Commentaries:
Increasing deception will mark the "end time." At a certain point, these deceptions will be augmented by signs and wonders—miracles! Whether they are true miracles or not, we do not know. Satan has the ability to do certain things of that nature. Whatever they are, they will seem to give credence to the ideas of the people who are doing them. If we are not careful, even the elect—if possible—could be deceived.
This phrase "if possible" has made some people wonder, "Can the elect be deceived?" Well, it is kind of a trick question. If they are deceived, then they are not the elect! This is because the elect do something that keeps them from being deceived! It is not as if God says, "Here's this one group. I am not going to let them be deceived." That is not how it works. They are the elect because they do not allow themselves to be deceived.
So it is not possible to deceive the elect. It is not because these people have a special "safety net" around them, so that they cannot be deceived. They cannot be deceived because they will not let themselves be deceived, which is why they are the elect. They are working hard so that they will not be deceived. And that is the group that we want to be part of.
Richard T. Ritenbaugh
Preventing Deception
Throughout the end times, we can expect frequent efforts to deceive us. People will believe they have “found” Christ in some secret place. False messiahs and prophets will rise and exhibit great signs and wonders—perhaps “magical” things like sleight-of-hand and distractions?—that have us looking in one direction while our very salvation is being threatened from another. Will we want to “see” them, believing that, if we can witness what the false teachers are up to, we will be able to determine if they are believable ourselves? To the contrary, Jesus says flatly, “Don't believe it.”
Ryan McClure
Seeing Is Not Believing
Because of the way this verse is translated, one can be left with the impression that it is not possible for the elect to be deceived. This concept is a close cousin to the theory of eternal security—the idea that once we accept Jesus Christ as our personal Savior, it is impossible for us to fall away (see John 15:5-6; I Corinthians 9:27; Hebrews 6:4-6; 10:26-31; 12:25; II Peter 1:10-11; 3:17-18; I Timothy 1:19; 6:10). Similarly, this verse is sometimes interpreted to mean that if we are one of the elect, our minds are perfectly and forever protected from deception.
It is a tantalizing thought, implying that we are spiritually invincible once we accept the blood of Christ and receive the Holy Spirit. Yet, if that were the case, the rest of the New Testament would consist of vastly different themes and warnings. In fact, Jesus begins this same prophecy in Matthew 24:4 with the warning to His followers, "Take heed that no one deceives you"! If His followers could not be deceived, our Creator would have no cause to preface His prophecy in such a way.
In addition to Jesus' warning here, the apostles warn repeatedly and specifically against being deceived. For instance, in Romans 16:17-18, Paul says to note those who cause divisions and offenses and avoid them—because "by smooth talk and flattering words they deceive the hearts of the unsuspecting" (verse 18; Holman Christian Standard Bible). If it were not possible for them to deceive us, we would have no reason to avoid divisive people. In I Corinthians 3:18, he warns against deceiving ourselves by thinking we are wise by the world's standards. A few chapters later, he again warns against deceiving ourselves by believing that the unrighteous will inherit the Kingdom (I Corinthians 6:9). He cautions in I Corinthians 15:33, "Do not be deceived: 'Evil company corrupts good habits.'"
In Galatians 6:3, Paul says, "For if anyone thinks himself to be something, when he is nothing, he deceives himself." He warns in Ephesians 5:6, "Do not let anyone deceive you with empty words . . .." Colossians 2:4-8 cautions against being deceived by persuasive words and cheated through philosophy and empty deceit. He begins II Thessalonians 2:3 with the warning, "Let no one deceive you by any means. . . ." Finally, in Hebrews 3:13, the author warns against being hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.
This is just a sampling of the many direct and indirect warnings against deception. It should be clear that the epistles' writers fully believed that it was possible for their audience—the same "elect" as in Matthew 24:24—to be deceived, and thus, they wrote as they did. Therefore, Matthew 24:24 says that if there is a way to deceive one of the elect, the master deceiver will use it. In other words, we can take measures to guard against deception, but if one of the elect refuses to take heed, he will be deceived.
David C. Grabbe
The Truth About Deception (Part One)
In each case, Christ's admonition is that we should have a healthy skepticism of miracles because miracles may produce deception. It is not that the miracle does not occur. The more important point is, does it witness to the truth? Does it witness to the ultimate reality, the will of God?
In both Jesus' instruction in the New Testament (Matthew 24:24; 7:22-23; Revelation 13:13-14) and in Moses' teaching in the Old Testament (Deuteronomy 13:1-5), it is clear—regardless of the wonder done—if a person even implies that we are free to disobey God, the miracle is not a demonstration of God's truth. A miracle it was, but it does not validate God's truth.
We must be especially skeptical of those who say that they believe in keeping God's laws, and then turn right around and say that the Sabbath and holy days are no longer necessary and that "true Christians" can keep Christmas, Easter, Halloween, etc. But they "believe" that they are to keep God's laws! It is especially deceptive because so many of such people are really nice individuals.
John W. Ritenbaugh
Is God a Magician?
In verses 23-28, Jesus sounds a warning to those who are so eager for His return: Do not be snookered by those who claim that Christ has returned. He is not out in the desert or hiding in some inner room. He cautions us that “false christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect” (verse 24). We need to be discerning about the information we swallow.
We can extend this in principle to cover those who think they know when, how, or where Christ will return. These are only distractions and deceptions because He has told us Himself what to look for. His return will not be secret or sneak up on us! It will be a tremendous show, as it were, like a massive flash of lightning and a roll of thunder that encompasses the whole of the sky (verse 27). His coming will be a worldwide phenomenon that no one will be able to miss. And it will happen during a time of war (verse 28).
Richard T. Ritenbaugh
The End Is Not Yet
