The Pulpit Commentary — Matthew — Volume 2 — Section 430

the la hours of most of the apostles, but if The prophecy in Dan. :ti. 81 hee been we mRy judge of tl,eir ext.ent from what generally roferred to the doings of Antioch us we know of St. Paul's, we should ee.y that Epipbanee (eee I Mncc. i. M), and the pre- very few quarters of the Roman world were sent is considered to relate to something a.no.• left unrieited. "Their sound went out logous. "Abomination " in the Old Testa- into all the earth, and their words unto the ment is generally oonnected with idolatry end& of the inhabited world" (Rom. x. 18). or sacrilege; "of desolation" is equivalent SL Paul testifies that the gospel w&e to " that eauses desolation." Among the preaohed to every kingdom under heaven many explanations of this passage whioh (Col. i. 6, 23). He himself carried it to have been offered, two only se,•m worthy Ara.bi&, Syria, Asia Minor, Greece, Illyricnm, of oonsidemtion. (1) The desolating e.bomi• Rome, Spain (see Rom. xv. 19, 24, 28; Gal. nation is referred to the Roman armies i 17; Phil. i 13, eto.). A witness unto &ll encamped around Jeruse.lem (Luke lli 20), (the] nationa. That both Jews and Gentiles of which the symbol was the legionaries' might have the opportunity of receiving or eagles, regarded with revereno.,.. by the rejecting Christ. The witness should be soldiers. But in opposition to this vie.w it for or againet them aooording to the use may be so.id, if the holy plaoe, without the made of thill opportunity. Ir the gospel article, signifies the Holy Land, then the thua delivered contained this uttera.nee of presence of the Le.tin forces would be no our Lord's, the fnlfilment of the predictions new sign to the Jewish people, &e they had would lead to belief in him, and could been familiar with such a eight for many fail to win acoept&nce only by reason of years. If the temple itself is meant, it is invincible prejudice or wilful perversity. ple.in that it would be too late to fly from Shortly, the truth is that the gospel will that doomed city when the Roman eagles be everywhere offered, but not everywhere were e.lrea.dy in the hallowed courts. (2) received. And then, when all these signs, The alternative interpretation, whioh hail especially the one last named, shall have seemed to many more probable; explains it appeared, ahall the end eome, primarily of of the sanguinary deeds of the Zee.lots, who, Jerusalem, seoonda.rily of this world or this after the war ha.d been carried on for some age. Nothing is mid of the effect of years, seized the temple, pnt e. stop to the missionary eifortll in early daya or in daily sacrifice, deluged the 111LOred courts time to come. We know that there WBB no with blood, and were guilty of most hideous national conversion in the primitive era, crirnes and excesses, which, a.s Josephna however common individual conversion testifies, were the immediate ou.use of the may have been. So in the present age we city's ruin (see Josephus, • Bell. Jud.,' are not to expect more than that Christian iv. 8. 7, eto.; 5. 1, 2; 6. 3; v. 9. 4; vi. 2; miasiona ahall reach the uttermost parts of and Wordsworth's note on this ver. 15). the earth, and tha.t all nationa she.II have The presence and acts of these ruffle.us were the offer of salvation, before the fine.I to be the signal for the escape of the appearance of Christ. The success of Christians. I must confess that. neither of these elforts at universe.I eve.ngelization is these explane.tiona satisfies me. The primal • mournful problem. " When the Son of fulfilment of De.niel's propheoy is found in man cometh, eh.all he .find the faith upon the erection of the statue of Jupiter in the 1he earth?" (Luke xviii. 8). temple by the order of Antioch us Epiphanes, Ver. 15.-In this second strain of the and the pollution of the altar by the soori.fice prophecy contained in vers. 15-22, our of swine thereon. Olll' Lord would seem Lord oon.finea himself almost entirely to to refer to something analogous whioh the fate of J ernsalem. Therefore. The should give the Christians a signal fo, illative partiole carries us back to the signs escape before the complete investiture. of given in the previoUB section (vers. 5-14). the city. The deeds of Zee.lots and assa.ssms, By saying when ye 1he.ll see, he implies however atrocious, could oot with any that some of his hearers shall behold this propriety be desoribed as "abotriine.tion mysterious sign, and have the opportunity that me.keth desolate standing in the holy of profiting by the knowledge thereof. The place." The term, RCCOrding to scriptural abomination of desolation (-rll IJ6b.. ,ryµ,a -rijs analogy, must refer to some se.erilege and il"lp,{,,rn»s). The term is from the Septua- pollution connected with idolatry, of which gint Vereion (with which Theodotion's certainly the Zealots were not guilty. The ■grees) ofDe.11. xii 11; in Dan. ix. 27 we find Fathers, recognizing this, have • seen the flli,:i..,,.,,.,_., .,.,;,, ip-t1µ,l,,,r,~11, wllere the Hebrew fn.l.filment in the erection of images of the Jives, "Upon the wing [or, 'pinnacle?, Roman emperors in the temple or its pre- of abomine.tiona shall come the desolater. ' eincts. But we lte.ve no account of any such .Al■o in Dan. xi 81 we have the simple a.et preceding the final siege. •Pil~to's IJl,,11.,ry,..,,_ What is meant by the 1nm in attempted introduction'of the Roman ensigns our text ia a matter of unsettled dispute. wa.s defeated by tho threatenini:; attitude·of  on. XXIV.1-51.] TIIE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO ST. MATTIIE\V. 435