• Jesus foretold of Jerusalem's destruction that occurred in AD 70, and that the Jewish people would someday return to the Middle East and retake control of ancient Jerusalem prior to his return.
• Jesus' words were fulfilled to the letter on June 7, 1967, when Israel retook Jerusalem from Jordan in the Six-Day War. Consider Jesus' words:.

"When you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then recognize that her desolation is at hand.and Jerusalem will be trampled under foot by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled" (Luke 21:20,24b).

• By these words, it may be deduced that the Jewish conquest of Jerusalem on June 7, 1967, appears to be the result of divine fulfillment of prophecy. By delving into Luke's gospel about the return of Christ, we find that Luke ties the temple's destruction in AD 70 to the return of Christ. According to Luke 21:7, the disciples only asked when the temple would be destroyed [which happened in AD 70], not when Christ would return. Consider how the story unfolds as Jesus and the disciples watched people putting their gifts into the temple treasury.

(Luke 21:5-7)
(5)Some of the disciples were remarking about how the temple was adorned with beautiful stones and with gifts dedicated to God. But Jesus said, 
(6)As for what you see here, the time will come when not one stone will be left on another; every one of them will be thrown down.
(7)"Teacher," they asked, "When will these things happen? And what will be the sign [Singular "SIGN" not "SIGNS" plural] that they are about to take place? 

• At this point in the Scriptures quoted above, the return of Christ was not even mentioned. The disciples only wanted to know when the temple would be destroyed and what would be the sign [singular] of Jerusalem's destruction. The single event that foretold of Jerusalem's destruction is recorded in verse 20.

"When you see Jerusalem being surrounded by armies, you will know that its desolation is near" (Luke 21:20).

• Jesus' words then tie the destruction of Jerusalem that occurred in AD 70 to his return to planet Earth as follows:

"Jerusalem will be trampled under foot by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled" (Luke 21:24b).

• Gentile domination of Jerusalem began in 70 A.D., with the Romans and ended with Jordan on June 7, 1967, a time span of 1,897 years. On June 7, 1967, Israeli [Jewish troops, not Gentiles] troops took control of the Old City of Jerusalem, fulfilling Luke21:24 to the letter.

• After the verse above was fulfilled on June 7, 1967, Jesus' words link his return to the generation that witnesses Jewish conquest Jerusalem. Consider Luke's words.

"There will be signs in the sun, moon, and stars. On the earth, nations will be in anguish and perplexity . . . At that time they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. When these things begin to take place, stand up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near. . . Even so, when you see these things happening, you know that the kingdom of God is near. I tell you the truth, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened" (Luke 21:25,27-28,32).

• Could it be that Israeli conquest of Jerusalem on June 7, 1967 is the single sign that tells us there is only one generation left until Christ returns? A literal interpretation of Luke's gospel tells us that we are in the final generation. (See Luke 21:7, 20-24b, 31-32).
  
  NOTE: Some people may not accept Jesus' words about Jerusalem and the Jewish people retaking Jerusalem as a foretold event in the New Testament. But Christians living centuries ago came to the same conclusion (Comments on Luke 21:24b written in 1820) that the Jewish people would someday return and govern Jerusalem again. To support this viewpoint, please read the pop-up links about this viewpoint from 185 years ago.

How long is a generation? I believe the length of this generation to be the 14,000 days hidden in Daniel's time-oriented prophecy in the 1st century AD. By adding 14,000 days to the sign of Israeli conquest of Jerusalem on June 7, 1967, we come to a very special day - October 4, 2005, the Jewish New Year. This day is important in biblical literature since it is the Feast of Trumpets, a day that symbolizes the return of Christ. The parallel alignment of 14,000 days in both the 1st century and the 20th and 21st centuries appears to show divine intervention in the Six-Day War, suggesting Israeli conquest of Jerusalem was God's will being accomplished in Israel, and is the sign (singular) denoted in Luke 21:7 of Christ's return.

Jesus told us about our time by stating:

"Be careful, or your hearts will be weighed down with dissipation, drunkenness and the anxieties of life, and that day will close on you unexpectedly like a trap. For it will come upon all those who live on the face of the whole earth. Be always on the watch, and pray that you may be able to escape all that is about to happen, and that you may be able to stand before the Son of Man" (Luke 21:34-36).