The Pharisees ask a question that prompts Jesus’ teaching about his return: “When is the kingdom of God coming?”
Without extensive study, it is difficult to know precisely how the Pharisees processed the kingdom of God. While we often think of the “kingdom” as a New Testament concept, its roots are deeply embedded in the Old Testament. Jesus’ proclamation—“Repent, for the kingdom of God is at hand”—would not have sounded foreign to his listeners. It is unlikely he appeared preaching an entirely new idea. For example:
When John the Baptist was baptizing in the river, many Pharisees and Jewish leaders came to him, even asking, “Are you the Messiah?” This suggests there was already an expectation of God’s coming reign. In Hebrew, melech (king) is closely related to malchut (kingdom). Mashiach means Messiah, and Melech HaMashiach refers to the anointed king. This figure was expected to restore Israel, reestablish David’s throne, and bring God’s reign and obedience to the law. This was likely the framework through which the Pharisees understood the kingdom of God.
Since Jesus proclaimed that the kingdom was near, it was natural for them to ask when. Jesus responds, “The kingdom of God is in your midst.” This raises questions. Does he mean within them? Among them? Or present in some other way? Jesus often spoke in ways that invited reflection. He may have been pointing to himself—the kingdom embodied in the person of the Messiah—already present, initiating the restoration that would come through him.
Jesus then turns to his disciples and expands on this teaching. He tells them that he is going away, and that in his absence people will speculate about dates, times, and locations, driven by longing and desperation. He warns them not to follow such claims. When he is revealed, it will not be gradual or hidden but sudden, unmistakable, and visible to all—like lightning. Before that revelation, however, he must be rejected and suffer.
Jesus then compares the days of the Son of Man to the days of Noah and Lot. In both accounts, people were living ordinary lives—eating, drinking, working, marrying—until sudden destruction came. The flood arrived. Fire and brimstone fell. They were unprepared, and their way of life was abruptly ended. Jesus says it will be the same when the Son of Man is revealed. Life will appear normal, and then suddenly some will be taken. His coming, like the flood and the fire, will bring judgment and disruption. His revelation will overturn existing ways of life.
Jesus cautions his listeners not to turn back, as Lot’s wife did, or to rush inside to gather possessions, as perhaps those taken by the floodwaters. This is not because escape would be possible, for he clearly says, “Whoever tries to save their life will lose it.” Rather, the warning points to attachment. Do not cling to the old life. Possessions and former securities cannot save. In the coming kingdom, there is a new way of life. Paul echoes this posture in Philippians 3:13–14: “Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal…”
Jesus’ answers are layered and profound. He seems to offer both a warning and an invitation to discernment. What can we gather from his teaching? That the kingdom of God is inseparable from the revelation of the Son of Man. This addresses the Pharisees’ question, though perhaps not in the way they expected. The timing remains hidden—known only to the Father—yet certain things are clear. The coming of the Son of Man will be sudden, visible, and decisive. It will involve judgment, transformation, and the end of one order and the beginning of another. No one will be confused about what is happening, just as no one misunderstood the flood or the destruction of Sodom.
For us today, the question remains: has the kingdom of God already come with Jesus’ first coming, or are we still waiting? Jesus said the kingdom was near, yet thousands of years have passed. Scripture itself holds this tension—nearness and delay, coming and going. “With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years like a day.”
Jesus was rejected, suffered, died, and rose on the third day. Perhaps we now wait for another “third day,” when he will return suddenly and unexpectedly, just as his resurrection was a return, so will he second coming. When he comes again, his presence will be overwhelming—like floodwaters, like refining fire. Who can stand in his glory?
Jesus seems to be saying that he himself is the kingdom of God. It was near because he was present among them, though not yet in fullness—not permanently, not in resurrected glory. Before that fullness could come, he had to suffer, ascend, and be revealed again. When he returns, the kingdom of God will come in its fullness, and the King will reign.
Written and compiled by Kim Blenkhorn
Edited with the use of ChatGBT
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