<p>16:2&nbsp;<i>But he answered and said to them: When it is evening, you say: It will be fair weather, for the sky is red</i>- The Lord's examples relate to reading the appearance of the sky. This is His answer to their request for a &quot;sign&nbsp;<i>from Heaven</i>&quot;- bearing in mind that in Hebrew and Aramaic, the words for 'sky' and 'Heaven' as in the abode of God are the same. They realized that the same sign- the redness of the sky- could signify two different things. The sign is specifically defined as being the sign of Jonah- the resurrection of Christ (12:38,39). If they perceived the sign of reddened sky in the evening, then it was a sign of &ldquo;fair weather&rdquo;. The word &ldquo;weather&rdquo; is an insertion from the translators and reflects no original Greek word. Most other usages of the Greek for &ldquo;fair&rdquo; refer to acceptance with God: &ldquo;<i>Well done</i>&nbsp;(s.w. &ldquo;fair&rdquo;) good and faithful servant&rdquo; (Mt. 25:21,23); &ldquo;<i>Well</i>&nbsp;(s.w. &ldquo;fair&rdquo;), you good servant&rdquo; (Lk. 19:17; and see Acts 15:29; Eph. 6:3). If they read that sign right in the evening, then their morning would be &lsquo;fair&rsquo;- acceptance with God. But if it was in the morning that they saw the sign, then there would be &ldquo;foul weather&rdquo; (:3). Again, &ldquo;weather&rdquo; is an insertion by the translators, but the Greek really refers to heavy rain- it is translated &ldquo;tempest&rdquo; or &ldquo;storm&rdquo; in Acts 27:20, and where it is elsewhere translated &ldquo;winter&rdquo;, the literal sense would be &lsquo;rainy season&rsquo;. The language of rain, storm and tempest recalls Noah&rsquo;s flood and is a clear metaphor for condemnation. The Lord is observing that the same sign can portend two different destinies- depending upon when it is perceived. The sign is that of Jonah, and the resurrection of Jesus. If they perceived that in the evening, before the night time and darkness of death- then that sign would mean their salvation and blessing. But if only in the morning, after His resurrection- then it meant the rainstorm of condemnation for them.</p>