²⁷ For as the lightning flashes in the east and shines to the west, so it will be when the Son of Man^[a] comes.

²⁴ For as the lightning flashes and lights up the sky from one end to the other, so it will be on the day^[a] when the Son of Man comes. ²⁵ But first the Son of Man must suffer terribly^[b] and be rejected by this generation.

²⁶ “When the Son of Man returns, it will be like it was in Noah’s day. ²⁷ In those days, the people enjoyed banquets and parties and weddings right up to the time Noah entered his boat and the flood came and destroyed them all.

²⁸ “And the world will be as it was in the days of Lot. People went about their daily business—eating and drinking, buying and selling, farming and building— ²⁹ until the morning Lot left Sodom. Then fire and burning sulfur rained down from heaven and destroyed them all. ³⁰ Yes, it will be ‘business as usual’ right up to the day when the Son of Man is revealed. ³¹ On that day a person out on the deck of a roof must not go down into the house to pack. A person out in the field must not return home. ³² Remember what happened to Lot’s wife! ³³ If you cling to your life, you will lose it, and if you let your life go, you will save it. ³⁴ That night two people will be asleep in one bed; one will be taken, the other left. ³⁵ Two women will be grinding flour together at the mill; one will be taken, the other left.^[c]”

³⁷ “Where will this happen, Lord?”^[d] the disciples asked.

Jesus replied, “Just as the gathering of vultures shows there is a carcass nearby, so these signs indicate that the end is near.”^[e]

⁴ They will say, “What happened to the promise that Jesus is coming again? From before the times of our ancestors, everything has remained the same since the world was first created.”

⁸ You, too, must be patient. Take courage, for the coming of the Lord is near.

² “But who will be able to endure it when he comes? Who will be able to stand and face him when he appears? For he will be like a blazing fire that refines metal, or like a strong soap that bleaches clothes.

³⁹ People didn’t realize what was going to happen until the flood came and swept them all away. That is the way it will be when the Son of Man comes.

³⁷ “When the Son of Man returns, it will be like it was in Noah’s day.

²⁸ And I tell you the truth, some standing here right now will not die before they see the Son of Man coming in his Kingdom.”

⁵ “Look, I am sending you the prophet Elijah before the great and dreadful day of the Lord arrives.