Luke 21:36 Study Bible: Therefore be watchful all the time, praying that you may be able to escape all these things that will happen, and to stand before the Son of Man."

◄ Luke 21:36 ►

So keep watch at all times, and pray that you may have the strength to escape all that is about to happen and to stand before the Son of Man."

Study Bible

But keep watch at all times
The phrase "keep watch" is derived from the Greek word "agrupneite," which means to be sleepless or to stay awake. In the context of this verse, it emphasizes the necessity for spiritual vigilance and alertness. Historically, watchmen were crucial in ancient cities, tasked with guarding against threats. Spiritually, this calls believers to be constantly aware of the moral and spiritual challenges that can lead them astray. The phrase "at all times" underscores the continuous nature of this vigilance, suggesting that there is never a moment when a believer can afford to be spiritually complacent.

and pray
The Greek word for "pray" here is "proseuchomai," which implies a deep, earnest communication with God. Prayer is not merely a ritualistic act but a vital lifeline for believers, connecting them to divine strength and guidance. In the historical context of the early church, prayer was a cornerstone of communal and individual life, reflecting dependence on God amidst persecution and trials. This call to prayer is a reminder of the believer's need for divine assistance in maintaining spiritual vigilance.

that you may have the strength
The word "strength" comes from the Greek "katischuo," meaning to prevail or to have power. This strength is not of human origin but is divinely imparted, enabling believers to withstand trials and temptations. In the scriptural context, this strength is often associated with the Holy Spirit's empowerment, allowing Christians to live victoriously despite external pressures. It is a call to rely on God's power rather than one's own abilities.

to escape all that is about to happen
The term "escape" is translated from the Greek "ekpheugo," which means to flee out of or to avoid. This implies a proactive effort to avoid the impending trials and tribulations that Jesus prophesied. Historically, this could refer to the destruction of Jerusalem or the end times' tribulations. Theologically, it suggests that through vigilance and prayer, believers can navigate through life's challenges without succumbing to them.

and to stand before the Son of Man
"To stand" is from the Greek "stathenai," indicating a position of readiness and confidence. In biblical times, standing before a king or judge was a position of accountability and honor. "The Son of Man" is a title Jesus frequently used for Himself, drawing from Daniel 7:13-14, where the Son of Man is given authority and an everlasting kingdom. This phrase encapsulates the ultimate goal of the believer's vigilance and prayer: to be found worthy and unashamed in the presence of Christ at His return. It is a call to live in such a way that one is prepared to meet Jesus face-to-face, reflecting a life of faithfulness and devotion.

Persons / Places / Events

1. Jesus Christ
The speaker of this verse, providing guidance and prophecy to His disciples about the end times.

2. Disciples
The immediate audience of Jesus' teachings, representing all believers who are called to heed His warnings and instructions.

3. Son of Man
A title Jesus uses for Himself, emphasizing His role in the final judgment and His divine authority.

4. End Times
The period Jesus is referring to, characterized by trials and tribulations preceding His second coming.

5. Jerusalem
While not directly mentioned in this verse, it is the setting of Jesus' discourse in Luke 21, where He predicts the destruction of the temple and the signs of the end times.

Teaching Points

Vigilance in Faith
Believers are called to "stay awake" spiritually, maintaining a constant awareness of their faith and the times they live in.

The Power of Prayer
Prayer is essential for gaining the strength needed to endure trials and to remain faithful until the end.

Preparedness for Christ's Return
Christians should live in a state of readiness, understanding that the return of Christ could happen at any moment.

Standing Before the Son of Man
The ultimate goal is to be found worthy to stand before Jesus, which requires a life of holiness and dedication.

Escaping Tribulation
While trials are inevitable, Jesus provides a way of escape through spiritual vigilance and reliance on Him.

Bible Study Questions

1. What does it mean to "stay awake" in a spiritual sense, and how can we apply this in our daily lives?

2. How does prayer equip us to face the challenges and trials of the end times?

3. In what ways can we ensure that we are prepared for the return of Christ, according to this verse and related scriptures?

4. How can we cultivate a life that is worthy to stand before the Son of Man?

5. What practical steps can we take to remain vigilant and faithful in a world that often distracts us from spiritual priorities?

Connections to Other Scriptures

Matthew 24:42-44
Jesus similarly instructs His followers to stay awake and be prepared for His return, emphasizing the unexpected nature of His coming.

1 Thessalonians 5:6
Paul echoes the call to be alert and sober, living in readiness for the day of the Lord.

Revelation 3:10
The promise of protection for those who persevere, highlighting the importance of faithfulness in the face of trials.

Ephesians 6:18
The call to pray at all times in the Spirit, reinforcing the necessity of prayer as a means of spiritual vigilance and strength.

Sermons

Before the Son of Man	H. S. Lobingier.	Luke 21:36
Christian Preparation for the Coming of the Lord	Dean Alford.	Luke 21:36
On Preparing for Christ's Coming Rather than for Death	Dean Alford.	Luke 21:36
Preparation of Heart	Dean Alford.	Luke 21:36
St. Luke Xxi. 36	Thomas Arnold	Luke 21:36
Standing Before Christ	W. Clarkson	Luke 21:36
The Command to Watch	De Witt S. Clark.	Luke 21:36
The Safety of Prayer	Dr. Trumbull.	Luke 21:36
Watchfulness	J. A. Alexander, D. D.	Luke 21:36
Watching	The Weekly Pulpit	Luke 21:36
Watching	Anon.	Luke 21:36
Preliminaries of the Second Advent	R.M. Edgar	Luke 21:5-38

People

Jesus, Disciples

Places

Jerusalem, Judea, Olivet

Topics

Able, Accounted, Alert, Always, Beware, Counted, Escape, Evils, Fully, Making, Moment, Pass, Prayer, Praying, Presence, Prevail, Season, Slumbering, Stand, Strength, Strengthened, Strong, Supplication, Watch, Watchful, Worthy

Dictionary of Bible Themes

Luke 21:36

     2221   Christ, Son of Man
     2360   Christ, prayers of
     8618   prayerfulness

Luke 21:32-36

8493 watchfulness, believers

Library

June 3 Morning
Watch, for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh.--MATT. 25:13. Take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting, and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day come upon you unawares. For as a snare shall it come on all them that dwell on the face of the whole earth. Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man. …
Anonymous—Daily Light on the Daily Path

Sunday after Ascension Day
Text: First Peter 4, 7-11.[1] 7 But the end of all things is at hand: be ye therefore of sound mind, and be sober unto prayer: 8 above all things being fervent in your love among yourselves: for love covereth a multitude of sins: 9 using hospitality one to another without murmuring: 10 according as each hath received a gift, ministering it among yourselves, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God; 11 if any man speaketh, speaking as it were oracles of God; if any man ministereth, ministering …
Martin Luther—Epistle Sermons, Vol. II

When Shall These Things Be?
'And when ye shall see Jerusalem compassed with armies, then know that the desolation thereof is nigh. 21. Then let them which are in Judea flee to the mountains; and let them which are in the midst of it depart out; and let not them that are in the countries enter thereinto. 22. For these be the days of vengeance, that all things which are written may he fulfilled. 23. But woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck, in those days! for there shall be great distress in the land, …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions Of Holy Scripture

The Nearness of the Kingdom
THE NEARNESS OF THE KINGDOM St Luke xxi. 31.--"Know that the Kingdom of God is near." Our Lord saith that the Kingdom of God is near us. Yea, the Kingdom of God is within us as St Paul saith "our salvation is nearer than when we believed." Now we should know in what manner the Kingdom of God is near us. Therefore let us pay diligent attention to the meaning of the words. If I were a king, and did not know it, I should not really be a king. But, if I were fully convinced that I was a king, and all …
Johannes Eckhart—Meister Eckhart's Sermons

St. Luke xxi. 36
Watch ye, therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man. This might be a text for a history of the Christian Church, from its foundation to this hour, or to the latest hour of the world's existence. We might observe how it Lad fulfilled its Lord's command; with what steadiness it had gone forward on its course, with the constant hope of meeting Him once again in glory. We might see how it had escaped …
Thomas Arnold—The Christian Life

Sermon for the Second Sunday in Advent
(From the Gospel for the day) How that God is very near to us, and how we must seek and find the Kingdom of God within us, without respect to time and place. [41] Luke xxi. 31.--"Know ye that the kingdom of God is nigh at hand." OUR Lord says here that the kingdom of God is nigh to us. Yea, the kingdom of God is in us; and St. Paul says, that now is our salvation nearer to us than we believe. Now ye ought to know, first, how the kingdom of God is nigh at hand; secondly, when the kingdom of God is …
Susannah Winkworth—The History and Life of the Reverend Doctor John Tauler

Evil Habits and Injurious Indulgences.
The Word of the Lord may not denominate in plain terms every particular sin and evil practise man may engage in; however there are general terms and principles of righteousness that prohibit and condemn every possible sinful act man may perform. The words card-parties, picnics, fairs, shows and theaters are not found in the writings of the apostles; however indulgence in these is "revelry," "living in pleasure," "rioting" and worldliness, of which the Scriptures say the participants do not love God …
Charles Ebert Orr—The Gospel Day

Remaining Books of the Old Testament.
1. The divine authority of the Pentateuch having been established, it is not necessary to dwell at length on the historical books which follow. The events which they record are a natural and necessary sequel to the establishment of the theocracy, as given in the five books of Moses. The Pentateuch is occupied mainly with the founding of the theocracy; the following historical books describe the settlement of the Israelitish nation under this theocracy in the promised land, and its practical operation …
E. P. Barrows—Companion to the Bible

Submission.
"In your patience possess ye your souls."--Luke 21:19 "Stille, mein Wille! dein Jesu hilft siegen." [40]Unbekanntes. [[41]Catherina Schlegel] transl., Jane Borthwick, 1855 Be still, my soul!--the Lord is on thy side; Bear patiently the cross of grief and pain; Leave to thy God to order and provide-- In every change He faithful will remain. Be still, my soul!--thy best, thy Heavenly Friend Through thorny ways leads to a joyful end. Be still, my soul!--thy God doth undertake To guide the future, …
Jane Borthwick—Hymns from the Land of Luther

Epistle Lxiii. To Dominicus, Bishop of Carthage.
To Dominicus, Bishop of Carthage. Gregory to Dominicus, &c. We have already learnt what great pestilence has invaded the African parts; and, inasmuch as neither is Italy free from such affliction, doubled are the groans of our sorrows. But amid these evils and other innumerable calamities our heart, dearest brother, would fail from desperate distress, had not the Lord's voice fortified our weakness beforehand. For long ago to the faithful the trumpet of the Gospel lesson sounded, warning them that …
Saint Gregory the Great—the Epistles of Saint Gregory the Great

Of Meditating on the Future Life.
1. The design of God in afflicting his people. 1. To accustom us to despise the present life. Our infatuated love of it. Afflictions employed as the cure. 2. To lead us to aspire to heaven. 2. Excessive love of the present life prevents us from duly aspiring to the other. Hence the disadvantages of prosperity. Blindness of the human judgment. Our philosophizing on the vanity of life only of momentary influence. The necessity of the cross. 3. The present life an evidence of the divine favour to his …
John Calvin—The Institutes of the Christian Religion

The Lessons from Olivet
Our last chapter was on the Transfiguration. The next will be on The Last Supper. Between these two events in our Saviour's life, how many interesting incidents took place! How many important sayings that fell from his gracious lips during this period are written for our instruction by the four evangelists! There is, for instance, the beautiful lesson about what it is on which the value of our gifts depend. He taught this lesson when he saw the rich casting their gifts into the treasury. Among them …
Richard Newton—The Life of Jesus Christ for the Young

At Night, Jesus Abode on the Mount of Olives
And in the day time he was teaching in the temple; and at night he went out, and abode in the mount that is called the mount of Olives.--St. Luke xxi: 37. * * * * * NOTE BY THE ARTIST As we ascend towards sunset the slopes of Olivet, and pause to gaze on the scenes beneath, the panorama of the city presented to view is in its leading features essentially similar to that upon which the eyes of Jesus rested, when "at night he went out, and abode in the mount that is called …
Richard Newton—The Life of Jesus Christ for the Young

The Present Distress of Nations.
"And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring; men's hearts failing them with fear, and for looking after those things which are coming to pass on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken" (Luke 21:25, 26). As we have already remarked more than once, prophecy invariably has a double fulfillment at least, and so we believe it is with the one just quoted. Directly, it has reference …
Arthur W. Pink—The Redeemer's Return

That the Ruler Relax not his Care for the Things that are Within in his Occupation among the Things that are Without, nor Neglect to Provide
The ruler should not relax his care for the things that are within in his occupation among the things that are without, nor neglect to provide for the things that are without in his solicitude for the things that are within; lest either, given up to the things that are without, he fall away from his inmost concerns, or, occupied only with the things that are within bestow not on his neighbours outside himself what he owes them. For it is often the case that some, as if forgetting that they have …
Leo the Great—Writings of Leo the Great

July 18 Evening
She hath done what she could.--MARK 14:8. This poor widow hath cast in more than they all.--Whosoever shall give you a cup of water to drink in my name, because ye belong to Christ, verily I say unto you, he shall not lose his reward.--If there be first a willing mind, it is accepted according to that a man hath, and not according to that he hath not. Let us not love in word, neither in tongue; but in deed and in truth.--If a brother or sister be naked, and destitute of daily food, and one of you …
Anonymous—Daily Light on the Daily Path

Two Forms of one Saying
'He that endureth to the end, the same shall be saved.' --Matt. xxiv. 13, R.V. 'In your patience possess ye your souls.'--Luke xxi. 19. These two sayings, different as they sound in our Version, are probably divergent representations of one original. The reasons for so supposing are manifold and obvious on a little consideration. In the first place, the two sayings occur in the Evangelists' reports of the same prophecy and at the same point therein. In the second place, the verbal resemblance is …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

The Great Assize
[i.e., The Last Judgment -- GL] [21] "We shall all stand before the judgement-seat of Christ." Rom. 14:10. 1. How many circumstances concur to raise the awfulness of the present solemnity! -- The general concourse of people of every age, sex, rank, and condition of life, willingly or unwillingly gathered together, not only from the neighboring, but from distant, parts; criminals, speedily to be brought forth and having no way to escape; officers, waiting in their various posts, to execute the orders …
John Wesley—Sermons on Several Occasions

Observing the Offerings and Widow's Mites.
(in the Temple. Tuesday, April 4, a.d. 30.) ^B Mark XII. 41-44; ^C Luke XXI. 1-4. ^b 41 And he sat down over against the treasury [It is said that in the court of the women there were cloisters or porticos, and under the shelter of these were placed thirteen chests with trumpet-shaped mouths into which offerings might be dropped. The money cast in was for the benefit of the Temple. An inscription on each chest showed to which one of the thirteen special items of cost or expenditure the contents would …
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel

The Epistle to the Colossians.
The Churches in Phrygia. The cities of Colossae, Laodicea, and Hierapolis are mentioned together as seats of Christian churches in the closing chapter of Colossians, and the Epistle may be considered as being addressed to all, for the apostle directs that it be read also in the churches of the Laodiceans (Col. 4:13-16). They were situated within a few miles of each other in the valley of the Lycus (a tributary of the Maeander) in Phrygia on the borders of Lydia, and belonged, under the Roman rule, …
Philip Schaff—History of the Christian Church, Volume I

The Four Gospels.
General Character and Aim of the Gospels. Christianity is a cheerful religion and brings joy and peace from heaven to earth. The New Testament opens with the gospel, that is with the authentic record of the history of all histories, the glad tidings of salvation through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. [871] The four canonical Gospels are only variations of the same theme, a fourfold representation of one and the same gospel, animated by the same spirit. [872] They are not full …
Philip Schaff—History of the Christian Church, Volume I

Elucidations.
I. (Unless patience sit by his side, cap. i. p. 707.) Let me quote words which, many years ago, struck me forcibly, and which I trust, have been blest to my soul; for which reason, I must be allowed, here, to thank their author, the learned and fearless Dean Burgon, of Chichester. In his invaluable Commentary on the Gospel, which while it abounds in the fruits of a varied erudition, aims only to be practically useful, this pious scholar remarks: "To Faith must be added Patience, the patient waiting …
Tertullian—Of Patience

Look we Then, Beloved, what Hardships in Labors and Sorrows Men Endure...
3. Look we then, beloved, what hardships in labors and sorrows men endure, for things which they viciously love, and by how much they think to be made by them more happy, by so much more unhappily covet. How much for false riches, how much for vain honors, how much for affections of games and shows, is of exceeding peril and trouble most patiently borne! We see men hankering after money, glory, lasciviousness, how, that they may arrive at their desires, and having gotten not lose them, they endure …
St. Augustine—On Patience

Links

Luke 21:36 NIV
Luke 21:36 NLT
Luke 21:36 ESV
Luke 21:36 NASB
Luke 21:36 KJV

Luke 21:36 Commentaries

Bible Hub