What do you believe the Abomination of Desolation will be? Do you believe the Temple will be rebuilt?
Yeshua indicated in His Olivet Discourse that the Abomination of Desolation would be the key sign to occur, indicating that His return is near (Matthew 24:15). We largely believe that the Abomination of Desolation will be when the antimessiah/antichrist “will put a stop to sacrifice and grain offering” (Daniel 9:27, NASU) on the Temple Mount, will proclaim himself to be a god (2 Thessalonians 2:4), and the false prophet will erect an image of him (Revelation 13:14). The antimessiah will demand worship, and those in the city of Jerusalem at this time are commanded by Him to flee (Matthew 24:16-20).
Some in the Messianic community think that the Temple does not have to be rebuilt in order for these prophecies to take place, and only an “altar” will be erected. They perhaps only view the Temple as being skin to the “holy place” of the Temple Mount. Is this what Paul said, per the specific vocabulary employed in his letter to the Thessalonicans? In the Hebrew Scriptures, the Temple of God is usually designated the beit-YHWH, the House of the LORD, and the Tabernacle is called the mishkan YHWH. The Greek Septuagint rendered mishkan as skēnē, “tabernacle” or “dwelling,” and beit as either oikos, meaning “house,” or as naos, “temple.” Paul said that the antimessiah “will oppose and will exalt himself over everything that is called God or is worshiped, so that he sets himself up in God’s temple, proclaiming himself to be God” (2 Thessalonians 2:4, NASU). Paul said that this would take place in ton naon tou Theou, or the Temple of God.
Given the differences between skēnē, oikos, and naos, Paul chose naos meaning “Temple.” It should be prerequisite that in order for the Abomination of Desolation to occur, that the Temple should be rebuilt in Jerusalem. A minimalist interpretation, however, would allow for the Tabernacle to be erected on the Temple Mount, in a similar manner to how it was employed during the reign of King David, prior to the construction of the First Temple. In many cases, those claiming that the Temple does not have to be rebuilt (or even a Tabernacle installed) are making hastily drawn conclusions about prophecy, and are trying to force current events to fit their approach to what has been foretold, rather than let events play out naturally.
