Can anyone know when the world will end?

History offers a consistent, sobering answer: no one who has tried has been right. William Miller's followers gathered expectantly in 1844 for a return that didn't happen, an event still remembered as "the Great Disappointment." The Jehovah's Witnesses organization has predicted specific dates—1914, 1925, and 1975 among them—each requiring later reinterpretation when the date passed without the predicted event.

Jesus' own explicit statement helps explain this pattern: even he, in his human experience during his earthly life, said he didn't know the timing—only the Father does. If Jesus himself didn't claim this specific knowledge, any human teacher confidently claiming to have calculated it is claiming access to information Jesus explicitly said wasn't available to him.

Jesus also specifically warned that false teachers would arise claiming special knowledge about his return, urging his followers not to be misled by such claims—a warning that fits the historical pattern of failed predictions remarkably well.