Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on the Whole Bible
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Matthew
Book: Matthew
Chapter: 24
Overview:
Christ foretells the
Destruction of the
Temple.
(1-3) The
troubles before the
Destruction of
Jerusalem.
(4-28) Christ
foretells other signs and miseries, to the
End of the world.
(29-41) Exhortations to watchfulness.
(42-51)
1-3 Christ foretells the utter ruin and
Destruction coming upon
the
Temple. A believing foresight of the defacing of all worldly
Glory, will help to keep us from admiring it, and overvaluing
it. The most beautiful body soon will be
Food for worms, and the
most magnificent
Building a ruinous
Heap. See ye not all these
things? It will do us good
So to see them as to see through
them, and see to the
End of them. Our
Lord having gone with his
disciples to the
Mount of Olives, he set before them the order
of the times concerning the Jews, till the
Destruction of
Jerusalem; and as to men in general till the
End of the world.
4-28 The disciples had asked concerning the times, When these
things should be?
Christ gave them
No answer to that; but they
had also asked, What shall be the sign? This question he answers
fully. The
Prophecy first respects events near at
Hand, the
Destruction of
Jerusalem, the
End of the Jewish
Church and
state, the
Calling of the
Gentiles, and the setting up of
Christ's kingdom in the world; but it also looks to the general
Judgment; and toward the close, points more particularly to the
latter. What
Christ here said to his disciples, tended more to
promote caution than to satisfy their curiosity; more to prepare
them for the events that should happen, than to give a distinct
idea of the events. This is that good understanding of the times
which all should covet, thence to infer what
Israel ought to do.
Our
Saviour cautions his disciples to stand
On their
Guard
against false teachers. And he foretells wars and great
commotions among nations. From the time that the Jews rejected
Christ, and he left their
House desolate, the
Sword never
departed from them. See what comes of refusing the
Gospel. Those
who will not hear the messengers of peace, shall be made to hear
the messengers of
War. But where the
Heart is fixed, trusting in
God, it is kept in peace, and is not afraid. It is against the
mind of
Christ, that his people should have troubled hearts,
even in troublous times. When we looked forward to the eternity
of misery that is before the obstinate refusers of
Christ and
his
Gospel, we may truly say, The greatest earthly judgments are
but the beginning of sorrows. It is comforting that some shall
endure even to the
End. Our
Lord foretells the preaching of the
Gospel in all the world. The
End of the world shall not be till
the
Gospel has done its work.
Christ foretells the ruin coming
upon the people of the Jews; and what he said here, would be of
use to his disciples, for their conduct and for their comfort.
If
God opens a door of escape, we ought to make our escape,
otherwise we do not trust
God, but tempt him. It becomes
Christ's disciples, in times of public trouble, to be much in
Prayer: that is never out of season, but in a special manner
seasonable when we are distressed
On every side. Though we must
take what
God sends, yet we may pray against sufferings; and it
is very trying to a good
Man, to be taken
By any work of
necessity from the solemn service and
Worship of
God On the
Sabbath Day. But here is one
Word of comfort, that for the
elect's sake these days shall be made shorter than their enemies
designed, who would have cut all off, if
God, who used these
foes to serve his own purpose, had not set bounds to their
wrath.
Christ foretells the rapid spreading of the
Gospel in the
world. It is plainly seen as the
Lightning.
Christ preached his
Gospel openly. The
Romans were like an
Eagle, and the
Ensign of
their armies was an
Eagle. When a people,
By their
Sin, make
themselves as loathsome carcasses, nothing can be expected but
that
God should send enemies to destroy them. It is very
applicable to the
Day of
Judgment, the coming of our
Lord Jesus
Christ in that
Day, 2Th 2:1. Let us give diligence to make our
Calling and election sure; then may we know that
No enemy or
deceiver shall ever prevail against us.
29-41 Christ foretells his second coming. It is usual for
prophets to speak of things as near and just at
Hand, to express
the greatness and certainty of them. Concerning
Christ's second
coming, it is foretold that there shall be a great change, in
order to the making all things new. Then they shall see the Son
of
Man coming in the clouds. At his first coming, he was set for
a sign that should be spoken against, but at his second coming,
a sign that should be admired. Sooner or later, all sinners will
be mourners; but repenting sinners look to
Christ, and
Mourn
after a godly sort; and those who sow in those tears shall
shortly reap in joy. Impenitent sinners shall see Him whom they
have pierced, and, though they laugh now, shall
Mourn and weep
in endless horror and despair. The elect of
God are scattered
abroad; there are some in all places, and all nations; but when
that great gathering
Day comes, there shall not one of them be
missing. Distance of place shall keep none out of
Heaven. Our
Lord declares that the Jews should never cease to be a distinct
people, until all things he had been predicting were fulfilled.
His
Prophecy reaches to the
Day of final
Judgment; therefore he
here, ver. 34, foretells that
Judah shall never cease to exist
as a distinct people,
So long as this world shall endure. Men of
the world scheme and plan for
Generation upon
Generation here,
but they plan not with reference to the overwhelming,
approaching, and most certain event of
Christ's second coming,
which shall do away every human scheme, and set aside for ever
all that
God forbids. That will be as surprising a
Day, as the
Deluge to the old world. Apply this, first, to temporal
judgments, particularly that which was then hastening upon the
nation and people of the Jews. Secondly, to the eternal
Judgment.
Christ here shows the state of the old world when the
Deluge came. They were secure and careless; they knew not, until
the
Flood came; and they believed not. Did we know aright that
all earthly things must shortly pass away, we should not set our
eyes and hearts
So much upon them as we do. The evil
Day is not
the further off for men's putting it far from them. What words
can more strongly describe the suddenness of our
Saviour's
coming! Men will be at their respective businesses, and suddenly
the
Lord of
Glory will appear. Women will be in their
House
employments, but in that moment every other work will be laid
aside, and every
Heart will turn inward and say, It is the
Lord!
Am I prepared to meet him? Can I stand before him? And what, in
fact, is the
Day of
Judgment to the whole world, but the
Day of
Death to every one?
42-51 To watch for
Christ's coming, is to maintain that temper
of mind which we would be willing that our
Lord should find us
in. We know we have but a little time to live, we cannot know
that we have a long time to live; much less do we know the time
fixed for the
Judgment. Our
Lord's coming will be happy to those
that shall be found ready, but very dreadful to those that are
not. If a
Man, professing to be the servant of
Christ, be an
unbeliever, covetous, ambitious, or a lover of pleasure, he will
be cut off. Those who choose the world for their portion in this
Life, will have
Hell for their portion in the other
Life. May
our
Lord, when he cometh, pronounce us blessed, and present us
to the
Father, washed in his
Blood, purified
By his
Spirit, and
fit to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in
Light.