First Friday of Advent 2025

 

Matthew 24:36-44 

The sudden coming of salvation 

24:36 "But about that day and hour no one knows, neither the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. 

24:37 For as the days of Noah were, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. 

24:38 For as in the days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day Noah entered the ark, 

24:39 and they knew nothing until the flood came and swept them all away, so, too, will be the coming of the Son of Man. 

24:40 Then two will be in the field; one will be taken, and one will be left. 

24:41 Two women will be grinding meal together; one will be taken, and one will be left. 

24:42 Keep awake, therefore, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming. 

24:43 But understand this: if the owner of the house had known in what part of the night the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and would not have let his house be broken into. 

24:44 Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.

This is apocalyptic. It isn’t meant to be literal. But discerning the meaning is…treacherous.

Literal readings of apocalyptic passages lead to strange and sometimes absurd theories of the Eschaton. Metaphorical interpretations lead to endless arguments. But the point of apocalyptic is not to explain; the point is to provoke, and prepare the way for the revelation.

Clear? Well, it shouldn’t be. That’s the point.

When apocalyptic is taken literally, all kinds of foolishness erupts. So don’t take this as some glimpse into the future, or some Nostradamus vague-enough-to-mean-anything shit. So forget the visuals, and focus on this:

But understand this: if the owner of the house had known in what part of the night the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and would not have let his house be broken into.

The question you should be asking is: What the hell does that mean?

I don’t mean what he said; that’s clear enough. I mean, why does he say it? If you know when the Sin of Man is coming, you would stay awake and prevent him?

Yeah; you probably would.

That’s what he said. That what he meant. Look at the context. Nobody knows the day and the hour. That’s intentional. That means Jesus isn’t telling you. No hints, no clues, no signs to watch for. No prophecy, in other words, and no visions from the future. And it’s meant to be scary. Like in the time of the flood, when nobody knew what was coming, until it was too late. Like when half the people are taken, and half are not?

Taken? Literally? Taken where? This is one of the passages the idea of a rapture is drawn from. Taken literally, it means the chosen are saved, the righteous are spared, and the lost are “left behind.” Except this message is not a literal one; and Jesus doesn’t say where they are taken. Maybe the “left behind” are the “chosen.” Maybe they’re better off. Don’t presume you know.

No one knows. That’s the point.

You see, the presence of God is always frightening. When Moses stood in the doxa, the glory of God, on Sinai, the Israelites saw a thunderstorm on the mountain, a theophany of the presence of the Creator in the creation. Moses came down with his face glowing from the doxa, and the people said they would stay in their tents, thank you very much, because they didn’t leave Egypt for the wilderness and this!

When Elijah soaked the wood pile with water and stood back and God consumed it in a holocaust, to prove God was god, do you think the people whipped out marshmallows and kosher hot dogs? I’m guessing it’s more likely they peed at least a little. The presence of God is a fearsome thing.

So Jesus plays that tune: two will be about quotidian tasks, and one will be taken. As in the days of Noah; no one will know until it’s too late. If that doesn’t get your attention, you’re doing it wrong.

So what about the thief? The thief is the disruption that is not wanted. Silicon Valley edgelords bragged about being disruptive, until Elmo and DOGE ruined that for them. They were always pikers. The coming of the Son of Man is the real disruption.

So we domesticate it, reduce it to a baby and three guys bringing presents and angels singing to shepherds, and say that’s what Christmas is all about, Charlie Brown. Something suitable for children. But the apocalypse of the Incarnation is the ultimate disruption.

Matthew says those gifts included frankincense and myrrh, perfumes used to cover the smell of a decaying corpse in the desert air of 1st century Judea. Gifts for a baby. Gifts as narrative foreshadowing. We domesticate it. Matthew knew what he meant. Those visitors alert the powers that be, and the family flees to Egypt even as Herod kills every male child under the age of 2 in Bethlehem. Because he can. Because he’s scared. 

Scared to death.

And no one in Bethlehem saw it coming; and not even 1 of every 2 was left behind. And if Herod had known the thief was coming, would he have stayed awake and prevented it?

Surely he would.

So keep awake, because you don’t know the day, or the hour. Stay awake, because salvation is scary, because even a baby can be threatening. But then think: what is the threat? What are you afraid of? If you are afraid, maybe you understand. If you aren’t, maybe you don’t.

Keep awake. If only to see how this turns out. You don’t want to sleep through this.