Matthew 24:23-51
English Standard Version
23 (A)Then if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or ‘There he is!’ do not believe it. 24 For (B)false christs and (C)false prophets will arise and (D)perform great signs and wonders, (E)so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect. 25 See, (F)I have told you beforehand. 26 So, if they say to you, ‘Look, (G)he is in the wilderness,’ do not go out. If they say, ‘Look, he is in the inner rooms,’ do not believe it. 27 (H)For as the lightning comes from the east and shines as far as the west, so will be (I)the coming of the Son of Man. 28 (J)Wherever the corpse is, there the vultures will gather.
The Coming of the Son of Man
29 “Immediately after (K)the tribulation of those days (L)the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and (M)the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. 30 Then (N)will appear in heaven (O)the sign of the Son of Man, and then (P)all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and (Q)they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven (R)with power and great glory. 31 And (S)he will send out his angels with a loud (T)trumpet call, and they will (U)gather (V)his elect from (W)the four winds, (X)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, (Y)at the very gates. 34 (Z)Truly, I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place. 35 (AA)Heaven and earth will pass away, but (AB)my words will not pass away.
No One Knows That Day and Hour
36 “But concerning that day and hour (AC)no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, (AD)nor the Son,[a] (AE)but the Father only. 37 (AF)For as were the days of Noah, (AG)so will be the coming of the Son of Man. 38 (AH)For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, (AI)marrying and giving in marriage, until (AJ)the day when Noah entered the ark, 39 and they were unaware until the flood came and swept them all away, (AK)so will be the coming of the Son of Man. 40 Then two men will be in the field; one will be taken and one left. 41 (AL)Two women will be grinding (AM)at the mill; one will be taken and one left. 42 Therefore, (AN)stay awake, for you do not know on what day (AO)your Lord is coming. 43 (AP)But know this, that if the master of the house had known in what part of the night (AQ)the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and would not have let his house be broken into. 44 Therefore you also must be (AR)ready, for (AS)the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.
45 “Who then is (AT)the faithful and (AU)wise servant,[b] whom his master has set over his household, to give them their food at the proper time? 46 (AV)Blessed is that servant whom his master will find so doing when he comes. 47 Truly, I say to you, (AW)he will set him over all his possessions. 48 But if that wicked servant says to himself, ‘My master (AX)is delayed,’ 49 and begins to beat his fellow servants[c] and eats and drinks with (AY)drunkards, 50 the master of that servant will come (AZ)on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he does not know 51 and will cut him in pieces and put him with the hypocrites. In that place (BA)there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
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- Matthew 24:36 Some manuscripts omit nor the Son
- Matthew 24:45 Or bondservant; also verses 46, 48, 50
- Matthew 24:49 Or bondservants
Matthew 24:23-51
New Living Translation
23 “Then if anyone tells you, ‘Look, here is the Messiah,’ or ‘There he is,’ don’t believe it. 24 For false messiahs and false prophets will rise up and perform great signs and wonders so as to deceive, if possible, even God’s chosen ones. 25 See, I have warned you about this ahead of time.
26 “So if someone tells you, ‘Look, the Messiah is out in the desert,’ don’t bother to go and look. Or, ‘Look, he is hiding here,’ don’t believe it! 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. 28 Just as the gathering of vultures shows there is a carcass nearby, so these signs indicate that the end is near.[b]
29 “Immediately after the anguish of those days,
the sun will be darkened,
the moon will give no light,
the stars will fall from the sky,
and the powers in the heavens will be shaken.[c]
30 And then at last, the sign that the Son of Man is coming will appear in the heavens, and there will be deep mourning among all the peoples of the earth. And they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.[d] 31 And he will send out his angels with the mighty blast of a trumpet, and they will gather his chosen ones from all over the world[e]—from the farthest ends of the earth and heaven.
32 “Now learn a lesson from the fig tree. When its branches bud and its leaves begin to sprout, you know that summer is near. 33 In the same way, when you see all these things, you can know his return is very near, right at the door. 34 I tell you the truth, this generation[f] will not pass from the scene until all these things take place. 35 Heaven and earth will disappear, but my words will never disappear.
36 “However, no one knows the day or hour when these things will happen, not even the angels in heaven or the Son himself.[g] Only the Father knows.
37 “When the Son of Man returns, it will be like it was in Noah’s day. 38 In those days before the flood, the people were enjoying banquets and parties and weddings right up to the time Noah entered his boat. 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.
40 “Two men will be working together in the field; one will be taken, the other left. 41 Two women will be grinding flour at the mill; one will be taken, the other left.
42 “So you, too, must keep watch! For you don’t know what day your Lord is coming. 43 Understand this: If a homeowner knew exactly when a burglar was coming, he would keep watch and not permit his house to be broken into. 44 You also must be ready all the time, for the Son of Man will come when least expected.
45 “A faithful, sensible servant is one to whom the master can give the responsibility of managing his other household servants and feeding them. 46 If the master returns and finds that the servant has done a good job, there will be a reward. 47 I tell you the truth, the master will put that servant in charge of all he owns. 48 But what if the servant is evil and thinks, ‘My master won’t be back for a while,’ 49 and he begins beating the other servants, partying, and getting drunk? 50 The master will return unannounced and unexpected, 51 and he will cut the servant to pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
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The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
