Matthew 24:23-25

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.

The Parable of the Ten Virgins

25 “Then the kingdom of heaven will be like ^(BB)ten virgins who took their lamps^[d] and went to meet ^(BC)the bridegroom.^{[e] 2} Five of them were foolish, and five were ^(BD)wise. ³ For when the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them, ⁴ but the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps. ⁵ As the bridegroom ^(BE)was delayed, they all became drowsy and slept. ⁶ But ^(BF)at midnight there was a cry, ‘Here is the bridegroom! Come out to meet him.’ ⁷ Then all those virgins rose and ^(BG)trimmed their lamps. ⁸ And the foolish said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ ⁹ But the wise answered, saying, ‘Since there will not be enough for us and for you, go rather to the dealers and buy for yourselves.’ ¹⁰ And while they were going to buy, the bridegroom came, and ^(BH)those who were ready went in with him to ^(BI)the marriage feast, and ^(BJ)the door was shut. ¹¹ Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, ^(BK)‘Lord, lord, open to us.’ ^12 (BL)But he answered, ‘Truly, I say to you, ^(BM)I do not know you.’ ^13 (BN)Watch therefore, for you ^(BO)know neither the day nor the hour.

The Parable of the Talents

^14 (BP)“For ^(BQ)it will be like a man ^(BR)going on a journey, who called his servants^[f] and entrusted to them his property. ¹⁵ To one he gave five ^(BS)talents,^[g] to another two, to another one, ^(BT)to each according to his ability. Then he ^(BU)went away. ¹⁶ He who had received the five talents went at once and traded with them, and he made five talents more. ¹⁷ So also he who had the two talents made two talents more. ¹⁸ But he who had received the one talent went and ^(BV)dug in the ground and hid his master's money. ¹⁹ Now ^(BW)after a long time the master of those servants came and ^(BX)settled accounts with them. ²⁰ And he who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five talents more, saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me five talents; here, I have made five talents more.’ ²¹ His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and ^(BY)faithful servant.^{[h] (BZ)}You have been faithful over a little; ^(CA)I will set you over much. Enter into ^(CB)the joy of your master.’ ²² And he also who had the two talents came forward, saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me two talents; here, I have made two talents more.’ ²³ His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’