Matthew 24:30–51

³⁰“At that time the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky. All the nations on earth will be sad. They will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky. He will come with power and great glory. ³¹He will send his angels with a loud trumpet call. They will gather his chosen people from all four directions. They will bring them from one end of the heavens to the other.

³²“Learn a lesson from the fig tree. As soon as its twigs get tender and its leaves come out, you know that summer is near. ³³In the same way, when you see all those things happening, you know that the end is near. It is right at the door. ³⁴What I’m about to tell you is true. The people living at that time will certainly not pass away until all those things have happened. ³⁵Heaven and earth will pass away. But my words will never pass away.

The Day and Hour Are Not Known

³⁶“No one knows about that day or hour. Not even the angels in heaven know. The Son does not know. Only the Father knows.

³⁷“Remember how it was in the days of Noah. It will be the same when the Son of Man comes.

³⁸“In the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking. They were getting married. They were giving their daughters to be married. They did all those things right up to the day Noah entered the ark. ³⁹They knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away. That is how it will be when the Son of Man comes.

⁴⁰“Two men will be in the field. One will be taken and the other left. ⁴¹Two women will be grinding with a hand mill. One will be taken and the other left.

⁴²“So keep watch. You do not know on what day your Lord will come. ⁴³You must understand something. Suppose the owner of the house knew what time of night the robber was coming. Then he would have kept watch. He would not have let his house be broken into. ⁴⁴So you also must be ready. The Son of Man will come at an hour when you don’t expect him.

⁴⁵“Suppose a master puts one of his servants in charge of the other servants in his house. The servant’s job is to give them their food at the right time. The master wants a faithful and wise servant for this. ⁴⁶It will be good for the servant if the master finds him doing his job when the master returns. ⁴⁷What I’m about to tell you is true. The master will put that servant in charge of everything he owns.

⁴⁸“But suppose that servant is evil. Suppose he says to himself, ‘My master is staying away a long time.’ ⁴⁹Suppose he begins to beat the other servants. And suppose he eats and drinks with those who drink too much. ⁵⁰The master of that servant will come back on a day the servant doesn’t expect him. He will return at an hour the servant does not know. ⁵¹Then the master will cut him to pieces. He will send him to the place where pretenders go. There people will sob and grind their teeth.