Try reading Matthew 24 in context, shutting out the preconceptions and schemes invented by man -
What did Jesus say?
"Then he asked them, 'You see all these, do you not? Truly I tell you, not one stone will be left here upon another; all will be thrown down.'” (Matt 24:2 NRSV)
*This is the same statement recorded in the parallels in Mark & Luke. Jesus made
the singular statement about the destruction of the temple, nothing else.
What did the disciples then ask Jesus?
"They asked him, 'Teacher, when will this be, and what will be the sign that this is about to take place?'” (Luke 21:7 NRSV)
“Tell us, when will this be, and what will be the sign that all these things are about to be accomplished?” (Mark 13:4 NRSV)
In Mark and Luke, the question about timing was
restricted to Jesus' statement about the destruction of the temple alone. In Matthew, which is largely
from a Jewish perspective, they ask including the end of the world, or age:
"When he was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately, saying, 'Tell us, when will this be, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?'” (Matt 24:3 NRSV)
*To the Jews, the destruction of the temple indeed brought an end to their world, the end of the age. What would any Jew think about their temple being destroyed except the end of their religion and the end of their world?'
Jesus then gives the signs when the destruction of the temple was about to happen, which would end the Jewish age, the Jewish world. The dramatic apocalyptic language as in v29 is lifted from the OT passages such as Isa. 13:1,10, 19.-20; Isa 34:4,5; Eze 32:2,7-8". The language is symbolic with true meaning, but not to be read literally.
Is the fig tree in Matt. 24:32 symbolic of Israel? No! The parallel passage in Luke makes it clear it is to be taken normally, not as symbol for Israel: "Then he told them a parable: 'Look at the fig tree
and all the trees; as soon as they sprout leaves
you can see for yourselves and know that summer is already near. So also, when
you see these things taking place, you know that the kingdom of God is near.'" (Luke 21:29-31 NRSV)
The idea that the fig tree represents Israel is from the heresy of Gnosticism, not the word of God! Read it for yourselves -
The Apocalypse of Peter -- Gnostic Society Library: Christian Apocrypha and Early Christian Literature Do a page search for "fig-tree" and read it for yourself.
After giving all the signs he has listed, in v33 Jesus says "when you see all these things",
YOU, those to whom he is speaking. The YOU is not some generation thousands of years in the future. Any reference to a timing thousands of years in the future has no meaning to those disciples who asked about the timing of the event of which Jesus spoke, the destruction of the temple.
Matt 24:34 speaks of "generation" so what does that word mean in English? Merriam-Webster "a body of living beings constituting a single step in the line of descent from an ancestor" also "a group of individuals born and living contemporaneously". I know of NO English translation that renders the Greek
'genea' here as race! Most versions render "generation" in regard to those people living at the same time, contemporaneously, as is found at the beginning of Matthew, over and over in chapter one. The more dynamic translations render variously such as "the present generation" as in the REB and Weymouth NT; or "the people now living" in the GNT.
From this phrase, "this generation" in v34, Jesus makes a certain declaration that his words will not pass away in v35; he then switches to
"that day" in v36 where he begins to describe the last day, the end of the world when resurrection and judgment take place. He clearly states: “But about that day and hour no one knows, neither the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father." (Matt 24:36 NRSV) No signs or warning is given for the last day, but there were the signs alerting the disciples to whom he was speaking, when the destruction of the temple would take place which happened in 70 AD.
How anyone using standard grammar, carefully observing context, and comparing scripture with scripture can come up with the silly, convoluted prophecy schemes heard today is beyond comprehension. Many using "spoof-texting" rather than proper "proof-texting" will read into this passage a lot of silliness out of man's imaginative schemes. The term "spoof-texting" was coined by John H. Gerstner.