What does the scripture, “For wherever the carcass is, there the eagles will be gathered together,” (Matthew 24:28) mean?

The carcass refers to a freshly slain animal. In this scripture, it symbolizes Jesus’s death on the cross. Jesus is pictured as a slain lamb in Revelation 5:6 (NKJV), “And I looked, and behold, in the midst of the throne and of the four living creatures, and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as though it had been slain,…”

Who are the eagles?

The eagles (some Bibles translate this word as “vultures”) are consecrated followers of Jesus. God speaks about eagles in Job 39:27-30 (NET), “Is it at your command that the eagle soars, and builds its nest on high? It lives on a rock and spends the night there, on a rocky crag and a fortress. From there it spots its prey, its eyes gaze intently from a distance. And its young ones devour the blood, and where the (freshly slain) dead carcasses are, there it is.”

So in Matthew 24:28, Jesus’s death (the carcass) draws the eagles (Christian believers) to feed on Him.

Jesus proclaimed,

“… unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you.”

John 6:53 (NKJV)

We love Jesus. The crucified and risen Christ (and all the blessings his sacrifice provides) becomes the consuming focus of our lives. And just as eagles crave food, we, Christian believers, gather together to eat the spiritual life and food of the ransom sacrifice. We receive spiritual food by reading/studying the Bible, worshiping, obeying, and developing into Christ’s likeness.

To learn more about what it means to be a follower of Jesus listen to,

“What Does Discipleship Cost?”

“Does Being a Christian Have to Be Difficult?”