Mark is usually dated immediately before or after the Roman destruction of the Temple in 70 CE, with the absence of concrete details on the capture suggesting a date immediately before as most probable. The basis of this conclusion is chapter 13 of Mark, in which Jesus predicts that the return of the Son of Man and the advent of the Kingdom of God will be signalled by the appearance of the "abomination of desolation". The chapter begins with Jesus in the temple informing his disciples "Do you see these great buildings? There will not be left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down." The disciples ask for signs of when this will happen, and in Mark 13:14 Jesus tells them: "But when you see the abomination of desolation standing where he ought not to be (let the reader understand), then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains." Mark's terminology is drawn from the Book of Daniel, but he places the fulfilment in his own day, underlining this in Mark 13:30 by stating that "this generation will not pass away before all these things take place." While Daniel's "abomination" was probably a pagan altar or sacrifice, the grammar in Mark uses a masculine participle for "standing", indicating a concrete historical person: several candidates have been suggested, but the most likely is the Roman general (and future emperor) Titus.
