Matthew 24
24
1 #
Mk 13.1-31; Lk 21.1-33. Jesus left the temple and was going away, when his disciples came to point out to him the buildings of the temple. 2#Mt 26.61; 27.39-40; Lk 19.44; Jn 2.19. But he answered them, “You see all these, do you not? Truly, I say to you, there will not be left here one stone upon another, that will not be thrown down.”
3 #
Lk 17.20; Mt 13.39,40,49; 28.20; 16.27. As he sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will this be, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the close of the age?” 4And Jesus answered them, “Take heed that no one leads you astray. 5#Mt 24.11,23-24; 1 Jn 2.18. For many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and they will lead many astray. 6#Rev 6.3-8,12-17; Is 19.2. And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars; see that you are not alarmed; for this must take place, but the end is not yet. 7For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famines and earthquakes in various places: 8all this is but the beginning of the birth-pangs.
9 #
Mt 10.17-18,22; Jn 15.18; 16.2. “Then they will deliver you up to tribulation, and put you to death; and you will be hated by all nations for my name's sake. 10And then many will fall away,#24.10 Or stumble and betray one another, and hate one another. 11And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray. 12And because wickedness is multiplied, most men's love will grow cold. 13#Mt 10.22; Rev 2.7. But he who endures to the end will be saved. 14#Mt 28.19; Rom 10.18. And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached throughout the whole world, as a testimony to all nations; and then the end will come.
15 #
Dan 9.27; 11.31; 12.11. “So when you see the desolating sacrilege spoken of by the prophet Daniel, standing in the holy place (let the reader understand), 16then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains; 17#Lk 17.31. let him who is on the housetop not go down to take what is in his house; 18and let him who is in the field not turn back to take his mantle. 19#Lk 23.29. And alas for those who are with child and for those who give suck in those days! 20Pray that your flight may not be in winter or on a sabbath. 21#Dan 12.1; Joel 2.2. For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be. 22And if those days had not been shortened, no human being would be saved; but for the sake of the elect those days will be shortened. 23Then if any one says to you, ‘Lo, here is the Christ!’ or ‘There he is!’ do not believe it. 24For false Christs and false prophets will arise and show great signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect. 25Lo, I have told you beforehand. 26#Lk 17.22-24; Rev 1.7. So, if they say to you, ‘Lo, he is in the wilderness,’ do not go out; if they say, ‘Lo, he is in the inner rooms,’ do not believe it. 27For as the lightning comes from the east and shines as far as the west, so will be the coming of the Son of man. 28#Lk 17.37; Job 39.30. Wherever the body is, there the eagles#24.28 Or vultures will be gathered together.
29 #
Rev 8.12; Is 13.10; Ezek 32.7; Joel 2.10-11; Zeph 1.15. “Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken; 30#Mt 16.27; Dan 7.13; Rev 1.7. then will appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory; 31#1 Cor 15.52; 1 Thess 4.16; Is 27.13; Zech 9.14. and he will send out his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.
32“From the fig tree learn its lesson: as soon as its branch becomes tender and puts forth its leaves, you know that summer is near. 33So also, when you see all these things, you know that he is near, at the very gates. 34#Mt 16.28. Truly, I say to you, this generation will not pass away till all these things take place. 35#Mt 5.18; Lk 16.17. Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.
36 #
Acts 1.6-7. “But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son,#24.36 Other ancient authorities omit nor the Son but the Father only. 37#Lk 17.26-27; Gen 6.5-8; 7.6-24. As were the days of Noah, so will be the coming of the Son of man. 38For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, 39and they did not know until the flood came and swept them all away, so will be the coming of the Son of man. 40#Lk 17.34-35. Then two men will be in the field; one is taken and one is left. 41Two women will be grinding at the mill; one is taken and one is left. 42#Mk 13.35; Lk 12.40; Mt 25.13. Watch therefore, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming. 43#Lk 12.39-46. #1 Thess 5.2; Rev 3.3; 16.15; 2 Pet 3.10. But know this, that if the householder had known in what part of the night the thief was coming, he would have watched and would not have let his house be broken into. 44Therefore you also must be ready; for the Son of man is coming at an hour you do not expect.
45 #
Mt 25.21,23. “Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom his master has set over his household, to give them their food at the proper time? 46Blessed is that servant whom his master when he comes will find so doing. 47Truly, I say to you, he will set him over all his possessions. 48But if that wicked servant says to himself, ‘My master is delayed,’ 49#Lk 21.34. and begins to beat his fellow servants, and eats and drinks with the drunken, 50the master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he does not know, 51#Mt 8.12; 13.42,50; 22.13; 25.30; Lk 13.28. and will punish#24.51 Or cut him in pieces him, and put him with the hypocrites; there men will weep and gnash their teeth.
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Matthew 24: RSV
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Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America
Matthew 24
24
Routine History
1-2Jesus then left the Temple. As he walked away, his disciples pointed out how very impressive the Temple architecture was. Jesus said, “You’re not impressed by all this sheer size, are you? The truth of the matter is that there’s not a stone in that building that is not going to end up in a pile of rubble.”
3Later as he was sitting on Mount Olives, his disciples approached and asked him, “Tell us, when are these things going to happen? What will be the sign of your coming, that the time’s up?”
4-8Jesus said, “Watch out for doomsday deceivers. Many leaders are going to show up with forged identities, claiming, ‘I am Christ, the Messiah.’ They will deceive a lot of people. When reports come in of wars and rumored wars, keep your head and don’t panic. This is routine history; this is no sign of the end. Nation will fight nation and ruler fight ruler, over and over. Famines and earthquakes will occur in various places. This is nothing compared to what is coming.
9-10“They are going to throw you to the wolves and kill you, everyone hating you because you carry my name. And then, going from bad to worse, it will be dog-eat-dog, everyone at each other’s throat, everyone hating each other.
11-12“In the confusion, lying preachers will come forward and deceive a lot of people. For many others, the overwhelming spread of evil will do them in—nothing left of their love but a mound of ashes.
13-14“Staying with it—that’s what God requires. Stay with it to the end. You won’t be sorry, and you’ll be saved. All during this time, the good news—the Message of the kingdom—will be preached all over the world, a witness staked out in every country. And then the end will come.
The Monster of Desecration
15-20“But be ready to run for it when you see the monster of desecration set up in the Temple sanctuary. The prophet Daniel described this. If you’ve read Daniel, you’ll know what I’m talking about. If you’re living in Judea at the time, run for the hills; if you’re working in the yard, don’t return to the house to get anything; if you’re out in the field, don’t go back and get your coat. Pregnant and nursing mothers will have it especially hard. Hope and pray this won’t happen during the winter or on a Sabbath.
21-22“This is going to be trouble on a scale beyond what the world has ever seen, or will see again. If these days of trouble were left to run their course, nobody would make it. But on account of God’s chosen people, the trouble will be cut short.
The Arrival of the Son of Man
23-25“If anyone tries to flag you down, calling out, ‘Here’s the Messiah!’ or points, ‘There he is!’ don’t fall for it. Fake Messiahs and lying preachers are going to pop up everywhere. Their impressive credentials and bewitching performances will pull the wool over the eyes of even those who ought to know better. But I’ve given you fair warning.
26-28“So if they say, ‘Run to the country and see him arrive!’ or, ‘Quick, get downtown, see him come!’ don’t give them the time of day. The Arrival of the Son of Man isn’t something you go to see. He comes like swift lightning to you! Whenever you see crowds gathering, think of carrion vultures circling, moving in, hovering over a rotting carcass. You can be quite sure that it’s not the living Son of Man pulling in those crowds.
29“Following those hard times,
Sun will fade out,
moon cloud over,
Stars fall out of the sky,
cosmic powers tremble.
30-31“Then, the Arrival of the Son of Man! It will fill the skies—no one will miss it. Unready people all over the world, outsiders to the splendor and power, will raise a huge lament as they watch the Son of Man blazing out of heaven. At that same moment, he’ll dispatch his angels with a trumpet-blast summons, pulling in God’s chosen from the four winds, from pole to pole.
32-35“Take a lesson from the fig tree. From the moment you notice its buds form, the merest hint of green, you know summer’s just around the corner. So it is with you: When you see all these things, you’ll know he’s at the door. Don’t take this lightly. I’m not just saying this for some future generation, but for all of you. This age continues until all these things take place. Sky and earth will wear out; my words won’t wear out.
36“But the exact day and hour? No one knows that, not even heaven’s angels, not even the Son. Only the Father knows.
37-39a “The Arrival of the Son of Man will take place in times like Noah’s. Before the great flood everyone was carrying on as usual, having a good time right up to the day Noah boarded the ark. They knew nothing—until the flood hit and swept everything away.
39b-44 “The Son of Man’s Arrival will be like that: Two men will be working in the field—one will be taken, one left behind; two women will be grinding at the mill—one will be taken, one left behind. So stay awake, alert. You have no idea what day your Master will show up. But you do know this: You know that if the homeowner had known what time of night the burglar would arrive, he would have been there with his dogs to prevent the break-in. Be vigilant just like that. You have no idea when the Son of Man is going to show up.
45-47“Who here qualifies for the job of overseeing the kitchen? A person the Master can depend on to feed the workers on time each day. Someone the Master can drop in on unannounced and always find him doing his job. A God-blessed man or woman, I tell you. It won’t be long before the Master will put this person in charge of the whole operation.
48-51“But if that person only looks out for himself, and the minute the Master is away does what he pleases—abusing the help and throwing drunken parties for his friends—the Master is going to show up when he least expects it, and it won’t be pretty. He’ll end up in the dump with the hypocrites, out in the cold shivering, teeth chattering.”
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THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson. All rights reserved. Used by permission of NavPress. Represented by Tyndale House Publishers.