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Matthew 24
New Living Translation

Jesus Speaks about the Future

24 As Jesus was leaving the Temple grounds, his disciples pointed out to him the various Temple buildings. 2 But he responded, “Do you see all these buildings? I tell you the truth, they will be completely demolished. Not one stone will be left on top of another!”

3 Later, Jesus sat on the Mount of Olives. His disciples came to him privately and said, “Tell us, when will all this happen? What sign will signal your return and the end of the world?[a]”

4 Jesus told them, “Don’t let anyone mislead you, 5 for many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Messiah.’ They will deceive many. 6 And you will hear of wars and threats of wars, but don’t panic. Yes, these things must take place, but the end won’t follow immediately. 7 Nation will go to war against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in many parts of the world. 8 But all this is only the first of the birth pains, with more to come.

9 “Then you will be arrested, persecuted, and killed. You will be hated all over the world because you are my followers.[b] 10 And many will turn away from me and betray and hate each other. 11 And many false prophets will appear and will deceive many people. 12 Sin will be rampant everywhere, and the love of many will grow cold. 13 But the one who endures to the end will be saved. 14 And the Good News about the Kingdom will be preached throughout the whole world, so that all nations[c] will hear it; and then the end will come.

15 “The day is coming when you will see what Daniel the prophet spoke about—the sacrilegious object that causes desecration[d] standing in the Holy Place.” (Reader, pay attention!) 16 “Then those in Judea must flee to the hills. 17 A person out on the deck of a roof must not go down into the house to pack. 18 A person out in the field must not return even to get a coat. 19 How terrible it will be for pregnant women and for nursing mothers in those days. 20 And pray that your flight will not be in winter or on the Sabbath. 21 For there will be greater anguish than at any time since the world began. And it will never be so great again. 22 In fact, unless that time of calamity is shortened, not a single person will survive. But it will be shortened for the sake of God’s chosen ones.

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[e] comes. 28 Just as the gathering of vultures shows there is a carcass nearby, so these signs indicate that the end is near.[f]

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.[g]

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.[h] 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[i]—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[j] 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.[k] 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.

Footnotes

  1. 24:3 Or the age?
  2. 24:9 Greek on account of my name.
  3. 24:14 Or all peoples.
  4. 24:15 Greek the abomination of desolation. See Dan 9:27; 11:31; 12:11.
  5. 24:27 “Son of Man” is a title Jesus used for himself.
  6. 24:28 Greek Wherever the carcass is, the vultures gather.
  7. 24:29 See Isa 13:10; 34:4; Joel 2:10.
  8. 24:30 See Dan 7:13.
  9. 24:31 Greek from the four winds.
  10. 24:34 Or this age, or this nation.
  11. 24:36 Some manuscripts do not include or the Son himself.
Close LSB

Matthew 24
Legacy Standard Bible

Signs of Christ’s Return

24 (A)And coming (B)out from the temple, Jesus was going along, and His disciples came up to point out the temple buildings to Him. 2 And He answered and said to them, “Do you not see all these things? Truly I say to you, (C)not one stone here will be left upon another, which will not be torn down.”

3 Now as He was sitting on (D)the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will these things happen, and what will be the sign of (E)Your coming and of the [a]end of the age?”

4 And Jesus answered and said to them, “(F)See to it that no one deceives you. 5 For (G)many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the [b]Christ,’ and will deceive many. 6 And you are going to hear of (H)wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not alarmed, for those things must take place, but that is not yet the end. 7 For (I)nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and in various places there will be (J)famines and earthquakes. 8 (K)But all these things are merely the beginning of birth pains.

9 “(L)Then they will deliver you to tribulation, and will kill you, and (M)you will be hated by all nations because of My name. 10 And at that time many will [c](N)fall away and will [d]betray one another and hate one another. 11 Many (O)false prophets will arise and will deceive many. 12 And because lawlessness is multiplied, [e]most people’s love will grow cold. 13 (P)But the one who endures to the end, he will be saved. 14 And this (Q)gospel of the kingdom (R)shall be proclaimed in the whole [f](S)world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come.

Abomination of Desolation and the Tribulation

15 “Therefore when you see the (T)abomination of desolation which was spoken of through Daniel the prophet, standing in (U)the holy place ((V)let the reader understand), 16 then those who are in Judea must flee to the mountains. 17 [g]Whoever is on (W)the housetop must not go down to get the things out that are in his house. 18 And [h]whoever is in the field must not turn back to get his garment. 19 But (X)woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days! 20 But pray that your flight will not be in the winter, or on a Sabbath. 21 For then there will be a (Y)great tribulation, such as has not occurred since the beginning of the world until now, nor ever will. 22 And unless those days had been cut short, no [i]life would have been saved; but for (Z)the sake of the [j]elect those days will be cut short. 23 (AA)Then if anyone says to you, ‘Behold, here is the [k]Christ,’ or ‘[l]There He is,’ do not believe him. 24 For false christs and (AB)false prophets will arise and will [m]show great [n](AC)signs and wonders, so as to deceive, if possible, even (AD)the [o]elect. 25 Behold, I have told you in advance. 26 Therefore, 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 (AE)For just as the lightning comes from the east and appears even to the west, so will the (AF)coming of the (AG)Son of Man be. 28 (AH)Wherever the corpse is, there the [p]vultures will gather.

The Coming of the Son of Man

29 “But immediately after the (AI)tribulation of those days (AJ)the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and (AK)the stars will fall from [q]the sky, and the powers of [r]the heavens will be shaken. 30 And then (AL)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 (AM)the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky with power and great glory. 31 And (AN)He will send forth His angels with (AO)a great trumpet and they will gather together His [s](AP)elect from (AQ)the four winds, from one end of the sky to the [t]other.

The Parable of the Fig Tree

32 “Now learn the parable from the fig tree: when its branch has already become tender and puts forth its leaves, you know that summer is near; 33 so, you too, when you see all these things, [u]recognize that [v]He is near, right (AR)at the [w]door. 34 Truly I say to you, (AS)this [x]generation will not pass away until all these things take place. 35 (AT)Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will not pass away.

36 “But (AU)of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone. 37 For (AV)just as the days of Noah were, so the (AW)coming of the Son of Man will be. 38 For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, (AX)marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that (AY)Noah entered the ark, 39 and they did not [y]understand until the flood came and took them all away; so will the (AZ)coming of the Son of Man be. 40 Then there will be two in the field; one [z]will be taken, and one [aa]will be left. 41 (BA)Two women will be grinding grain at the [ab](BB)mill; one [ac]will be taken and one [ad]will be left.

Be Ready for His Coming

42 “Therefore (BC)stay awake, for you do not know which day your Lord is coming. 43 But [ae]be sure of this, that (BD)if the head of the house had known (BE)at what time of the night the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and would not have allowed his house to be [af]broken into. 44 For this reason (BF)you also must be ready; for (BG)the Son of Man is coming at an hour when you do not think He will.

45 “(BH)Who then is the (BI)faithful and (BJ)prudent slave whom his [ag]master (BK)put in charge of his household to give them their food at the proper time? 46 Blessed is that slave whom his [ah]master finds so doing when he comes. 47 Truly I say to you that (BL)he will put him in charge of all his possessions. 48 But if that evil slave says in his heart, ‘My [ai]master [aj]is not coming for a long time,’ 49 and begins to beat his fellow slaves and eat and drink with drunkards; 50 the [ak]master of that slave will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour which he does not know, 51 and will [al]cut him in pieces and [am]assign him a place with the hypocrites; in that place there will be (BM)weeping and gnashing of teeth.

Footnotes

  1. Matthew 24:3 Or consummation
  2. Matthew 24:5 Messiah
  3. Matthew 24:10 Lit be caused to stumble
  4. Matthew 24:10 Or hand over
  5. Matthew 24:12 Lit the love of many
  6. Matthew 24:14 Lit inhabited earth
  7. Matthew 24:17 Lit He who
  8. Matthew 24:18 Lit He who
  9. Matthew 24:22 Lit flesh
  10. Matthew 24:22 Or chosen ones
  11. Matthew 24:23 Messiah
  12. Matthew 24:23 Lit Here
  13. Matthew 24:24 Lit give
  14. Matthew 24:24 Or attesting miracles
  15. Matthew 24:24 Or chosen ones
  16. Matthew 24:28 Or eagles
  17. Matthew 24:29 Or heaven
  18. Matthew 24:29 Or heaven
  19. Matthew 24:31 Or chosen ones
  20. Matthew 24:31 Lit their end
  21. Matthew 24:33 Or know
  22. Matthew 24:33 Or it
  23. Matthew 24:33 Lit doors
  24. Matthew 24:34 Or race
  25. Matthew 24:39 Lit know
  26. Matthew 24:40 Lit is
  27. Matthew 24:40 Lit is
  28. Matthew 24:41 Handmill
  29. Matthew 24:41 Lit is
  30. Matthew 24:41 Lit is
  31. Matthew 24:43 Lit know this
  32. Matthew 24:43 Lit dug through
  33. Matthew 24:45 Or lord
  34. Matthew 24:46 Or lord
  35. Matthew 24:48 Or lord
  36. Matthew 24:48 Lit lingers
  37. Matthew 24:50 Or lord
  38. Matthew 24:51 Or severely scourge him
  39. Matthew 24:51 Lit appoint his portion
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