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NASB | Matthew 24:28 "Wherever the corpse is, there the vultures will gather. |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | Matthew 24:28 "Wherever the corpse is, there the vultures will flock together. [Job 39:30] |
Subject: What does Matthew 24: 28 mean? |
Bible Note: I have visited many dozens of Christian churches and continue to do so. A week ago I visited two, two weeks ago three during the weekend. I carry a pen and note paper and take careful notes. I have been visiting all different denominations of Christian churches for years. Amongst the various questions which I ask those church members are the questions related to the Prophetic Words recorded at Mat. 24: 27,28. I have heard a wide variety of conflicting explanations concerning those verses. A Seventh Day Adventist member said that the "corpse" is the bodies of the resurrected wicked dead who are resurrected at the appearance of the Lord and instantly, immediately, die again because of the brilliance of His coming and are eaten by literal vultures. Another Christian stated that the "eagles" or "vultures" are the host of angels which arrive with the Lord at His appearance and the "corpse" is the believers on the Earth at that time. Another Christian in a large Baptist church stated that verse 28 of Mat. 24 is "talking about Armageddon". A member of Jehovah's Witnesses said the same and said that the vultures are literal and eat those destroyed at Armageddon. Another Christian, a member of a Full Gospel church, stated that the "corpse is the "believers", and the "vultures" are those who attempt to disrupt and destroy their Faith. Another Christian stated that there are two separate advents of the Lord Christ, the first when He "raptures" the believers, and the second when He stands on the Mount of Olives and the angels, who are the "vultures" of Mat. 24:28 gather to Him at that time those from the literal nation of Israel who have repented and become believers, and that the Lord Himself is the "corpse" who provides the angels their sustenance. Another Christian stated that it is not necessary or important for Christians to understand those verses of the book of Matthew. She views those verses as insignificant. I was amazed to hear a baptized Christian make such a statement about the Holy Prophetic Words of her Lord. There appears to be no end to the various conflicting responses offered by Christians. I have not included here all of the responses in my notes. I suggest that for Christians, the meaning of those verses is "neither apparent to the senses nor obvious to the intelligence". I also suggest that the key word in Webster's definition, which you kindly provided, is the word "reality". Those Prophetic Words spoken by His Holiness the Lord Christ most certainly do have a reality. Cordially, Ross |