The Abomination of Desolation

15 “So when you see the abomination of desolation (A)spoken of by the prophet Daniel, standing in (B)the holy place ((C)let the reader understand), 16 then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. 17 (D)Let the one who is on (E)the housetop not go down to take what is in his house, 18 and let the one who is in the field not turn back to take his cloak. 19 And (F)alas for women who are pregnant and for those who are nursing infants in those days! 20 Pray that your flight may not be in winter or on a Sabbath. 21 For then there will be (G)great tribulation, (H)such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be. 22 And if those days had not been cut short, no human being would be saved. But for (I)the sake of the elect those days will be cut short. 23 (J)Then if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or ‘There he is!’ do not believe it. 24 For (K)false christs and (L)false prophets will arise and (M)perform great signs and wonders, (N)so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect. 25 See, (O)I have told you beforehand. 26 So, if they say to you, ‘Look, (P)he is in the wilderness,’ do not go out. If they say, ‘Look, he is in the inner rooms,’ do not believe it. 27 (Q)For as the lightning comes from the east and shines as far as the west, so will be (R)the coming of the Son of Man. 28 (S)Wherever the corpse is, there the vultures will gather.

The Coming of the Son of Man

29 “Immediately after (T)the tribulation of those days (U)the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and (V)the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. 30 Then (W)will appear in heaven (X)the sign of the Son of Man, and then (Y)all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and (Z)they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven (AA)with power and great glory. 31 And (AB)he will send out his angels with a loud (AC)trumpet call, and they will (AD)gather (AE)his elect from (AF)the four winds, (AG)from one end of heaven to the other.

The Lesson of the Fig Tree

32 “From the fig tree learn its lesson: as soon as its branch becomes tender and puts out its leaves, you know that summer is near. 33 So also, when you see all these things, you know that he is near, (AH)at the very gates. 34 (AI)Truly, I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place. 35 (AJ)Heaven and earth will pass away, but (AK)my words will not pass away.

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15 “So when you see standing in the holy place(A) ‘the abomination that causes desolation,’[a](B) spoken of through the prophet Daniel—let the reader understand— 16 then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. 17 Let no one on the housetop(C) go down to take anything out of the house. 18 Let no one in the field go back to get their cloak. 19 How dreadful it will be in those days for pregnant women and nursing mothers!(D) 20 Pray that your flight will not take place in winter or on the Sabbath. 21 For then there will be great distress, unequaled from the beginning of the world until now—and never to be equaled again.(E)

22 “If those days had not been cut short, no one would survive, but for the sake of the elect(F) those days will be shortened. 23 At that time if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Messiah!’ or, ‘There he is!’ do not believe it.(G) 24 For false messiahs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and wonders(H) to deceive, if possible, even the elect. 25 See, I have told you ahead of time.

26 “So if anyone tells you, ‘There he is, out in the wilderness,’ do not go out; or, ‘Here he is, in the inner rooms,’ do not believe it. 27 For as lightning(I) that comes from the east is visible even in the west, so will be the coming(J) of the Son of Man.(K) 28 Wherever there is a carcass, there the vultures will gather.(L)

29 “Immediately after the distress of those days

“‘the sun will be darkened,
    and the moon will not give its light;
the stars will fall from the sky,
    and the heavenly bodies will be shaken.’[b](M)

30 “Then will appear the sign of the Son of Man in heaven. And then all the peoples of the earth[c] will mourn(N) when they see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven,(O) with power and great glory.[d] 31 And he will send his angels(P) with a loud trumpet call,(Q) and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other.

32 “Now learn this lesson from the fig tree: As soon as its twigs get tender and its leaves come out, you know that summer is near. 33 Even so, when you see all these things, you know that it[e] is near, right at the door.(R) 34 Truly I tell you, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened.(S) 35 Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.(T)

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Footnotes

  1. Matthew 24:15 Daniel 9:27; 11:31; 12:11
  2. Matthew 24:29 Isaiah 13:10; 34:4
  3. Matthew 24:30 Or the tribes of the land
  4. Matthew 24:30 See Daniel 7:13-14.
  5. Matthew 24:33 Or he