Matthew 24, Part Three

That day and hour (vs. 35-51)—Verse 35 is a transition verse from Jesus talking about the fall of Jerusalem—answering the apostles’ first question in verse 3—to a discussion of His literal Second Coming—the second question. In verse 35, Jesus is, in effect, “nothing is going to keep My word from coming to pass.” Verse 36 begins the analysis of His Second Coming and the subject continues till the end of chapter 25.

A couple of key points in verse 36, which reads, “But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only.” The phrase “that day” is used several times in the New Testament to refer to the Day of Judgment. For example, in Matthew 7:22, a Judgment Day scene, Jesus says, “Many will say to Me in that day…” Luke 10:12 reads, “But I say to you that it will be more tolerable in that day for Sodom than for that city,” another obvious allusion to the final day. In II Timothy 4:8, Paul wrote, “Finally, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give to me on that day, and not to me only but also to all who have loved His appearing.” And there are others. “That day” was a well-known and clarion reference to the final Judgment Day, the Second Coming of the Lord.

And note also in verse 36, that of that day, “no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only.” Jesus had just spent 30 verses specifying exactly when a certain event was going to take place. If verses 4-35 refer to the Second Coming, we know exactly what to look for. But then, in verse 36, He says no one knows? No, the only explanation is the one I’ve given—verses 4-35 refer to the fall of Jerusalem in 70 A.D., and the end of Jewish system as established by God. Beginning in verse 36, the subject is the literal Second Coming.

Notice also one more thing: a shift in terminology. In verses 4-35, Jesus speaks of “those days” (vs. 19, 22, and 29)—the whole time of the coming of, and then the destruction of, Jerusalem. But not, beginning in verse 37, it’s “that day.” Also, we saw how specific things were before the fall of Jerusalem—wars, rumors of wars, famines, pestilence, false Christs, etc. But, before the Second Coming, there is nothing specific: “But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark” (vs. 37-38). What warning did people have that the flood was about to come? None, except Noah’s preaching. They were carrying on their daily lives, “eating, drinking, marrying and giving in marriage”; and so it will be when Jesus comes again. You might be on your way to work—and there He appears. You could be eating supper—and you hear the shout and the trumpet. There will be no warning. “Then two men will be in the field: one will be taken and the other left. Two women will be grinding at the mill: one will be taken and the other left” (vs. 40-41). Those two men and women weren’t looking for anything; there were no signs warning them of the impending arrival of Jesus. They were simply going about their daily business. Thus, what should our response be? “Watch therefore, for you do not know what hour your Lord is coming” (v. 42). If we knew when He was coming, we could prepare: “But know this, that if the master of the house had known what hour the thief would come, he would have watched and not allowed his house to be broken into. Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect” (vs. 43-44). And that’s part of Jesus point: how many people, if they knew the signs approaching Jesus’ Second Coming, would wait until they saw them before they got ready to meet Him? No, no such luck. We must always be ready, for there are no signs before Jesus’ Second Coming! Folks, we are not looking for the signs, we are listening for the shout (I Thess. 4:16). Jesus ends Matthew 24 with an example of a servant who was, and a servant who was not, looking for the coming of the master—and the end result of each. Reward for the watcher, punishment for the slacker.

In Matthew 25, Jesus will give some examples of how we need to be ready for “that day” to come.