Matthew 24:21

Matthew 24:21 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.
• English Standard Version (ESV)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.
• New King James Version (NKJV)For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be.
• New Living Translation (NLT)For there will be greater anguish than at any time since the world began. And it will never be so great again.

Context of Matthew 24:21

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. For then there will be great distress, unequaled from the beginning of the world until now—and never to be equaled 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.

Matthew 24:21 word by word

ἔσται γὰρ τότε θλῖψις μεγάλη οἵα οὐ γέγονεν ἀπ᾽ ἀρχῆς κόσμου ἕως τοῦ νῦν οὐδ᾽ οὐ μὴ γένηται.Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• ·ὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
• Forγάρgar · forG1063
• thenτότεtote · thenG5119
• shall beεἰμίeimi · to beG1510
• greatμέγαςmegas · greatG3173
• tribulationθλῖψιςthlipsis · pressureG2347
• such asοἷοςoios · such asG3634
• wasγίνομαιginomai · to beG1096
• notοὐou · noG3756
• sinceἀπόapo · away fromG575
• the beginningἀρχήarchē · beginningG746
• of the worldκόσμοςkosmos · worldG2889
• toἕωςheōs · untilG2193
• this timeνῦνnun · nowG3568
• noοὐδέoude · norG3761
• everμήmē · notG3361

Cross-references for Matthew 24:21

• Psalms 69:22May the table set before them become a snare; may it become retribution and a trap.
• Isaiah 65:12I will destine you for the sword, and all of you will fall in the slaughter; for I called but you did not answer, I spoke but you did not listen. You did evil in my sight and chose what displeases me.”
• Isaiah 66:15See, the Lord is coming with fire, and his chariots are like a whirlwind; he will bring down his anger with fury, and his rebuke with flames of fire.
• Daniel 9:26After the sixty-two ‘sevens,’ the Anointed One will be put to death and will have nothing. The people of the ruler who will come will destroy the city and the sanctuary. The end will come like a flood: War will continue until the end, and desolations have been decreed.
• Daniel 12:1“At that time Michael, the great prince who protects your people, will arise. There will be a time of distress such as has not happened from the beginning of nations until then. But at that time your people—everyone whose name is found written in the book—will be delivered.
• Joel 1:2Hear this, you elders; listen, all who live in the land. Has anything like this ever happened in your days or in the days of your ancestors?
• Joel 2:2a day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and blackness. Like dawn spreading across the mountains a large and mighty army comes, such as never was in ancient times nor ever will be in ages to come.
• Zechariah 11:8In one month I got rid of the three shepherds. The flock detested me, and I grew weary of them
• Zechariah 14:2I will gather all the nations to Jerusalem to fight against it; the city will be captured, the houses ransacked, and the women raped. Half of the city will go into exile, but the rest of the people will not be taken from the city.
• Malachi 4:1“Surely the day is coming; it will burn like a furnace. All the arrogant and every evildoer will be stubble, and the day that is coming will set them on fire,” says the Lord Almighty. “Not a root or a branch will be left to them.
• Mark 13:9“You must be on your guard. You will be handed over to the local councils and flogged in the synagogues. On account of me you will stand before governors and kings as witnesses to them.
• Luke 19:43The days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment against you and encircle you and hem you in on every side.
• Luke 21:24They will fall by the sword and will be taken as prisoners to all the nations. Jerusalem will be trampled on by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.
• 1 Thessalonians 2:16in their effort to keep us from speaking to the Gentiles so that they may be saved. In this way they always heap up their sins to the limit. The wrath of God has come upon them at last.
• Hebrews 10:26If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no sacrifice for sins is left,

Commentaries on Matthew 24:21

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 21For then shall be great tribulation - No history can furnish us with a parallel to the calamities and miseries of the Jews: - rapine, murder, famine, and pestilence within: fire and sword, and all the horrors of war, without. Our Lord wept at the foresight of these calamities; and it is almost impossible for any humane person to read the relation of them in Josephus without weeping also. St. Luke, Luke 21:22, calls these the days of vengeance, that all…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 21There shall be great tribulation - The word “tribulation” means calamity or “suffering.” Luke Luke 21:24 has specified in what this tribulation would consist: “They shall fall by the edge of the sword, and shall be led away captive into all nations, and Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles shall be fulfilled.” That is, until the time allotted for the Gentiles “to do it” shall be fully accomplished, or as long as…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 4-28Verses 4-28 The disciples had asked concerning the times, When these things should be? Christ gave them no answer to that; but they had also asked, What shall be the sign? This question he answers fully. The prophecy first respects events near at hand, the destruction of Jerusalem, the end of the Jewish church and state, the calling of the Gentiles, and the setting up of Christ's kingdom in the world; but it also looks to the general judgment; and toward…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 21great tribulation, unmatched: Similar language appears in Nehemiah 9:37; Jeremiah 11:16; Daniel 12:1; Joel 2:1–17. The Jewish historian Josephus documented the extreme violence of the times (see War 5.10.2–3).Read the comment

Topics related to Matthew 24:21

• Faith
• Israel, Prophecies Concerning
• Jesus Continued
• Righteous

In the dictionaries

• Deceive
• Desolation
• Elect
• Flight
• Goodman
• Learn
• Lo
• Matthew, Gospel according to
• Olves, Mount of
• Tribulation

Commentaries on Matthew 24

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Catena Aurea
• Illustrated New Testament
• Burkitt’s Expository Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Family Bible Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• John Lightfoot Commentary
• Luther’s Commentary on Selected Bible Passages
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• The People’s New Testament
• Robertson’s Word Pictures
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• The Fourfold Gospel and Commentary on Acts
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings