36 “But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only. 37 But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. 38 For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, 39 and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. 40 Then two men will be in the field: one will be taken and the other left. 41 Two women will be grinding at the mill: one will be taken and the other left.
24:36
“But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only.
No one can predict precisely the time of the Second Coming. Remember that there is no mention of the Rapture anywhere in the Olivet Discourse (Mt 24-25).
24:37
But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be.
We can compare the period just before the Second Coming to the days of Noah. The “days of Noah” were characterized by a sudden, catastrophic flood.
24:38
For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark,
People of Noah’s day lived in a normal fashion. They pursued the regular activities of life in a mundane way. They spurned the idea of a world-wide flood as idle fiction. They scoffed at Noah’s building the ark for 120 years.
24:39
and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be.
They were unaware of a coming judgment on the whole world until the flood came. God swept away the people of Noah’s day unexpectedly in the flood.
24:40
Then [at the Second Coming] two men will be in the field: one will be taken and the other left.
The one “taken” will be taken in judgment. The “other left” is the one that will enter into the Millennial kingdom.
24:41
Two women will be grinding at the mill: one will be taken and the other left.
The “taken” here and in the previous verse are not taken in the Rapture but in judgment. There will come a time of sudden separation between believer and unbeliever.
PRINCIPLE:
People need to keep alert to eternal values.
APPLICATION:
Most people live as if there is no eternity. They never put emphasis on eternal values but rather on trivial matters. Common concerns of life can keep us from focusing on God’s priorities.
Dr. Grant,
Some versions include "not even the Son" in verse 36. I know that some people bring this up, claiming that it proves that since Jesus does not know everything, He cannot be God. How can I explain to them this verse? Thanks!
Jakob, when Jesus came to earth He came as true humanity. He operated and functioned as a true man. He did not operate as God. Phil 2:5ff says that the Son put off the voluntary use (important word) of His incommunicable attributes (I am giving the nuances of the Greek here). Incommunicable attributes are those attributes which only God has such as everywhere present, all-knowing, all-power, etc. He never stopped being God but He did not use His incommunicable attributes in His humanity. He was both undiminished deity and true humanity.
Dr. Grant,
In some other sources I looked at, it is stated that Jesus resumed His use of these attributes after His resurrection, such as omnipotence. However, in John 16:30, His disciples confess to Him that He knows all things, but this is before His resurrection. How can this be reconciled?
Jakob,
The statement that Jesus “knows all things” (major emphasis in Greek by position) may be a statement of His utter mastery of everything (but not omniscience) that He told them about God (16:19). The idea is that Jesus supremely reveals God’s thoughts to Jesus. The phrase “You do not even need to have anyone ask you questions” may refer to this supernatural knowledge.
It is important to remember also that Christ never divested Himself of His incommunicable attributes but He only divested them in His function as a human being. He voluntarily set aside the use of those attributes in His humanity.
The disciples may have been addressing Jesus as the total theanthropic person (both His deity and humanity). The issue of how Jesus separated His deity and humanity is a major study. However, the bottom line is that Jesus never violated the integrity of His humanity and never ceased being God. In this He was true humanity and perfect deity.
Dr. Grant,
Did He resume the use of His incommunicable attributes after His resurrection?
Jakob, Jesus never stopped operating in His incommunicable attributes; He voluntarily did not use those attributes in His humanity. He did not stop being God during His humanity. He never confounded either His humanity or His deity.
Dr. Grant,
I'm still a little confused. Jesus became incarnate and will remain incarnate forever (Hebrews 7:23-25). But, since He voluntarily did not use His incommunicable attributes during His humanity, can I assume that you mean 'humanity' as 'pre-resurrection'? It would make sense to me that He would resume voluntary use of His incommunicable attributes. Thanks!
Jakob, Jesus never stopped being God. What is eternal cannot become temporal. What is everywhere present cannot become local. He only set aside the voluntary use of His incommunicable attributes in His humanity. He operated fully as God during His years on earth. There is an extensive study on the hypostatic union of Christ on this.
Dr. Grant,
I'm still a little perplexed. In your response to my fist question on this page, you said that "when Jesus came to earth He came as true humanity. He operated and functioned as a true man. He did not operate as God." But in the the previous post, you stated that "He operated fully as God during His years on earth." This didn't really help clear up the issue for me. I guess what I'm trying to ask is this: Did Jesus take back up the voluntary use of His incommunicable attributes after His resurrection? Thanks!
Jakob, What I thought I said was that Jesus operated as true humanity when He functioned in His humanity.That does not assume that He stopped being God at some point. That is why I keep saying that He put off the voluntary use of His incommunicable attributes in His humanity. He did not use His incommunicable attributes in functions of humanity. There were times when the person of Christ functioned as God while He was on earth. Each passage must determine which is the case. If I have time before I leave for Africa, I will send you a more detailed study on this.
Sorry only my 5 cents worth, I believe that Jesus at that time did not know when he was asked as he was of the flesh. I believe he prayed to the father but that was not revealed to him at that time,however after he ascended I believe he knew. So one needs to look at the time when this was statement was made. So yes he did not know at that time but he definitely knows it today.