Why is it that despite the disciples' question regarding the temple in Jerusalem, in all three synoptic gospels the first thing Jesus begins to speak about after He sat down on the Mount of Olives, was the persecution and tribulation His disciples would endure?
Because he had to show them the END WAS NOT YET (verses 4-6) and demonstrate it was by and or much later on in verses 7-8 and not in the Disciples lifetime.
But people just fail to grasp his answer to the disciples first question in full. You see, I proffer that verses 4-13 are specifically unto the Disciples and the early first century church.
When they asked "when shall these things be?" Jesus answered in verses 4-6 because that was specifically targeted unto the disciples about the 70 AD "wars and rumors of wars" the Disciples (hence ye). So, Jesus starts out by teling them about how the temple will be destroyed via his answer to the when shall these things be question, see my point, he does not reaffirm the temple will be destroyed, he merely tells them what signs to look for.
Jesus starts out, let no man deceive (Disciples) you for many shall come in "my name" and will deceive many. When you hear of wars and rumors of wars specifically means (67-70 AD)
This is important because in 67-70 AD we know the Pharisees fulfilled John 5:43 (YES, its really not an end time prophecy) by putting forth a few messianic figures who came in their own names (not of God like Jesus was). Jesus had to get this across to his disciples, because if they had come rushing back thinking this was Jesus come again, like Zech. 14:3-4 prophesies, then they would have been killed, and it is likely the church patrons would have been right by their sides and the church in its infancy would have been crushed by the Roman army, thus Jesus had to get this point across. This IS NOT THE END
"the end is by and by or much later on" then in verses 7-8, the reason why so many people think Matt. 24 match Rev. 6 and are end time scriptures (they are not), Jesus is simply demonstrating all the things that must happen before the end time or 70th week can come, which will usher in the Kingdom Age under Jesus via his 2nd coming so, he had to get this point across to them that these "wars and rumors of wars" event was not him come again.
Thus verses 7-8 is simply Jesus showing the disciples why its not the end in 70 AD, then in vs. 14 he gives the Disciples a fool proof understanding of why the 70 AD events can not be his 2nd coming. But in verses 7-8 Jesus simply says many things have to happen before the end can come, like many, many, many varied earthquakes, plagues, plagues and more plagues, much famine, and many, many wars and even ethos against ethos or tribes against tribes, none of this could happen under Rome, there was not wars or clans vs. clans per se in the Roman Kingdom, they would not allow that in their Pax Romanus. So, verses 7-8 is NOT END TIMES, its just Jesus demonstrating why the 70 AD events can not be the end times, and thus that the disciples would never live long enough to see Jesus' Kingdom Age ushered in. Verse 14 proves this 100 percent. Matt. 24:4-13 is actually a
"Survival Guide" for the Disciples and early church. However people take verses 7-8 and demand they can only be about the end times, they are not. Verses 15-31 are about the end time events.
Now, if one skips verses 7-8 (which is merely a demonstration of why vs. 6 can not be THE END) we see Jesus goes right back to teaching the Disciples what's going to go on during their lives, save for John, all of them will become Martyrs. In vs. 9 Jesus tells the Disciples they will all be killed, and many false prophets (not false christs as in verses 4-6, which were fake messiahs in 67-70 AD) will arise and deceive many,
but this was not "Christian false prophets" these were the Zeus and Jupiter types, who before the Gospel had their way, now they were angry that the Gospel was taking away their patrons, so they cried out to Rome, and we know what happened, they started killing the Disciples and later on Rome burned Christians at the stake etc. etc. Thus in vs. 13 Jesus warns
"THE DISCIPLES" that they must endure until the end [of their lives]. People again see this as end times because of that quote, it not, its about Jesus telling the Disciples their fate ahead of time, so they will not be surprised and become another Judas like betrayer of God.
Then in vs. 14 we get the BIG REAVEAL which 100 percent proves the Disciples knew they would never see Jesus' 2nd coming and therefore
Jesus 100 percent showed them that the Temples Destruction and Rumors of Wars events in 67-70 AD were not his 2nd coming, that way they would not show up in Jerusalem and get killed, and have the church following them there. They knew 100 percent 70 AD was not Jesus' return because Jesus told them the Gospel has to be preached unto all the world first, and only then could THE END (70th week) come. The disciples knew of China, India and the Scythians (modern day Russia) so they knew 100 percent that they would never see Jesus' 2nd coming, because, of course, they knew they would never reach these nations during their lives with the Gospel !!
That answers when will these things be(Temples Destruction. Verses 15-31 answers the other 2 questions.