Signs of Christ’s Return

1Jesus left the temple area and was going on His way [a]when His disciples came up to point out the temple buildings to Him. 2But He responded and said to them, “Do you not see all these things? Truly I say to you, not one stone here will be left upon another, which will not be torn down.”

3And as He was sitting on 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 Your coming, and of the [b]end of the age?”

4And Jesus answered and said to them, “See to it that no one [c]misleads you. 5For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the [d]Christ,’ and they will [e]mislead many people. 6And you will be hearing of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not alarmed, for those things must take place, but that is not yet the end. 7For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famines and earthquakes in various places. 8But all these things are merely the beginning of birth pains.

9“Then they will hand you over to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations because of My name. 10And at that time many will [f]fall away, and they will [g]betray one another and hate one another. 11And many false prophets will rise up and [h]mislead many people. 12And because lawlessness is increased, [i]most people’s love will become cold. 13But the one who endures to the end is the one who will be saved. 14This gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in the whole [j]world as a testimony to all the nations, and then the end will come.

Perilous Times

15“Therefore when you see the ABOMINATION OF DESOLATION which was spoken of through Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place—[k]let the [l]reader understand— 16then those who are in Judea must flee to the mountains. 17[m]Whoever is on the [n]housetop must not go down to get things out of his house. 18And [o]whoever is in the field must not turn back to get his cloak. 19But woe to those women who are pregnant, and to those who are nursing babies in those days! 20Moreover, pray that [p]when you flee, it will not be in the winter, or on a Sabbath. 21For then there will be a great tribulation, such as has not occurred since the beginning of the world until now, nor ever will again. 22And if those days had not been cut short, no [q]life would have been saved; but for the sake of the [r]elect those days will be cut short. 23Then if anyone says to you, ‘Behold, here is the [s]Christ,’ or ‘He is over here,’ do not believe him. 24For false christs and false prophets will arise and will provide great [t]signs and wonders, so as to mislead, if possible, even the [u]elect. 25Behold, I have told you in advance. 26So 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. 27For just as the lightning comes from the east and flashes as far as the west, so will the coming of the Son of Man [v]be. 28Wherever the corpse is, there the [w]vultures will gather.

The Glorious Return

29“But immediately after the tribulation of those days THE SUN WILL BE DARKENED, AND THE MOON WILL NOT GIVE ITS LIGHT, AND THE STARS WILL FALL from the sky, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. 30And then 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 the SON OF MAN COMING ON THE CLOUDS OF THE SKY with power and great glory. 31And He will send forth His angels with A GREAT TRUMPET BLAST, and THEY WILL GATHER TOGETHER His [x]elect from the four winds, from one end of the sky to the other.

Parable of the Fig Tree

32“Now learn the parable from the fig tree: as soon as its branch has become tender and sprouts its leaves, you know that summer is near; 33so you too, when you see all these things, [y]recognize that [z]He is near, right at the [aa]door. 34Truly I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place. 35Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will not pass away.

36“But about that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone. 37For [ab]the coming of the Son of Man will be just like the days of Noah. 38For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, 39and they did not [ac]understand until the flood came and took them all away; so will the coming of the Son of Man be. 40At that time there will be two men in the field; one [ad]will be taken and one [ae]will be left. 41Two women will be grinding at the [af]mill; one [ag]will be taken and one [ah]will be left.

Be Ready for His Coming

42“Therefore be on the alert, for you do not know which day your Lord is coming. 43But [ai]be sure of this, that if the head of the house had known at what time of the night the thief was coming, he would have been on the alert and would not have allowed his house to be broken into. 44For this reason you must be ready as well; for the Son of Man is coming at an hour when you do not think He will.

45“Who then is the faithful and sensible slave whom his [aj]master put in charge of his household slaves, to give them their food at the proper time? 46Blessed is that slave whom his [ak]master finds so doing when he comes. 47Truly I say to you that he will put him in charge of all his possessions. 48But if that evil slave says in his heart, ‘My [al]master [am]is not coming for a long time,’ 49and he begins to beat his fellow slaves, and he eats and drinks with those habitually drunk; 50then the [an]master of that slave will come on a day that he does not expect, and at an hour that he does not know, 51and he will [ao]cut him in two and assign [ap]him a place with the hypocrites; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

[a] 1 Lit and
[b] 3 Or consummation
[c] 4 Or deceives
[d] 5 I.e., Messiah
[e] 5 Or deceive
[f] 10 I.e., from the faith
[g] 10 Or hand over
[h] 11 Or deceive
[i] 12 Lit the love of the many
[j] 14 Lit inhabited earth
[k] 15 Or the reader is to understand
[l] 15 I.e., the reader of Daniel
[m] 17 Lit The one who
[n] 17 Housetops were flat living areas
[o] 18 Lit the one who
[p] 20 Lit your flight will not be
[q] 22 Lit flesh
[r] 22 Or chosen ones
[s] 23 I.e., Messiah
[t] 24 I.e., confirming miracles
[u] 24 Or chosen ones
[v] 27 I.e., be visible everywhere
[w] 28 Or eagles
[x] 31 Or chosen ones
[y] 33 Or know
[z] 33 Or it
[aa] 33 Lit doors
[ab] 37 Lit just like the days...so will be
[ac] 39 Lit know
[ad] 40 Lit is
[ae] 40 Lit is
[af] 41 I.e., handmill
[ag] 41 Lit is
[ah] 41 Lit is
[ai] 43 Lit know that
[aj] 45 Or lord
[ak] 46 Or lord
[al] 48 Or lord
[am] 48 Lit lingers
[an] 50 Or lord
[ao] 51 Possibly referring to other extreme punishment
[ap] 51 Lit his portion with