What is Jesus warning about in Luke 13, when he tells the people they will perish if they do not repent? by Steven O'Keefe, Staff Apologist

In Luke 13 a group of people tell Jesus about some Jews who were killed while offering sacrifices in the Temple in Jerusalem. This happened under the orders of Pontius Pilate. Jesus warns that they will also perish if they do not repent. Then he tells a short parable about a man seeking fruit from a tree, and vowing to cut it down if it doesn’t produce. This comes off as one of the more aggressive things Jesus says in the New Testament. So what is He teaching?

One key that you should remember whenever you read Jesus saying something bizarre and aggressive in the New Testament is this: Jesus came not only as a divine savior, but as a prophet of doom foretelling the destruction of Jerusalem, which eventually happened in 70 A.D. This is the immediate context of Jesus’ words in Luke 10. In the short parable He tells, the man visits the tree periodically for three years – the length of Jesus’ earthly ministry. And he says if he doesn’t find fruit in those three years, he will remove the tree. The tree is Jerusalem and its inhabitants. Jesus is warning that if they do not repent and
believe the Gospel, the city will be destroyed. 

However, the destruction of Jerusalem – while it is a real historical event – is also a sign. All of us will one day die. We will all go to our judgement. So there is an additional spiritual lesson to take from Jesus’ warning: If you do not repent in this life, you too will be met with destruction. As Jesus said in Matthew 10:28, “Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.”