Jesus may be implying that ongoing wisdom/divine help is needed to understand the prophecy from Daniel and its fulfilment.1 Believers will need to consider when the abomination that causes desolation is approaching so that they can flee in time. As such, he is warning disciples to accept the perils of this age realistically and escape them where possible (Matthew 24:16–21), rather than standing firm and setting hopes on a sudden and miraculous deliverance (as was promised by Jewish false prophets, Matthew 24:22–26).2 The church historian Eusebius reports that Christian believers fled the city of Jerusalem for Pella before the arrival of the Romans (Ecclesiastical History, 3.5.3).3
15 “So when you see the abomination of desolation spoken of by the prophet Daniel, standing in the holy place ( let the reader understand),