Matthew 24:36 says: But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only.
That verse raises an important question: If Jesus is fully God, how could He not know something? Was this part of His earthly humility, or does it point to something deeper about His relationship with the Father?
Jesus was fully human in that he had to eat, sleep, excrete etc yet he was also fully God, he could heal the sick, raise the dead, banish demons and forgive sins.
He could do this without the blinding holiness that surrounds God in heaven, he could interact with sinful humanity.
As Phillipian2:7 says He emptied himself, taking the form of a servant.
Yes Jesus did not know when he would come again, yes Jesus was not omnipresent while walking this earth, he limited himself, as he said he came to do his Fathers will.
There is a hierarchy in the trinity of God the Father, then God the Son, the God the Holy Spirit.
They are All God but the Spirit points us to Jesus and Jesus leads us to the Father.
It does not mean they are lesser in importance or values, but that they have roles.
Jesus said He didnât know so He didnât know when He was here on earth. I believe He now does know from Revelation 1:1
This is the [a]revelation of Jesus Christ [His unveiling of the divine mysteries], which God [the Father] gave to Him to show to His bond-servants (believers) the things which must soon take place [in their entirety]; and He sent and communicated it by His angel (divine messenger) to His bond-servant John, AMP
The AMP spells it out more clearly, but other translations say the same.
Jesus did not know but His Father did.
When Matthew 24:36 is read through a Trinitarian framework, it quietly introduces serious logical tension that isnât present in the plain biblical language. Trinitarian doctrine teaches that the Father and the Son are distinct divine Persons who are each fully God and share the same attributes, including omniscience. However, in this verse Jesus clearly states that the angels do not know the day or hour, that the Son does not know, and that only the Father knows. If the Son is a separate divine Person who is fully God in the same sense as the Father, then this creates an immediate problem. Either the Son is not fully omniscient, or the Father possesses knowledge that the Son does not. Both possibilities undermine the idea of co-equal, fully divine Persons sharing the same divine essence, because omniscience by definition cannot be partial or divided.
To resolve this tension, Trinitarian theology commonly argues that Jesus knew the day and hour in His divine nature but not in His human nature. Yet this explanation introduces another difficulty by implying that Jesus both knew and did not know the same thing at the same time. It effectively creates two centers of awareness within one Person â one omniscient and one limited â even though Scripture never explicitly presents Jesus as switching between divine consciousness and human consciousness. The Gospels consistently portray Jesus as one Person living a genuine human life, not as someone alternating between âGod modeâ and âhuman mode.â This philosophical distinction is later imposed to preserve the doctrine rather than arising naturally from the biblical text.
If only the Father knows what the Son does not, this subtly introduces hierarchy within the Godhead. Knowledge is a form of authority, and possessing exclusive knowledge places the Father above the Son in that moment. Yet Trinitarian doctrine insists that the Father and the Son are equal in power, knowledge, and glory. Matthew 24:36 disrupts that equality if understood as two divine Persons with unequal knowledge. It results in one divine Person knowing everything and another lacking something, which is inconsistent with the concept of full divine equality.
This tension becomes even clearer when compared with passages where Jesus is described as knowing all things, such as in John 21:17 where Peter says, âLord, thou knowest all things.â Trinitarian theology must then explain how Jesus can know all things and yet not know the day or hour. Again, the usual answer is that He knows as God but not as man, which further reinforces the idea of divided awareness within Jesus â a concept never plainly taught in Scripture.
The Oneness understanding does not require these philosophical divisions. It recognizes that God is one omniscient Spirit and that this same God truly became human in Jesus Christ. As God, nothing is hidden. As man, Jesus willingly lived within genuine human limitations. When Jesus says that only the Father knows the day and hour, He is speaking from His real human experience while pointing to God in His eternal, transcendent knowledge â not to another divine Person. The Father is the eternal Spirit of God, and the Son is that same God revealed in flesh. This preserves Godâs full omniscience, Jesusâ true humanity, and biblical monotheism without introducing internal contradictions.
Trinitarian interpretations of Matthew 24:36 must rely on dividing knowledge within God, splitting Jesusâ consciousness, or introducing a form of hierarchy among divine Persons in order to make the verse fit the system. The simpler biblical reading allows the verse to mean exactly what it says: God humbled Himself by entering humanity, and as a man Jesus lived within human limitations, while as God He remained all-knowing. This understanding aligns naturally with Scripture without requiring philosophical gymnastics.
On my more imaginative days, I envision. HIM getting excited about coming for us, and HE is standng on HIS toes, thrusting HIMSELF forward excitedly, saying âNow, DAD? Now? Is it time???â
Hi, am James, am new here and have been born again since 2006, and peace be with you all in Jesus name.
Based on thread and to add, Jesus also didnât know which disciple of His is going to sit at His right and left.
Apparently, itâs the decision of GOD the FATHER and since itâs not in HIS mind yet, HEâll decide when the time and hour, and the first one to know will be Jesus.
i believe itâs the will of GOD that the church from any generation, they must be awake and keep watch and be faithful to HIS word until death.
The Apostles were already proclaiming to the church during their time that Jesus is coming soon, even Paul about the rapture, and is already 2026.
He did also say, supposedly Heâs to return like a thief in the night when least expected.
Example the Sonâll know first, for the scroll of Revelation was passed by the FATHER to the Son first, and the Son to the angel, and the angel to John the Apostle, and the Apostle to the church saints.
Therefore the Son is able to prophesy everything that is going to happen, even until the end, but the time and hour decided by GOD Heâs unable.
Is written, âBut, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.â
Great Tribulation is expected to last for 7 years, but for the church electâs sake GOD reduced it to âhalfâ.
Shalom in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord
Welcome to the Forums FredJames.
â â â
Greetings in Christ JESUS, sister JenyLynne
Your question is very interesting. Itâs a pleasure to share with the brothers to deceipher deep enigmas of the Scriptures.
I donât remember writing about this before.
The first point that caught my attention is that Jesus said this about 2000 years ago, and the specific and mysterious day has not yet arrived; now, even now, we are very close to that day, but even so we cannot specify it.
Another point I notice is that the seven seals of the secret book of GOD the Father(Ezekiel 2:9-10) were still sealed. The sealed book was given to JESUS only after about 65 years after His ascention, or around year 95 AD.-> Revelation chapters 4 and 5.
Furthermore, Iâm sure JESUS knew that that day would be only in the seventh and last millennium, or seventh and last Day, the Lordâs Day.
JESUS also knew the prophecy of Daniel about the mysterious day of His coming. including the coming of Michael, the Archangel. And what day is this? It is impossible to specify because GOD the Father kept it secret, He only said to Daniel that it is the day 1335 of the last millennium, or 45 days after 1290 days of the great tribulation. In other words, the LAST DAY of the current world of Devil in which we are still living is the day 1334.
In my view, we are living within the last dacade of the Devils world(2020-2030), the next will not be a complete decade because the day 1334, the last day of the current Devilâs world, is within the next decade.
Be prepared or else get ready.
Sister @JennyLynne
Technically, I donât think Jesus did say that âhe didnât knowâ that detail in Matthew (or in Luke).
Your question references this statement:
"But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only. (Matthew 24:36).
John-Mark adds:
"But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. (Mark 13:32)
Note: The word translated in both accounts for âknowâ is eidĆ, and not any derivation of the more familiar âginĆskĆâ(knowlege) as we read in the other place this question is asked:
Therefore, when they had come together, they asked Him, saying, âLord, will You at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?â And He said to them, âIt is not for you to know (ginĆskĆ) times or seasons which the Father has put in His own authority. But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.â (Acts 1:6-8)
This may imply that Jesus âknewâ, but was not revealing it to them.
The context of the passage you mention is about Jesus reassuring His disciples, allaying their worries about âthe endâ (what we call the eschatos, the root of eschatology), and warning them to keep their guard up when others claim to know certain details that God has inentionally not revealed (Acts 1:7). From the sheer volume of the information that Jesus does give them, we might surmise that he surely also knows every detail, even the unmentioned (or unrevealed) ones; it is therefore inductive to assume Jesus knew even the date and time of His own returning, but He was not able to reveal it. This is induced, but not proven by this passage.
Now as He sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, âTell us, when will these things be? And what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?â And Jesus answered and said to them: "Take heed that no one deceives you. (Matthew 24:3-4)
Jesus does not respond to His discipleâs question with anything like; âI really donât know, only my Father knows and He hasnât told meâ, especially since Jesus and The Father are one. Jesus responds by saying âBe careful that no one deceives you on this subjectâ; be on-guard when you hear others giving out details that My Father has not revealed, and has kept secret for very good reason. Only He will reveal this information when the time is due. The detail they wanted is not yet revealed for public consumption, but that does not necessarily mean Jesus didnât possess it. Jesus then continues revealing many details of that âsuntĂ©leiaâ (culmination) event with quite a long monologue (almost 2000 words in English). It seems unreasonable (to me) to think Jesus knew this level of intricate detail and yet still was ignorant of the moment of His arrival in space and time. Unreasonable, but not proven.
"Now learn this parable from the fig tree: When its branch has already become tender and puts forth leaves, you know that summer is near. So you also, when you see all these things, know that it is nearâat the doors! Assuredly, I say to you, this generation will by no means pass away till all these things take place. Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away. "But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only. But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. (Matthew 24:32-39)
The unique Mark addition of ânor the Sonâ may hinge on what Jesus intended by the word âknowâ. That Greek word has a very broad meaning, and is translated into at least 10 English words in our Bibles, each chosen based on the context. It is true, every English translation I referenced does translate this word âknowâ in our passage, but the context suggests we may translate it more like behold, perceive, or even disclose. Jesus speaks of this moment occurring âat His Wordâ when he says (paraphrased):
Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will never pass away. But no one can reveal that day and hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. Take heed, watch and pray; for you do not know when the time is. (Mark 13:31-33)
He doesnât say âWe do not knowâ, but âyou do not knowâ.
I donât share this as any kind of dogma, nor am I presenting unassailable proof. Iâm only offering a point of view heretofore not shared. I donât think it is really that important, many scholarly men have lined up on either side of this issue, and it is not something I think should separate the sheep from the goats. Itâs just an observation taken from deduction, nothing more.
In Peace
KP
Excellent work here brother @KPuff
~Matthew 24:35
âHeaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away.â[1]
~Matthew 24:36
âBut of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only.â[2]
Now the Greek morphology, where the answer actually lives.
In verse 36 the verb translated âknowsâ is ÎżáŒ¶ÎŽÎ”Îœ, from ÎżáŒ¶ÎŽÎ±, a perfect-form verb with present meaning, denoting possessed knowledge or conscious awareness.
The construction is ÎżáœÎŽÎ”áœ¶Ï ÎżáŒ¶ÎŽÎ”Îœ, literally âno one has knowledge,â followed by the exclusion clauses, ânot the angels,â and finally âbut the Father alone.â
Crucially, Jesus does not say âI do not knowâ using ÎżáœÎș ÎżáŒ¶ÎŽÎ±, which would have been the straightforward way to deny personal knowledge.
Instead, He uses an absolute negative universal statement that lists categories of knowers and assigns knowledge solely to the Father.
That distinction matters.
From a strictly morphological and syntactical standpoint, the sentence is epistemic role assignment, not ontological limitation.
The verb form does not describe capacity, essence, or nature.
It describes who possesses and discloses the knowledge within the economy being described.
This fits perfectly with the broader Matthean pattern where Jesus speaks with absolute authority, claims permanence for His words, and elsewhere demonstrates exhaustive knowledge of hearts, future events, and divine mysteries.
Morphology does not permit us to smuggle in metaphysical ignorance when the verb simply does not say that.
In other words, grammatically speaking, the text does not assert âthe Son lacks knowledge.â
It asserts âthe Father alone is the one to whom this knowledge belongs to disclose.â
That is why the statement about His words never passing away is not contradicted by the following verse.
One is a claim of authoritative permanence, the other is a claim of revelatory prerogative.
So the clean linguistic answer is this.
According to Greek morphology and syntax, Jesus is not confessing ignorance.
He is locating authority over the timing of the event exclusively in the Father, without making a statement about the Sonâs cognitive capacity.
Anything beyond that is theology being imported, not grammar being read.
But like you, Iâm not dogmatic on this since we have commentaries on both sides of the same dilemma.
J.
This is a genuine and innocent question, compared to those who want to make a âmockeryâ of it, especially the unbeliever sects.
But be cheer of heart that Jesus still left with us, true born again, signs of time before His return, hence to remain faithful even until death.
Heâs âcoming soonâ was already expected from the time of the Apostles to the church beginnings in the New Testament.
Just imagine the âtribulationâ they, and after them, had to endure cum died in faith, and yet see not His return.
Example in Revelation, note how the church saints taken up to the alter in Heaven facing the Lord, questioned Him why did He take long to avenge those enemies persecuted them.
They till even to our generation, also experienced some close events with confusion that was close to the signs of the time of His return, but yet it was not so.
As a result, many died not experience His coming and the rapture until now, because at the same time there were also false prophets. false teachers and false messiah to lie and deceive.
Therefore, how can we be wiser learning from their lesson, whether is it important about the âtimeâ and hourâ?
Or are we to be focused and faithful according to 2Timothy3:16&17, unto every good works and be watchful acording to the âsigns of timeâ?
Shalom in the name Lord Jesus Christ
Greetings in Christ JESUS, brother @Fredjames
Allow me to share with your thoughts and interpretations of prophecies regarding this important topic.
Itâs important to highlight the testimony of JESUS is the spirit of prophecy. JESUS prophesied the end of the Temple would be tragic, and described literally in detail how the wonderful structures of the Temple would be destroyed as a whole, and He asserted it to the disciples saying âThere shall not be left one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown downâ. Lord JESUS had cast out all them that sold and bought in the Temple, He overthrew the tables of the moneychangers, and the seats of them that sold doves, and said unto them â âIt is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thievesâ.
The Jews said unto JESUS: âWhat sign shewest thou unto us, seeing that thou doest these things?â JESUS answered and said unto them:-> "Destroy this Temple, and in THREE days I will raise it up. Then said the Jews,âForty and six years was this Temple in building, and wilt thou rear it up in three days?â But JESUS spake of the temple of His body, but not only of His body of flesh, but also His Church that is His body here on earth after His resurrection and ascension. By the way, we just entered in the 3rd Day after Christ. Actually, we are really living at the TURN from the sixth to the seventh and last Day, the Lordâs Day, or seventh and last millennium, so what JESUS prophesied about His body here, it means the Church, it will fulfill LITERALLY in this current time or from now on.
Matthew 24:1-2 â DESTRUCTION OF THE TEMPLE IN 70AD -
1 - And Jesus went out, and departed from the Temple: and His disciples came to Him for to shew Him the buildings of the temple. â (Oh how great, how admirable, are the stones of the temple of Jerusalem! Lord, look to these beautiful structures of the Temple!)
2 And Jesus said unto them, See ye not all these things? verily I say unto you, There shall not be left here one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down. â (Jesus left His disciples disappointed with his answer, evidently).
What JESUS prophesied about the Temple, it fulfilled LITERALLY in year 70AD. Then, in fulfilment of the words of JESUS, the Temple was destroyed, and the people of Israel banned from their land, and they scattered themselves around the world for 1878 years, from year 70 to 1948AD, and more than 100K Jews died. Israel was punished severely from year 70 until 1948 AD, they suffered strong punishments in LITERAL fulfillment of Deuteronomy 28:15-68. 53 verses of SEVERE punishments and curses. Take a look. By the way, the WORD is GOD, Self-Executing, Self-Executable.
Interpreting Matthew 24:3 â JESUS and His disciples went to the Mount of Olives, located 6 km from the Temple, and the disciples still astonished or perplexed, they privately asked two questions to the Lord, as you commented above, and I quoted(sic) below:
"Question 1: when shall these things be? â In the other words, when shall there not be left here one stone upon another of the the temple?â
âQuestion 2: what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the END of the WORLD?â
If we analyze deeply, the two questions amde by the disciples, are about three things:
1st thing:â about time: â WHEN shall these things be?
2nd thing â What shall be the SIGN of thy coming?,
3rd thing: â and (the SIGN) of the END of the world?
So JESUS listed several events: (1st) to the future time when they would happen.
And (2nd thing) it is linked to the signs of His coming; and (3rd) to the END of the world â END of the current Devilâs world, as follow:
*Matthew 24:4 to 8 â JESUS SAID TO THE DISCIPLES, AND FOR US TOO, HOW WOULD BE THE BEGINNING OF THE END TIMES; SO, JESUS LISTED SEVERAL SIGNS AND HAPPENINGS AND THE BEGINNING OF SORROWS. -
verse 4* â *And Jesus answered and said unto His disciples:
JESUS listed : verses 5 to 8:
v.5 - For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many. (Soon will manifest the Beast of the earthâ(Revelation 13:11 combined with 2Thessalonians 2:3-13, take a look) who has two horns like a lamb, actually a false lamb, a false messiah (AN IMPOSTOR), as said JESUS in ->John 5:43 combined with Revelation 13:11-18.â (Check it out).
v.6 - And ye shall hear of wars and RUMOURS of wars:(this prophecy is fulfilling LITERALLY) see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the END IS NOT YET.
v.7 - For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, âŠ:-> (Will G7, and G20, and EU, and UN, among others Entities, be DISSOLVED from now on? Day after day, the happenings of the current satanic World will run in this way according to the **2Peter 3:7 and Revelation 11:18 and Micah 4:3).
⊠and there shall be:-(the prophecies are already fulfilling literally, as follow):
- and pestilences - this is literally being fulfilled in this current time;
- and earthquakes in divers places. - several of them have hapenned recently;
But,*
8 All these are the beginning of sorrows.-> (A pre-tribulation period)
Therefore, be prepared or else get ready
He does now, as he accepted the limitations of becoming human flesh, but now know all things once again
It speaks to the paradoxical reality of the Incarnation. Sometimes Jesus knows things He could only know because Heâs God. And while because Heâs human is not a wrong answer, it doesnât address why He still knew the things He did know.
The Incarnation is not easy. God both knows everything, and doesnât know certain thingsâas it pertains to the Incarnation. Both statements are unequivocally true. And that is nearly a dictionary definition of a paradox.
As Christians we are invited to embrace paradox.
Heâs still human. His flesh is glorifiedâresurrectedâbut we have our one Mediator who is seated at the right hand of the Father, the Man, the Messiah, Jesus.
He was God from all eternity, God the Son, of the Father.
He became human in the womb of Mary, and He remains forever the Son of Man, the Son of David.
Heâs the God-Man.
Jesus indeed is God the Son and eternal, but He had a beginning with GOD the FATHER. Since the FATHER HIMSLEF claims about the Son as HIS âonly begottenâ. (Gospel of John)
While all other creation on earth and in Heaven, and order, had their beginning with God the Son. Since theyâre the Sonâs âbegottenâ creation and order, nevertheless the Son remain âfirstbornâ based on all creation overall. (Colossians epistle)