Matthew 24

Signs of Christ’s Return

11Jesus 2left the temple area and was going on His way 3when His disciples came up to point out the temple buildings to Him. 2But He responded and said to them, “Do you not see all these things? Truly I say to you, 4not one stone here will be left upon another, which will not be torn down.”

3And as He was sitting on 5the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will these things happen, and what will be the sign of 6Your coming, and of the 7end of the age?”

4And Jesus answered and said to them, “8See to it that no one 9misleads you. 5For 10many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the 11Christ,’ and they will 12mislead many people. 6And you will be hearing of 13wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not alarmed, for those things must take place, but that is not yet the end. 7For 14nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be 15famines and earthquakes in various places. 816But all these things are merely the beginning of birth pains.

9“17Then they will hand you over to tribulation and kill you, and 18you will be hated by all nations because of My name. 10And at that time many will 1920fall away, and they will 21betray one another and hate one another. 11And many 22false prophets will rise up and 23mislead many people. 12And because lawlessness is increased, 24most people’s love will become cold. 1325But the one who endures to the end is the one who will be saved. 14This 26gospel of the kingdom 27shall be preached in the whole 2829world as a testimony to all the nations, and then the end will come.

Perilous Times

15“Therefore when you see the 30abomination of desolation which was spoken of through Daniel the prophet, standing in 31the holy place--3233let the 34reader understand-- 16then those who are in Judea must flee to the mountains. 1735Whoever is on 36the 37housetop must not go down to get things out of his house. 18And 38whoever is in the field must not turn back to get his cloak. 19But 39woe to those women who are pregnant, and to those who are nursing babies in those days! 20Moreover, pray that 40when you flee, it will not be in the winter, or on a Sabbath. 21For then there will be a 41great tribulation, such as has not occurred since the beginning of the world until now, nor ever will again. 22And if those days had not been cut short, no 42life would have been saved; but for 43the sake of the 44elect those days will be cut short. 2345Then if anyone says to you, ‘Behold, here is the 46Christ,’ or ‘He is over here,’ do not believe him. 24For false christs and 47false prophets will arise and will provide great 4849signs and wonders, so as to mislead, if possible, even 50the 51elect. 25Behold, I have told you in advance. 26So if they say to you, ‘Behold, He is in the wilderness,’ do not go out; or, ‘Behold, He is in the inner rooms,’ do not believe them. 2752For just as the lightning comes from the east and flashes as far as the west, so will the 53coming of the 54Son of Man 55be. 2856Wherever the corpse is, there the 57vultures will gather.

The Glorious Return

29“But immediately after the 58tribulation of those days 59the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and 60the stars will fall from the sky, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. 30And then 61the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see 62the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky with power and great glory. 31And 63He will send forth His angels with 64a great trumpet blast, and they will gather together His 6566elect from 67the four winds, from one end of the sky to the other.

Parable of the Fig Tree

32“Now learn the parable from the fig tree: as soon as its branch has become tender and sprouts its leaves, you know that summer is near; 33so you too, when you see all these things, 68recognize that 69He is near, right 70at the 71door. 34Truly I say to you, 72this generation will not pass away until all these things take place. 3573Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will not pass away.

36“But 74about that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone. 37For 75the 76coming of the Son of Man will be 77just like the days of Noah. 38For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, 78marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that 79Noah entered the ark, 39and they did not 80understand until the flood came and took them all away; so will the 81coming of the Son of Man be. 40At that time there will be two men in the field; one 82will be taken and one 83will be left. 4184Two women will be grinding at the 8586mill; one 87will be taken and one 88will be left.

Be Ready for His Coming

42“Therefore 89be on the alert, for you do not know which day your Lord is coming. 43But 90be sure of this, that 91if the head of the house had known 92at what time of the night the thief was coming, he would have been on the alert and would not have allowed his house to be broken into. 44For this reason 93you must be ready as well; for 94the Son of Man is coming at an hour when you do not think He will.

45“95Who then is the 96faithful and 97sensible slave whom his 98master 99put in charge of his household slaves, to give them their food at the proper time? 46Blessed is that slave whom his 100master finds so doing when he comes. 47Truly I say to you that 101he will put him in charge of all his possessions. 48But if that evil slave says in his heart, ‘My 102master 103is not coming for a long time,’ 49and he begins to beat his fellow slaves, and he eats and drinks with those habitually drunk; 50then the 104master of that slave will come on a day that he does not expect, and at an hour that he does not know, 51and he will 105cut him in two and assign 106him a place with the hypocrites; in that place there will be 107weeping and gnashing of teeth.