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.
• New International Version (NIV)For then there will be great distress, unequaled from the beginning of the world until now—and never to be equaled again.
• 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 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

19But woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days! 20And pray that your flight may not be in winter or on the Sabbath. 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. 22And unless those days were shortened, no flesh would be saved; but for the elect’s sake those days will be shortened. 23“Then if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or ‘There!’ 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 69:22Let their table become a snare before them, And their well-being a trap.
• Isaiah 65:12Therefore I will number you for the sword, And you shall all bow down to the slaughter; Because, when I called, you did not answer; When I spoke, you did not hear, But did evil before My eyes, And chose that in which I do not delight.”
• Isaiah 66:15For behold, the Lord will come with fire And with His chariots, like a whirlwind, To render His anger with fury, And His rebuke with flames of fire.
• Daniel 9:26“And after the sixty-two weeks Messiah shall be cut off, but not for Himself; And the people of the prince who is to come Shall destroy the city and the sanctuary. The end of it shall be with a flood, And till the end of the war desolations are determined.
• Daniel 12:1“At that time Michael shall stand up, The great prince who stands watch over the sons of your people; And there shall be a time of trouble, Such as never was since there was a nation, Even to that time. And at that time your people shall be delivered, Every one who is found written in the book.
• Joel 1:2Hear this, you elders, And give ear, all you inhabitants of the land! Has anything like this happened in your days, Or even in the days of your fathers?
• Joel 2:2A day of darkness and gloominess, A day of clouds and thick darkness, Like the morning clouds spread over the mountains. A people come, great and strong, The like of whom has never been; Nor will there ever be any such after them, Even for many successive generations.
• Zechariah 11:8I dismissed the three shepherds in one month. My soul loathed them, and their soul also abhorred me.
• Zechariah 14:2For I will gather all the nations to battle against Jerusalem; The city shall be taken, The houses rifled, And the women ravished. Half of the city shall go into captivity, But the remnant of the people shall not be cut off from the city.
• Malachi 4:1“For behold, the day is coming, Burning like an oven, And all the proud, yes, all who do wickedly will be stubble. And the day which is coming shall burn them up,” Says the Lord of hosts, “That will leave them neither root nor branch.
• Mark 13:9“But watch out for yourselves, for they will deliver you up to councils, and you will be beaten in the synagogues. You will be brought before rulers and kings for My sake, for a testimony to them.
• Luke 19:43For days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment around you, surround you and close you in on every side,
• Luke 21:24And they will fall by the edge of the sword, and be led away captive into all nations. And Jerusalem will be trampled by Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.
• 1 Thessalonians 2:16forbidding us to speak to the Gentiles that they may be saved, so as always to fill up the measure of their sins; but wrath has come upon them to the uttermost.
• Hebrews 10:26For if we sin willfully after we have received the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins,

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