Matthew 24:29-51 Lesson 50

Matthew 24:29-51 Lesson 50

Read both the "King James Bible" and the "New Living Translation."

In this lesson:

The Olivet Discourse (part two).

Signs of the Second Coming (24:29-31).
Not even the angels know when Jesus will return (24:36).
The lesson of Noah (24:37-44).
Stay watchful (24:45-51).

Study Tip:

The margin notes in blue and the links are helpful tools, take advantage of them.

The Gospel According to St. Matthew

The King James Bible

Matthew 24:29-51
Stay watchful

29 Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken:

30 And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.

31 And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.

32 Now learn a parable of the fig tree; When his branch is yet tender, and putteth forth leaves, ye know that summer is nigh:

33 So likewise ye, when ye shall see all these things, know that it is near, even at the doors.

34 Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled.

35 Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away.

36 But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only.

37 But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.

38 For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark,

39 And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.

40 Then shall two be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left.

41 Two women shall be grinding at the mill; the one shall be taken, and the other left.

42 Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come.

43 But know this, that if the goodman of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken up.

44 Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh.

45 Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his lord hath made ruler over his household, to give them meat in due season?

46 Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing.

47 Verily I say unto you, That he shall make him ruler over all his goods.

48 But and if that evil servant shall say in his heart, My lord delayeth his coming;

49 And shall begin to smite his fellowservants, and to eat and drink with the drunken;

50 The lord of that servant shall come in a day when he looketh not for him, and in an hour that he is not aware of,

51 And shall cut him asunder, and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

Margin notes:

"The tribulation of those days." (24:29) - "The trouble of those days."

"Then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven." (24:30) - Just as Daniel saw in a vision 2,500 years ago (Daniel 7:13).

"Then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn." (24:30) - "Then all the people of the earth will mourn." Why? Because "every eye shall see" Jesus return and know the truth (Revelation 1:7). Jesus repeatedly promised to return (Matthew 16:27; 24:27; 24:31; 24:37; 25:31; Mark 8:38; Luke 17:28-30; 21:27; John 14:2-3.

"He shall send his angels." (24:31) - Revelation 8:2 tells us there will be seven angels.

"Now learn a parable of the fig tree." (24:32) - Means, "learn a lesson from the fig tree."

"Summer is nigh." (24:32) - "Summer is near."

"My words shall not pass away." (24:35) - The Bible is eternal.

"Noe." (24:37) - An Old Testament patriarch also called Noah. God warned Noah, "a just man" (Genesis 6:9), of a coming flood that would destroy unbelievers and their wickedness" (Genesis 6:5; 6:13). Despite living in an arid land five hundred miles from the sea, Noah trusted God (Genesis 6:9) and followed His seemingly silly instructions to build an ark large enough to carry two of every animal species (Genesis 6:14-16). Noah, his wife, three sons (Shem, Ham, and Japhet), and their wives took refuge on the ark and were spared from the flood (2 Peter 2:5). After the flood waters subsided, Noah built an altar and made a sacrifice to God (Genesis 8:20). This pleased God who promised not to flood the earth again (Genesis 9:11) and sealed this vow with a rainbow (Genesis 9:13-15). Noah lived to be nine hundred and fifty years old (Genesis 9:29). Just as in Noah's day when few believed that disaster loomed no one will be expecting Christ's Second Coming (Matthew 24:35-39). You can read more about Noah in Genesis 6:1-9:29.

"But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be." (24:37) - Jesus also discusses His return in Luke 17:26-27.

"Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come." (24:42) - Jesus will repeat this warning in verse 25:13 and Revelation 3:3.

"The goodman of the house." (24:43) - "The owner of the house."

"Would not have suffered his house to be broken up." (24:43) - "Would not allow his house to be broken into."

"His lord hath made ruler over his household." (24:45) - "His master put him in charge of his household."

"Give them meat in due season?" (24:45) - "Give them food at mealtime."

"He shall make him ruler over all his goods." (24:47) - Jesus will repeat this message in verse 25:21.

"Smite his fellowservants." (24:49) - "Hit his fellow servants."

"Cut him asunder, and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites." (24:51) - "Cut him to pieces and send him to his place with the hypocrites."

New Living Translation

Matthew 24:29-51

29 "Immediately after the anguish of those days,

the sun will be darkened,
the moon will give no light,
the stars will fall from the sky,
and the powers in the heavens will be shaken.

30 And then at last, the sign that the Son of Man is coming will appear in the heavens, and there will be deep mourning among all the peoples of the earth. And they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.

31 And he will send out his angels with the mighty blast of a trumpet, and they will gather his chosen ones from all over the world-from the farthest ends of the earth and heaven.

32 "Now learn a lesson from the fig tree. When its branches bud and its leaves begin to sprout, you know that summer is near.

33 In the same way, when you see all these things, you can know his return is very near, right at the door.

34 I tell you the truth, this generation will not pass from the scene until all these things take place.

35 Heaven and earth will disappear, but my words will never disappear.

36 "However, no one knows the day or hour when these things will happen, not even the angels in heaven or the Son himself. Only the Father knows.

37 "When the Son of Man returns, it will be like it was in Noah's day.

38 In those days before the flood, the people were enjoying banquets and parties and weddings right up to the time Noah entered his boat.

39 People didn't realize what was going to happen until the flood came and swept them all away. That is the way it will be when the Son of Man comes.

40 "Two men will be working together in the field; one will be taken, the other left.

41 Two women will be grinding flour at the mill; one will be taken, the other left.

42 "So you, too, must keep watch! For you don't know what day your Lord is coming.

43 Understand this: If a homeowner knew exactly when a burglar was coming, he would keep watch and not permit his house to be broken into.

44 You also must be ready all the time, for the Son of Man will come when least expected.

45 "A faithful, sensible servant is one to whom the master can give the responsibility of managing his other household servants and feeding them.

46 If the master returns and finds that the servant has done a good job, there will be a reward.

47 I tell you the truth, the master will put that servant in charge of all he owns.

48 But what if the servant is evil and thinks, 'My master won't be back for a while,'

49 and he begins beating the other servants, partying, and getting drunk?

50 The master will return unannounced and unexpected,

51 and he will cut the servant to pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

This second Bible text from the "New Living Translation" (Tyndale House, Publishers, Wheaton, Illinois) is a paraphrase and not an accurate word for word translation of the Bible. However, it is a helpful tool when read with the "King James Version."

Today's Question:

1. Will the sun go dark when Jesus returns? (24:29)

The most important step in Bible study is applying what you learn into your life.

Answer: (Do you agree?)

1. Jesus' first coming was accompanied by many incredible signs, like the star leading the wise men to Jesus' birthplace in Bethlehem (Matthew 2:9-10), earthquakes (28:2-4), the appearance of angels (Luke 2:8-14), and worldwide darkness (Luke 23:44-45). So yes, we can believe that incredible things will happen again when Christ returns. While we wait for His return, Jesus tells us to keep watch, to walk with Him, and to work for His glory.

Additional note: The Old Testament frequently talks of darkness blanketing the earth (Isaiah 13:10; Ezekiel 32:7; Joel 2:10; 2:31; 3:15; Amos 8:9) and the New Testament predicts even more startling events to come (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17; Revelation 6:12-13), including the worldwide destruction (2 Peter 3:10-13) predicted in Isaiah 13:11.

Application thought for the day:

Jesus tells us to apply God's truth into our life.
What lesson can we take from the fig tree (24:32-35), the days of Noah (24:36-41),
the householder (24:42-44) and the wise servant (24:45-51)?

Thanks to the writings and commentary of John Wesley and Adam Clarke. Also, "The Layman's Bible Study Notebook" by Irving Jensen published by Harvest House Publishing, Irvine, California; the "Life Change Series" published by NavPress Books, Colorado Springs, Colorado; the "Life Application Study Bible" published by Tyndale House Publishing, Carol Stream, Illinois; "The Quest Study Bible" published by The Zondervan Corporation, Grand Rapids, Michigan; "Robertson's New Testament Word Studies"; "The MacArthur Bible Commentary" by John MacArthur published by Thomas Nelson, Nashville, Tennessee; "Wisdom of the Bible" CD by Topics Entertainment, Inc., Renton, Washington for their inspiring pictures; "My utmost for His Highest" by Oswald Chambers published by Barbour publishing, Inc., Uhrichsville, Ohio; The "Treasury of Scriptural Knowledge" by Reuben Archer Torrey; "Hope For Each Day" by Billy Graham published by J. Countryman, a division of Thomas Nelson, Inc., Nashville, Tennessee; "Easton's Bible Dictionary" by Matthew George Easton; "Unger's Bible Dictionary" by Merrill F. Unger, published by Moody Press, Chicago, Illinois; "Halley's Bible Handbook" by Henry H. Halley, Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Rapids, Michigan; "The Living New Testament" published by Tyndale house; "The New Living Translation" published by Tyndale House; BibleGateway.com for all their wonderful links; and of course the "King James Bible." All were critical in putting these lessons together.
© 2023 evolke

Subscribe for Free Bible Lessons