Mathew 24:24
For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.
Who is the elect-priests?
Is this referring to some time in the future or is it relevant now?
Or is it the past because it talks about people in fields and on rooftops etc…
Is this regarding Catholics or all Christians?
Thanks
To get this into context, you need to refer to a bit more of Matthew Chapter 24. If we start at the beginning of the chapter, the emphasis was on the destruction of the temple.
24 Jesus left the temple and was walking away when his disciples came up to him to call his attention to its buildings. 2 “Do you see all these things?” he asked. “Truly I tell you, not one stone here will be left on another; every one will be thrown down.”
3 As Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately. “Tell us,” they said, “when will this happen, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?”
4 Jesus answered: “Watch out that no one deceives you. 5 For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Messiah,’ and will deceive many. 6 You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. 7 Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. 8 All these are the beginning of birth pains.
If you continue reading, there is more detail, almost apocalyptic in its severity.
However it’s a fact that about 40 years later, the Romans tore down the temple, and all that is left today is the remains of one wall, known as the wailing wall.
That happened circa 70AD. So Christ’s reference to the temple was in that time frame. He himself died circa 30-33AD,
But their enquiry as to "when will this happen, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?” had a broader meaning. The destruction of the Temple was one thing and that is now a known historical event.
But then there’s the bit you’re asking about -
22 “If those days had not been cut short, no one would survive, but for the sake of the elect those days will be shortened. 23 At that time if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Messiah!’ or, ‘There he is!’ do not believe it. 24 For false messiahs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect. 25 See, I have told you ahead of time.
They were also asking about the end of the age, ie. Christ’s second coming. Basically all he replied was that there would be false Christs and false prophets who would say they were Him. He indicated both natural and man-made disasters would come, and that’s been the case throughout history and always has been. That was true then, and it’s true now.
Some of the 'false Christs" and “false prophets” can be very convincing. Rev. Sun Myung Moon for example gained thousands of converts, and proclaimed himself as a Messiah. He’s since died, and has no doubt had to answer for his actions.
Since they are so convincing, they can go close to deceiving the elect, by which is meant all those who genuinely follow Christ.
