William Burkitt on Luke 19:43

Here we have a prophetical prediction of the total and final destruction of the city of Jerusalem by the Roman armies, who begirt the city round, burnt the temple, starved the people, and brought such ruin and destruction upon the place, as no history could ever parallel: the reason is assigned, because they knew not the time of their visitation; that is, the time when God visited them with his gospel, first by the ministry of John, then by the preaching of Christ himself, and afterwards by his disciples and apostles.

Hence learn,

1. That when God gives his gospel to a people, he gives that people a merciful and a gracious visitation.

2. That for a people not to know, but to neglect the time of their gracious visitation, is a God-provoking, and a wrath-procuring sin: Because thou knowest not the time of thy visitation, therefore the time shall come, that thine enemies shall lay thee even with the ground, and not leave one stone upon another; which, history tells us, was literally fulfilled, when Turnus Rufus, with his plough, ploughed up the very foundation stones upon which the temple stood. Lord, how has sin laid the foundation of ruin in the most flourishing cities and kingdoms! Here we have a prophetical prediction of the total and final destruction of the city of Jerusalem by the Roman armies, who begirt the city round, burnt the temple, starved the people, and brought such ruin and destruction upon the place, as no history could ever parallel: the reason is assigned, because they knew not the time of their visitation; that is, the time when God visited them with his gospel, first by the ministry of John, then by the preaching of Christ himself, and afterwards by his disciples and apostles.

Hence learn,

1. That when God gives his gospel to a people, he gives that people a merciful and a gracious visitation.

2. That for a people not to know, but to neglect the time of their gracious visitation, is a God-provoking, and a wrath-procuring sin: Because thou knowest not the time of thy visitation, therefore the time shall come, that thine enemies shall lay thee even with the ground, and not leave one stone upon another; which, history tells us, was literally fulfilled, when Turnus Rufus, with his plough, ploughed up the very foundation stones upon which the temple stood. Lord, how has sin laid the foundation of ruin in the most flourishing cities and kingdoms!