<p>25:13&nbsp;<em>Therefore, stay awake For you do not know the day nor the hour-&nbsp;</em>&quot;Let us watch and be sober&quot; (1 Thess. 5:6) matches our Lord's &quot;Watch, therefore&quot; (Mt. 25:13). This command to watch seems to have a conscious connection with the Lord's urgent plea to the sleepy disciples in Gethsemane to &quot;watch and pray&quot; (Mt. 26:38), indicating that they at that time typify the latter day believers; about to fellowship their Lord's sufferings during the tribulation period, confused, failing to see the urgency of the situation. The disciples doubtless started to obey their Lord's command to watch and pray, but then drifted off into sleep. Watching and praying are often associated; a real&nbsp;<em>knowing</em>&nbsp;of God through dynamic prayer is the real way to be watchful for the second coming. The foolish virgins realize this all too late; they knocked on the door with great zeal, asking for it to be opened; seeking but not finding. Knocking is sometimes used as a figure for prayer (Mt. 7:7). The basis for these foolish virgins is surely in Prov. 1:28,29: &quot;Then shall they call upon me, but I will not answer... they shall not find me: for that they hated knowledge&quot;.&nbsp;</p><p>It cannot be accidental that Matthew's Gospel twice records Christ's plea for us to watch (Mt. 24:42; 25:13); and then goes straight on to describe how in Gethsemane, Christ pleaded with the disciples to join Him in watching and praying, lest they fall to temptation (Mt. 26:38-41). He was evidently deeply, deeply disappointed that they could not share this with Him. Surely the reason for this further mention of watching is to suggest that in the pain of our latter day watching, we will be at one with our suffering Lord in Gethsemane, as He too watched- not &quot;signs of the times&quot;, but His own relationship with the Father, desperately seeking strength to carry the cross rather than quit the race.</p>