<p>21:20 <i>But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then know that her desolation is at hand</i>- Jerusalem was truly &ldquo;compassed with armies&rdquo; in Hezekiah&rsquo;s time, and perhaps the Lord has this in mind when He predicted that Jerusalem would again be like this in the last days. His subsequent warning to those in the country areas not running into Jerusalem for refuge is also an allusion to the situation in Hezekiah&rsquo;s time- for this was exactly what happened then.</p><p>We need not get overly worried about the supposed discrepancies between prophecy and its historical fulfilment. Such differences don't negate the Divine inspiration of the original prophecy- rather do they show how God's intentions can be worked out in different ways because of the open-ended approach He takes to human response. Thus it's been observed that the siege of Jerusalem in AD66-70 doesn't exactly follow the descriptions in Lk. 19:41-44 and 21:20-24. This would be because there were within the Olivet prophecy a number of possible scenarios of what could happen <i>if</i> the believers fled the city as commanded; and of course, <i>if</i> Israel repented and accepted Christ at His AD70 'coming' in judgment. Additionally we must remember that this prophecy was only having its initial fulfilment in AD70- the final fulfilment will be in our last days.</p><p>The placing of the abomination is what will bring about the desolation, according to Mk. and Mt. On Revelation 17 and 18 I suggest that the whore Babylon will enthrone herself in Jerusalem, through the building of some Islamic and blasphemous religious building or capital there. And this will lead to her desolation. Luke records the Lord as saying that&nbsp;<i>when</i>&nbsp;Jerusalem was surrounded by armies,&nbsp;<i>then</i>&nbsp;His people should know that the &quot;desolation&quot; of it was near. The desolation is therefore of Jerusalem rather than specifically the temple (Lk. 21:20). The abominating desolation could therefore refer to the invading armies. Seeing&nbsp;<i>them&nbsp;</i>was the signal to flee. &quot;Abomination&quot; in the Old Testament typically refers to idolatry or paganism. One interpretation is that the desolator would place some pagan religious symbol in the temple. But this is the sign to flee, and this was only done by the Romans after the city had fallen. That, therefore, doesn&rsquo;t really fit the requirements of the prophecy. The AD70 interpretation notes the pagan standards of the Roman legions, but even they were not placed in the temple. This was defended until the end, until the Romans forced entry, pulled it down and burnt it. As with many details of this prophecy, a future fulfilment is required. And yet we need to note that such desolation was only a visual reflection of the abomination the Jews had committed in the temple: &quot;Because of the evil of your doings, and because of the&nbsp;<i>abominations&nbsp;</i>which ye have committed; therefore is your land a&nbsp;<i>desolation&nbsp;</i>and an astonishment, and a curse, without an inhabitant, as at this day&quot; (Jer. 44:22). The abomination which caused desolation may not simply refer to some pagan symbols in the temple area. Josephus records that the Jewish zealots came into the Most Holy place, &quot;placed an imposter in office as high priest, and ordained unqualified misfits to the priesthood&quot; (<i>The Jewish Wars</i>&nbsp;4.3.6&ndash;9; 4.5.4). The pagan Idumeans were invited into the Most Holy by the zealots in order to murder the chief priest Annas.</p><p>The word &quot;desolation&quot; is used again about the desolation of the Babylon system (Rev. 17:16; 18:17,19). Yet Babylon will be judged according to what it did to God's people- the judgment for 'desolating' will be 'desolation'. Yet the Olivet prophecy clearly intended the Roman armies to be the means of the desolation, but I suggest that Revelation extends the prophecy by giving more detail, and describing the system of desolation as 'Babylon'. And that system clearly has similarities with Rome- it could have been fulfilled in Rome, but because the fulfilment of the prophecy was rescheduled, we can look for another equivalent of the enigmatic 'Babylon' of the last days. The &quot;desolation&quot; referred to is clearly to be understood as the fulfilment of Dan. 9:26,27 LXX, which says that the abomination that desolates will come &quot;after the cutting off of Messiah the Prince&quot;. Whilst how long &quot;after&quot; is not defined, we are surely intended to understand that the desolating abomination comes soon after the death of Messiah:&nbsp; &quot;The people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; and&nbsp;<i>the end&nbsp;</i>thereof (&quot;then shall&nbsp;<i>the end</i>&nbsp;come&quot;, Mt. 24:14) shall be with a flood, (&quot;as the days of Noah...&quot;), and unto&nbsp;<i>the end&nbsp;</i>shall be war;&nbsp;<i>desolations&nbsp;</i>are determined . . . and upon the temple of&nbsp;<i>abominations&nbsp;</i>shall come one that makes&nbsp;<i>desolate&nbsp;</i>(cp. &quot;your house is left unto you desolate&quot;, Mt.23:38),&nbsp; even unto the consummation, and that determined shall be poured out upon the desolated&quot; (LXX). And yet note that that prophecy itself had had various potential fulfilments which didn&rsquo;t come true. So it is fair to think that it could have had a fulfilment in AD70, but this was again deferred- for the same reason as ever, Israel&rsquo;s lack of repentance.</p>