Jesus Warned Us About End Times
Matthew 24
Signs of Christ's Return
Jesus came
out from the temple and was going away when His
disciples came up to point out the temple
buildings to Him.
2 And He 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."
3 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 end of the
age?"
4 And Jesus answered and said
to them, "See to it that
no one misleads you.
5 For many
will come in My name, saying, 'I am the
Christ,' and will mislead many.
6 You will
be hearing of wars and rumors of wars. See that
you are not frightened, for those things must
take place, but that is not yet the end.
7 For
nation will rise against nation, and kingdom
against kingdom, and in various places there
will be famines and earthquakes.
8 But all
these things are merely the beginning of birth
pangs.
9 "Then they will deliver you to
tribulation, and will kill you, and you will be
hated by all nations because of My name.
10 At that
time many will fall away and will betray one
another and hate one another.
11 Many
false prophets will arise and will mislead
many.
12 Because
lawlessness is increased, most people's
love will grow cold.
13 But the
one who endures to the end, he will be saved.
14 This
gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in the
whole 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 (let the reader
understand),
16 then
those who are in Judea must flee to the
mountains.
17 Whoever
is on the housetop must not go down to get the
things out that are in his house.
18 Whoever
is in the field must not turn back to get his
cloak.
19 But woe
to those who are pregnant and to those who are
nursing babies in those days!
20 But pray
that your flight will not be in the winter, or
on a Sabbath.
21 For then
there will be a great tribulation, such as has
not occurred since the beginning of the world
until now, nor ever will.
22 Unless
those days had been cut short, no life would
have been saved; but for the sake of the elect
those days will be cut short.
23 Then if
anyone says to you, 'Behold, here is the
Christ,' or 'There He is,' do not
believe him.
24 For
false Christs and false prophets will arise and
will show great signs and wonders, so as to
mislead, if possible, even the elect.
25 Behold,
I have told you in advance.
26 So 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.
27 For just
as the lightning comes from the east and
flashes even to the west, so will the coming of
the Son of Man be.
28 Wherever
the corpse is, there the 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.
30 And 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.
31 And He
will send forth His angels with A GREAT TRUMPET
and THEY WILL GATHER TOGETHER His 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: when its branch has already become tender
and puts forth its leaves, you know that summer
is near;
33 so, you
too, when you see all these things, recognize
that He is near, right at the door.
34 Truly I
say to you, this generation will not pass away
until all these things take place.
35 Heaven
and earth will pass away, but My words will not
pass away.
36"But
of that day and hour no one knows, not even the
angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father
alone.
37 For the
coming of the Son of Man will be just like the
days of Noah.
38 For 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,
39 and they
did not understand until the flood came and
took them all away; so will the coming of the
Son of Man be.
40 Then
there will be two men in the field; one will be
taken and one will be left.
41 Two
women will be grinding at the mill; one will be
taken and one 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.
43 But 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.
44 For this
reason you also must be ready; 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 master put in charge of
his household to give them their food at the
proper time?
46 Blessed
is that slave whom his master finds so doing
when he comes.
47 Truly I
say to you that he will put him in charge of
all his possessions.
48 But if
that evil slave says in his heart, 'My
master is not coming for a long time,'
49 and
begins to beat his fellow slaves and eat and
drink with drunkards;
50 the
master of that slave will come on a day when he
does not expect him and at an hour which he
does not know,
51 and will
cut him in pieces and assign him a place with
the hypocrites; in that place there will be
weeping and gnashing of teeth.
Matthew 25
Parable of Ten Virgins
1 "Then
the kingdom of heaven will be comparable to ten
virgins, who took their lamps and went out to
meet the bridegroom.
2 Five of
them were foolish, and five were prudent.
3 For when
the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil
with them,
4 but the
prudent took oil in flasks along with their
lamps.
5 Now while
the bridegroom was delaying, they all got
drowsy and began to sleep.
6 But at
midnight there was a shout, 'Behold, the
bridegroom! Come out to meet him.'
7 Then all
those virgins rose and trimmed their lamps.
8 The
foolish said to the prudent, 'Give us some
of your oil, for our lamps are going out.'
9 But the
prudent answered, 'No, there will not be
enough for us and you too; go instead to the
dealers and buy some for yourselves.'
10 And
while they were going away to make the
purchase, the bridegroom came, and those who
were ready went in with him to the wedding
feast; and the door was shut.
11 Later
the other virgins also came, saying, 'Lord,
lord, open up for us.'
12 But he
answered, 'Truly I say to you, I do not
know you.'
13 Be on
the alert then, for you do not know the day nor
the hour.
Parable of the Talents
14 "For it is just like a man about to
go on a journey, who called his own slaves and
entrusted his possessions to them.
15 To one
he gave five talents, to another, two, and to
another, one, each according to his own
ability; and he went on his journey.
16Immediately the one who had received the
five talents went and traded with them, and
gained five more talents.
17 In the
same manner the one who had received the two
talents gained two more.
18 But he
who received the one talent went away, and dug
a hole in the ground and hid his master's
money.
19 "Now after a long time the master of
those slaves *came and *settled accounts with
them.
20 The one
who had received the five talents came up and
brought five more talents, saying, 'Master,
you entrusted five talents to me. See, I have
gained five more talents.'
21 His
master said to him, 'Well done, good and
faithful slave. You were faithful with a few
things, I will put you in charge of many
things; enter into the joy of your master.'
22 "Also the one who had received the
two talents came up and said, 'Master, you
entrusted two talents to me. See, I have gained
two more talents.'
23 His
master said to him, 'Well done, good and
faithful slave. You were faithful with a few
things, I will put you in charge of many
things; enter into the joy of your master.'
24 "And the one also who had received
the one talent came up and said, 'Master, I
knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you
did not sow and gathering where you scattered
no seed.
25 And I
was afraid, and went away and hid your talent
in the ground. See, you have what is
yours.'
26 "But his master answered and said to
him, 'You wicked, lazy slave, you knew that
I reap where I did not sow and gather where I
scattered no seed.
27 Then you
ought to have put my money in the bank, and on
my arrival I would have received my money back
with interest.
28 Therefore take away the talent from him,
and give it to the one who has the ten
talents.'
29 "For to everyone who has, more shall
be given, and he will have an abundance; but
from the one who does not have, even what he
does have shall be taken away.
30 Throw out the worthless
slave into the outer darkness; in that place
there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
The Judgment
31 "But when the Son of Man comes in
His glory, and all the angels with Him, then He
will sit on His glorious throne.
32 All the
nations will be gathered before Him; and He
will separate them from one another, as the
shepherd separates the sheep from the goats;
33 and He
will put the sheep on His right, and the goats
on the left.
34 "Then the King will say to those on
His right, 'Come, you who are blessed of My
Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you
from the foundation of the world.
35 For I
was hungry, and you gave Me something to eat; I
was thirsty, and you gave Me something to
drink; I was a stranger, and you invited Me in;
36 naked,
and you clothed Me; I was sick, and you visited
Me; I was in prison, and you came to Me.'
37 Then the
righteous will answer Him, 'Lord, when did
we see You hungry, and feed You, or thirsty,
and give You something to drink?
38 And when
did we see You a stranger, and invite You in,
or naked, and clothe You?
39 When did
we see You sick, or in prison, and come to
You?'
40 The King
will answer and say to them, 'Truly I say
to you, to the extent that you did it to one of
these brothers of Mine, even the least of them,
you did it to Me.'
41 "Then He will also say to those on
His left, 'Depart from Me, accursed ones,
into the eternal fire which has been prepared
for the devil and his angels;
42 for I
was hungry, and you gave Me nothing to eat; I
was thirsty, and you gave Me nothing to drink;
43 I was a
stranger, and you did not invite Me in; naked,
and you did not clothe Me; sick, and in prison,
and you did not visit Me.'
44 Then
they themselves also will answer, 'Lord,
when did we see You hungry, or thirsty, or a
stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and
did not take care of You?'
45 Then He
will answer them, 'Truly I say to you, to
the extent that you did not do it to one of the
least of these, you did not do it to Me.'
46 These
will go away into eternal punishment, but the
righteous into eternal life."
