Font Size
Matthew 24:1-3
New Catholic Bible
Matthew 24:1-3
New Catholic Bible
Instructions for the Coming of the Kingdom[a]
Chapter 24
The Time of the End[b]
Jesus Announces the Destruction of the Temple.[c] 1 As Jesus left the temple and was walking away, his disciples came up to him to call his attention to the buildings of the temple. 2 He thereupon said to them, “Do you see all these? Amen, I say to you, not one stone here will be left upon another; every one will be thrown down.”
The End Has Not Yet Come.[d] 3 As he was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples approached and spoke to him when they were alone. “Tell us,” they said, “when will this happen, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?”
Read full chapterFootnotes
- Matthew 24:1 Five discourses give the Gospel of Matthew its characteristic structure. Here is the last discourse, which brings together prophecies and parables that speak of the last times of humanity and distinguish its phases. At the center of the scenario is the return of Christ. This great passage is known as the “eschatological discourse,” because it deals with the end, the last times (Greek: eschaton).
- Matthew 24:1 The prophetic sayings about the last “days” abound in descriptions of panic, wars, earthquakes, and cosmic upheavals; these descriptions are called “apocalypses,” that is, “revelations.” They defy the imagination in order better to bring out the greatness of God’s manifestation in the history of humanity (see Isa 13:10-13; Jer 21:9; Ezek 5:12; Am 8:8-9; Joel 2:10; 3:3; 4:17-21). Jesus makes use of this entire scenario in order to warn believers about the trials and conflicts in which their fidelity will be tested, and in order to encourage the missionaries of the Gospel.
- Matthew 24:1 Jesus announces the destruction of the temple, which is the sign of God’s presence among his people. Hence, one must envisage a radical change in the religious life.
- Matthew 24:3 There are many indications of Christ’s coming at the end of the world. However, no one should be mistaken. Neither the explosion of religious movements, nor the confusion of human societies, nor the catastrophes that pervade human history are signs of the end. The believer must stand fast under trials, which may appear to be excessive at times.
