What does Mark 13:4 mean?

After a last day of teaching on the Temple Mount, Jesus warns the disciples that the temple itself will be torn down so thoroughly one stone will not sit on another (Mark 13:2). After they leave Jerusalem and settle on the Mount of Olives in the east, the four fishermen—Peter, John, James, and Andrew—are rattled by the prophecy and ask Jesus for clarification. Where Mark records a more generic question, Matthew adds that they ask, "Tell us, when will these things be, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?" (Matthew 24:3)

It's as if the disciples have finally asked the right question. For three years they have followed Jesus, much of that time anticipating that He will free the Jews from Roman rule and take His rightful place as king. These men expect that when He does so, they will have positions of authority in His kingdom (Mark 10:35–45). Jesus has told them many times that first, He must die (Mark 8:31; 9:30–32; 10:32–34). Between the expectations of glory and splendor and the veiling work of the Holy Spirit (Luke 9:45; 18:34), the disciples still don't understand that Jesus is about to be crucified. But it is possible they may be getting the idea that Jesus' victory is not coming as soon as they thought.

Jesus' answer, the longest answer to a question recorded in the Gospels, covers His coming and signs of the end of the age. The prophecy encompasses the disciples' near-future of persecution; the AD 70 destruction of Jerusalem; our present time of persecution, wars, and natural disasters; and the catastrophic horror of the tribulation.

Jesus' words are not primarily to the disciples but to Christ-followers in the end times. The theme is applicable to all believers, however. They need to know that the hardships will be temporary (Mark 13:30), they have work to do (Mark 13:34–37), and they must guard themselves against sin (Mark 14:37–38). These end-times prophecies have vague, incomplete fulfillment in our own modern age; this means we need to keep our eyes on God's kingdom, as well. Our anticipation of the end times should fuel the urgency of our work, not distract us from it. That sense of Jesus' imminent return should always remind us that while this world is temporary, our relationship with God is eternal.