Luke 21:36 Themes and Topics

As to the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, brothers, and our assembling to meet him, we beg you not to let your minds be too easily unsettled or wrought up, by any message of the Spirit or any utterance or letter purporting to be from me, to the effect that the Day of the Lord has already come. You must not let anyone deceive you at all. For that is not until the rebellion takes place and the embodiment of disobedience makes his appearance??e who is doomed to destruction, read more.
the adversary of every being that is called a god or an object of worship, and so overbearing toward them as to enter God's sanctuary and take his seat there, proclaiming himself to be God??5 do you not remember that when I was with you, I used to tell you this? So now you know what it is that is holding him back from making his appearance before the appointed time arrives. For disobedience is already secretly at work, but only until he who is now holding it in check is gotten out of the way. Then the embodiment of disobedience will make his appearance, and the Lord Jesus will destroy him with the breath of his mouth and annihilate him by his appearance and arrival. The other's appearance, by the contrivance of Satan, will be full of power and pretended signs and wonders, and full of wicked deception for men who are going to destruction, because they refused to love the truth and be saved. This is why God sends upon them a misleading influence, to make them believe what is false, so that all who have refused to believe the truth but have preferred disobedience may be condemned.

And Jesus left the Temple and was going away, when his disciples came up to him to call his attention to the Temple buildings. But he answered, "Do you see all this? I tell you, not one stone will be left here upon another but shall be torn down." As he was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came up to him by themselves, and said to him, "Tell us when this is to happen, and what will be the sign of your coming, and of the close of the age." read more.
Jesus answered, "Take care that no one misleads you about this. For many will come under my name, and say, 'I am the Christ,' and many will be misled by them. You will hear of wars and rumors of war; do not let yourselves be alarmed. They have to come, but that is not the end. For nation will rise in arms against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famines and earthquakes here and there. All this is only the beginning of the sufferings. Then they will hand you over to persecution and they will put you to death, and you will be hated by all the heathen because you bear my name. Then many will fall away and betray one another and hate one another. Many false prophets will appear, and many will be misled by them, and because of the increase of wickedness, most men's love will grow cold. But he who holds out to the end will be saved. And this good news of the kingdom will be preached all over the world, to testify to all the heathen, and then the end will come. "So when you see the dreadful desecration, of which the prophet Daniel spoke, set up in the Holy Place"??he reader must take note of this??16 "then those who are in Judea must fly to the hills; a man on the roof of his house must not go down to get things out of it, and a man in the field must not turn back to get his coat. But alas for women who are with child at that time or who have babies! And pray that you may not have to fly in winter or on the Sabbath, for there will be greater misery then than there has ever been from the beginning of creation until now, or ever will be again. If those days had not been cut short, nobody would have escaped, but for the sake of God's people those days will be cut short. "If anyone says to you at that time, 'Look! here is the Christ!' or 'There he is!' do not believe it, for false Christs and false prophets will appear, and they will show great signs and wonders to mislead God's chosen people if they can. Here I have told you beforehand. So if they say to you, 'There he is, in the desert!' do not go out there; 'Here he is, in a room in here!' do not believe it. For just as the lightning starts in the east and flashes to the west, so the coming of the Son of Man will be. Wherever there is a dead body, the vultures will flock. "But immediately after the misery of those days, the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not shed its light, and the stars will fall from the sky, and the forces of the sky will shake. Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and all the nations of the earth will lament when they see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky, in all his power and splendor. And he will send out his angels with a loud trumpet-call, and they will gather his chosen people from the four winds, from one end of the sky to the other. "Let the fig tree teach you the lesson. As soon as its branches grow soft and put forth leaves, you know that summer is coming. So when you see all these things, you must know that he is just at the door. I tell you, these things will all happen before the present age passes away. Earth and sky will pass away but my words will never pass away. But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven nor the Son, but only the Father. For just as it was in the time of Noah, it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. For just as in those days before the flood people were eating and drinking, marrying and being married, until the very day Noah entered the ark, and knew nothing about it until the flood came and destroyed them all, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and one left. Two women will be grinding with the handmill; one will be taken and one left. So you must be on the watch, for you do not know on what day your Master is coming. But you may be sure of this, that if the master of the house had known in what part of the night the thief was coming, he would have been on the watch, and would not have let his house be broken into. Therefore you must be ready too, for the Son of Man is coming at a time when you do not expect him.

As he was leaving the Temple, one of his disciples said to him, "Look, Master! What wonderful stones and buildings!" Jesus said to him, "Do you see these great buildings? Not one stone shall be left here upon another that shall not be torn down." As he was sitting on the Mount of Olives opposite the Temple, Peter, James, John, and Andrew asked him, apart from the others, read more.
"Tell us when this is to happen, and what the sign will be when it is all just going to be carried out." And Jesus said to them, "Take care that no one misleads you about this. Many will come under my name and say 'I am he,' and many will be misled by them. But when you hear of wars and rumors of war, you must not be alarmed. They have to come, but it is not yet the end. For nation will rise in arms against nation and kingdom against kingdom; there will be earthquakes here and there, there will be famines. This is only the beginning of the sufferings. But you must be on your guard; they will hand you over to courts and you will be taken into synagogues and beaten, and you will be brought before governors and kings on my account, to testify to them. For before the end the good news must be preached to all the heathen. When they are taking you off to trial do not worry beforehand about what you ought to say, but say whatever is given you when the time comes, for it is not you that will speak, but the holy Spirit. Brother will give up brother to be put to death, and the father his child, and children will turn against their parents and have them put to death. You will be hated by everyone, because you bear my name. But he who holds out to the end will be saved. But as soon as you see the dreadful desecration standing where he has no right to stand" (the reader must take note of this), "then those who are in Judea must fly to the hills; a man on the roof of his house must not go down or go into the house to get anything out of it, and a man in the field must not turn back to get his coat. Alas for women who are with child at that time, or who have babies! Pray that it may not be winter when it comes, for there will be such misery in those days as there has never been since the beginning of God's creation until now, and never will be again. If the Lord had not cut those days short, nobody would have escaped, but for the sake of his own chosen people he has cut the days short. If anyone says to you at that time, 'Look! Here is the Christ!' or 'Look! There he is!' do not believe it. For false Christs and false prophets will appear, and they will show signs and wonders to mislead God's chosen people if they can. But you must be on your guard; I have told you all about it beforehand. But in those days, when that misery is over, the sun will be darkened and the moon will not shed its light and the stars will fall from the sky and the forces in the sky will shake. Then they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds with great power and glory, and then he will send out the angels and gather his chosen people from the four winds, from one end of the world to the other. "Let the fig tree teach you the lesson. As soon as its branches grow soft and put forth leaves you know that summer is coming. So when you see these things happening, you must know that he is just at the door. I tell you, these things will all happen before the present age passes away.

When some spoke about the Temple and its decoration with costly stone and votive offerings, he said, "As for all this that you are looking at, the time is coming when not one stone will be left here upon another that will not be torn down!" Then they asked him, "Master, when will this happen, and what will be the sign that it is going to take place?" read more.
And he said, "Take care not to be misled. For many will come under my name, and say, 'I am he,' and 'The time is at hand.' Do not follow them. But when you hear of wars and outbreaks, do not be alarmed. These have to come first, but the end does not follow immediately." Then he said to them, "Nation will rise in arms against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be great earthquakes, and pestilence and famine here and there. There will be horrors and great signs in the sky. But before all this, men will arrest you and persecute you, and hand you over to synagogues and prisons and have you brought before kings and governors on my account. It will all lead to your testifying. So make up your minds not to prepare your defense, for I will give you such wisdom of utterance as none of your opponents will be able to resist or dispute. You will be betrayed even by your parents and brothers and kinsmen and friends and they will put some of you to death, and you will be hated by everyone because you bear my name. Yet not a hair of your head will perish! It is by your endurance that you will win your souls. But when you see Jerusalem being surrounded by armies, then you must understand that her devastation is at hand. Then those who are in Judea must fly to the hills, those who are in the city must get out of it, and those who are in the country must not go into it, for those are the days of vengeance, when all that is written in the Scriptures will be fulfilled. But alas for women who are with child at that time, or who have babies, for there will be great misery in the land and anger at this people. They will fall by the edge of the sword, and be carried off as prisoners among all nations, and Jerusalem will be trampled under foot by the heathen, until the time of the heathen comes. There will be signs too in sun, moon, and stars, and on earth dismay among the heathen, bewildered at the roar of the sea and the waves. Men will swoon with fear and foreboding of what is to happen to the world, for the forces in the sky will shake. Then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with great power and glory. But when this begins to happen, look up and raise your heads, for your deliverance will be at hand." And he gave them an illustration: "See the fig tree and all the trees. As soon as they put out their leaves, you see them and you know without being told that summer is coming. So when you see these things happen, you must know that the Kingdom of God is at hand. I tell you, it will all happen before the present generation passes away. Earth and sky will pass away, but my words will not. But take care that your hearts are not loaded down with self-indulgence and drunkenness and worldly cares, and that day takes you by surprise, like a trap. For it will come on all who are living anywhere on the face of the earth. But you must be vigilant and always pray that you may succeed in escaping all this that is going to happen, and in standing in the presence of the Son of Man."

"Then the Kingdom of Heaven will be like ten bridesmaids who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. Now five of them were foolish and five were sensible. For the foolish ones brought their lamps but brought no oil with them, read more.
but the sensible ones with their lamps brought oil in their flasks. As the bridegroom was slow in coming, they all grew drowsy and fell asleep. But in the middle of the night there was a shout 'Here is the bridegroom! Come out and meet him!' Then all the bridesmaids awoke, and trimmed their lamps. And the foolish ones said to the sensible ones, 'Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.' But the sensible ones answered, 'There may not be enough for us and you. You had better go to the dealers and buy yourselves some.' But while they were gone to buy it, the bridegroom arrived, and the ones that were ready went in with him to the wedding banquet, and the door was closed. Afterward the other bridesmaids came and said, 'Sir! Sir! Open the door for us!' But he answered, 'I tell you, I do not know you!' So you must be on the watch, for you do not know either the day or the hour.

You must look out and be on the alert, for you do not know when it will be time; just as a man when he leaves home to go on a journey, and puts his slaves in charge, each with his duties, gives orders to the watchman to keep watch. So you must be on the watch, for you do not know when the master of the house is coming??n the evening or at midnight or toward daybreak or early in the morning??36 for fear he should come unexpectedly and find you asleep. read more.
And what I am telling you I mean for all??e on the watch!"

You must be ready with your lamps burning, like men waiting for their master to come home from a wedding, so that when he comes and knocks, they can open the door for him at once. Blessed are the slaves whom their master will find on the watch when he comes. I tell you, he will gird up his robe and make them take their places at table, and go around and wait on them. read more.
Whether he comes late at night or early in the morning and finds them on the watch, they are blessed. But you may be sure of this, that if the master of the house had known what time the thief was coming, he would have been on the watch, and would not have let his house be broken into. You must be ready too, for the Son of Man is coming at a time when you do not expect him."

As they were listening to this, Jesus went on to give them an illustration, because he was near Jerusalem and they supposed that the Kingdom of God was immediately going to appear. So he said, "A nobleman once went to a distant country to secure his appointment to a kingdom and then return. And he called in ten of his slaves and gave them each twenty dollars and told them to trade with it while he was gone. read more.
But his countrymen hated him, and they sent a delegation after him to say, 'We do not want this man made king over us.' And when he had secured the appointment and returned, he ordered the slaves to whom he had given the money to be called in, so that he could find out how much they had made. The first one came in and said, 'Your twenty dollars has made two hundred, sir!' And he said to him, 'Well done, my excellent slave! You have proved trustworthy about a very small amount, you shall be governor of ten towns.' The second came in and said, 'Your twenty dollars has made a hundred, sir!' And he said to him, 'And you shall be governor of five towns!' And the other one came in and said, 'Here is your twenty dollars, sir. I have kept it put away in a handkerchief, for I was afraid of you, for you are a stern man. You pick up what you did not lay down, and reap what you did not sow.' He said to him, 'Out of your own mouth I will convict you, you wretched slave! You knew, did you, that I was a stern man, and that I pick up what I did not lay down, and harvest what I did not sow? Then why did you not put my money in the bank, so that when I came back I could have gotten it with interest?' And he said to the bystanders, 'Take the twenty dollars away from him, and give it to the man who has the two hundred!' They said to him, 'He has two hundred, sir!'??26 'I tell you, the man who has will have more given him, and from the man who has nothing, even what he has will be taken away! But bring those enemies of mine here who did not want me made king over them, and slaughter them in my presence!' "

And he gave them an illustration: "See the fig tree and all the trees. As soon as they put out their leaves, you see them and you know without being told that summer is coming. So when you see these things happen, you must know that the Kingdom of God is at hand. read more.
I tell you, it will all happen before the present generation passes away. Earth and sky will pass away, but my words will not. But take care that your hearts are not loaded down with self-indulgence and drunkenness and worldly cares, and that day takes you by surprise, like a trap. For it will come on all who are living anywhere on the face of the earth. But you must be vigilant and always pray that you may succeed in escaping all this that is going to happen, and in standing in the presence of the Son of Man."

The enemy who sowed them is the devil. The harvest is the close of the age, and the reapers are angels. Verse Concepts

That is what will happen at the close of the age. The angels will go out and remove the wicked from among the upright, Verse Concepts

and teach them to observe all the commands that I have given you. I will always be with you, to the very close of the age." Verse Concepts

And "You, Lord, in the beginning founded the earth, And the sky is the work of your hands! They will perish, but you continue! And they will all wear out like a coat, And you will fold them up like a mantle, And change them as one changes his coat. But you are always the same, and your years will have no end!"

for then he would have had to suffer death over and over, ever since the creation of the world. But, as it is, once for all at the close of the age he has appeared, to put an end to sin by his sacrifice. Verse Concepts

"But immediately after the misery of those days, the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not shed its light, and the stars will fall from the sky, and the forces of the sky will shake. Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and all the nations of the earth will lament when they see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky, in all his power and splendor. And he will send out his angels with a loud trumpet-call, and they will gather his chosen people from the four winds, from one end of the sky to the other.

As he was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came up to him by themselves, and said to him, "Tell us when this is to happen, and what will be the sign of your coming, and of the close of the age." Verse Concepts

Verse Concepts

And Jesus left the Temple and was going away, when his disciples came up to him to call his attention to the Temple buildings. But he answered, "Do you see all this? I tell you, not one stone will be left here upon another but shall be torn down." As he was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came up to him by themselves, and said to him, "Tell us when this is to happen, and what will be the sign of your coming, and of the close of the age." read more.
Jesus answered, "Take care that no one misleads you about this. For many will come under my name, and say, 'I am the Christ,' and many will be misled by them. You will hear of wars and rumors of war; do not let yourselves be alarmed. They have to come, but that is not the end. For nation will rise in arms against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famines and earthquakes here and there. All this is only the beginning of the sufferings. Then they will hand you over to persecution and they will put you to death, and you will be hated by all the heathen because you bear my name. Then many will fall away and betray one another and hate one another. Many false prophets will appear, and many will be misled by them, and because of the increase of wickedness, most men's love will grow cold. But he who holds out to the end will be saved. And this good news of the kingdom will be preached all over the world, to testify to all the heathen, and then the end will come. "So when you see the dreadful desecration, of which the prophet Daniel spoke, set up in the Holy Place"??he reader must take note of this??16 "then those who are in Judea must fly to the hills; a man on the roof of his house must not go down to get things out of it, and a man in the field must not turn back to get his coat. But alas for women who are with child at that time or who have babies! And pray that you may not have to fly in winter or on the Sabbath, for there will be greater misery then than there has ever been from the beginning of creation until now, or ever will be again. If those days had not been cut short, nobody would have escaped, but for the sake of God's people those days will be cut short. "If anyone says to you at that time, 'Look! here is the Christ!' or 'There he is!' do not believe it, for false Christs and false prophets will appear, and they will show great signs and wonders to mislead God's chosen people if they can. Here I have told you beforehand. So if they say to you, 'There he is, in the desert!' do not go out there; 'Here he is, in a room in here!' do not believe it. For just as the lightning starts in the east and flashes to the west, so the coming of the Son of Man will be. Wherever there is a dead body, the vultures will flock. "But immediately after the misery of those days, the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not shed its light, and the stars will fall from the sky, and the forces of the sky will shake. Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and all the nations of the earth will lament when they see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky, in all his power and splendor. And he will send out his angels with a loud trumpet-call, and they will gather his chosen people from the four winds, from one end of the sky to the other. "Let the fig tree teach you the lesson. As soon as its branches grow soft and put forth leaves, you know that summer is coming. So when you see all these things, you must know that he is just at the door. I tell you, these things will all happen before the present age passes away. Earth and sky will pass away but my words will never pass away. But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven nor the Son, but only the Father. For just as it was in the time of Noah, it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. For just as in those days before the flood people were eating and drinking, marrying and being married, until the very day Noah entered the ark, and knew nothing about it until the flood came and destroyed them all, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and one left. Two women will be grinding with the handmill; one will be taken and one left. So you must be on the watch, for you do not know on what day your Master is coming. But you may be sure of this, that if the master of the house had known in what part of the night the thief was coming, he would have been on the watch, and would not have let his house be broken into. Therefore you must be ready too, for the Son of Man is coming at a time when you do not expect him.

As he was leaving the Temple, one of his disciples said to him, "Look, Master! What wonderful stones and buildings!" Jesus said to him, "Do you see these great buildings? Not one stone shall be left here upon another that shall not be torn down." As he was sitting on the Mount of Olives opposite the Temple, Peter, James, John, and Andrew asked him, apart from the others, read more.
"Tell us when this is to happen, and what the sign will be when it is all just going to be carried out." And Jesus said to them, "Take care that no one misleads you about this. Many will come under my name and say 'I am he,' and many will be misled by them. But when you hear of wars and rumors of war, you must not be alarmed. They have to come, but it is not yet the end. For nation will rise in arms against nation and kingdom against kingdom; there will be earthquakes here and there, there will be famines. This is only the beginning of the sufferings. But you must be on your guard; they will hand you over to courts and you will be taken into synagogues and beaten, and you will be brought before governors and kings on my account, to testify to them. For before the end the good news must be preached to all the heathen. When they are taking you off to trial do not worry beforehand about what you ought to say, but say whatever is given you when the time comes, for it is not you that will speak, but the holy Spirit. Brother will give up brother to be put to death, and the father his child, and children will turn against their parents and have them put to death. You will be hated by everyone, because you bear my name. But he who holds out to the end will be saved. But as soon as you see the dreadful desecration standing where he has no right to stand" (the reader must take note of this), "then those who are in Judea must fly to the hills; a man on the roof of his house must not go down or go into the house to get anything out of it, and a man in the field must not turn back to get his coat. Alas for women who are with child at that time, or who have babies! Pray that it may not be winter when it comes, for there will be such misery in those days as there has never been since the beginning of God's creation until now, and never will be again. If the Lord had not cut those days short, nobody would have escaped, but for the sake of his own chosen people he has cut the days short. If anyone says to you at that time, 'Look! Here is the Christ!' or 'Look! There he is!' do not believe it. For false Christs and false prophets will appear, and they will show signs and wonders to mislead God's chosen people if they can. But you must be on your guard; I have told you all about it beforehand. But in those days, when that misery is over, the sun will be darkened and the moon will not shed its light and the stars will fall from the sky and the forces in the sky will shake. Then they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds with great power and glory, and then he will send out the angels and gather his chosen people from the four winds, from one end of the world to the other. "Let the fig tree teach you the lesson. As soon as its branches grow soft and put forth leaves you know that summer is coming. So when you see these things happening, you must know that he is just at the door. I tell you, these things will all happen before the present age passes away.

When some spoke about the Temple and its decoration with costly stone and votive offerings, he said, "As for all this that you are looking at, the time is coming when not one stone will be left here upon another that will not be torn down!" Then they asked him, "Master, when will this happen, and what will be the sign that it is going to take place?" read more.
And he said, "Take care not to be misled. For many will come under my name, and say, 'I am he,' and 'The time is at hand.' Do not follow them. But when you hear of wars and outbreaks, do not be alarmed. These have to come first, but the end does not follow immediately." Then he said to them, "Nation will rise in arms against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be great earthquakes, and pestilence and famine here and there. There will be horrors and great signs in the sky. But before all this, men will arrest you and persecute you, and hand you over to synagogues and prisons and have you brought before kings and governors on my account. It will all lead to your testifying. So make up your minds not to prepare your defense, for I will give you such wisdom of utterance as none of your opponents will be able to resist or dispute. You will be betrayed even by your parents and brothers and kinsmen and friends and they will put some of you to death, and you will be hated by everyone because you bear my name. Yet not a hair of your head will perish! It is by your endurance that you will win your souls. But when you see Jerusalem being surrounded by armies, then you must understand that her devastation is at hand. Then those who are in Judea must fly to the hills, those who are in the city must get out of it, and those who are in the country must not go into it, for those are the days of vengeance, when all that is written in the Scriptures will be fulfilled. But alas for women who are with child at that time, or who have babies, for there will be great misery in the land and anger at this people. They will fall by the edge of the sword, and be carried off as prisoners among all nations, and Jerusalem will be trampled under foot by the heathen, until the time of the heathen comes. There will be signs too in sun, moon, and stars, and on earth dismay among the heathen, bewildered at the roar of the sea and the waves. Men will swoon with fear and foreboding of what is to happen to the world, for the forces in the sky will shake. Then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with great power and glory. But when this begins to happen, look up and raise your heads, for your deliverance will be at hand." And he gave them an illustration: "See the fig tree and all the trees. As soon as they put out their leaves, you see them and you know without being told that summer is coming. So when you see these things happen, you must know that the Kingdom of God is at hand. I tell you, it will all happen before the present generation passes away. Earth and sky will pass away, but my words will not. But take care that your hearts are not loaded down with self-indulgence and drunkenness and worldly cares, and that day takes you by surprise, like a trap. For it will come on all who are living anywhere on the face of the earth. But you must be vigilant and always pray that you may succeed in escaping all this that is going to happen, and in standing in the presence of the Son of Man."

I want the men everywhere to offer prayer, lifting to heaven hands that are holy, without any angry disputes. Verse Concepts

Have no anxiety about anything, but make all your wants known to God in prayer and entreaty, and with thanksgiving. Verse Concepts

Use every kind of prayer and entreaty, and at every opportunity pray in the Spirit. Be on the alert about it; devote yourselves constantly to prayer for all God's people Verse Concepts

He gave them an illustration to show that they must always pray and not give up, Verse Concepts

Never give up praying. Verse Concepts

You must all watch, and pray that you may not be exposed to trial! One's spirit is eager, but flesh and blood are weak!" Verse Concepts

You must all watch, and pray that you may not be subjected to trial. One's spirit is eager, but human nature is weak." Verse Concepts

Be affectionate in your love for the brotherhood, eager to show one another honor, not wanting in devotion, but on fire with the Spirit. Serve the Lord. Be happy in your hope, steadfast in time of trouble, persistent in prayer.

But take care that your hearts are not loaded down with self-indulgence and drunkenness and worldly cares, and that day takes you by surprise, like a trap. For it will come on all who are living anywhere on the face of the earth. But you must be vigilant and always pray that you may succeed in escaping all this that is going to happen, and in standing in the presence of the Son of Man."

And when he reached the spot, he said to them, "Pray that you may not be subjected to trial." Verse Concepts

But the end of all things is near. Be serious and collected, therefore, and pray. Verse Concepts