PARABLE 41 — MATTHEW 24:32-35 — SIGNS FROM A FIG TREE
32 Now learn a parable of the fig tree; When his branch is yet tender, and putteth forth leaves, ye know that summer is nigh: 33 So likewise ye, when ye shall see all these things, know that it is near, even at the doors. 34 Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled.
35 Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away.
THE DAY AND HOUR UNKNOWN
36 But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only. 37 But as the days of Noah were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. 38 For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, 39 And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.
40 Then shall two be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left. 41 Two women shall be grinding at the mill; the one shall be taken, and the other left.
42 Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come. 43 But know this, that if the goodman of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken up. 44 Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh.
Discussion Questions – Parable 41
PARABLE 41 — MATTHEW 24:32-35 — SIGNS FROM A FIG TREE
1. “Signs From a Fig Tree” is one of only six parables repeated in Matthew, Mark, and Luke. What does this tell us?
The meaning is this, when a fig tree begins to bloom, men know that summer is near. If we lived in Washington D.C. we might say it this way… When the cherry trees blossom, we know that summer is near. (The fig tree is a general time indicator.)
So it is with the end times; when we begin to see the prophetic events described in Matthew 24 occur, the generation then living will know the Lord’s return is very near and we are living in the last days.
The point of the parable is obvious; there are specific signs that will precede the Lord’s coming. These indicators allow us to know the general time or season of His coming.
We know what will happen. We know how it will happen. We know where it will happen. We just don’t know exactly when. But we have enough information that we shouldn’t be caught off guard!
2. In Verse 24:33 and 34, what does “all these things” refer to?
“All these things” refers to everything Christ just talked about: wars, famines, earthquakes (24:4-8), persecution of Christians (9-10), false prophets (11), the abomination that causes desolation (15), false Christs (24), the need to flee because of the Great Tribulation (16-28), and the stellar events (sun darkened, no light from the moon) of verses 29-31. All those things will signal the nearness of Christ’s return, just as a tree with new shoots signifies that summer is coming.
3. In Verse 24:34, what does “this generation” refer to? Do you feel as though you are in the generation that Jesus speaks about?
“This generation” does not refer to the disciples, not to the Jewish race, not to the nation of Israel, and not to those who reject Christ.
The new leaves on the fig tree are symbolic in some way to the signs preceding the second coming. The phrase “this generation” clearly refers to the generation that is alive at the time those signs are fulfilled. Basically, Jesus was saying, “The generation that sees the signs of the second coming will not pass away until I return.” That was Jesus’ answer to the disciples’ question of how much time would pass between the sign of His coming and His actual return. So once the birth pains begin (Matthew 24:8), everything else will happen in rapid succession.
The Master is near. He is knocking at the door!
ANOTHER COMMENTATOR’S VIEW
So He tells them that the generation of people that will be alive on the earth when the Last Days come about, they would witness what He called the "fig tree" blooming, and putting forth it's leaves. And He equated that with the fulfillment of His End Time prophecy. So what or who is the "fig tree"? It would seem that if we could figure that out, then we would know who the last generation might be.
Throughout recorded history, nations have always be typified by "types and figures" to describe them. Russia is the "bear", America is the "eagle", England the "lion", and Israel the "fig tree". Wait...did I just say "fig tree"? Wow, what a coincidence!
So Jesus was saying that when you see ISRAEL re-blooming, whenever that would take place, that that generation would be the one that would be on the earth and living when the Last Days would occur. So if Israel was destroyed in 70 AD, and it was, when did it "bloom" again? May 14, 1948 is the date that history records that fact occurring. The generation that witnessed that, the WWII generation, still have not, for all intents and purposes, passed off the scene. They are still alive and with us today, and we are the people that Jesus said would be alive on the earth when the Last Days would happen.
WOW!!!
4. Who knows when the end times will come? (24:36) What does it mean for you to “keep watch” (24:42) or “be ready” (24:44)?
Let us be abundantly clear: we do not believe that God has revealed to anyone when Jesus is coming back, and we see nothing in Scripture which indicates that God will ever reveal to anyone when Jesus is coming back. Matthew 24:36-44, while spoken directly to the people in Jesus’ time, also contains a general principle. The timing of Jesus’ return and the end of the age is not for us to know. Scripture nowhere encourages us to try to determine the date. Rather, we are to “keep watch, because we do not know on which day our Lord will come” (v. 42). We are to “be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when we do not expect Him” (v. 44). The force of Jesus’ words diminishes if at some point in the future someone will be able to determine when He is coming back. If the date is discovered, we no longer need to “keep watch” or “be ready.” So, with the principle of Matthew 24:36-44 in mind, no, it is not possible for anyone to know the date that Jesus is coming back.
The fact that the day of Jesus’ return is unknown should motivate us to live every day in light of His immediate return.
When the apostle Paul described the coming of the Lord in 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17, he went on to tell them, “But of the times and the seasons, you have no need to know…”
“For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night. For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape. Be ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief. Ye are all the children of the light, and the children of the day; we are not of the night, nor of the darkness. Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; BUT LET US WATCH AND BE SOBER.” (1 Thessalonians 5).
5. Just as it was in the days of Noah so shall be the coming of the Lord. What was it like in the days of Noah? Can it be compared to the time we are living in?
And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually” (Genesis 6:5.)
When Jesus described the events that will surround His second coming, He said, “Just as it was in the days of Noah, so will it be in the days of the Son of Man. They were eating and drinking and marrying and being given in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all” (Luke 17:26–27). Jesus was pointing out that, although the people of Noah’s day were totally depraved, they were not the least bit concerned about it. They were carrying on the events of their lives without a single thought to the judgment of God. Noah is described as “a preacher of righteousness” (2 Peter 2:5), meaning he had spent years warning his friends and neighbors what the Holy God was about to do. No one listened.
It is interesting that God allowed Noah nearly one hundred years to complete the building of the ark. Through all that time, God patiently waited (1 Peter 3:20). Scripture seems to imply that Noah preached to the people of that time about what was coming (Hebrews 11:7). They did not believe Noah and were content with their wickedness and idolatry. Their hearts were hard and their ears dull. No one repented, and no one cared to seek God.
Jesus said that the world will be much the same before He returns to set up His earthly kingdom (Matthew 25:31–33). He warned us to “be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.” 2 Timothy 3:1–4 gives us a clear picture of the state of the world before Jesus comes and most likely also describes the world in the days of Noah. That verse says, “This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God...” It is becoming increasingly obvious that, to understand what the world was like in the days of Noah, we only need to watch the evening news.
6. Jesus said if we knew that our home was going to be broken into we would keep watch? In what ways can we keep watch and stay ready for the coming of the Lord?
We must watch and pray. We are easily distracted by this world, our fleshly needs and desires, and the schemes of the enemy (2 Corinthians 2:11). When we take our eyes from Jesus and His soon return, our values begin to shift, our attention wanders, and soon we are living like the world and bearing little fruit for God’s kingdom (1 Timothy 6:18–19). He warned us that we must be ready at any moment to stand before Him and give an account of our lives (Romans 14:12; 1 Peter 4:5; Matthew 12:36).
We must watch and pray. We can only remain faithful when we are devoted to prayer. In prayer, we continually allow God to forgive us, cleanse us, teach us, and strengthen us to obey Him (John 14:14). In order to keep watch, we must pray for endurance and freedom from distractions (Hebrews 12:2; Luke 18:1; Ephesians 6:18). We must pray without ceasing (1 Thessalonians 5:17). When we live with the eager expectation of the Lord’s return and expect persecution until then (2 Timothy 3:12; Matthew 24:9; 1 Peter 4:12), we are more likely to keep our lives pure and our hearts ready to meet Him.
Another occurrence of the phrase “watch and pray” is found earlier in Jesus’ ministry when He prophesied about the end times. Luke chapter 21 details many of those events, and Jesus warns that they would happen suddenly: “Be careful, or your hearts will be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness and the anxieties of life, and that day will close on you suddenly like a trap” (Luke 21:34). He then says, “Watch therefore, and pray always, that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man.” (verse 36).
7. In what ways are you NOT READY to face the Lord today?
See on blog “Redeeming the Time”
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