The abomination of desolate darkness

 

And forces shall be mustered by him, and they shall defile the sanctuary fortress; then they shall take away the daily sacrifices, and place there the abomination of desolation.  --Daniel 11:31

We live in a period of spiritual darkness.  In the 1900 years since the biblical canon was closed (with the death of the Apostle John ca 100 A.D.), there has been no new revelation from God.  With God seemingly silent for so long, Satan has succeeded in confusing the hearts of men as to the true source of light.  Men have called good evil and evil good for so long that at the very least lines are blurred, and at the very worst sin has overcome the world. 

This is what Paul wrote about in Ephesians 6:12: "For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places."  Evil evolves over time to appeal to changes in the hearts and minds of humanity.   With each news cycle comes a new lament, a new injustice that must be made right, yet the solutions put forth by the world have no basis in Truth, because truth is relative; they have no foundation in Faith, because so many faiths lead to an incoherence of inclusiveness.  We have made an idol of Science, yet we refuse to acknowledge basic biology--people born with either an X or Y chromosome can ignore science and determine their own gender based on their own proclivity for sinning.

Christian author Frank E. Peretti wrote in This Present Darkness, "I understand that sometimes the truth of God's word can become a divider, an irritation, a stone of stumbling.  But that's only because it remains unchanged, uncompromising, and steadfast.  And what better reason could there be to build our lives on such an immovable foundation?  To violate the Word of God is only to destroy ourselves, our joy, our peace, our happiness."

I think that's what the Bible means when it talks about "the abomination of desolation."  When God seems so far from us, we feel desolate, and are prone to making choices antithetical to scripture.  In Scripture, there is a close relationship between idolatry and the idea of abomination.  Therefore, when desolation or the feeling of being abandoned by God becomes our idol, and the result is abominable.

Continuing our study of Mark 13, Jesus continues his discourse with the disciples about the end of the world.  If you read my last post, you will recall that the disciples marveled at the construction of Herod's Temple, and when Jesus predicted that it would be torn down with "not one stone left upon another," they thought that its destruction would signal the end of the world.  They asked Jesus about the end of the world, when the Temple would be destroyed.  Jesus tried to separate the two events, but in verses 14 through 27 He transitions from one event (the destruction of the Temple) to the other (the time leading up to the end of the world).

But when you see the abomination of desolation standing where he ought not to be (let the reader understand), then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains.  Let the one who is on the housetop not go down, nor enter his house, to take anything out, and let the one who is in the field not turn back to take his cloak.  And alas for women who are pregnant and for those who are nursing infants in those days! Pray that it may not happen in winter.  For in those days there will be such tribulation as has not been from the beginning of the creation that God created until now, and never will be.  And if the Lord had not cut short the days, no human being would be saved.  But for the sake of the elect, whom He chose, He shortened the days.  --Mark 13:14-20.

As we have mentioned before, Herod's temple was destroyed by the Romans in 90 A.D.  From that time on, animal sacrifices stopped, signifying no further means of atonement for the Jews.  Jesus knew that Jews would be tortured and killed like never before, so He warned them to flee to the hills and take refuge in the rocks.  He prayed that this event would not happen during winter, and He bemoaned the fate of pregnant and nursing women during this period.  Skeptics might look at this passage and say it is patently false, pointing to the holocaust in the 1930's as the worst persecution of the Jews ever.  While the scale may have been greater, I would argue that death by gas chamber is more humane that being dragged through the streets by a Roman soldier, being killed by the sword (a gruesome way to die).  Imagine seeing your friends and family members being dismembered by a soldier's blade, or a pregnant mother having her belly cut open and seeing the unborn child as she slowly bled to death. 

Please understand, I am not downplaying or denying the holocaust.  The death of six million Jews was a terrible thing in world history.  However, the reason there were that many Jews in Europe was due in large part to the disbursement of the Jews, or diaspora, resulting from the Roman destruction of Jerusalem and the unspeakable things that happened to them there.

Moving on, Jesus's words regarding tribulation could have more than one meaning.  They could describe more than one event.  This is not uncommon in Jewish prophecy.  Take for example Isaiah 7:14, which is universally accepted as being a messianic prophecy: "Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign.  Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel."  While we all agree that it pointed to the birth of Jesus some 500 years later, it also had meaning to Ahaz, the king of Israel at the time.  Isaiah goes on to tell Ahaz that before the child reaches the age of accountability, being able to tell right from wrong, the two kings whom Ahaz feared would be dead, and their lands deserted.

Keeping this double-meaning in mind, we can also apply Jesus's prediction of persecution to also mean the future persecution of Christians.  Let's re-read the passage again, beginning in verse 19 and move on to where it obviously means an event occurring in the distant future, not just the next 60 years.

For in those days there will be such tribulation as has not been from the beginning of creation that God created until now, and never will be.  And if the Lord had not cut short the days, no human being would be saved.  But for the sake of the elect, whom He chose, He shortened the days.  And then if anyone says to you, 'Look, here is the Christ!' or 'Look, there He is!' do not believe it.  For false christs and false prophets will arise and  perform signs and wonders, to lead astray, if possible, the elect.  But be on guard; I have told you all things beforehand.  But in those days, after that tribulation, the sun will be darkened and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will be falling from heaven, and the powers in the heavens will be shaken.  And then they will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory.  And then He will send out the angels and gather His elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of heaven.  --Mark 13:19-27

The days will come, Jesus said, when persecution would seem to prevail, but He would protect His chosen people, the elect.  As time goes on, false messiahs would appear, and some would be quite convincing, even to the elect.  We were warned to be on guard, and watch for this to happen so we would not be deceived.

Jesus seemed to foretell a period of time when there would be no light; the sun would be darkened and the moon would not shine.  I believe we are in that period of time right now.  Darkness seems so pervasive that it appears we are abandoned, desolate.  The world has made an abomination of this desolation, proclaiming that there is no God, or if there ever was, He has abandoned us.  Thankfully, we do have something to look forward to.  Jesus will come in the clouds, and be seen in the sky.  He will gather His people, the elect, to Himself to take us home with Him forever.  Then He will judge the Earth.

Peretti wrote in Piercing the Darkness, "No amount of lies, no matter how cleverly couched, will ever outstrip or outlast God's truth, nor will any lie outreach His grace.  The Lord knows those who are His, His sheep here His voice, and the arm of the Lord is never so short that He cannot save."