Text -- Matthew 24:29-31 (NET)

The Arrival of the Son of Man

24:29 “Immediately after the suffering of those days, the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of heaven will be shaken. 24:30 Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and all the tribes of the earth will mourn. They will see the Son of Man arriving on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. 24:31 And he will send his angels with a loud trumpet blast, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.

Commentary -- Verse Notes / Footnotes

NET Notes: Mat 24:29

¹ tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

² tn Traditionally, “tribulation.”

³ sn An allusion to Isa 13:10, 34:4 (LXX); Joel 2:10. The heavens were seen as the abode of heavenly forces, so their shaking indicates distress in the spiritual realm. Although some take the powers as a reference to bodies in the heavens (like stars and planets, “the heavenly bodies,” NIV) this is not as likely.

NET Notes: Mat 24:30

¹ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated.

² tn Or “in the sky”; the Greek word οὐρανός (ouranos) may be translated “sky” or “heaven,” depending on the context.

³ tn Here τότε (tote, “then”) has not been translated to avoid redundancy in English.

⁴ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated.

⁵ sn An allusion to Dan 7:13. Here is Jesus returning with full authority to judge.

NET Notes: Mat 24:31

¹ tn Or “of the sky”; the Greek word οὐρανός (ouranos) may be translated “sky” or “heaven,” depending on the context.