This section of the gospel of Luke is better understood within the context that begins with the interrogation of the Pharisees in Luke 17:20. To the question "When will the kingdom of God come" Jesus gives a reply in two parts: (a) the kingdom of God is not a matter of when or where; (b) the kingdom of God has begun in your midst. Jesus then turns to his disciples to elaborate on the matter. In Luke 17:22-25, he practically says that it is only after his suffering and death, that is, when he Has been glorified that the question about the Day of the Son of Man will make sense. But even then, it won't be a calendar event. Next follows the present section which is an explanation of the suddenness of that day and the krisi" (krisis, Greek for "judgment") it will bring about.
26 Just as it was in the days of Noah, so too it will be in the days of the Son of Man. 27 They were eating and drinking, and marrying and being given in marriage, until the day Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed all of them. 28 Likewise, just as it was in the days of Lot: they were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building, 29 but on the day that Lot left Sodom, it rained fire and sulfur from heaven and destroyed all of them 30 it will be like that on the day that the Son of Man is revealed. 31 On that day, anyone on the housetop who has belongings in the house must not come down to take them away; and likewise anyone in the field must not turn back. 32 Remember Lot's wife. 33 Those who try to make their life secure will lose it, but those who lose their life will keep it. 34 I tell you, on that night there will be two in one bed; one will be taken and the other left. 35 There will be two women grinding meal together; one will be taken and the other left." 37 Then they asked him, "Where, Lord?" He said to them, "Where the corpse is, there the vultures will gather." (NRSV)
The Son of Man referred to here is of course the "Son of Man" in Daniel who has been given the power and authority to rule. Given the immediate context of the passage, we have here a reference to the Glorified Christ.
His coming is likened to the days of Noah and Lot. These two figures of patriarchal times are like sign posts to destruction. With Noah is associated the flood that first cleansed the earth of the sins that began to multiply after the sons of Elohim began mixing it up with the daughters of men. With Lot is associated the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah with fire. The comparison that is made however is based on the suddenness of those events. No one expected it to happen. The coming of the day of the Son of Man will be so sudden that no one will be prepared.
The mention of Lot's wife is worth noting here. When the angels were about to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah, they gave specific instructions that those to escape should run away from the destruction and for no reason to look back. Lot's wife however turned around and at that moment was turned to a pillar of salt. The reminder about the turning around of Lot's wife echoes one saying of Jesus on discipleship: he who has put his hands on the plow and keeps looking back is not worthy of the kingdom of God. This echo becomes interesting because of the following statement: 33 Those who try to make their life secure will lose it, but those who lose their life will keep it.
The statement is a repetition in a different context of a saying on discipleship: whoever saves his life will lose it; whoever loses his life for my sake, will find it. But even while it stands as a saying on discipleship, the statement encapsulizes the kind of either-or stance a disciple takes: Either for the Lord, OR against Him. Luke 17:33 is a warning that can be compared to the warning given by the angels to Lot and his household: when the Day of the Son of Man arrives, it is a crucial matter to have made one's option FOR the Lord. To put this in another way: the lifestyle of the disciple, a lifestyle characterized by the readiness to shed one's life for the Lord is HIS preparation for the coming Day of the Son of Man.
The following verses (Luke 17:34-35) is standard gospel saying for judgment: one will remain, the other will be taken. Such a "krisis" is already announced by the Lord in sayings such as: "I have come bringing, not peace, but division." The "krisis" therefore does not start on the Day of the Son of Man itself. the "krisis" already begins when one chooses FOR or AGAINST the Lord.
Finally an enigmatic answer to the question "Where (will this happen)?" "Where the corpse is, there the vultures gather." Was it a dismissal from Jesus? Was he saying: "Since the question WHEN is already irrelevant, why still ask the question WHERE?" Or can it be that since the previous statements already point to destruction, Jesus just finishes it up with another saying about death to indicate total destruction for those caught unprepared by the coming of the Son of Man? I would suggest the following schematic diagram for understanding this concluding statement. In doing so, I am assuming that this statement about the WHERE is related to Jesus' answer about WHEN.
| Question | Symbolic Answer | Equivalent |
| When | Lightning (v. 24) | Sudden (Not in any calendar) |
| Where | Carcass and Vultures (v. 37) | Just as you know that vultures will gather around a corpse, so too you'll know it when it comes. UPDATE: See Topel's article entitled "What Kind of Signs are Vultures? |
