True Giving

21 ¹Jesus saw some rich people putting their gifts for God into the temple money box.* ²Then Jesus saw a poor widow.* She put two small copper coins into the box. ³Jesus said, "I tell you the truth. This poor widow gave only two small coins. But she really gave more than all those rich people. ⁴The rich people have plenty; they gave only what they did not need. This woman is very poor. But she gave all she had. And she needed that money to help her live."

The Destruction of the Temple

⁵Some of the followers were talking about the temple.* They said, "This is a beautiful temple, built with the best stones. Look at the many good gifts that have been offered to God!" ⁶But Jesus said, "The time will come when all that you see here will be destroyed. Every stone [of these buildings] will be thrown down to the ground. Not one stone will be left on another!" ⁷Some followers asked Jesus, "Teacher, when will these things happen? What will show us that it is time for these things to happen?" ⁸Jesus said, "Be careful! Don't be fooled. Many people will come using my name. They will say, 'I am [the Christ*]' and, 'The right time has come!' But don't follow them. ⁹When you hear about wars and riots, don't be afraid. These things must happen first. Then the end will come later." ¹⁰Then Jesus said to them, "Nations will fight against other nations. Kingdoms will fight against other kingdoms. ¹¹There will be great earthquakes, sicknesses, and other bad things in many places. In some places there will be no food for the people to eat. Terrible things will happen, and amazing things will come from heaven to warn people. ¹²"But before all these things happen, people will arrest you and do bad things to you. People will judge you in their synagogues* and put you in jail. You will be forced to stand before kings and governors. People will do all these things to you because you follow me. ¹³But this will give you an opportunity to tell about me. ¹⁴Don't worry about what you will say. ¹⁵I will give you the wisdom to say things that none of your enemies can answer. ¹⁶Even your parents, brothers, relatives, and friends will turn against you. They will kill some of you. ¹⁷All people will hate you because you follow me. ¹⁸But none of these things can really harm you. ¹⁹You will save yourselves by continuing strong in your faith through all these things.

The Destruction of Jerusalem

²⁰"You will see armies all around Jerusalem. Then you will know that the time for the destruction of Jerusalem has come. ²¹At that time, the people in Judea should run away to the mountains. The people in Jerusalem must leave quickly. If you are near the city, don't go in! ²²The prophets* wrote many things about the time when God will punish his people. The time I am telling you about is the time when all these things must happen. ²³At that time, it will be bad for women that are pregnant or have small babies. Why? Because very bad times will come to this land. God will be angry with these people (the Jews). ²⁴Some of the people will be killed by soldiers. Other people will be made prisoners and taken to every country. The holy city of Jerusalem will be walked on by non-Jewish people until their time is finished.

money box A special box in the Jewish place for worship where people put their gifts to God. widows Women whose husbands have died. temple The special building in Jerusalem for Jewish worship. Christ The "anointed one" (Messiah) or chosen one of God. synagogue(s) Synagogues were places where Jews gathered for prayer, study of the Scriptures, and other public meetings. prophets People that spoke for God. Some of them wrote books that are part of the Old Testament.