Matthew 24:36-44
But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only. 37 As were the days of Noah, so will be the coming of the Son of man. 38 For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, 39 and they did not know until the flood came and swept them all away, so will be the coming of the Son of man. 40 Then two men will be in the field; one is taken and one is left. 41 Two women will be grinding at the mill; one is taken and one is left. 42 Watch therefore, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming. 43 But know this, that if the householder had known in what part of the night the thief was coming, he would have watched and would not have let his house be broken into. 44 Therefore you also must be ready; for the Son of man is coming at an hour you do not expect. Matt. 24:36-44
As it was in the days of Noah, so will it be in the days of the Son of man. 27 They ate, they drank, they married, they were given in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all. 28 Likewise as it was in the days of Lot — they ate, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they built, 29 but on the day when Lot went out from Sodom fire and sulphur rained from heaven and destroyed them all — 30 so will it be on the day when the Son of man is revealed. 31 On that day, let him who is on the housetop, with his goods in the house, not come down to take them away; and likewise let him who is in the field not turn back. 32 Remember Lot’s wife. Luke 17:26-32
As were in the days of Noah” is a way of letting us know that everyday life would be normal in Jerusalem too, just as it was in the days of the impending disaster of ‘Noah’s’ flood. Messiah’s focus here is on being ready in the midst of ordinary life, because believers will not know the exact day when Jerusalem will be destroyed.
There was no suddenness in the coming of the flood. It is probable that during the 100 years of construction, Noah, a preacher of righteousness, told his neighbors why he was building such a large ship. [2 Pet 2:5] Judgment would come upon the earth. Apparently, none of Noah’s neighbors really thought that such a thing could happen. They were conducting life as usual, partying as they would for a marriage ceremony, when the water took them by “surprise.”
This was true of the first-century Jews, as well. The coming of the Son of Man would be sudden and unexpected to the inhabitants of Jerusalem. In ca. 68 AD, the people were caught unaware. They could not conceive of an end to the Jewish polity. But end it did; judgment had arrived. The Lord’s Kingdom was given to another. Lord’s Kingdom was given to another
If they had believed the prophecy of Daniel (Dan 9:24-27), they would have known that the time for the coming of the Messiah was near. If they had listened to Lord, they would have recognized the signs and understood the unfolding plan. Yet, they clung to the teachings that assured them the temple’s destruction would never happen again, blinding them to the divine timing and the fulfillment of prophecy that was already at hand.
As the Roman army tightened its grip, chaos erupted within the city walls. Factions splintered and clashed, blood staining the streets in a grim dance of rebellion. When the Romans entered the city, they found piles of dead bodies. But the believers in Messiah suffered none of these horrors, for they had already left. They had seen the signs of the impending destruction that the Messiah had told them of. They recognized the Roman army as the abomination of Daniel 9. When they saw the army moving through the countryside, they had left Judea and Jerusalem and crossed the Jordan, and waited out the atrocities in Pella.
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