As He faced imminent separation from them, He sought to remind His disciples of the lessons they had often heard from Him, even during His preaching missions (Matthew 10:17-22), while simultaneously fortifying them with hope amid the forthcoming tribulations.
“Beware of yourselves,” He cautioned, “for they will lay hands on you and imprison you, leading you before councils where you will be scourged and even put to death. For My name’s sake, you will stand before rulers and kings, and this will serve as a testimony.” He encouraged them not to prepare their response beforehand, but to trust that, in that hour, the Holy Spirit would provide them the words to say: “I will give you a mouth and wisdom that none of your adversaries will be able to withstand or contradict.”
Many would be led to temptation, betraying and hating one another; false prophets would arise, deceiving many; and due to the increase of wickedness, love would grow cold. Family bonds would be severed, with betrayal occurring even among kin, resulting in death. For all would be hated because of Him, but not a hair on their heads would perish. “By your endurance, you will secure your souls; he who perseveres to the end will be saved. This gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed across the world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.”
This period was marked by the persecution of those preaching Christ’s teachings, the division among believers and non-believers that strained even the strongest familial relations, and a rise in false teachings. These challenges were the conditions under which the new Christian world was to emerge from the remnants of the ancient order. The Lord’s prophecies concerning the destruction of Jerusalem were fulfilled with exactness. Prior to Jerusalem’s fall, four Roman emperors were slain, and turmoil reigned with civil strife and wars; provinces were in turmoil, with Rome itself suffering devastating fires and rampant immorality that led to total moral decay.
During this time, a severe famine struck Judea (Acts 11:28), causing numerous deaths in Jerusalem, as noted by the Jewish historian Josephus Flavius. Under Emperor Claudius, famine gripped Rome, Greece, and Palestine multiple times. Tacitus documented outbreaks of pestilence, while earthquakes destroyed cities like Laodicea, Hierapolis, and Colossae, affecting others such as Smyrna, Miletus, Chios, and Samos. Josephus recounts how the region was overrun with charlatans and magicians, drawing crowds into the wilderness under the guise of performing miracles by divine means. Among these deceivers were Dositheus and Simon, both claiming messianic power, along with several others.
The Jews, having rejected Christ, eagerly anticipated a conquering Messiah, making them susceptible to impostors. Josephus reported that prior to Jerusalem’s siege, ominous signs filled the sky: for a year, a star resembling a sword hovered above the city, and during the Passover festival, the altar shone as brightly at night as it did in daylight. Furthermore, the temple’s brass gates opened by themselves one night, and at Pentecost, priests heard voices calling them to leave the temple.
The persecution of Christians commenced before Jerusalem's destruction. After Christ’s ascension, His disciples boldly proclaimed the Gospel, only to face opposition from Jews, Gentiles, rulers, and authorities. The apostles faced imprisonment (Acts 4:3; Acts 5:18; Acts 12:4), trials (Acts 4:7; Acts 5:27), beatings (Acts 5:40), and martyrdom (Acts 7:58; 12:2), with figures like James of Zebedee, James the Lord’s brother, Peter, and Paul suffering death for their faith. Yet, despite these trials, the Word of the Lord continued to spread (13:49), with the Apostle Paul writing about how their message reached the entire earth (Rom. 10:18) and how they proclaimed the Gospel to every creature under heaven (Col. 1:23).
The Gospel flourished across the known world, amidst the rise of false prophets, whom the apostles warned about (1 John 4:1; Jude 1:4). The ominous signs that heralded Jerusalem’s downfall will reappear before the world’s end, as foretold by the Lord, who spoke of distant and immediate events in the same breath. “Once the lawless one appears, he will come in accordance with the work of Satan, displaying all power and false signs and wonders, with all sorts of unrighteous deception for those who are perishing” (2 Thess. 2:8-10). In these times, successors to the apostles—pastors and teachers of Christ’s Church, along with faithful followers—will endure vigorous persecution for their witness to Jesus and for the Word of God (Rev. 20:4).
THEOSIS