Verses 1-4 record Jesus's observation that a poor widow, offering two mites, had genuinely contributed more to the temple than the gifts offered by rich people. Mark 12:41–44 records the same event.
Verse 4
For all these out of their abundance have put in offerings for God, but she out of her poverty put in all the livelihood that she had.[4]
The words "for God" are based on the text in some early manuscripts, but many other manuscripts omit these words.[5]
The beauty of the Temple (21:5-6)
Some spoke of the temple ... (verse 5: Greek: τινων λεγοντων περι του ιερου, tinōn legontōn peri tou hierou).
The New International Version translates these words as "Some of his disciples ...",[6] but some other versions suggest "some people" i.e. not specifically disciples of Jesus.[7] Protestant theologian Heinrich Meyer argues that "it is plain from the discourse itself" that Jesus was speaking to his disciples.[5]
The "beautiful stones" and the "gifts dedicated to God" both contribute to the splendor of the temple. Luke sets this dialogue inside the temple itself, whereas in Matthew and Mark it is set outside the temple.[5][8][9]
The destruction of the Temple (21:20-24)
Matthew and Mark state that Jesus spoke privately to his disciples on Mount Olivet about the end times and the destruction of Jerusalem: see Olivet Discourse. Luke does not present this teaching as delivered privately:
In the daytime, He was teaching in the temple, but at night He went out and stayed on the mountain called Olivet. Then early in the morning all the people came to Him in the temple to hear Him.[10]
He tells them, These things which you see: the days will come in which not one stone shall be left upon another that shall not be thrown down.[11] They (whether it be his disciples or his audience more generally) ask when this will be. In Mark's account, the question is asked by Peter, James, John and Andrew.[12]
The day of the Lord shall insnare unto ruin and destruction, those men who "sit", in idleness and unconcern, absorbed in the enjoyment of sensual and illicit pleasures, with all their thoughts on earth, just as a snare catches those birds that settle on the earth when they least expect it, while the birds that are borne aloft in air escape it.[2]