then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains.
Parallel translations
- KJV Then let them which be in Judaea flee into the mountains:
- BSB then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains.
- NKJV “then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains.
- NASB then those who are in Judea must flee to the mountains.
- NLT “Then those in Judea must flee to the hills.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
When that sign appears, those in Judea should flee to the mountains. It gives urgent practical instruction to escape coming destruction.
Overview
Jesus directs his followers in Judea to flee immediately when the warning sign appears. Early Christian tradition records that believers escaped Jerusalem before its fall, heeding such guidance. The instruction shows Christ's care to preserve his people and the seriousness of the judgment about to come upon the city.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 7
- Luke 21:21–22Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. Let those who are in the middle of her depart. Let those who are in the country not enter therein.
- Gen 19:15–17When the morning came, then the angels hurried Lot, saying, “Get up! Take your wife, and your two daughters who are here, lest you be consumed in the iniquity of the city.”
- Heb 11:7By faith, Noah, being warned about things not yet seen, moved with godly fear, prepared a ship for the saving of his house, through which he condemned the world, and became heir of the righteousness which is according to faith.
- Prov 22:3A prudent man sees danger, and hides himself; but the simple pass on, and suffer for it.
- Exod 9:20–21Those who feared Yahweh’s word among the servants of Pharaoh made their servants and their livestock flee into the houses.
- Jer 37:11–12When the army of the Chaldeans had broken up from Jerusalem for fear of Pharaoh’s army,
- Jer 6:1“Flee for safety, you children of Benjamin, out of the middle of Jerusalem, and blow the trumpet in Tekoa, and raise up a signal on Beth Haccherem; for evil looks out from the north, and a great destruction.
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
Matthew presents Jesus as the promised King — son of David, son of Abraham — the new Moses and true Israel in whom every prophecy reaches 'that it might be fulfilled.'
How Matthew 24:16 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.