Matthew 24
J.B. Phillips New Testament
24 1-2 Then Jesus went out of the Temple, and was walking away when his disciples came up and drew his attention to its buildings. “You see all these?” replied Jesus. “I tell you every stone will be thrown down till there is not a single one left standing upon another.”
3 And as he was sitting on the slope of the Mount of Olives his disciples came to him privately and said, “Tell us, when will this happen? What will be the signal for your coming and the end of this world?”
4-14 “Be careful that no one misleads you,” returned Jesus, “for many men will come in my name saying ‘I am christ’, and they will mislead many. You will hear of wars and rumours of wars—but don’t be alarmed. Such things must indeed happen, but that is not the end. For one nation will rise in arms against another, and one kingdom against another, and there will be famines and earthquakes in different parts of the world. But all that is only the beginning of the birth-pangs. For then comes the time when men will hand you over to persecution, and kill you. And all nations will hate you because you bear my name. Then comes the time when many will lose their faith, and will betray and hate each other. Yes, and many false prophets will arise, and will mislead many people. Because of the spread of wickedness the love of most men will grow cold, though the man who holds out to the end will be saved. This good news of the kingdom will be proclaimed to men all over the world as a witness to all the nations, and the end will come.
Jesus prophesies a future of suffering
15-22 “When the time comes, then, that you see the ‘abomination of desolation’ prophesied by Daniel ‘standing in the sacred place’—the reader should note this—then is the time for those in Judea to escape to the hills. A man on his house-top must not waste time going into his house to collect anything; a man at work in the fields must not go back home to fetch his clothes. Alas for the pregnant, alas for those with tiny babies at that time! Pray God that you may not have to make your escape in the winter or on the Sabbath day, for then there will be great misery, such as has never happened from the beginning of the world until now, and will never happen again! Yes, if those days had not been cut short no human being would survive. But for the sake of God’s people those days are to be shortened.
23-28 “If anyone says to you then, ‘Look, here is Christ!’ or ‘There he is!’ don’t believe it. False christs and false prophets are going to appear and will produce great signs and wonders to mislead, if it were possible, even God’s own people. Listen, I am warning you. So that if people say to you, ‘There he is, in the desert!’ you are not to go out there. If they say, ‘Here he is, in this inner room!’ don’t believe it. For as lightning flashes across from east to west so will the Son of Man’s coming be. ‘Wherever there is a dead body, there the vultures will flock.’
At the end of time the Son of Man will return
29-31 “Immediately after the misery of those days ‘the sun will be darkened, the moon will fail to give her light, the stars will fall from the sky, and the powers of heaven will be shaken’. Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and all the nations of the earth will wring their hands as they see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky in power and great splendour. And he will send out his angels with a loud trumpet-call and they will gather his chosen from the four winds—from one end of the heavens to the other.
32-41 “Learn what the fig-tree can teach you. As soon as its branches grow full of sap and produce leaves you know that summer is near. So when you see all these things happening you may know that he is near, at your very door! Believe me, this generation will not disappear till all this has taken place. Earth and sky will pass away, but my words will never pass away! But about that actual day and time no one knows—not even the angels of Heaven, nor the Son, only the Father. For just as life went on in the days of Noah so will it be at the coming of the Son of Man. In those days before the flood people were eating, drinking, marrying and being given in marriage until the very day that Noah went into the ark, and knew nothing about the flood until it came and destroyed them all. So will it be at the coming of the Son of Man. Two men will be in the field; one is taken and one is left behind. Two women will be grinding at the hand-mill; one is taken and one is left behind.
42-44 “You must be on the alert then, for you do not know when your master is coming. You can be sure of this, however, that if the householder had known what time of night the burglar would arrive, he would have been ready for him and would not have allowed his house to be broken into. That is why you must always be ready, for you do not know what time the Son of Man will arrive.”
Vigilance is essential
45-51 “Who then is the faithful and sensible servant whom his master put in charge of his household to give others their food at the proper time? Well, he is fortunate if his master finds him doing that duty on his return! Believe me, he will promote him to look after all his property. But if he should be a bad servant who says to himself, ‘My master takes his time about returning’, and should begin to beat his fellow-servants and eat and drink with drunkards, that servant’s master will return suddenly and unexpectedly, and will punish him severely and send him off to share the penalty of the unfaithful—to his bitter sorrow and regret!
Matthew 24
English Standard Version
Jesus Foretells Destruction of the Temple
24 (A)Jesus left the temple and was going away, when his disciples came to point out to him the buildings of the temple. 2 But he answered them, “You see all these, do you not? Truly, I say to you, (B)there will not be left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down.”
Signs of the End of the Age
3 As he sat on (C)the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him (D)privately, saying, “Tell us, (E)when will these things be, and what will be the sign of your (F)coming and of (G)the end of the age?” 4 And Jesus answered them, (H)“See that no one leads you astray. 5 For (I)many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am (J)the Christ,’ and they will lead many astray. 6 And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you (K)are not alarmed, for this (L)must take place, but the end is not yet. 7 For (M)nation will rise against nation, and (N)kingdom against kingdom, and there will be (O)famines and earthquakes in various places. 8 All these are but the beginning of (P)the birth pains.
9 “Then (Q)they will deliver you up (R)to tribulation and (S)put you to death, and (T)you will be hated by all nations for my name's sake. 10 And then many will fall away[a] and (U)betray one another and hate one another. 11 And many (V)false prophets will arise (W)and lead many astray. 12 And because lawlessness will be increased, (X)the love of many will grow cold. 13 (Y)But the one who endures to the end will be saved. 14 And this gospel of the kingdom (Z)will be proclaimed throughout the whole world (AA)as a testimony (AB)to all nations, and (AC)then the end will come.
The Abomination of Desolation
15 “So when you see the abomination of desolation (AD)spoken of by the prophet Daniel, standing in (AE)the holy place ((AF)let the reader understand), 16 then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. 17 (AG)Let the one who is on (AH)the housetop not go down to take what is in his house, 18 and let the one who is in the field not turn back to take his cloak. 19 And (AI)alas for women who are pregnant and for those who are nursing infants in those days! 20 Pray that your flight may not be in winter or on a Sabbath. 21 For then there will be (AJ)great tribulation, (AK)such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be. 22 And if those days had not been cut short, no human being would be saved. But for (AL)the sake of the elect those days will be cut short. 23 (AM)Then if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or ‘There he is!’ do not believe it. 24 For (AN)false christs and (AO)false prophets will arise and (AP)perform great signs and wonders, (AQ)so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect. 25 See, (AR)I have told you beforehand. 26 So, if they say to you, ‘Look, (AS)he is in the wilderness,’ do not go out. If they say, ‘Look, he is in the inner rooms,’ do not believe it. 27 (AT)For as the lightning comes from the east and shines as far as the west, so will be (AU)the coming of the Son of Man. 28 (AV)Wherever the corpse is, there the vultures will gather.
The Coming of the Son of Man
29 “Immediately after (AW)the tribulation of those days (AX)the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and (AY)the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. 30 Then (AZ)will appear in heaven (BA)the sign of the Son of Man, and then (BB)all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and (BC)they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven (BD)with power and great glory. 31 And (BE)he will send out his angels with a loud (BF)trumpet call, and they will (BG)gather (BH)his elect from (BI)the four winds, (BJ)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, (BK)at the very gates. 34 (BL)Truly, I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place. 35 (BM)Heaven and earth will pass away, but (BN)my words will not pass away.
No One Knows That Day and Hour
36 “But concerning that day and hour (BO)no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, (BP)nor the Son,[b] (BQ)but the Father only. 37 (BR)For as were the days of Noah, (BS)so will be the coming of the Son of Man. 38 (BT)For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, (BU)marrying and giving in marriage, until (BV)the day when Noah entered the ark, 39 and they were unaware until the flood came and swept them all away, (BW)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 (BX)Two women will be grinding (BY)at the mill; one will be taken and one left. 42 Therefore, (BZ)stay awake, for you do not know on what day (CA)your Lord is coming. 43 (CB)But know this, that if the master of the house had known in what part of the night (CC)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 (CD)ready, for (CE)the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.
45 “Who then is (CF)the faithful and (CG)wise servant,[c] whom his master has set over his household, to give them their food at the proper time? 46 (CH)Blessed is that servant whom his master will find so doing when he comes. 47 Truly, I say to you, (CI)he will set him over all his possessions. 48 But if that wicked servant says to himself, ‘My master (CJ)is delayed,’ 49 and begins to beat his fellow servants[d] and eats and drinks with (CK)drunkards, 50 the master of that servant will come (CL)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 (CM)there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
Footnotes
- Matthew 24:10 Or stumble
- Matthew 24:36 Some manuscripts omit nor the Son
- Matthew 24:45 Or bondservant; also verses 46, 48, 50
- Matthew 24:49 Or bondservants
The New Testament in Modern English by J.B Phillips copyright © 1960, 1972 J. B. Phillips. Administered by The Archbishops’ Council of the Church of England. Used by Permission.
The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. ESV Text Edition: 2025.
