Luke 19:43-44
“For the days shall come upon thee, that thine enemies shall cast a trench about thee, and compass thee round, and keep thee in on every side, And shall lay thee even with the ground, and thy children within thee; and they shall not leave in thee one stone upon another; because thou knewest not the time of thy visitation.”
King James Version · the opening — all 2 verses are below
Jesus predicting Jerusalem's encirclement by Roman armies with a wall, fulfilled by Titus's circumvallation wall in 70 AD.
Read the whole passage — all 2 verses (KJV)
19:43For the days shall come upon thee, that thine enemies shall cast a trench about thee, and compass thee round, and keep thee in on every side,
19:44And shall lay thee even with the ground, and thy children within thee; and they shall not leave in thee one stone upon another; because thou knewest not the time of thy visitation.
Fulfillment References
Luke 21:20 Luke 1:78
How Traditions Read This Prophecy
Apostolic (Oneness) PentecostalWeeping over Jerusalem, Jesus foretells its siege — enemies casting a trench, leveling it — 'because thou knewest not the time of thy visitation.' Fulfilled in AD 70 (Titus's siege). The One they failed to recognize was God Himself visiting His people in flesh (Luke 1:68, 78); to miss Him was to miss the day of God's visitation. His tears are the grief of the LORD over His city.
JewishA lament-prophecy of Jerusalem's destruction; the catastrophe of AD 70 is a defining event in Jewish history, read as judgment by some ancient sources.
CatholicChrist's prophecy of Jerusalem's fall for failing to recognize the day of God's visitation in Him; His sorrow over the city.
ProtestantA precise prediction of the AD 70 siege, fulfilled in detail (Josephus); judgment for rejecting the Messiah's visitation.
AcademicOften read by critics as shaped by the AD 70 siege; the 'visitation' language draws on prophetic judgment oracles.
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Audio narration (listen to this prophecy read aloud), cross-references, Hebrew/Greek, Dead Sea Scrolls notes, a prophetic timeline, network maps, study tools and multi-tradition analysis in the interactive explorer.
Bible Prophecy Explorer · based on J. Barton Payne’s Encyclopedia of Biblical Prophecy catalogue · an openly Apostolic (Oneness) Pentecostal study resource — all traditions presented fairly. Pastor: C. Myles Young, D.Min. · Bishop: Nathaniel J. Wilson, Ed.D.