Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)

¹⁵ `Daniel the prophet said that people would put something very bad in the temple.' (Let the one who reads this understand it.)

¹⁶ `When that happens, the people in Judea must go quickly to the hills.

¹⁷ A person who is on the top of a house must not go down into the house to get things from the house.

¹⁸ A person who is working in the fields must not go back home to get his coat.

¹⁹ In those days it will be very hard for women who are to have a child. It will be very hard for mothers who have a baby.

²⁰ Ask God that you may not have to go in the cold time of the year or on the Sabbath day.

²¹ The trouble then will be bigger than any other trouble since God made the world. And there never will be any trouble as big as that.

²² No person would be saved if the Lord did not cut the time of trouble shorter. He will cut it shorter for the sake of his chosen people.

²³ `If anyone says to you then, "Look, here is the Christ!" or "There he is!" do not believe it.

²⁴ People will come and say they are the Christ. People will come and say they are prophets. But they are not true. They will show big signs and do wonderful things to fool people. They will fool God's chosen people if they can.

²⁵ Watch! I have told you these things before they happen.

²⁶ So if people say to you, "He is in the wilderness," do not go there. If they say, "He is hiding somewhere," do not believe it.

²⁷ When lightning shines in the east, it can be seen in the west. It will be like that when the Son of Man comes.

²⁸ The big birds that eat meat will all go to the place where the dead body is.'

²⁹ `Right after that time of trouble, the sun will be dark. The moon will not shine. The stars will fall from the sky. And the powers in the sky will be shaken.

³⁰ Then people will see the sign of the Son of Man in the sky. Then all the people of the earth will cry. They will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds in the sky. He will have much power and will be very great.

³¹ He will send his angels to call with a loud trumpet or horn. They will gather his chosen people from everywhere all over the earth.'