²⁶ So 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. ^27 (A)For just as the lightning comes from the east and flashes as far as the west, so will the ^(B)coming of the ^(C)Son of Man ^[a]be. ^28 (D)Wherever the corpse is, there the ^[b]vultures will gather.

The Glorious Return

²⁹ “But immediately after the ^(E)tribulation of those days ^(F)the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and ^(G)the stars will fall from the sky, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. ³⁰ And then ^(H)the 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 ^(I)the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky with power and great glory. ³¹ And ^(J)He will send forth His angels with ^(K)a great trumpet blast, and they will gather together His ^[c](L)elect from ^(M)the 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; ³³ so you too, when you see all these things, ^[d]recognize that ^[e]He is near, right ^(N)at the ^[f]door. ³⁴ Truly I say to you, ^(O)this generation will not pass away until all these things take place. ^35 (P)Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will not pass away.

³⁶ “But ^(Q)about that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone. ³⁷ For ^[g]the ^(R)coming of the Son of Man will be ^(S)just like the days of Noah. ³⁸ For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, ^(T)marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that ^(U)Noah entered the ark, ³⁹ and they did not ^[h]understand until the flood came and took them all away; so will the ^(V)coming of the Son of Man be. ⁴⁰ At that time there will be two men in the field; one ^[i]will be taken and one ^[j]will be left. ^41 (W)Two women will be grinding at the ^[k](X)mill; one ^[l]will be taken and one ^[m]will be left.

Be Ready for His Coming

⁴² “Therefore ^(Y)be on the alert, for you do not know which day your Lord is coming. ⁴³ But ^[n]be sure of this, that ^(Z)if the head of the house had known ^(AA)at 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. ⁴⁴ For this reason ^(AB)you must be ready as well; for ^(AC)the Son of Man is coming at an hour when you do not think He will.

⁴⁵ “^(AD)Who then is the ^(AE)faithful and ^(AF)sensible slave whom his ^[o]master ^(AG)put in charge of his household slaves, to give them their food at the proper time?

The Return of Christ

²⁴ “But in those days, after that tribulation, ^(A)the sun will be darkened and the moon will not give its light, ^25 (B)and the stars will be falling from heaven, and the powers that are in the heavens will be shaken. ²⁶ And then they will see ^(C)the Son of Man ^(D)coming in clouds with great power and glory. ²⁷ And then He will send forth the angels, and ^(E)will gather together His ^[a]elect from the four winds, ^(F)from the end of the earth to the end of heaven.

²⁸ “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. ²⁹ So you too, when you see these things happening, ^[b]recognize that ^[c]He is near, right at the ^[d]door. ³⁰ Truly I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place. ³¹ Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will not pass away.

The Return of Christ

²⁵ “There will be ^[a]signs in the sun and moon and stars, and on the earth distress among nations, in perplexity at the roaring of the sea and the waves, ²⁶ people fainting from fear and the expectation of the things that are coming upon the ^[b]world; for the powers of ^[c]the heavens will be shaken. ²⁷ And ^(A)then they will see ^(B)the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. ²⁸ But when these things begin to take place, straighten up and lift up your heads, because ^(C)your redemption is drawing near.”

²⁹ And He told them a parable: “Look at the fig tree and all the trees: ³⁰ as soon as they put forth leaves, you see for yourselves and ^(D)know that summer is now near. ³¹ So you too, when you see these things happening, ^[d]recognize that ^(E)the kingdom of God is near. ³² Truly I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all things take place. ^33 (F)Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will not pass away.