Charles Ellicott Commentary Matthew 24:30

"and then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory." — Matthew 24:30 (ASV)

Then shall appear the sign of the Son of man — Can we picture what this sign will be? Is it distinct from the coming of the Son of Man, which is so closely united with it here? People have given wildly conjectural answers to these questions. They have dreamt of the cross appearing in the sky (as if the vision of Constantine were to be reproduced in the last days), of the lightning flash that will dazzle everyone with its brightness, or of some visible manifestation that no one can imagine until it comes. The vision of Daniel 7:13, it is believed, supplies the true answer. The sign of the Son of Man is nothing other than the presence of the Son of Man Himself, coming in the clouds of heaven, in the ineffable glory of His majesty. And here, too, we must remember that we are still in the region of apocalyptic symbols. All such imagery falls short of the ultimate reality, and a “sign in heaven” is something more than a visible appearance in the sky.

Then shall all the tribes of the earth — By its very nature, the “tribes” are those who have done evil and who therefore dread the coming of the Judge. These words find their best commentary in Revelation 1:7, where St. John combines them freely with the prediction from Zechariah 12:10, They also which pierced Him. This obviously includes not only those who participated in the actual “piercing” of the crucified body of the Lord Jesus (John 19:37), but all who in any age crucify the Son of God afresh (Hebrews 6:6).