And they shall say to you, See here; or, see there: go not after them, nor follow them.
Jesus spoke this warning after saying the kingdom of God does not come with outward observation but is within, and before saying His day will shine as lightning across heaven, that He must first suffer and be rejected, and that His revealing will be as in the days of Noah and of Lot. It forbids going after or following those who point here or there to a localized appearing of the Son of man, and such claims are not to be pursued or heeded. It commands God's people to give no allegiance to false christs when Satan personates Christ in person and works with miracles and misrepresentations, holding them unmoved by hanging the helpless soul upon Christ by faith. History will be repeated when many deceivers go forth claiming to be the Christ, so believers need not be deceived if they refuse to go after them. The warning stands within teaching about the day of the Lord coming unexpectedly as a thief in the night to all who are not ready, requiring constant readiness by inner preparation in harmony with the principles of God's kingdom, watching, praying, working in the footsteps of Jesus, and clearly proclaiming the message for this time.
Setting and Plain Meaning
Jesus spoke these words to his disciples right after telling the Pharisees that the kingdom of God does not come with outward observation but is within, and right before declaring that his day will be as lightning shining across the heaven. He added in the same connection that he must first suffer many things and be rejected, and that as it was in the days of Noah and in the days of Lot so it will be when the Son of man is revealed. The warning therefore calls for constant readiness for the coming of Christ through inner preparation in harmony with all the principles and laws of the kingdom of God, with the message for this time to be earnestly lived and clearly proclaimed.
The words belong to his warning about the coming judgment, in which people had been warned for years but many did not turn to the Lord. In that warning only a few heeded what was spoken, while others mocked those who listened.
The command forbids going after or following those who point to a localized appearing of the Son of man and say to look here or there. Such reports declaring him to be in one place or another are not to be pursued or followed, amid growing deceptions and impostures. They are not to be heeded or accepted without careful watchfulness, for deceptive voices claiming to identify Christ or the truth will multiply and believers must watch carefully lest they be misled.
End-Time Deceptions and Readiness
God's people are to give no allegiance to false Christs, not going after them nor following them when Satan personates Christ, professing to be Christ, assuming His person, and apparently working His works with miracles and misrepresentations. Obeying that command holds them unmoved amid rebellion and apostasy, and it requires hanging the helpless soul upon Christ by faith, for if so easily misled now they will otherwise fail to stand then. History will be repeated when many deceivers go forth declaring themselves to be the Christ, and Christ commands not to go after them so that believers need not be deceived.
The warning against following claims that Christ is here or there applies to the conflicting here-or-there claims after October 1844, which perplexed God's people and made it difficult to understand the biblical passages presented to them. It also warns believers not to follow people who draw them toward new claims about prophetic truth through a persuasive but mistaken theory that combines and misuses passages, departs from the truth already given for the time, and leads others away from the right path.
In the last days people with varied beliefs will call out that the way of salvation is found here or there in some alternative to the Bible's teaching, and they are not to be followed. Repentance toward God for breaking His law and faith in Jesus Christ as Redeemer are the only way for sinners to enter, with the heart renewed through God's law and faith in Christ to produce enduring obedience rather than an emotional or outward profession. When every kind of voice claims Christ is here and Christ is there, in the wilderness and in the cities, His followers are to not go after them nor heed them. In a time when every call can be opened to, the gospel ministry must therefore keep its elevated, sacred character and stay with the work outlined in the prophetic Word without being diverted from God's way and methods into wrong lines by human methods and inventions.
The warning not to go after or follow those who point to a localized appearing of the Son of man belongs to teaching about the coming day of the Lord, which comes unexpectedly and as a thief in the night to all who are not ready. Those who have received light must therefore be in constant readiness through inner preparation in harmony with all the principles and laws of the kingdom of God, watching, praying, and working, walking in the footsteps of Jesus, working out their own salvation with fear and trembling, and earnestly living and clearly proclaiming the message for this time. The warning is urgent for this time of peril, when men placed in positions of responsibility do not understand their own defects of character and are blinded by officiousness to the work to be done.
Jesus spoke this warning after saying the kingdom of God does not come with outward observation but is within, and before saying His day will shine as lightning across heaven, that He must first suffer and be rejected, and that His revealing will be as in the days of Noah and of Lot. It forbids going after or following those who point here or there to a localized appearing of the Son of man, and such claims are not to be pursued or heeded. It commands God's people to give no allegiance to false christs when Satan personates Christ in person and works with miracles and misrepresentations, holding them unmoved by hanging the helpless soul upon Christ by faith. History will be repeated when many deceivers go forth claiming to be the Christ, so believers need not be deceived if they refuse to go after them. The warning stands within teaching about the day of the Lord coming unexpectedly as a thief in the night to all who are not ready, requiring constant readiness by inner preparation in harmony with the principles of God's kingdom, watching, praying, working in the footsteps of Jesus, and clearly proclaiming the message for this time.
Setting and Plain Meaning
Jesus spoke these words to his disciples right after telling the Pharisees that the kingdom of God does not come with outward observation but is within, and right before declaring that his day will be as lightning shining across the heaven. He added in the same connection that he must first suffer many things and be rejected, and that as it was in the days of Noah and in the days of Lot so it will be when the Son of man is revealed. The warning therefore calls for constant readiness for the coming of Christ through inner preparation in harmony with all the principles and laws of the kingdom of God, with the message for this time to be earnestly lived and clearly proclaimed.
The words belong to his warning about the coming judgment, in which people had been warned for years but many did not turn to the Lord. In that warning only a few heeded what was spoken, while others mocked those who listened.
The command forbids going after or following those who point to a localized appearing of the Son of man and say to look here or there. Such reports declaring him to be in one place or another are not to be pursued or followed, amid growing deceptions and impostures. They are not to be heeded or accepted without careful watchfulness, for deceptive voices claiming to identify Christ or the truth will multiply and believers must watch carefully lest they be misled.
End-Time Deceptions and Readiness
God's people are to give no allegiance to false Christs, not going after them nor following them when Satan personates Christ, professing to be Christ, assuming His person, and apparently working His works with miracles and misrepresentations. Obeying that command holds them unmoved amid rebellion and apostasy, and it requires hanging the helpless soul upon Christ by faith, for if so easily misled now they will otherwise fail to stand then. History will be repeated when many deceivers go forth declaring themselves to be the Christ, and Christ commands not to go after them so that believers need not be deceived.
The warning against following claims that Christ is here or there applies to the conflicting here-or-there claims after October 1844, which perplexed God's people and made it difficult to understand the biblical passages presented to them. It also warns believers not to follow people who draw them toward new claims about prophetic truth through a persuasive but mistaken theory that combines and misuses passages, departs from the truth already given for the time, and leads others away from the right path.
In the last days people with varied beliefs will call out that the way of salvation is found here or there in some alternative to the Bible's teaching, and they are not to be followed. Repentance toward God for breaking His law and faith in Jesus Christ as Redeemer are the only way for sinners to enter, with the heart renewed through God's law and faith in Christ to produce enduring obedience rather than an emotional or outward profession. When every kind of voice claims Christ is here and Christ is there, in the wilderness and in the cities, His followers are to not go after them nor heed them. In a time when every call can be opened to, the gospel ministry must therefore keep its elevated, sacred character and stay with the work outlined in the prophetic Word without being diverted from God's way and methods into wrong lines by human methods and inventions.
The warning not to go after or follow those who point to a localized appearing of the Son of man belongs to teaching about the coming day of the Lord, which comes unexpectedly and as a thief in the night to all who are not ready. Those who have received light must therefore be in constant readiness through inner preparation in harmony with all the principles and laws of the kingdom of God, watching, praying, and working, walking in the footsteps of Jesus, working out their own salvation with fear and trembling, and earnestly living and clearly proclaiming the message for this time. The warning is urgent for this time of peril, when men placed in positions of responsibility do not understand their own defects of character and are blinded by officiousness to the work to be done.