Matthew 24
24
Jesus Warns About the Future
(Mk. 13:1–31; Lk. 21:5–33)
1Jesus left the Temple area and was walking away. But his followers came to him to show him the Temple’s buildings. 2He asked them, “Are you looking at these buildings? The fact is, they will be destroyed. Every stone will be thrown down to the ground. Not one stone will be left on another.”
3Later, Jesus was sitting at a place on the Mount of Olives. The followers came to be alone with him. They said, “Tell us when these things will happen. And what will happen to prepare us for your coming and the end of time?”
4Jesus answered, “Be careful! Don’t let anyone fool you. 5Many people will come and use my name. They will say, ‘I am the Messiah.’ And they will fool many people. 6You will hear about wars that are being fought. And you will hear stories about other wars beginning. But don’t be afraid. These things must happen before the end comes. 7Nations will fight against other nations. Kingdoms will fight against other kingdoms. There will be times when there is no food for people to eat. And there will be earthquakes in different places. 8These things are only the beginning of troubles, like the first pains of a woman giving birth.
9“Then you will be arrested and handed over to be punished and killed. People all over the world will hate you because you believe in me. 10During that time many believers will lose their faith. They will turn against each other and hate each other. 11Many false prophets will come and cause many people to believe things that are wrong. 12There will be so much more evil in the world that the love of most believers will grow cold. 13But the one who remains faithful to the end will be saved. 14And the Good News I have shared about God’s kingdom will be told throughout the world. It will be spread to every nation. Then the end will come.
15“Daniel the prophet spoke about ‘the terrible thing that causes destruction.’#24:15 ‘the terrible thing … destruction’ See Dan. 9:27; 11:31; 12:11. You will see this terrible thing standing in the holy place.” (You who read this should understand what it means.) 16“The people in Judea at that time should run away to the mountains. 17They should run away without wasting time to stop for anything. If they are on the roof of their house, they must not go down to get anything out of the house. 18If they are in the field, they must not go back to get a coat.
19“During that time it will be hard for women who are pregnant or have small babies! 20Pray that it will not be winter or a Sabbath day when these things happen and you have to run away, 21because it will be a time of great trouble. There will be more trouble than has ever happened since the beginning of the world. And nothing as bad as that will ever happen again.
22“But God has decided to make that terrible time short. If it were not made short, no one would continue living. But God will make that time short to help the people he has chosen.
23“Someone might say to you at that time, ‘Look, there is the Messiah!’ Or someone else might say, ‘There he is!’ But don’t believe them. 24False messiahs and false prophets will come and do great miracles and wonders,#24:24 miracles and wonders Here, amazing acts done by Satan’s power. trying to fool the people God has chosen, if that is possible. 25Now I have warned you about this before it happens.
26“Someone might tell you, ‘The Messiah is there in the desert!’ But don’t go into the desert to look for him. Someone else might say, ‘There is the Messiah in that room!’ But don’t believe it. 27When the Son of Man comes, everyone will see him. It will be like lightning flashing in the sky that can be seen everywhere. 28It’s like looking for a dead body: You will find it where the vultures are gathering above.
29“Right after the trouble of those days, this will happen:
‘The sun will become dark,
and the moon will not give light.
The stars will fall from the sky,
and everything in the sky will be changed.’#24:29 See Isa. 13:10; 34:4.
30“Then there will be something in the sky that shows the Son of Man is coming. All the people of the world will cry. Everyone will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds in the sky. He will come with power and great glory. 31He will use a loud trumpet to send his angels all around the earth. They will gather his chosen people from every part of the earth.
32“The fig tree teaches us a lesson: When its branches become green and soft, and new leaves begin to grow, then you know that summer is very near. 33In the same way, when you see all these things happening, you will know that the time#24:33 time The time Jesus has been talking about when something important will happen. See Lk. 21:31, where Jesus says that this is the time for God’s kingdom to come. is very near, already present. 34I assure you that all these things will happen while some of the people of this time are still living. 35The whole world, earth and sky, will be destroyed, but my words will last forever.
Only God Knows When the Time Will Be
(Mk. 13:32–37; Lk. 17:26–30, 34–36)
36“No one knows when that day or time will be. The Son and the angels in heaven don’t know when it will be. Only the Father knows.
37“When the Son of Man comes, it will be the same as what happened during Noah’s time. 38In those days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving their children to be married right up to the day Noah entered the boat. 39They knew nothing about what was happening until the flood came and destroyed them all.
“It will be the same when the Son of Man comes. 40Two men will be working together in the field. One will be taken and the other will be left. 41Two women will be grinding grain with a mill. One will be taken and the other will be left.
42“So always be ready. You don’t know the day your Lord will come. 43What would a homeowner do if he knew when a thief was coming? You know he would be ready and not let the thief break in. 44So you also must be ready. The Son of Man will come at a time when you don’t expect him.
Good Servants and Bad Servants
(Lk. 12:41–48)
45“Who is the wise and trusted servant? The master trusts one servant to give the other servants their food at the right time. Who is the one the master trusts to do that work? 46When the master comes and finds that servant doing the work he gave him, it will be a day of blessing for that servant. 47I can tell you without a doubt, the master will choose that servant to take care of everything he owns.
48“But what will happen if that servant is evil and thinks his master will not come back soon? 49He will begin to beat the other servants. He will eat and drink with others who are drunk. 50Then the master will come when the servant is not ready, at a time when the servant is not expecting him. 51Then the master will punish that servant. He will send him away to be with the hypocrites, where people will cry and grind their teeth with pain.
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Matthew 24: ERV
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© 1987, 2004 Bible League International
Matthew 24
24
The destruction of the temple and signs of the end times
1Jesus left the temple and was walking away when his disciples came up to him to call his attention to its buildings. 2‘Do you see all these things?’ he asked. ‘Truly I tell you, not one stone here will be left on another; every one will be thrown down.’
3As Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately. ‘Tell us,’ they said, ‘when will this happen, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?’
4Jesus answered: ‘Watch out that no-one deceives you. 5For many will come in my name, claiming, “I am the Messiah,” and will deceive many. 6You will hear of wars and rumours of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. 7Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. 8All these are the beginning of birth-pains.
9 ‘Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me. 10At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, 11and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. 12Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, 13but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved. 14And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.
15 ‘So when you see standing in the holy place “the abomination that causes desolation,” # 24:15
Daniel 9:27; 11:31; 12:11 spoken of through the prophet Daniel – let the reader understand – 16then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. 17Let no-one on the housetop go down to take anything out of the house. 18Let no-one in the field go back to get their cloak. 19How dreadful it will be in those days for pregnant women and nursing mothers! 20Pray that your flight will not take place in winter or on the Sabbath. 21For then there will be great distress, unequalled from the beginning of the world until now – and never to be equalled again.
22 ‘If those days had not been cut short, no-one would survive, but for the sake of the elect those days will be shortened. 23At that time if anyone says to you, “Look, here is the Messiah!” or, “There he is!” do not believe it. 24For false messiahs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect. 25See, I have told you in advance.
26 ‘So if anyone tells you, “There he is, out in the desert,” do not go out; or, “Here he is, in the inner rooms,” do not believe it. 27For as lightning that comes from the east is visible even in the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. 28Wherever there is a carcass, there the vultures will gather.
29 ‘Immediately after the distress of those days
‘ “the sun will be darkened,
and the moon will not give its light;
the stars will fall from the sky,
and the heavenly bodies will be shaken.” # 24:29
Isaiah 13:10; 34:4
30 ‘Then will appear the sign of the Son of Man in heaven. And then all the peoples of the earth # 24:30 Or the tribes of the land will mourn when they see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven, with power and great glory.#24:30 See Daniel 7:13-14. 31And he will send his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other.
32 ‘Now learn this lesson from the fig-tree: as soon as its twigs become tender and its leaves come out, you know that summer is near. 33Even so, when you see all these things, you know that it#24:33 Or he is near, right at the door. 34Truly I tell you, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened. 35Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.
The day and hour unknown
36 ‘But about that day or hour no-one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, # 24:36 Some manuscripts do not have nor the Son. but only the Father. 37As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. 38For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; 39and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away. That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. 40Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other left. 41Two women will be grinding with a hand-mill; one will be taken and the other left.
42 ‘Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come. 43But understand this: if the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. 44So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.
45 ‘Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom the master has put in charge of the servants in his household to give them their food at the proper time? 46It will be good for that servant whose master finds him doing so when he returns. 47Truly I tell you, he will put him in charge of all his possessions. 48But suppose that servant is wicked and says to himself, “My master is staying away a long time,” 49and he then begins to beat his fellow servants and to eat and drink with drunkards. 50The master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he is not aware of. 51He will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
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