Bible Strands
Luke 21:24
They will fall by the edge of the sword and be led captive into all the nations. And Jerusalem will be trodden down by the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Jesus addresses his disciples and the gathered crowd on the Mount of Olives, answering their question about the temple's destruction. The verse bridges the national distress of verse 23 and the cosmic signs of verse 25.
The words — stomati machairēs (στόματι μαχαίρης), literally "by the mouth of the sword," where stoma (mouth) denotes the cutting edge of a blade. The idiom specifies the manner of death: the blade itself, not siege or famine.
The thread — Jerusalem "given over to the nations" and trampled recurs in Revelation 11:2 and Isaiah 63:18. Romans 11:25 frames this period as a partial hardening with a defined endpoint, echoing the "until" clause here.
Why it lands — The verse names a violent end (sword, captivity) and then places it inside a boundary ("until… fulfilled"). It asks the reader to refuse both complacency about the judgment and despair about its duration.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Greek words
King James Version
And they shall fall by the edge of the sword, and shall be led away captive into all nations: and Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled.
Cross-references
- Romans 11:25 I do not want you to be ignorant of this mystery, brothers, so that you will not be conceited: A hardening in part has come to Israel, until the full number of the Gentiles has come in.
- Revelation 11:2 But exclude the courtyard outside the temple. Do not measure it, because it has been given over to the nations, and they will trample the holy city for 42 months.
- Isaiah 63:18 For a short while Your people possessed Your holy place, but our enemies have trampled Your sanctuary.
- Daniel 12:7 And the man dressed in linen, who was above the waters of the river, raised his right hand and his left hand toward heaven, and I heard him swear by Him who lives forever, saying, “It will be for a time, and times, and half a time. When the power of the holy people has finally been shattered, all these things will be completed.”
- Daniel 9:27 And he will confirm a covenant with many for one week, but in the middle of the week he will put an end to sacrifice and offering. And on the wing of the temple will come the abomination that causes desolation, until the decreed destruction is poured out upon him.”
- Isaiah 5:5 Now I will tell you what I am about to do to My vineyard: I will take away its hedge, and it will be consumed; I will tear down its wall, and it will be trampled.
- Daniel 8:13 Then I heard a holy one speaking, and another holy one said to him, “How long until the fulfillment of the vision of the daily sacrifice, the rebellion that causes desolation, and the surrender of the sanctuary and of the host to be trampled?”
- Isaiah 66:19 I will establish a sign among them, and I will send survivors from among them to the nations—to Tarshish, Put, and the archers of Lud; to Tubal, Javan, and the islands far away who have not heard of My fame or seen My glory. So they will proclaim My glory among the nations.
- Malachi 1:11 For My name will be great among the nations, from where the sun rises to where it sets. In every place, incense and pure offerings will be presented in My name, because My name will be great among the nations,” says the LORD of Hosts.
- Isaiah 66:12 For this is what the LORD says: “I will extend peace to her like a river, and the wealth of nations like a flowing stream; you will nurse and be carried on her arm, and bounced upon her knees.