Jesus told his disciples that noboby but the father knows the date of Jesus' return. This is a problem since Jesus is God. Jesus limited himself to a human form while here 2000 years ago. He was one with the father, and still is, and knowledge was not withheld. The problem was one of significant time distance from the question and the structure of the answer based on a specific sign. This article explores.
Many discredit the study of time from the Bible since they think not even Jesus understands the chronology of the Bible. This, like other objections, is absurd.
Orthodox Christian belief is that Jesus himself is God. If he really was denying knowledge of the Father's plan then he would not be God. He meant something else.
The following is the offending passage:
41 Matthew 24:30-50
30ܘܗܝܕܝܢ ܢܬܚܙܐ ܢܝܫܗ ܕܒܪܗ ܕܐܢܫܐ ܒܫܡܝܐ ܘܗܝܕܝܢ ܢܪܩܕܢ ܟܠܗܝܢ ܫܪܒܬܐ ܕܐܪܥܐ ܘܢܚܙܘܢ ܠܒܪܗ ܕܐܢܫܐ ܕܐܬܐ ܥܠ ܥܢܢܝ ܫܡܝܐ ܥܡ ܚܝܠܐ ܘܫܘܒܚܐ ܤܓܝܐܐ ܀
31ܘܢܫܕܪ ܡܠܐܟܘܗܝ ܥܡ ܫܝܦܘܪܐ ܪܒܐ ܘܢܟܢܫܘܢ ܠܓܒܝܐ ܕܝܠܗ ܡܢ ܐܪܒܥܬ ܪܘܚܐ ܡܢ ܪܫܗܘܢ ܕܫܡܝܐ ܘܥܕܡܐ ܠܪܫܗܘܢ ܀
32ܡܢ ܬܬܐ ܕܝܢ ܝܠܦܘ ܦܠܐܬܐ ܕܡܚܕܐ ܕܤܘܟܝܗ ܪܟܢ ܘܦܪܥܝܢ ܛܪܦܝܗ ܝܕܥܝܢ ܐܢܬܘܢ ܕܡܛܐ ܩܝܛܐ ܀
33ܗܟܢܐ ܐܦ ܐܢܬܘܢ ܡܐ ܕܚܙܝܬܘܢ ܗܠܝܢ ܟܠܗܝܢ ܕܥܘ ܕܡܛܬ ܠܗ ܠܬܪܥܐ ܀
34ܐܡܝܢ ܐܡܪ ܐܢܐ ܠܟܘܢ ܕܠܐ ܬܥܒܪ ܫܪܒܬܐ ܗܕܐ ܥܕܡܐ ܕܗܠܝܢ ܟܠܗܝܢ ܢܗܘܝܢ ܀
35ܫܡܝܐ ܘܐܪܥܐ ܢܥܒܪܘܢ ܘܡܠܝ ܠܐ ܢܥܒܪܢ ܀
36ܥܠ ܝܘܡܐ ܕܝܢ ܗܘ ܘܥܠ ܫܥܬܐ ܗܝ ܐܢܫ ܠܐ ܝܕܥ ܐܦܠܐ ܡܠܐܟܐ ܕܫܡܝܐ ܐܠܐ ܐܒܐ ܒܠܚܘܕ ܀
37ܐܝܟܢܐ ܕܝܢ ܕܝܘܡܝ ܢܘܚ ܗܟܢܐ ܬܗܘܐ ܡܐܬܝܬܗ ܕܒܪܗ ܕܐܢܫܐ ܀
38ܐܝܟܢܐ ܓܝܪ ܕܐܝܬܝܗܘܢ ܗܘܘ ܩܕܡ ܛܘܦܢܐ ܐܟܠܝܢ ܘܫܬܝܢ ܘܢܤܒܝܢ ܢܫܐ ܘܝܗܒܝܢ ܠܓܒܪܐ ܥܕܡܐ ܠܝܘܡܐ ܕܥܠ ܢܘܚ ܠܟܘܝܠܐ ܀
39ܘܠܐ ܝܕܥܘ ܥܕܡܐ ܕܐܬܐ ܛܘܦܢܐ ܘܫܩܠ ܠܟܠܗܘܢ ܗܟܢܐ ܬܗܘܐ ܡܐܬܝܬܗ ܕܒܪܗ ܕܐܢܫܐ ܀
40ܗܝܕܝܢ ܬܪܝܢ ܢܗܘܘܢ ܒܩܪܝܬܐ ܚܕ ܢܬܕܒܪ ܘܚܕ ܢܫܬܒܩ ܀
41ܘܬܪܬܝܢ ܢܗܘܝܢ ܛܚܢܢ ܒܪܚܝܐ ܚܕܐ ܡܬܕܒܪܐ ܘܚܕܐ ܡܫܬܒܩܐ ܀
42ܐܬܬܥܝܪܘ ܗܟܝܠ ܕܠܐ ܝܕܥܝܢ ܐܢܬܘܢ ܒܐܝܕܐ ܫܥܬܐ ܐܬܐ ܡܪܟܘܢ ܀
43ܗܕܐ ܕܝܢ ܕܥܘ ܕܐܠܘ ܝܕܥ ܗܘܐ ܡܪܐ ܒܝܬܐ ܒܐܝܕܐ ܡܛܪܬܐ ܐܬܐ ܓܢܒܐ ܡܬܬܥܝܪ ܗܘܐ ܘܠܐ ܫܒܩ ܗܘܐ ܕܢܬܦܠܫ ܒܝܬܗ ܀
44ܡܛܠ ܗܢܐ ܐܦ ܐܢܬܘܢ ܗܘܘ ܡܛܝܒܝܢ ܕܒܫܥܬܐ ܕܠܐ ܤܒܪܝܢ ܐܢܬܘܢ ܢܐܬܐ ܒܪܗ ܕܐܢܫܐ ܀
45ܡܢܘ ܟܝ ܐܝܬܘܗܝ ܥܒܕܐ ܡܗܝܡܢܐ ܘܚܟܝܡܐ ܕܐܩܝܡܗ ܡܪܗ ܥܠ ܒܢܝ ܒܝܬܗ ܕܢܬܠ ܠܗܘܢ ܤܝܒܪܬܐ ܒܙܒܢܗ ܀
46ܛܘܒܘܗܝ ܠܥܒܕܐ ܗܘ ܕܢܐܬܐ ܡܪܗ ܢܫܟܚܝܘܗܝ ܕܥܒܕ ܗܟܢܐ ܀
47ܐܡܝܢ ܐܡܪ ܐܢܐ ܠܟܘܢ ܕܢܩܝܡܝܘܗܝ ܥܠ ܟܠ ܕܐܝܬ ܠܗ ܀
48ܐܢ ܕܝܢ ܢܐܡܪ ܥܒܕܐ ܗܘ ܒܝܫܐ ܒܠܒܗ ܕܡܪܝ ܡܘܚܪ ܠܡܐܬܐ ܀
49ܘܢܫܪܐ ܠܡܡܚܐ ܟܢܘܬܗ ܘܢܗܘܐ ܐܟܠ ܘܫܬܐ ܥܡ ܪܘܝܐ ܀
50ܢܐܬܐ ܡܪܗ ܕܥܒܕܐ ܗܘ ܒܝܘܡܐ ܕܠܐ ܤܒܪ ܘܒܫܥܬܐ ܕܠܐ ܝܕܥ ܀
(SYP)
41 Matthew 24:30-50 30And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. 31And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other. 32Now learn a parable of the fig tree; When his branch is yet tender, and putteth forth leaves, ye know that summer is nigh: 33So likewise ye, when ye shall see all these things, know that it is near, even at the doors. 34Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled. 35Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away.
36But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only. 37But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. 38For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, 39And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. 40Then shall two be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left. 41Two women shall be grinding at the mill; the one shall be taken, and the other left.
42Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come.
43But know this, that if the goodman of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken up.
44Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh.
45Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his lord hath made ruler over his household, to give them meat in due season?
46Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing.
47Verily I say unto you, That he shall make him ruler over all his goods.
48But and if that evil servant shall say in his heart, My lord delayeth his coming;
49And shall begin to smite his fellowservants, and to eat and drink with the drunken;
50The lord of that servant shall come in a day when he looketh not for him, and in an hour that he is not aware of,
(KJV)
41 Matthew 24:30-50 30And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. 31And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the 4 winds, from 1 end of heaven to the other. 32Now learn a parable of the fig tree; When his branch is yet tender, and putteth forth leaves, ye know that summer is nigh: 33So likewise ye, when ye shall see all these things, know that it is near, even at the doors. 34Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled. 35Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away.
36But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only. 37But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. 38For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, 39And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. 40Then shall 2 be in the field; the 1 shall be taken, and the other left. 412 women shall be grinding at the mill; the 1 shall be taken, and the other left.
42Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come.
43But know this, that if the goodman of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken up.
44Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh.
45Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his lord hath made ruler over his household, to give them meat in due season?
46Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing.
47Verily I say unto you, That he shall make him ruler over all his goods.
48But and if that evil servant shall say in his heart, My lord delayeth his coming;
49And shall begin to smite his fellowservants, and to eat and drink with the drunken;
50The lord of that servant shall come in a day when he looketh not for him, and in an hour that he is not aware of,
(KJV/NC)
41 Matthew 24:30-50 30and then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. 31And he shall send forth his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.
32Now from the fig tree learn her parable: when her branch is now become tender, and putteth forth its leaves, ye know that the summer is nigh;
33even so ye also, when ye see all these things, know ye that he is nigh, even at the doors.
34Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass away, till all these things be accomplished.
35Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away.
36But of that day and hour knoweth no one, not even the angels of heaven, neither the Son, but the Father only.
37And as were the days of Noah, so shall be the coming of the Son of man.
38For as in those days which were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered into the ark,
39and they knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall be the coming of the Son of man.
40Then shall two man be in the field; one is taken, and one is left:
41two women shall be grinding at the mill; one is taken, and one is left.
42Watch therefore: for ye know not on what day your Lord cometh.
43But know this, that if the master of the house had known in what watch the thief was coming, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken through.
44Therefore be ye also ready; for in an hour that ye think not the Son of man cometh.
45Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom his lord hath set over his household, to give them their food in due season? 46Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing. 47Verily I say unto you, that he will set him over all that he hath. 48But if that evil servant shall say in his heart, My lord tarrieth; 49and shall begin to beat his fellow-servants, and shall eat and drink with the drunken; 50the lord of that servant shall come in a day when he expecteth not, and in an hour when he knoweth not, (ASV)
41 Matthew 24:30-50 30Then the sign of the Son of man will appear in the sky; and then all the generations of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of man coming on the clouds of the sky, with an army and great glory. 31And he will send his angels with a large trumpet, and they will gather his chosen ones from the four winds, from one end of the universe to the other. 32From the fig tree learn a parable. As soon as its branches become tender and bring forth leaves, you know that summer is coming. 33So even you, when you see all these things, know that it has arrived at the door. 34Truly I say to you, that this generation will not pass away, until all these things happen. 35Even heaven and earth will pass away, but my words shall not pass away.
36¶ But concerning that day and that hour, no man knows, not even the angels of heaven, but the Father alone. 37Just as in the days of Noah, so will be the coming of the Son of man. 38For as the people before the flood were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day Noah entered into the ark, 39And they knew nothing until the flood came and carried them all away; such will be the coming of the Son of man. 40Then two men will be in the field, one will be taken away and the other left. 41Two women will be grinding at the handmill, one will be taken and the other left.
42¶ Be alert, therefore, for you do not know at what hour your Lord will come.
43But know this much, that if the master of the house knew at what watch of the night the thief comes, he would keep awake and would not let his house be plundered.
44For this reason, you also be ready, for the Son of man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.
45Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom his Lord has appointed over his household, to give them food in due time?
46Blessed is that servant, when his Lord comes and finds him so doing.
47Truly I say to you, he will appoint him over all that he has.
48But if a bad servant should say in his heart, My lord will delay his coming,
49And he begins to beat his fellow servants, and to eat and drink with drunkards,
50The Lord of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect, and at an hour that he does not know.
(LAM)
41 Matthew 24:30-50 30then will appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory; 31and he will send out his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.
32"From the fig tree learn its lesson: as soon as its branch becomes tender and puts forth its leaves, you know that summer is near. 33So also, when you see all these things, you know that he is near, at the very gates. 34Truly, I say to you, this generation will not pass away till all these things take place. 35Heaven 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 only.
37As were the days of Noah, so will be the coming of the Son of man.
38For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark,
39and they did not know until the flood came and swept them all away, so will be the coming of the Son of man.
40Then two men will be in the field; one is taken and one is left.
41Two women will be grinding at the mill; one is taken and one is left.
42Watch therefore, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming.
43But know this, that if the householder had known in what part of the night the thief was coming, he would have watched and would not have let his house be broken into.
44Therefore you also must be ready; for the Son of man is coming at an hour you do not expect.
45"Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom his master has set over his household, to give them their food at the proper time? 46Blessed is that servant whom his master when he comes will find so doing. 47Truly, I say to you, he will set him over all his possessions. 48But if that wicked servant says to himself, `My master is delayed,' 49and begins to beat his fellow servants, and eats and drinks with the drunken, 50the master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he does not know, (RSV)
41 Matthew 24:30-50 30"At that time the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and all the nations of the earth will mourn. They will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky, with power and great glory. 31And he will send his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other.
32"Now learn this lesson from the fig tree: As soon as its twigs get tender and its leaves come out, you know that summer is near. 33Even so, when you see all these things, you know that it is near, right at the door. 34I tell you the truth, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened. 35Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.
36"No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. 37As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. 38For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; 39and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away. That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. 40Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other left. 41Two women will be grinding with a hand mill; one will be taken and the other left.
42"Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come.
43But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into.
44So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.
45"Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom the master has put in charge of the servants in his household to give them their food at the proper time? 46It will be good for that servant whose master finds him doing so when he returns. 47I tell you the truth, he will put him in charge of all his possessions. 48But suppose that servant is wicked and says to himself, `My master is staying away a long time,' 49and he then begins to beat his fellow servants and to eat and drink with drunkards. 50The master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he is not aware of. (NIV)
41 Matthew 24:30-50 30and then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky. 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. 31He will send out his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they will gather together his chosen ones from the four winds, from one end of the sky to the other.
32'Now from the fig tree learn this parable. When its branch has now become tender, and puts forth its leaves, youP know that the summer is near. 33Even so youP also, when youP see all these things, knowP that it is near, even at the doors. 34Most assuredly I tell you, this generation will not pass away, until all these things are accomplished. 35Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away. 36But no one knows of that day and hour, not even the angels of heaven, but my Father only.
37'As the days of Noah were, so will be the coming of the Son of Man.
38For as in those days which were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered into the ark,
39and they didn't know until the flood came, and took them all away, so will be the coming of the Son of Man.
40Then two men will be in the field: one will be taken and one will be left;
41two women grinding at the mill, one will be taken and one will be left.
42Watch therefore, for youP don't know in what hour your Lord comes.
43But know this, that if the master of the house had known in what watch of the night the thief was coming, he would have watched, and would not have allowed his house to be broken into.
44Therefore also beP ready, for in an hour that youP don't expect, the Son of Man will come.
45'Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom his lord has set over his household, to give them their food in due season? 46Blessed is that servant whom his lord finds doing so when he comes. 47Most assuredly I tell you that he will set him over all that he has. 48But if that evil servant should say in his heart, 'My lord is delaying his coming,' 49and begins to beat his fellow-servants, and eat and drink with the drunken, 50the lord of that servant will come in a day when he doesn't expect it, and in an hour when he doesn't know it, (WEB)
41 Matthew 24:30-50 30and then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky. 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. 31He will send out his angels with a great sound of a shofar, and they will gather together his chosen ones from the four winds, from one end of the sky to the other.
32'Now from the fig tree learn this parable. When its branch has now become tender, and puts forth its leaves, you know that the summer is near. 33Even so you also, when you see all these things, know that it is near, even at the doors. 34Most certainly I tell you, this generation will not pass away, until all these things are accomplished. 35Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away. 36But no one knows of that day and hour, not even the angels of heaven, but my Father only.
37'As the days of Noah were, so will be the coming of the Son of Man.
38For as in those days which were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered into the ship,
39and they didn't know until the flood came, and took them all away, so will be the coming of the Son of Man.
40Then two men will be in the field: one will be taken and one will be left;
41two women grinding at the mill, one will be taken and one will be left.
42Watch therefore, for you don't know in what hour your Lord comes.
43But know this, that if the master of the house had known in what watch of the night the thief was coming, he would have watched, and would not have allowed his house to be broken into.
44Therefore also be ready, for in an hour that you don't expect, the Son of Man will come.
45'Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom his lord has set over his household, to give them their food in due season? 46Blessed is that servant whom his lord finds doing so when he comes. 47Most certainly I tell you that he will set him over all that he has. 48But if that evil servant should say in his heart, 'My lord is delaying his coming,' 49and begins to beat his fellow servants, and eat and drink with the drunkards, 50the lord of that servant will come in a day when he doesn't expect it, and in an hour when he doesn't know it, (WEB/HNV)
41 Matthew 24:30-50 30Then the sign of the Son of man will appear in the sky; and then all the generations of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of man coming on the clouds of the sky, with an army and great glory. 31And he will send his angels with a large trumpet, and they will gather his chosen ones from the 4 winds, from ends of the heavens. 32Learn a parable from the fig tree. As soon as its branches become tender and bring forth leaves, you know that summer is coming. 33So even you, when you see all these things, know that it has arrived at the door. 34Truly I say to you, this generation will not pass away, until all these things happen. 35Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away. 36But concerning that day and that hour, no man knows, not the angels of heaven, but the Father alone. 37Just as in the days of Noah, so will the coming of the Son of man be. 38For as the people before the flood were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day Noah entered into the ark, 39And they knew nothing until the flood came and carried them all away; such will be the coming of the Son of man. 402 men will be in the field, 1 will be taken and the other left. 412 women will be grinding at the handmill, 1 will be taken and the other left.
42Be alert, therefore, for you do not know at what hour your Lord will come.
43But know this much, if the master of the house knew at what watch the thief comes, he would keep awake and not let his house be plundered.
44For this reason, you also be ready, for the Son of man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.
45Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom his Lord has appointed over his household, to give them food in due time?
46Blessed is that servant, when his Lord comes and finds him doing this.
47Truly I say to you, he will appoint him over all that he has.
48But if a bad servant should say in his heart, My lord will delay his coming,
49And he begins to beat his fellow servants, and to eat and drink with drunkards,
50The Lord of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect, and at an hour that he does not know.
(BRB)
Remember that when this was written it was one long series of upper case Greek letters. No such things as sentence breaks, punctuation or even spaces between words.
The offending verse is 36, where Jesus says that only the Father knows the time of his return. Is this what the entire passage means? Lets check the context and see what was near in that long unbroken stream of upper case Greek letters.
In verse 37 Jesus likens this time to the time of Noah. When the Bible links to another story as here we are expected to know the referenced story. We are to read and know all the details about that other story as we consider the added detail that we are being given. Jesus used this story to answer the disciple's question. Jesus was teaching this: His return will be chronologically like Noah's flood.
Though many were eating and drinking, and generally not paying attention to God and his plan, there were those who understood exactly what God was up to. God did not keep the impending destruction on the entire world a total secret.
Anyone who knew the Ark was being built. This included those building it, and anyone who saw it before the rains came.
Noah knew as well as his wife, sons, and their wives. 8 in all.
If they hired anyone to help build the Ark, then they too knew about the flood.
If anyone saw the ark under construction then these witnesses also knew that the end was near.
Noah's end of the world was not a total secret. Those who were connected to God, and could hear his word, directly, like Noah, or indirectly, like his family, did know ahead of time. 1
Noah knew a flood was coming the moment he was told to build an ark. We are not told when this was. Off Bible, Rabbinic tradition say it was 120 years.
The project, we presume, was scheduled by God himself, because the ark was finished when God told Noah a new thing: In 7 days the flood would come, load up.
At this point Noah and his family knew quite specifically that the flood was coming. They knew the exact date.
When Jesus says that he does not know the date of his return, and likens it to Noah's flood, he is teaching that it will work the same way at the time of his return.
Until we are close, like the last century or so, it will be unknown. No one can know. Even Jesus did not know. But, like Noah, it will become known through a sign. A sign to all who are directly involved in the construction, and to those who see the construction. In Noah's day the sign was Noah's Ark. What is that sign in our day?
Answering the critics does not logically require that we answer what the sign will be, only that like Noah and his Ark, there will be a sign. God will not remain silent, if he did he'd risk blood guilt.
At verse 32 in Matthew's story Jesus tells his audience just what the "sign" of this event is going to be. At the end of the age, before the return of Jesus, the sign will be the "fig tree". This is simply called the "fig tree sign."
What was that sign? Earlier in Matthew, we are told that Jesus cursed a fig tree and said that it, the ancient Jewish religious system, would no longer bear fruit for God. The end-times sign that Jesus is about to return, with the same sort of duration as Noah's Ark project, is the "Fig Tree" people, the Jews, returning to their homeland. This has now already happened. We are at the time of Jesus' return and have been for over 50 years.
How long from the sign to Jesus' return? Verse 34 gives the answer. "This generation," the generation seeing the return to Israel of the Jews, will not entirely pass away before all the things dealing with the end of the age are complete.
These things most certainly include Jesus' return, but also includes every other end times promise, including such things as the resurrection, the departure from earth, and any other story we can authenticate as being part of the end-times.
There are two possible starting dates for measuring this generation. 1948 with the return of the Jews to Palestine is the first candidate. The retaking of the Old City of Jerusalem in 1967 is the other. Without further information we cannot tell which Jesus is indicating here.
The last generation will last for some number of years, a length of time given elsewhere in the Bible. Three lengths are possible, 70, 80 or 120 years from the indicated date. Again, without further information we cannot know which is implied. I don't list 40 years since this is never given as a length of a generation. It is the number of years needed to kill off a generation, like at the Exodus, but not the total number of years that a generation may live.
I don't want to answer the specific years here, that is not my point. The point is that Jesus is teaching that his return will have a sign, the "fig tree" sign. Once seen, a specific number of years from that sign will pass and all things planned for the end of the age at his return will then pass.
From God the Father's perspective time passes slowly. 1000 years are as a day with God the Father. Only from this perspective should we think this period in history will pass in one day. Jesus' point was this: No man, nor anyone measuring time from man's perspective, should think that this period is 1 day long. Jesus' isn't just going to show up one day. This period is much, much longer.
Day-for-a-year repetition says this period is about 13,000 days long and that interval only covers the prelude. At least another 20 years of prophetic history exist in the pages of the Bible. No man knows the day or hour since men don't measure this period in history as one day.
Interestingly, Luke places this section far from the end of the signs of the end of the age, and Luke includes the account of Lot as being a parallel account to the account of Noah. There are many parallels between these accounts backed up with collateral scripture which says these men were patterns for us, and warnings.
All of these, and probably more, are relevant to understanding the end of the age. Everyone who survives the catastrophic events that accompany this period in human history must watch to avoid this list of problems. Heed warnings, don't get drunk, stay clear of sexual sin and keep your eyes on the promises of God.
The Holy Spirit appears to have charged his angels with sorting and moving and rearranging people to be ready for much of what is about to happen. Many have been given warnings and have not heeded them. Others will be getting warnings right at the last minute. Still others will long for the old life, and like Lot's wife, look back and die for it.
Like so many other passages usually used to say the dates cannot be known, we find that here, like the others, that the Holy Spirit has provided clues right in the very text used to say we cannot know the time of his return with clues as to when he will return.
Providing concrete answers in a passage generally discredited is so much like our normal walks with Jesus I can't stand it. People with hard hearts, that idolize Christian leaders instead of Jesus, get caught up thinking the times and dates are not knowable. The Bible teaches that they are knowable. We are watching the events surrounding the return of Jesus unfold every few weeks.
1My understanding of God suggest he always warns before He judges. Though we are not told directly, this principle suggests every living soul on earth before Noah's Flood knew about Noah's Ark.