Prophecies Of The Temple’s Destruction

Q

Did the Apostles write anything about the temple being destroyed? I know Jesus mentions that the temple would be destroyed and raised up in three days. Also, do you think Matthew 22:7 is a prophecy of the temple being destroyed? If they did write something to indicate that, were there any Jewish writings in existence indicating that the Christian writings of the Apostles concerning the destruction of the temple had been fulfilled? Surely they must have been astonished?

A

Jesus spoke about the Temple being destroyed, which is recorded in Matthew 24:2, Mark 13:2, Luke 19:43-44 and Luke 21:6. These prophecies were all in circulation before the Temple’s destruction. The passage you quoted from John 2:19 is actually a symbolic reference to His death and resurrection.

Matt. 22:7, although spoken in the context of a parable, can be seen in hindsight as a prophecy concerning the destruction of Jerusalem, but I doubt if anyone saw it that way before the fact.

To my knowledge, the Jews never officially connected the Temple’s destruction with the Lord’s prophecies. One can understand why. Of course, their private conclusions remain unknown to us. During the Lord’s time only a small minority of religious leaders believed in a literal interpretation of prophecy, which is why they failed to understand what was happening right before their eyes. It’s like that today as well.