Matthew 24: Rereading (followed)

More and more speculations are circulation about the end of the world. In the midst of it Matthew 24 is always cited as predicting the nearness of the end of the world given its references to wars, famines, quakes, etc. What is the real meaning of Matthew 24? In our previous publication on the issue we looked at the nature of the prophecy. As I promised, here I submit another translated portion of the article (the whole article is available in french a may be sent to you at your request).

The Context

The Sermon on the End of the World is taking place in Jerusalem two days before the crucifixion of Jesus (Matt.26:1-2). Jesus is making that sermon on the mount of Olives after the disciples asked Him Informations about the end (Matt.24:3). The curiosity of the disciples has been aroused by the prediction of the fall of the temple by Jesus; prediction answering to the remarks on the beauty of the temple (Matt.24:1; Mk.13:1; Lk.21:5).

Even though the curiosity about the future usually leads people to focus on chapter 24 of Matthew, we should take note that the sermon on the end covers chapters 24 and 25 and the two form an indivisible unit. This prophetic sermon is different from the other speeches of Jesus on the end (Matt 13:39, 40, 49) in the fact that Matt.24 is a direct prediction of the future, even though Matt.25 has some predictions robed in parables as the other speeches of the end.

The parallel texts to Matt.24 are Mark 13 and Luke 21. Some predictions similar to Matt.24 also appear in Luke 17:20-37. Despite some parallels with Matt.24, especially on verses 22-27; 31-32 and 35-37, Luke 17 appears to be another sermon given before the one on the Mount of Olives. Given to answer to the Pharisees who asked about the coming of the kingdom of God, Luke 17:20-37 sets out some ideas of Matt.24, with some additional features like the reference to the time and the wife of Lot (vv.28-30, 32). We should also take note that except verse 31 parallel to Luke 21:21, the predictions of Luke 17 are not repeated in Luke 21; most of its parallels being with Matt.24.

The last thing we can say about the context of Matt.24 is that this chapter also contains the idea of the “kingdom of heaven” (Matt 24:14; 25:1, 34, 40) which is the backbone of Matthew’s narrative. Thus, the text stands as a “prophecy of the kingdom”; kingdom announced since the time of John the Baptist (Matt.3:2), during the ministry of Jesus (Matt.4:17) and that was inaugurated by the ministry of Jesus (Matt.12:28, cf. Lk.11:20). The kingdom of God is stretched in time between the already and the not yet[1], between its present spiritual reality and its future glorious realization. This notion should also be integrated in the interpretation of Matt.24.

The Structure

The structure of Matt.24 is very difficult to reconstruct[2]. We propose here a structure outline coming out from our study. The subsequent analysis will show the decisive elements we used to establish the junction and disjunction of ideas and sections.

1-3	Introduction : coming from the temple, remarks of the disciples, prediction of Jesus, arrival at mount Olives and question of the disciples
4-5	Answer of Jesus: warning against deception about His coming    Warning (4)    Reason (5)
6-14	General Events:    Conflicts et wars (6-7)    Social problems (7)    Natural Phenomena (7)    Persecutions (9-10)    Religious Events (11-14)
15-22	Fall of Jerusalem and tribulation:    Announcement (15)    Call to flee (16-18)    Description (19-22)
23-28	Warning against deception in time of Distress :     Warning (23)       Reason (24-25)     Recommendation (26)       Reason (27-28)
29-35	Certainty of the Return of Jesus     Signs (29)     Parousia (30-31)     Illustration (32-33)     Confirmation (34-35)
36-51	Invitation to Watch while Waiting the Son of Man     Time Unknown (36)        Illustration of the unconsciousness of the time (37-39)        Illustration of the surprise of the time (40-41)    Invitation and reasons to Watch (42-44)    Invitation to Watch actively (45-51)

---

[1] This principle is well elaborated by Jon Paulien, What the Bible Says about the End-Time, pp.78-83.

[2] This is particularly true when it comes to determine in which period of history a given section is applying. For instance, some say that the section 4-14 is a treatment of the signs of the end; 15-20 being about the fall of Jerusalem and 21-31 treating about the signs of the coming of Jesus. To the contrary, some look at the section 4-14 as the signs of the fall of Jerusalem. See “End of the World,” (Matt.24:3), The Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary, Francis D. Nichol, ed. (Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald Publishing Association, 1978). See also “Les grandes prophéties apocalyptiques,” Guide pour l’étude de la Bible Avril-Juin 2002, (Yaoundé, Cam: IMA, 2002), p.48.