Jesus is speaking to his disciples regarding a future "coming of the Son of Man."
Matt 24:32-34
"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. Even so, when you see all these things, you know that it is near, right at the door. I tell you the truth, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened.
"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. Even so, when you see all these things, you know that it is near, right at the door. I tell you the truth, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened.
A significant question about all of this passage: is Jesus speaking of a close upcoming event (for example, the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD) or a far off event, millennia away? Or some combination of these? At the beginning of this conversation, he is appears to be speaking of the generation of his listeners.
From the NIV footnotes: in verse 33, "it" could also be "he" as in "He is near". And the word "generation" in verse 34 could also be translated "race", so this might not be describing the time frame of a "generation".
Matt 24:35-39
"Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away. No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father."
"As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; and 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.
In verse 36 some manuscripts do not include the phrase translated here "nor the Son."
"Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away. No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father."
"As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; and 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.
In verse 36 some manuscripts do not include the phrase translated here "nor the Son."
Jesus makes it clear that the "end" will come quickly, will be a surprise.
Matt 24:40-44
"Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other left. Two women will be grinding with a hand mill; one will be taken and the other left.
"Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come.
But 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. So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him."
"Like a thief in the night," a favorite phrase for people discussing the endtimes.... I have to say that I am a bit immune to this phrase now and it is hard to go back to the first century and view this from their perspective. (My college days included listening to Larry Norman's "I wish we'd all been ready.")
Matt 24:45-51
"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? It will be good for that servant whose master finds him doing so when he returns. I tell you the truth, he will put him in charge of all his possessions.
"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? It will be good for that servant whose master finds him doing so when he returns. I tell you the truth, he will put him in charge of all his possessions.
"But suppose that servant is wicked and says to himself, `My master is staying away a long time,' and he then begins to beat his fellow servants and to eat and drink with drunkards. The master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he is not aware of. He will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
This appearance of the "owner" or "master", the Creator of the house, will apparently be a complete surprise. Of course, for most of us, it is Death that comes first, sometimes as a surprise.
I want to be pleasantly surprised.
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