Chapter

Matthew 24:26

ESV So, if they say to you, ‘Look, he is in the wilderness,’ do not go out. If they say, ‘Look, he is in the inner rooms,’ do not believe it.
NIV So if anyone tells you, 'There he is, out in the wilderness,' do not go out; or, 'Here he is, in the inner rooms,' do not believe it.
NASB So if they say to you, ‘Behold, He is in the wilderness,’ do not go out; or, ‘Behold, He is in the inner rooms,’ do not believe them.
CSB So if they tell you, 'See, he's in the wilderness! ' don't go out; or, 'See, he's in the storerooms! ' do not believe it.
NLT So if someone tells you, ‘Look, the Messiah is out in the desert,’ don’t bother to go and look. Or, ‘Look, he is hiding here,’ don’t believe it!
KJV Wherefore if they shall say unto you, Behold, he is in the desert; go not forth: behold, he is in the secret chambers; believe it not.

What does Matthew 24:26 mean?

The disciples are being warned how, in the future when Jesus is gone from them, liars will try to deceive them by saying that Christ has returned to earth (Matthew 24:4–5, 11, 24–25). It's unclear if the lie will be that Jesus Himself has returned as promised, or that Jesus was not really the Messiah and now the true one has arrived. In either case, Jesus declares it will absolutely be a lie. They should not even go to investigate, no matter how convincing the deception might be.

Christ is saying, in no uncertain terms, that they won't learn of His return through rumors or secondhand gossip. No one will need to search around to find Him. When He returns, it will be obvious and glorious (Revelation 19:11–15).
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What is the Gospel?
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