you have transgressed against YHVH your God, And have scattered your charms To alien deities under every green tree, And you have not obeyed My voice,’ says YHVH.” Again, Yehovah has decreed that Israel must repent of their sins before He regathers them.

Verse 14 states, “Return, O backsliding children,” says YHVH; “for I am married to you. I will take you, one from a city and two from a family, and I will bring you to Zion.” Here, Yehovah prophesies that a significant number of people from the house of Israel will repent and that He will remarry her.

Verse 15 states, “And I will give you shepherds according to My heart, who will feed you with knowledge and understanding.” Here, God states that He will appoint new shepherds over the house of Israel. Of course, these new shepherds are the ministers of the new covenant. 2 Corinthians 3:4-6 states, “And we have such trust through Messiah toward God. Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think of anything as being from ourselves, but our sufficiency is from God, who also made us sufficient as ministers of the new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.”

Verse 16 states, “Then it shall come to pass, when you are multiplied and increased in the land in those days,” says YHVH, “that they will say no more, ‘The ark of the covenant of YHVH.’ It shall not come to mind, nor shall they remember it, nor shall they visit it, nor shall it be made anymore.” Why is the physical ark of the covenant no longer of any significance? Because under the new covenant, the Torah is written on our minds and on our hearts (Jer. 31:31-34; Heb. 8:8-13).

How do you explain the priesthood changing in light of your interpretation of Matthew 5:17-18?