Matthew 24:36
No one knows ... nor the
Son. Even Jesus, in submission to God the Father in his human nature, does not know the final time of his return. See
WCF 33.3;
WLC 16, 88;
BC 37.
Jesus' Call to Vigilance and Diligence - Matthew 24:45-51
The point of all of Jesus' teachings about the future judgment and age to come are summed up here: Jesus' disciples should be vigilant, diligent, and faithful, not out of fear but from the wisdom that comes from God.
Wise and Foolish Brides - Matthew 25:1-13
Jesus used an image from the ancient near east of a royal man taking ten wives into his marriage line. Jesus' point was not about marriage or about marriage practices, but he used this common image to contrast the wisdom of being prepared for Jesus' second coming with the foolishness of those who do not prepare themselves. See
BC 37.
The Parable of the Servants - Matthew 25:14-30
Jesus used this long parable to teach once again the importance of Jesus' disciples being faithful with the teaching and wisdom that he had given them. See
WCF 5.6, 16.6, 33.3;
WSC 38.
The Parable of the Sheep and Goats - Matthew 25:31-46
This is the third parable challenging Jesus' disciples to a life of faithfulness as they await his return from heaven. In this parable, Jesus emphasized the importance of care and compassion for others, especially fellow Christians (cf. Gal. 6:10). Jesus taught that serving others is like serving Jesus himself (Matt. 25:40,45). See
WCF 3.3, 6.6, 16.7, 33.2;
WLC 27, 87, 88, 89, 90, 135, 136, 152;
WSC 19, 84;
BC 12, 37;
HC 11, 32, 52.
Matthew 25:31
Son of
Man … on his
glorious throne. Throughout the Gospel Jesus has described himself as the Son of Man. This verse shows specifically that the Son of Man language refers to Jesus as King ruling with God the Father in the coming kingdom. See
WLC 16, 56;
BC 37.
Matthew 25:33
Sheep on
right ...
goats on
left. In this parable Jesus was describing a final separation of people into those who are aligned with God and those who are not. Herds in Jesus' day were typically mixed between sheep and goats and there is nothing inherently bad about goats. Rather, Jesus used the typical practice of separating sheep and goats as an image for the separating of all people according to their allegiance to God's kingdom or not.
Matthew 26:1
when Jesus had
finished all these
words. This is the fifth and final time that Matthew has used this phrase and each time it has marked the end of one of his five major teaching blocks. In this verse he has added the word "
all" to indicate that this is the end of the teaching discourses. Together these five blocks provide summary teachings for Jesus' disciple to learn and follow.
Matthew 26:2
Passover. The Passover is the most important Jewish holiday because it commemorates the most important event in Israel's history, the Exodus, when God rescued his people from slavery in Egypt, formed them into a nation, and made a covenant with them. This holiday was very relevant for Jesus' final week because he was rescuing the new people of God — his followers — from bondage and bringing them into his kingdom, making a new covenant with them (Matt. 26:28).
Matthew 26:2
crucified. Three times on his way to Jerusalem Jesus predicted that he would be arrested, beaten, crucified, and raised (Matt. 16:21; 17:22; 20:18-19). Now he made clear that this was going to happen in two days. This sets the tone for this last section of Matthew and highlights the climactic point of the story. The Roman Empire killed any rebels with crucifixion, a gruesome and shameful way to die by being hung on a wooden pole.
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