“So when you see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by the prophet Daniel, standing in the holy place” (let the reader understand), “then those in Judea must flee to the mountains. A man on the housetop must not come down to get things out of his house, and a man in the field must not go back to get his coat. Woe to pregnant women and nursing mothers in those days! Pray that your escape may not be in winter or on a Sabbath. For at that time there will be great distress, the kind that hasn’t taken place from the beginning of the world until now and never will again. Unless those days were cut short, no one would be saved. But those days will be cut short because of the elect. If anyone tells you then, ‘See, here is the Messiah!’ or, ‘Over here!’ do not believe it. For false messiahs and false prophets will arise and perform great signs and wonders to lead astray, if possible, even the elect. Take note: I have told you in advance. So if they tell you, ‘See, he’s in the wilderness!’ don’t go out; or, ‘See, he’s in the storerooms!’ do not believe it. For as the lightning comes from the east and flashes as far as the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. Wherever the carcass is, there the vultures will gather.”

Matthew 24:15-28 | cross ref: Mark 13:14-23 and Luke 21:20-24.

This means that before this prophecy can be fulfilled and the Antichrist ends the sacrifices and offerings, the Jewish people need to be performing daily sacrifices in “the holy place”. This holy place is where both Judaism’s first and second ancient temples (The same Temple which Jesus foretold would be destroyed at the beginning of these verses) were built on the Temple Mount above the Western Wall in Jerusalem. The site is also the third holiest in Islam and has caused inter-religious tension for decades. Presently, the site is under Israeli sovereignty but is administered by the Muslim Waqf (religious trust). So before the abomination of desolation portion of what Jesus prophesied can occur, the Third Temple must be built in Israel. Although the Israeli government has no official plans in place to rebuild the Temple, multiple religious groups and organizations, including the Temple Institute, are preparing for its construction.

Jesus also mentions additional things that will happen during this time period, including the greatest distress the world has ever known, the days being cut short, and many false prophets and false messiahs arising who can perform great signs and wonders. Jesus clarifies that when He returns, it will be a very obvious and visible event, which the Book of Revelation echos (quoted in the last section).

An interesting note in regard to the days being shortened is that due to Earth’s rotation speeding up, the world has been on a trend toward slightly faster days since AD 1972. The current change is very small; only 27 seconds in total over the past 53 years. However, the factors that are causing this change (Primarily Earth’s liquor core cooling and climate change/melting ice) are expected to continue to deteriorate in the coming years.

See Abomination of Desolation via Wikipedia and What is the abomination of desolation? via Got Questions and Antichrist via Britannica and What Is the Temple Mount? via My Jewish Learning and Third Temple via Wikipedia and Great Tribulation via Wikipedia and Earth is spinning faster, leading timekeepers to consider an unprecedented move via CNN.