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Selected Verse: Matthew 24:30 - King James

Verse         Translation Text
Mt 24:30 King James And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.

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Notes on the Bible, by Albert Barnes, [1834]
The sign of the Son of man - The "evidence" that he is coming to destroy the city of Jerusalem. It is not to be denied, however, that this description is applicable also to his coming at the day of judgment. The disciples had asked him Mat 24:3 what should be the sign of his coming, and "of the end of the world." In his answer he has reference to both events, and his language may be regarded as descriptive of both. At the destruction of Jerusalem, the sign or evidence of his coming was found in the fulfillment of these predictions. At the end of the world, the sign of his coming will be his personal approach with the glory of his Father and the holy angels, Th1 4:16; Luk 21:27; Mat 26:64; Act 1:11.

All the tribes of the earth mourn - That is, either all the "tribes or people" of the land of Judea shall mourn at the great calamities coming upon them, or all the nations of the world shall wail when he comes to judgment. All the wicked shall mourn at the prospect of their doom, Rev 1:7. The cause of their wailing at the day of judgment will be chiefly that they have pierced, killed, rejected the Saviour, and that they deserve the condemnation that is coming upon them, Joh 19:37; Zac 12:12.

And they shall see the Son of man - The Lord Jesus coming to judgment. Probably this refers more directly to his coming at the last day, though it may also mean that the "evidence" of his coming to destroy Jerusalem will then be seen.

In the clouds of heaven - He ascended in a cloud, Act 1:9. He shall return in like manner, Act 1:11. "The clouds of heaven" denote not the clouds in heaven, but the clouds that appear to shut heaven, or the sky, from our view.

With power - Power, manifest in the destruction of Jerusalem, by the wonders that preceded it, and by the overturning of the temple and city. In the day of judgment, power manifest by consuming the material world Pe2 3:7, Pe2 3:10, Pe2 3:12; by raising the dead Joh 5:29-30; Co1 15:52; by changing those who may be alive when he shall come - that is, making their bodies like those who have died, and who have been raised up Th1 4:17; Co1 15:52; by bringing the affairs of the world to a close, receiving the righteous to heaven Mat 25:34; Co1 15:57, and sending the wicked, however numerous or however strong, down to hell, Mat 25:41, Mat 25:46; Joh 5:29.

Great glory - The word "glory" here means the visible display of honor and majesty. This glory will be manifested by the manner of his coming Mat 26:64, by the presence of the angels Mat 25:31, and by the wonders that shall attend him down the sky.
 
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31 When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory:
64 Jesus saith unto him, Thou hast said: nevertheless I say unto you, Hereafter shall ye see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven.
29 And shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation.
46 And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal.
41 Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels:
57 But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
34 Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:
52 In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.
17 Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.
52 In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.
29 And shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation.
30 I can of mine own self do nothing: as I hear, I judge: and my judgment is just; because I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent me.
12 Looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat?
10 But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.
7 But the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men.
11 Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven.
9 And when he had spoken these things, while they beheld, he was taken up; and a cloud received him out of their sight.
12 And the land shall mourn, every family apart; the family of the house of David apart, and their wives apart; the family of the house of Nathan apart, and their wives apart;
37 And again another scripture saith, They shall look on him whom they pierced.
7 Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen.
11 Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven.
64 Jesus saith unto him, Thou hast said: nevertheless I say unto you, Hereafter shall ye see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven.
27 And then shall they see the Son of man coming in a cloud with power and great glory.
16 For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:
3 And as he sat upon the mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world?