Second Coming · Signs of the end of the age

Matthew 24:3-14

Jesus · ~30 AD · Status: Future · Confidence: 60%
“And as he sat upon the mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world?”
King James Version · the opening — all 12 verses are below
More of Matthew 24 on this siteMatthew 24:2 · Matthew 24:15-22 · Matthew 24:23-31 · Matthew 24:32-35 · Matthew 24:36-51

Jesus' answer to the disciples on the Mount of Olives, listing the signs preceding the end and promising the worldwide preaching of the gospel before the end comes.

Read the whole passage — all 12 verses (KJV)

24:3And as he sat upon the mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world?

24:4And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you.

24:5For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many.

24:6And ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet.

24:7For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places.

24:8All these are the beginning of sorrows.

24:9Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name’s sake.

24:10And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another.

24:11And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many.

24:12And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold.

24:13But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.

24:14And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.

Fulfillment References

Mark 13:1-37 Luke 21:5-36 Daniel 9:27 Revelation 6:1-8

How Traditions Read This Prophecy

Apostolic (Oneness) PentecostalApostolic theology reads the worldwide gospel witness as the Spirit-empowered mission of Acts 2:38 believers, continuing until the literal return of Jesus.
JewishThe discourse echoes the Jewish 'birth-pangs of the Messiah' (chevlei Mashiach) — wars, famine and upheaval expected before redemption; Judaism applies such hopes to a still-awaited Messianic age.
CatholicRead on two horizons: a near reference to Jerusalem's fall (AD 70) and a far reference to the end of the world and Christ's return.
ProtestantCommonly seen as a layered prophecy — the destruction of the Temple foreshadowing the final tribulation before Christ returns.
OrthodoxUnderstood as describing the trials of the Church throughout history and intensifying before the Lord's glorious Second Coming.
DispensationalThe signs describe the future seven-year tribulation for Israel; v.14's gospel witness precedes the end, after the Church's rapture.
AcademicCritical scholars note Mark 13 (Matthew's source) as a Jewish-Christian apocalyptic discourse shaped around the AD 66-70 crisis.

Scholarship & Sources

'This gospel... preached in all the world... and then shall the end come' (24:14) is read of the first-century mission (cf. Rom. 10:18; Col. 1:23) or of a yet-future global evangelization. The AD 70 / end-time / both question governs the whole discourse.

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Audio narration (listen to this prophecy read aloud), cross-references, Hebrew/Greek, Dead Sea Scrolls notes, a prophetic timeline, network maps, study tools and multi-tradition analysis in the interactive explorer.
Bible Prophecy Explorer · based on J. Barton Payne’s Encyclopedia of Biblical Prophecy catalogue · an openly Apostolic (Oneness) Pentecostal study resource — all traditions presented fairly. Pastor: C. Myles Young, D.Min. · Bishop: Nathaniel J. Wilson, Ed.D.