Exodus 24:18

24:18 Moses went into the cloud when he went up ¹  the mountain, and Moses was on the mountain forty days and forty nights. ² 

Deuteronomy 9:9

9:9 When I went up the mountain to receive the stone tablets, the tablets of the covenant that the Lord made with you, I remained there ³  forty days and nights, eating and drinking nothing.

Matthew 24:43

24:43 But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief ⁴  was coming, he would have been alert and would not have let his house be broken into.

Matthew 24:2

24:2 And he said to them, ⁵  “Do you see all these things? I tell you the truth, ⁶  not one stone will be left on another. ⁷  All will be torn down!” ⁸ 

Matthew 3:4

3:4 Now John wore clothing made from camel’s hair with a leather belt around his waist, and his diet consisted of locusts and wild honey. ⁹ 

¹ tn The verb is a preterite with vav (ו) consecutive; here, the second clause, is subordinated to the first preterite, because it seems that the entering into the cloud is the dominant point in this section of the chapter.

² sn B. Jacob (Exodus, 750) offers this description of some of the mystery involved in Moses’ ascending into the cloud: Moses ascended into the presence of God, but remained on earth. He did not rise to heaven – the ground remained firmly under his feet. But he clearly was brought into God’s presence; he was like a heavenly servant before God’s throne, like the angels, and he consumed neither bread nor water. The purpose of his being there was to become familiar with all God’s demands and purposes. He would receive the tablets of stone and all the instructions for the tabernacle that was to be built (beginning in chap. 25). He would not descend until the sin of the golden calf.

³ tn Heb “in the mountain.” The demonstrative pronoun has been used in the translation for stylistic reasons.

⁴ sn On Jesus pictured as a returning thief, see 1 Thess 5:2, 4; 2 Pet 3:10; Rev 3:3; 16:15.

⁵ tn Grk “answering, he said to them.” The participle ἀποκριθείς (ajpokriqei") is redundant in English and has not been translated.

⁶ tn Grk “Truly (ἀμήν, amhn), I say to you.”

⁷ sn With the statement not one stone will be left on another Jesus predicted the total destruction of the temple, something that did occur in a.d. 70.

⁸ tn Grk “not one stone will be left here on another which will not be thrown down.”

⁹ sn John’s lifestyle was in stark contrast to many of the religious leaders of Jerusalem who lived in relative ease and luxury. While his clothing and diet were indicative of someone who lived in the desert, they also depicted him in his role as God’s prophet (cf. Zech 13:4); his appearance is similar to the Prophet Elijah (2 Kgs 1:8). Locusts and wild honey were a common diet in desert regions, and locusts (dried insects) are listed in Lev 11:22 among the “clean” foods.