Yes — Jesus speaks that way because He is addressing the twelve before the gospel-of-grace era was revealed, and those events were the next step on Israel's prophetic calendar.
Les Feldick shows that not one word had yet been spoken about God setting Israel aside and going to the Gentiles with a gospel of grace. Jesus spoke to the twelve and, through them, to the nation of Israel about everything promised regarding His kingdom. He gave them no indication of a long interval, so He says, "When you therefore shall see the abomination of desolation..." and tells those in Judea to flee. The change in the program becomes visible only later in Acts 9, when Saul is commissioned as the Apostle to the Gentiles.
Matthew 24:15 — Jesus tells the twelve directly, "When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation," showing the events are addressed to people who could face them.
Acts 9:15 — God's commission to Saul as a chosen vessel to the Gentiles marks the later revelation of the gospel-of-grace era that was absent when Jesus spoke to the twelve.
Luke 21:24 — Jesus also foretold the destruction of Jerusalem and the dispersion of the Jews, events that happened within about forty years of His crucifixion.
In Matthew 24, Jesus answers the twelve about the signs of His coming. His words include this warning: "When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:) Then let them which be in Judaea flee into the mountains." The very next verses tell the one on the housetop not to come down and the one in the field not to return for clothes. In Luke's Gospel, Jesus says of Jerusalem, "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." Later, in Acts 9, the Lord tells Ananias concerning Saul of Tarsus, "Go thy way: for he is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel."
Les Feldick emphasizes that when Jesus spoke in Matthew 24, He was alone with the twelve. "There has yet not been one word spoken, even by Jesus to the twelve, of a period in here that God would set Israel aside, take away their temple, and He would go to the Gentiles with a gospel of grace." So the disciples were hearing only the promises God had made to Israel regarding the King and His kingdom. Because of that, Les reads the direct "when you" language as Jesus speaking to the twelve and then going beyond them to the nation of Israel. He points out that Matthew 24 contains no Gentile language. The instruction to flee immediately—not coming down from the housetop to collect belongings—is the kind of direction that makes sense for people who might find themselves in Judea at that moment. Les then takes the reader to Acts 9. When the Lord tells Ananias that Saul is a chosen vessel to bear His name before the Gentiles, Les says, "Here it comes." God is not forgetting the Gentiles, but Israel had not fulfilled the Old Testament program. The tribulation had not come out yet, so Jesus' earlier words reflect the prophetic horizon before that later revelation.
Les Feldick says Matthew 24 is Jesus alone with the twelve, and He "goes beyond the twelve, but still to the nation of Israel. This is no Gentile language in here whatsoever." The words "When you therefore shall see the abomination of desolation" are addressed to people who could face that moment in Judea. Jesus gives no indication of the later interval that would begin with Paul's Gentile commission.
Les explains that Peter and the eleven knew the Old Testament program. They expected the seven years of wrath and vexation, then the return of Christ to Jerusalem to set up His kingdom, and then Israel would evangelize the Gentiles from Jerusalem. Since nothing had been revealed about God's later Gentile program, the events Jesus described looked like the next thing on God's calendar.
In Acts 9:15 the Lord says, "Go thy way: for he is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel." Les points to this as the moment the program becomes visible: "Here it comes. God hasn't forgotten the Gentiles. And what does God know? That Israel is not going to fulfill this Old Testament program because she is constantly rejecting ever." The tribulation still had not come out yet, so the commission to Saul marks a major change from the setting in which Jesus spoke to the twelve.
Les notes that in Luke 21 Jesus foretells the destruction of Jerusalem and the dispersion of the Jews, and then He comes right back to end-time prophecy. He identifies Luke 21:24 as referring to Titus in 70 A.D.—about forty years beyond Christ's crucifixion—when the Jews "fell by the edge of the sword and were led away captive into all nations." So part of what Jesus predicted would indeed happen within that generation, while the abomination of desolation passage looks to Israel's future fulfillment.
The Antichrist's Treaty and the Middle of the Week
Les describes the Antichrist signing a seven-year treaty and then stopping the temple worship in the middle of the week, which is the context for the abomination Jesus told the disciples to flee.
No Word of the Gospel-of-Grace Era Yet
Les explains that even Jesus had said nothing to the twelve about Israel being set aside and the gospel of grace going to the Gentiles, so the disciples had no reason to expect a long interval.
Jesus Tells the Twelve to Flee
In the transcript, Jesus directly tells the twelve that when the abomination of desolation stands in the holy place, those in Judea must flee to the mountains immediately.
Jerusalem's Destruction and End-Time Prophecy
Les says Jesus foretold Jerusalem's destruction in Luke 21 and then immediately went back to end-time prophecy, showing the near and far events belong to Israel's prophetic program.
Saul Commissioned to the Gentiles
Les points to Acts 9:15 as the moment God sends Saul to the Gentiles, explaining that Israel had not fulfilled the Old Testament program and the tribulation had not yet come out.
Luke 21:24 Points to 70 A.D.
Les reads the edge of the sword and captivity into all nations as Jesus' prophecy of Titus' destruction of Jerusalem in 70 A.D., about forty years after the crucifixion.
The Setting of Matthew 24
Les stresses that Matthew 24 is Jesus with the twelve answering their question about His coming, and that Jesus goes beyond the twelve to the nation of Israel with no Gentile language.
Israel's Expected Program
Les explains that the apostles expected the seven years of wrath, the return of Christ, the kingdom in Jerusalem, and then Israel's evangelism of the Gentiles as the next steps.
Matthew 24:15: When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:)
This is Jesus directly telling the twelve what to watch for before the time of flight.
Matthew 24:16: Then let them which be in Judaea flee into the mountains:
The instruction that follows immediately the warning about the abomination of desolation.
Matthew 24:17: Let him which is on the housetop not come down to take any thing out of his house:
The urgency of the escape is shown by the command not to retrieve belongings.
Matthew 24:18: Neither let him which is in the field return back to take his clothes.
Jesus completes the picture of an immediate flight for those in the field.
Luke 21:24: 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.
Les identifies this as Jesus' prophecy of the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 A.D.
Acts 9:15: But the Lord said unto him, Go thy way: for he is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel:
God's commission of Saul signals the later revelation of the Gentile ministry absent in Jesus' words to the twelve.
Les Feldick says Jesus was speaking to the twelve, but He goes beyond the twelve to the nation of Israel. The language is directed to people in Judea who would face the abomination, and there is no Gentile language in the passage.
Jesus gave no indication of a long interval between His day and the abomination of desolation. He presented the events as things the disciples should be ready for, and later, in Acts 9, the program shifted with the commission of Saul to the Gentiles.
The Lord told Ananias that Saul was a chosen vessel to bear His name before the Gentiles. Les Feldick says this is where God turns because Israel was not fulfilling the Old Testament program, and the tribulation had not yet come out.
Les says Luke 21 foretells the destruction of Jerusalem and the dispersion of the Jews, fulfilled in 70 A.D. by Titus. Then Jesus comes right back to end-time prophecy, which is the same prophetic program seen in Matthew 24.
Watch the Teaching: The Antichrist's 7-Year Treaty & Israel's Great Escape