James and John and Andrew asked him privately, Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign when all these things shall be fulfilled?

The temple-service was an essential ingredient, in the constitution of the Jewish polity, and necessary to its very existence. The destruction of the temple was therefore the appropriate sign of God's new kingdom, and the pledge of its establishment. This accordingly is the point to which all the other signs tend, and is itself naturally the last in the series. But on account of the distinct character of this sign, the prophecy begins with it, and then describes the several approximations to it. For the same reason our present inquiry will most properly begin with the question, Whether, within the period of the generation who were alive at the time of the prediction, this event did take place? It was even so. Titus destroyed the temple and city, and passed the ploughshare over its ruins, in token of its being destined by the conqueror to be left desolate for ever. The barren fig tree was now indeed "withered from the roots." We know too, that notwithstanding the attempt of the apostate emperor Julian, and the natural desire of the Jews

in all ages, it has to this day remained unbuilt; although its condition is inconsistent with the existence of the Jews as God's peculiar people; and is the test selected for all generations, of the truth of Christ's assertion, that he was the Messiah, and that the new theocracy is established.

THE RISE OF FALSE CHRISTS.
Ver. 5, 6.

And Jesus answering them began to say, Take heed lest any man deceive you: for many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many.

There can be no stronger proof of the full conviction that the Jews of our Saviour's time had, of the period of their Messiah's advent being come, than the ready credulity with which they followed pretender after pretender, and the enthusiasm which anticipated and gave birth to these impostures. 'I am come," said our Lord to them, "in my Father's name, (i. e. doing mighty works in my Father's name,) and ye receive me not: if another shall come in his own name, (i. e. claiming to be received on his bare word,) him ye will receive." His prophetic declaration

* John v. 43.

was most fully verified. Josephus, the Jewish historian, records several instances; and one is alluded to in the history of the Acts under the character of" that Egyptian, which before these days made an uproar, and led out into the wilderness four thousand men that were murderers." This took place, according to Josephus and Eusebius, during the procuratorship of Felix.

WARS AND RUMOURS OF WARS.
Ver. 7, 8.

And when ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars, be ye not troubled for such things must needs be; but the end shall not be yet. For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom.

The continual agitation of men's minds during the reigns of Otho and Vitellius, and still more on Vespasian becoming a candidate for the imperial crown, were events in which this prediction of "kingdom rising against kingdom," and war felt, and reported, might be certainly recognized. But, as during all these troubled scenes, the Jews were waiting, with ill-suppressed longings after vengeance, for the vainly

y Acts xxi. 38.

expected signal from a temporal Messiah; this is more probably the specific circumstance pointed at in the hint of "rumours of wars." There was, no doubt, a sullen and foreboding murmur going through the nation, such as generally precedes the revolutionary efforts of an oppressed people, long before the rebellion was actually determined on. Without Christ's warning, the disciples might have been induced to expect, that it would lead sooner than it actually did to the final overthrow predicted.

EARTHQUAKES, FAMINES, AND TROUBLES.

Ver. 8.

And there shall be earthquakes in divers places, and there shall be famines and troubles: these are the beginnings of

sorrows.

To this list of natural evils St. Matthew adds " pestilences "." As these are almost the certain result of famine, or great scarcity of food, they may be considered as implied in the account of any remarkable scarcity. Such a famine took place in the fourth year of Claudius Cæsar's reign. It was specifically foretold by Agabus, Chapter xxiv. 7:

and was the occasion of the first contribution at Antioch for the relief of the Christians of Judæa, who, on the strength of the prediction, were provided against the eventa. Eusebius states, that the whole Roman empire was affected by it.

Pestilence is also one of the natural effects of an earthquake; and of earthquakes we have a great deal recorded. Besides those which appear from Philostratus, the biographer of Apollonius Tyanæus, to have been felt at this period in Crete, Smyrna, Miletus, and Chios; Josephus mentions one which occurred in Judæa while the Idumæans were encamped near Jerusalem. this especially happened, without the prophetic check, the Christians might have supposed that the holy city was destined to fall by it in part, and might have abandoned their post before the time determined.

Had

Of tumults, the whole history of the period displays one uninterrupted series; and, as each of these, like the earthquake and the murmuring of the Jews, might have made the time of Jerusalem's fate seem nearer than it really was, we easily

a Acts xi. 28.