Matthew 24:26
New International Version
“So if anyone tells you, ‘There he is, out in the wilderness,’ do not go out; or, ‘Here he is, in the inner rooms,’ do not believe it.

New Living Translation
“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!

English Standard Version
So, if they say to you, ‘Look, he is in the wilderness,’ do not go out. If they say, ‘Look, he is in the inner rooms,’ do not believe it.

Berean Standard Bible
So if they tell you, ‘There He is in the wilderness,’ do not go out; or, ‘Here He is in the inner rooms,’ do not believe it.

Berean Literal Bible
Therefore if they say to you, 'Behold, He is in the wilderness,' do not go forth; or 'Behold, in the inner rooms,' do not believe.

King James Bible
Wherefore if they shall say unto you, Behold, he is in the desert; go not forth: behold, he is in the secret chambers; believe it not.

New King James Version
“Therefore if they say to you, ‘Look, He is in the desert!’ do not go out; or ‘Look, He is in the inner rooms!’ do not believe it.

New American Standard Bible
So 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.

NASB 1995
“So 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.

NASB 1977
“If therefore they say to you, ‘Behold, He is in the wilderness,’ do not go forth, or, ‘Behold, He is in the inner rooms,’ do not believe them.

Legacy Standard Bible
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.

Amplified Bible
So if they say to you, ‘Look! He is in the wilderness,’ do not go out there, or, ‘Look! He is in the inner rooms [of a house],’ do not believe it.

Christian Standard Bible
So if they tell you, ‘See, he’s in the wilderness! ’ don’t go out; or, ‘See, he’s in the storerooms! ’ do not believe it.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
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.

American Standard Version
If therefore they shall say unto you, Behold, he is in the wilderness; go not forth: Behold, he is in the inner chambers; believe it not.

Contemporary English Version
If you are told the Messiah is out in the desert, don't go there! And if you are told he is in some secret place, don't believe it!

English Revised Version
If therefore they shall say unto you, Behold, he is in the wilderness; go not forth: Behold, he is in the inner chambers; believe it not.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
So if someone tells you, 'He's in the desert!' don't go out [looking for him]. And don't believe anyone who says, 'He's in a secret place!'

Good News Translation
"Or, if people should tell you, 'Look, he is out in the desert!'--don't go there; or if they say, 'Look, he is hiding here!'--don't believe it.

International Standard Version
So if they say to you, 'Look! He's in the wilderness,' don't go out looking for him. And if they say, 'Look! He's in the storeroom,' don't believe it,

Majority Standard Bible
So if they tell you, ‘There He is in the wilderness,’ do not go out; or, ‘Here He is in the inner rooms,’ do not believe it.

NET Bible
So then, if someone says to you, 'Look, he is in the wilderness,' do not go out, or 'Look, he is in the inner rooms,' do not believe him.

New Heart English Bible
If therefore they tell you, 'Look, he is in the wilderness,' do not go out; 'Look, he is in the inner chambers,' do not believe it.

Webster's Bible Translation
Wherefore, if they shall say to you, Behold, he is in the desert; go not forth: behold, he is in the secret chambers; believe it not.

Weymouth New Testament
If therefore they should say to you, 'See, He is in the Desert!' do not go out there: or 'See, He is indoors in the room!' do not believe it.

World English Bible
“If therefore they tell you, ‘Behold, he is in the wilderness,’ don’t go out; or ‘Behold, he is in the inner rooms,’ don’t believe it.
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
If therefore they may say to you, Behold, He is in the wilderness, you may not go forth; Behold, in the inner chambers, you may not believe;

Berean Literal Bible
Therefore if they say to you, 'Behold, He is in the wilderness,' do not go forth; or 'Behold, in the inner rooms,' do not believe.

Young's Literal Translation
'If therefore they may say to you, Lo, in the wilderness he is, ye may not go forth; lo, in the inner chambers, ye may not believe;

Smith's Literal Translation
If therefore they should say to you, Behold, he is in the desert; go not forth; Behold, in the store-houses, believe ye not.
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
If therefore they shall say to you: Behold he is in the desert, go ye not out: Behold he is in the closets, believe it not.

Catholic Public Domain Version
Therefore, if they will have said to you, ‘Behold, he is in the desert,’ do not choose to go out, or, ‘Behold, he is in the inner rooms,’ do not be willing to believe it.

New American Bible
So if they say to you, ‘He is in the desert,’ do not go out there; if they say, ‘He is in the inner rooms,’ do not believe it.

New Revised Standard Version
So, if they say to you, ‘Look! He is in the wilderness,’ do not go out. If they say, ‘Look! He is in the inner rooms,’ do not believe it.
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
Therefore, if they should say to you, Behold, he is in the desert, do not go out; or, behold, he is in the room, do not believe it.

Aramaic Bible in Plain English
If therefore they will say to you, “Behold, he is in the desert”, you should not go out, or “Behold, he is in an inner room”, do not believe it.
NT Translations
Anderson New Testament
Therefore, if they say to you: Behold, he is in the desert; go not out: Behold, he is in the secret chambers; believe it not.

Godbey New Testament
Therefore if they may say to you, Behold, He is in the desert; go not out: Behold, He is in the secret chambers; believe them not.

Haweis New Testament
Therefore if they say to you, He is in the wilderness; go not out: lo! he is in the secret closets; believe it not.

Mace New Testament
wherefore, if they shall say to you, now he is in the desert, do not stir: or now, he is in the secret chambers, believe them not.

Weymouth New Testament
If therefore they should say to you, 'See, He is in the Desert!' do not go out there: or 'See, He is indoors in the room!' do not believe it.

Worrell New Testament
If, therefore, they say to you, 'Behold, He is in the wilderness;' go not forth; 'Behold, He is in the secret chambers,' believe it not,

Worsley New Testament
Behold, he is in the desert, go not out: behold, he is the secret chambers, believe them not:

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
The Return of the Son of Man
25See, I have told you in advance. 26So if they tell you, ‘There He is in the wilderness,’ do not go out; or, ‘Here He is in the inner rooms,’ do not believe it. 27For just as the lightning comes from the east and flashes as far as the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man.…

Cross References
Luke 17:23
People will tell you, ‘Look, there He is!’ or ‘Look, here He is!’ Do not go out or chase after them.

Mark 13:21-23
At that time if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or ‘There He is!’ do not believe it. / For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform signs and wonders to deceive even the elect, if that were possible. / So be on your guard; I have told you everything in advance.

2 Thessalonians 2:9-10
The coming of the lawless one will be accompanied by the working of Satan, with every kind of power, sign, and false wonder, / and with every wicked deception directed against those who are perishing, because they refused the love of the truth that would have saved them.

Revelation 13:13-14
And the second beast performed great signs, even causing fire from heaven to come down to earth in the presence of the people. / Because of the signs it was given to perform on behalf of the first beast, it deceived those who dwell on the earth, telling them to make an image to the beast that had been wounded by the sword and yet had lived.

1 John 4:1
Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God. For many false prophets have gone out into the world.

2 Peter 2:1
Now there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them—bringing swift destruction on themselves.

2 Corinthians 11:13-15
For such men are false apostles, deceitful workers, masquerading as apostles of Christ. / And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light. / It is not surprising, then, if his servants masquerade as servants of righteousness. Their end will correspond to their actions.

Acts 20:29-30
I know that after my departure, savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock. / Even from your own number, men will rise up and distort the truth to draw away disciples after them.

1 Timothy 4:1
Now the Spirit expressly states that in later times some will abandon the faith to follow deceitful spirits and the teachings of demons,

Jeremiah 23:21
I did not send these prophets, yet they have run with their message; I did not speak to them, yet they have prophesied.

Deuteronomy 13:1-3
If a prophet or dreamer of dreams arises among you and proclaims a sign or wonder to you, / and if the sign or wonder he has spoken to you comes about, but he says, “Let us follow other gods (which you have not known) and let us worship them,” / you must not listen to the words of that prophet or dreamer. For the LORD your God is testing you to find out whether you love Him with all your heart and with all your soul.

Isaiah 8:19
When men tell you to consult mediums and spiritists who whisper and mutter, shouldn’t a people consult their God instead? Why consult the dead on behalf of the living?

Ezekiel 13:6-7
They see false visions and speak lying divinations. They claim, ‘Thus declares the LORD,’ when the LORD did not send them; yet they wait for the fulfillment of their message. / Haven’t you seen a false vision and spoken a lying divination when you proclaim, ‘Thus declares the LORD,’ even though I have not spoken?

Jeremiah 14:14
“The prophets are prophesying lies in My name,” replied the LORD. “I did not send them or appoint them or speak to them. They are prophesying to you a false vision, a worthless divination, the futility and delusion of their own minds.

Zechariah 13:4-6
And on that day every prophet who prophesies will be ashamed of his vision, and he will not put on a hairy cloak in order to deceive. / He will say, ‘I am not a prophet; I work the land, for I was purchased as a servant in my youth.’ / If someone asks him, ‘What are these wounds on your chest?’ he will answer, ‘These are the wounds I received in the house of my friends.’


Treasury of Scripture

Why if they shall say to you, Behold, he is in the desert; go not forth: behold, he is in the secret chambers; believe it not.

Wherefore.

Matthew 21:38
But when the husbandmen saw the son, they said among themselves, This is the heir; come, let us kill him, and let us seize on his inheritance.

he is in the desert.

Matthew 3:1
In those days came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judaea,

Isaiah 40:3
The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God.

Luke 3:2,3
Annas and Caiaphas being the high priests, the word of God came unto John the son of Zacharias in the wilderness…

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Believe Chambers Desert Faith Forth Indoors Inner Room Rooms Secret Tells Waste Wherefore Wilderness
Matthew 24
1. Jesus foretells the destruction of the temple;
3. what and how great calamities shall be before it;
29. the signs of his coming to judgment.
36. And because that day and hour are unknown,
42. we ought to watch like good servants, expecting our Master's coming.














So if they tell you
This phrase introduces a warning from Jesus about false claims regarding His return. The Greek word for "tell" (λέγω, legō) implies a declaration or assertion. Historically, false prophets and messianic claimants were prevalent, and Jesus forewarns His followers to be discerning. This caution is timeless, urging believers to test all teachings against Scripture.

‘There He is in the wilderness,’
The wilderness, or "ἔρημος" (erēmos) in Greek, often symbolizes a place of testing or spiritual encounter, as seen in Jesus' own temptation (Matthew 4:1). However, here it is used to denote isolation and deception. Historically, the wilderness was a place where revolutionary leaders and false messiahs gathered followers, promising deliverance. Jesus warns against such misleading claims, emphasizing that His return will not be secretive or isolated.

do not go out
This command is a direct instruction to avoid being lured by false reports. The Greek "ἐξέρχομαι" (exerchomai) means to go out or depart. Jesus emphasizes the importance of remaining steadfast and not being swayed by sensational claims. This reflects a broader biblical principle of discernment and faithfulness, encouraging believers to remain grounded in truth.

or, ‘Here He is in the inner rooms,’
The "inner rooms" or "ταμεῖον" (tameion) in Greek, refers to a secret or hidden place. In historical context, this could imply clandestine meetings or secretive revelations. Jesus warns that His return will not be hidden or confined to secretive gatherings. This serves as a reminder that the true return of Christ will be unmistakable and visible to all.

do not believe it
The Greek word for "believe" (πιστεύω, pisteuō) means to have faith or trust. Jesus instructs His followers not to place their trust in these false claims. This is a call to maintain faith in the promises of God and the clear teachings of Scripture. It underscores the importance of spiritual vigilance and the need to anchor one's faith in the truth of God's Word.

(26) In the secret chambers.--The word is the same as that translated "closet" in Matthew 6:6. What is meant is that the pretenders will in some way or other shun the publicity which would test their claims. There would be whispered rumours that the Christ was concealing Himself in the wilderness beyond the Jordan, or in the inner recesses of some zealot's house, and would at the last moment appear to claim the throne of His father David. (Comp. Jos. Wars, vi. 5, ? 2). Believers in Christ would hear such words with a calm indifference, for they would know that such was not to be the manner of His approach.

Verse 26. - Wherefore if (ἐὰν οϋν, if therefore). The Lord proceeds to make the matter more plain by entering into details which the "here" and "there" of ver. 23 had not sufficiently denoted. He (Christ) is in the desert. If there was a partial fulfilment of this warning at the siege of Jerusalem, when some impostors tried to persuade the people that Messiah was in the wilderness, preparing to march to their relief, it is to have its chief accomplishment just before the final consummation. Go not forth. Be not deluded into following any local deceiver. The definite place of appearance proves its falsity (see ver. 27). The secret chambers; in penetralibus (Vulgate). When Christ comes the second time, he will not come as at Bethlehem, in secret, in a corner. If any pretender should be announced under such conditions, they were to put no belief in him. These were simple tests which all could apply. To limit the Lord's appearance to particular persons or to a particular place, was to incur fatal error.

Parallel Commentaries ...


Greek
So
οὖν (oun)
Conjunction
Strong's 3767: Therefore, then. Apparently a primary word; certainly, or accordingly.

if
Ἐὰν (Ean)
Conjunction
Strong's 1437: If. From ei and an; a conditional particle; in case that, provided, etc.

they tell
εἴπωσιν (eipōsin)
Verb - Aorist Subjunctive Active - 3rd Person Plural
Strong's 2036: Answer, bid, bring word, command. A primary verb; to speak or say.

you,
ὑμῖν (hymin)
Personal / Possessive Pronoun - Dative 2nd Person Plural
Strong's 4771: You. The person pronoun of the second person singular; thou.

‘There
Ἰδοὺ (Idou)
Verb - Aorist Imperative Active - 2nd Person Singular
Strong's 2400: See! Lo! Behold! Look! Second person singular imperative middle voice of eido; used as imperative lo!

He is
ἐστίν (estin)
Verb - Present Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular
Strong's 1510: I am, exist. The first person singular present indicative; a prolonged form of a primary and defective verb; I exist.

in
ἐν (en)
Preposition
Strong's 1722: In, on, among. A primary preposition denoting position, and instrumentality, i.e. A relation of rest; 'in, ' at, on, by, etc.

the
τῇ (tē)
Article - Dative Feminine Singular
Strong's 3588: The, the definite article. Including the feminine he, and the neuter to in all their inflections; the definite article; the.

wilderness,’
ἐρήμῳ (erēmō)
Adjective - Dative Feminine Singular
Strong's 2048: Lonesome, i.e. waste.

{do} not
μὴ (mē)
Adverb
Strong's 3361: Not, lest. A primary particle of qualified negation; not, lest; also (whereas ou expects an affirmative one) whether.

go out;
ἐξέλθητε (exelthēte)
Verb - Aorist Subjunctive Active - 2nd Person Plural
Strong's 1831: To go out, come out. From ek and erchomai; to issue.

[or], ‘Here
Ἰδοὺ (Idou)
Verb - Aorist Imperative Active - 2nd Person Singular
Strong's 2400: See! Lo! Behold! Look! Second person singular imperative middle voice of eido; used as imperative lo!

[He is] in
ἐν (en)
Preposition
Strong's 1722: In, on, among. A primary preposition denoting position, and instrumentality, i.e. A relation of rest; 'in, ' at, on, by, etc.

the
τοῖς (tois)
Article - Dative Neuter Plural
Strong's 3588: The, the definite article. Including the feminine he, and the neuter to in all their inflections; the definite article; the.

inner rooms,’
ταμείοις (tameiois)
Noun - Dative Neuter Plural
Strong's 5009: A store-chamber, secret chamber, closet; a granary, barn.

{do} not
μὴ (mē)
Adverb
Strong's 3361: Not, lest. A primary particle of qualified negation; not, lest; also (whereas ou expects an affirmative one) whether.

believe [it].
πιστεύσητε (pisteusēte)
Verb - Aorist Subjunctive Active - 2nd Person Plural
Strong's 4100: From pistis; to have faith, i.e. Credit; by implication, to entrust.


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