Matthew 24
Holman Christian Standard Bible
Destruction of the Temple Predicted
24 As Jesus left and was going out of the temple complex,(A) His disciples(B) came up and called His attention to the temple buildings. 2 Then He replied to them, “Don’t you see all these things? I assure you: Not one stone will be left here on another that will not be thrown down!”
Signs of the End of the Age
3 While He was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples approached Him privately and said, “Tell us, when will these things happen? And what is the sign of Your coming and of the end of the age?”(C)
4 Then Jesus replied to them: “Watch out that no one deceives(D) you. 5 For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the Messiah,’ and they will deceive many.(E) 6 You are going to hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not alarmed, because these things must take place, but the end is not yet. 7 For nation will rise up against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines[a](F) and earthquakes in various places.(G) 8 All these events are the beginning of birth pains.(H)
Persecutions Predicted
9 “Then they will hand you over for persecution,[b] and they will kill you. You will be hated by all nations because of My name.(I) 10 Then many will take offense, betray one another and hate one another. 11 Many false prophets(J) will rise up and deceive many. 12 Because lawlessness(K) will multiply, the love of many will grow cold. 13 But the one who endures to the end will be delivered.[c] 14 This good news of the kingdom will be proclaimed in all the world[d] as a testimony to all nations.(L) And then the end will come.(M)
The Great Tribulation
15 “So when you see the abomination that causes desolation,[e][f] spoken of by the prophet Daniel,(N) standing in the holy place”(O) (let the reader understand[g]), 16 “then those in Judea must flee to the mountains! 17 A man on the housetop[h] must not come down to get things out of his house.(P) 18 And a man in the field must not go back to get his clothes. 19 Woe to pregnant women and nursing mothers in those days! 20 Pray that your escape may not be in winter or on a Sabbath. 21 For at that time there will be great tribulation,(Q) the kind that hasn’t taken place from the beginning of the world until now and never will again! 22 Unless those days were limited, no one would[i] survive.[j] But those days will be limited because of the elect.(R)
23 “If anyone tells you then, ‘Look, here is the Messiah!’(S) or, ‘Over here!’ do not believe it!(T) 24 False messiahs[k] and false prophets will arise and perform great signs and wonders to lead astray,(U) if possible, even the elect. 25 Take note: I have told you in advance. 26 So if they tell you, ‘Look, He’s in the wilderness!’ don’t go out; ‘Look, He’s in the inner rooms!’ do not believe it. 27 For as the lightning comes from the east and flashes as far as the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man.(V) 28 Wherever the carcass is, there the vultures[l] will gather.(W)
The Coming of the Son of Man
29 “Immediately after the tribulation(X) of those days:
The sun will be darkened,
and the moon will not shed its light;
the stars will fall from the sky,
and the celestial powers will be shaken.
30 “Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and then all the peoples of the earth[m] will mourn;[n] and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.(Y) 31 He will send out His angels with a loud trumpet,(Z) and they will gather His elect from the four winds,(AA) from one end of the sky to the other.
The Parable of the Fig Tree
32 “Now learn this parable(AB) from the fig tree: As soon as its branch becomes tender and sprouts leaves, you know that summer is near. 33 In the same way, when you see all these things, recognize[o] that He[p] is near—at the door!(AC) 34 I assure you: This generation will certainly not pass away until all these things take place.(AD) 35 Heaven and earth will pass away,(AE) but My words will never pass away.(AF)
No One Knows the Day or Hour
36 “Now concerning that day and hour no one knows—neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son[q] —except the Father only.(AG) 37 As the days of Noah were, so the coming of the Son of Man will be. 38 For in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day Noah boarded the ark.(AH) 39 They didn’t know[r] until the flood came and swept them all away. So this is the way the coming of the Son of Man will be: 40 Then two men will be in the field: one will be taken and one left. 41 Two women will be grinding at the mill: one will be taken and one left.(AI) 42 Therefore be alert, since you don’t know what day[s] your Lord is coming.(AJ) 43 But know this: If the homeowner had known what time[t] the thief was coming, he would have stayed alert and not let his house be broken into.(AK) 44 This is why you also must be ready, because the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.(AL)
Faithful Service to the Messiah
45 “Who then is a faithful and sensible slave,(AM) whom his master has put in charge of his household, to give them food at the proper time?(AN) 46 That slave whose master finds him working(AO) when he comes will be rewarded. 47 I assure you: He will put him in charge of all his possessions. 48 But if that wicked slave says in his heart, ‘My master is delayed,’ 49 and starts to beat his fellow slaves, and eats and drinks with drunkards,(AP) 50 that slave’s master will come on a day he does not expect and at an hour he does not know. 51 He will cut him to pieces[u] and assign him a place with the hypocrites. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
Footnotes
- Matthew 24:7 Other mss add epidemics
- Matthew 24:9 Or tribulation, or distress
- Matthew 24:13 Or be saved
- Matthew 24:14 Or in all the inhabited earth
- Matthew 24:15 Or abomination of desolation, or desolating sacrilege
- Matthew 24:15 Dn 9:27
- Matthew 24:15 These are, most likely, Matthew’s words to his readers.
- Matthew 24:17 Or roof
- Matthew 24:22 Lit short, all flesh would not
- Matthew 24:22 Or be saved or delivered
- Matthew 24:24 Or False christs
- Matthew 24:28 Or eagles
- Matthew 24:30 Or all the tribes of the land
- Matthew 24:30 Lit will beat; that is, beat their breasts
- Matthew 24:33 Or things, you know
- Matthew 24:33 Or it; that is, summer
- Matthew 24:36 Other mss omit nor the Son
- Matthew 24:39 They didn’t know the day and hour of the coming judgment.
- Matthew 24:42 Other mss read hour; = time
- Matthew 24:43 Lit watch; a division of the night in ancient times
- Matthew 24:51 Lit him in two
Matthew 24
Common English Bible
The temple’s fate
24 Now Jesus left the temple and was going away. His disciples came to point out to him the temple buildings. 2 He responded, “Do you see all these things? I assure that no stone will be left on another. Everything will be demolished.”
Beginning of troubles
3 Now while Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately and said, “Tell us, when will these things happen? What will be the sign of your coming and the end of the age?”
4 Jesus replied, “Watch out that no one deceives you. 5 Many will come in my name, saying, ‘I’m the Christ.’ They will deceive many people. 6 You will hear about wars and reports of wars. Don’t be alarmed. These things must happen, but this isn’t the end yet. 7 Nations and kingdoms will fight against each other, and there will be famines and earthquakes in all sorts of places. 8 But all these things are just the beginning of the sufferings associated with the end. 9 They will arrest you, abuse you, and they will kill you. All nations will hate you on account of my name. 10 At that time many will fall away. They will betray each other and hate each other. 11 Many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. 12 Because disobedience will expand, the love of many will grow cold. 13 But the one who endures to the end will be delivered. 14 This gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the world as a testimony to all the nations. Then the end will come.
The great suffering
15 “When you see the disgusting and destructive thing that Daniel talked about standing in the holy place (the reader should understand this), 16 then those in Judea must escape to the mountains. 17 Those on the roof shouldn’t come down to grab things from their houses. 18 Those in the field shouldn’t come back to grab their clothes. 19 How terrible it will be at that time for women who are pregnant and for women who are nursing their children. 20 Pray that it doesn’t happen in winter or on the Sabbath day. 21 There will be great suffering such as the world has never before seen and will never again see. 22 If that time weren’t shortened, nobody would be rescued. But for the sake of the ones whom God chose, that time will be cut short.
23 “Then if somebody says to you, ‘Look, here’s the Christ,’ or ‘He’s over here,’ don’t believe it. 24 False christs and false prophets will appear, and they will offer great signs and wonders in order to deceive, if possible, even those whom God has chosen. 25 Look, I’ve told you ahead of time. 26 So if they say to you, ‘Look, he’s in the desert,’ don’t go out. And if they say, ‘Look, he’s in the rooms deep inside the house,’ don’t believe it. 27 Just as the lightning flashes from the east to the west, so it will be with the coming of the Human One.[a] 28 The vultures gather wherever there’s a dead body.
Coming of the Human One
29 “Now immediately after the suffering of that time the sun will become dark, and the moon won’t give its light. The stars will fall from the sky and the planets and other heavenly bodies will be shaken. 30 Then the sign of the Human One[b] will appear in the sky. At that time all the tribes of the earth will be full of sadness, and they will see the Human One[c] coming in the heavenly clouds[d] with power and great splendor. 31 He will send his angels with the sound of a great trumpet, and they will gather his chosen ones from the four corners of the earth, from one end of the sky to the other.
A lesson from the fig tree
32 “Learn this parable from the fig tree. After its branch becomes tender and it sprouts new leaves, you know that summer is near. 33 In the same way, when you see all these things, you know that the Human One[e] is near, at the door. 34 I assure you that this generation won’t pass away until all these things happen. 35 Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will certainly not pass away.
Day and hour
36 “But nobody knows when that day or hour will come, not the heavenly angels and not the Son. Only the Father knows. 37 As it was in the time of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Human One.[f] 38 In those days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day Noah entered the ark. 39 They didn’t know what was happening until the flood came and swept them all away. The coming of the Human One[g] will be like that. 40 At that time there will be two men in the field. One will be taken and the other left. 41 Two women will be grinding at the mill. One will be taken and the other left. 42 Therefore, stay alert! You don’t know what day the Lord is coming. 43 But you understand that if the head of the house knew at what time the thief would come, he would keep alert and wouldn’t allow the thief to break into his house. 44 Therefore, you also should be prepared, because the Human One[h] will come at a time you don’t know.
Faithful and unfaithful servants
45 “Who then are the faithful and wise servants whom their master puts in charge of giving food at the right time to those who live in his house? 46 Happy are those servants whom the master finds fulfilling their responsibilities when he comes. 47 I assure you that he will put them in charge of all his possessions. 48 But suppose those bad servants should say to themselves, My master won’t come until later. 49 And suppose they began to beat their fellow servants and to eat and drink with the drunks? 50 The master of those servants will come on a day when they are not expecting him, at a time they couldn’t predict. 51 He will cut them in pieces and put them in a place with the hypocrites. People there will be weeping and grinding their teeth.
Footnotes
- Matthew 24:27 Or Son of Man
- Matthew 24:30 Or Son of Man
- Matthew 24:30 Or Son of Man
- Matthew 24:30 Dan 7:13 I suddenly saw one like a human being (Aram kebar enash) coming with the heavenly clouds.
- Matthew 24:33 Or Son of Man
- Matthew 24:37 Or Son of Man
- Matthew 24:39 Or Son of Man
- Matthew 24:44 Or Son of Man
Copyright © 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2009 by Holman Bible Publishers, Nashville Tennessee. All rights reserved.
Copyright © 2011 by Common English Bible