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Mark 12
Disciples’ Literal New Testament
Mark 12
Disciples’ Literal New Testament
You Priests Are Like Farmers Who Killed The Owner’s Messengers And His Son
12 And He began to speak to them in parables: “A man planted a vineyard and put a fence around it and dug a pit [for a wine press] and built a tower. And he rented it to farmers and went-on-a-journey. 2 And he sent forth a slave to the farmers at the harvest time in order that he might receive from the fruits of the vineyard from the farmers. 3 And having taken him, they beat him, and sent him away empty-handed. 4 And again he sent-forth another slave to them. And that one they struck-on-the-head, and dishonored. 5 And he sent forth another— and that one they killed— and many others, they beating some and killing others. 6 He was still having one to send: a beloved son. He sent him forth to them last, saying that ‘They will have-regard-for my son’. 7 But those farmers said to themselves that ‘This one is the heir. Come, let us kill him, and the inheritance will be ours’. 8 And having taken him, they killed him and threw him outside of the vineyard. 9 Therefore what will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and destroy the farmers, and give the vineyard to others.
But As The Psalm Says, The Stone The Builders Rejected Became The Cornerstone
10 Did you not even read this Scripture [in Ps 118:22-23]: ‘The stone which the ones building rejected, this became the head of the corner[a]. 11 This came about from the Lord, and it is marvelous in our eyes’?” 12 And they were seeking to seize Him. And[b] they feared the crowd. For they[c] knew that He spoke the parable against them. And having left Him, they went away.
The Pharisees Try To Snare Jesus: Shall We Pay Taxes To Caesar?
13 And they send forth some of the Pharisees and the Herodians[d] to Him in order that they might catch Him in a statement. 14 And having come, they say to Him, “Teacher, we know that You are truthful. And You are not concerned about [pleasing] anyone[e], for You do not look[f] at the face of people, but You teach the way of God in accordance with truth. Is it lawful to give a poll-tax[g] to Caesar, or not? Should we give it, or should we not give it?” 15 But the One, knowing their hypocrisy, said to them, “Why are you testing Me? Bring Me a denarius[h] in order that I may see it”. 16 And the ones brought it. And He says to them, “Whose is this image[i] and inscription?” And the ones said to Him, “Caesar’s”. 17 And Jesus said to them, “Give back[j] the things of [k] Caesar to Caesar, and the things of God to God”. And they were marveling-greatly at Him.
Sadducees Question Jesus About The Resurrection of a Wife With Seven Husbands
18 And Sadducees come to Him, who say that there is not a resurrection. And they were questioning Him, saying 19 “Teacher, Moses wrote to us [in Deut 25:5] that if a brother of someone dies and leaves-behind a wife and does not leave a child, that his brother should take the wife, and raise-up-from her a seed[l] for his brother. 20 There were seven brothers. And the first took a wife, and dying, did not leave a seed. 21 And the second took her, and died, not having left-behind a seed. And the third similarly. 22 And the seven did not leave a seed. Last of all, the woman also died. 23 In the resurrection when they rise up, of which of them will she be the wife? For the seven had her as wife”. 24 Jesus said to them, “Are you not mistaken[m] because of this— not knowing the Scriptures, nor the power of God? 25 For when they rise-up from the dead, they neither marry nor are they given-in-marriage, but they are like angels[n] in the heavens. 26 And concerning the dead, that they are raised, did you not read in the book of Moses at the [place about the burning] bush, how God spoke to him, saying [in Ex 3:15] ‘I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? 27 He is not God of dead ones, but of living ones. You are greatly mistaken”.
A Scribe Asks, Which Is The Foremost Commandment?
28 And having come to Him, one of the scribes— having heard them debating, having seen that He answered them well— asked Him, “Which is the foremost[o] commandment of all?” 29 Jesus answered that “Foremost is: ‘Hear, Israel. The Lord our God is one Lord. 30 And you shall love the Lord your God from your whole heart, and from your whole soul, and from your whole mind, and from your whole strength’ [Deut 6:4-5]. 31 Second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself’ [Lev 19:18]. There is not another commandment greater than these”. 32 And the scribe said to Him, “Well said, Teacher! In accordance with [God’s] truth, You said[p] that He is one. And there is not another except Him. 33 And the statement ‘to love Him from the whole heart, and from the whole understanding, and from the whole strength’, and the statement ‘to love the neighbor as himself’, are more [important] than all the whole-burnt-offerings and sacrifices”. 34 And Jesus, having looked-at him because he responded thoughtfully, said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God”.
Jesus Asks How The Messiah Can Be The Son of David Since David Calls Him His Lord
And no one was daring to question Him any more. 35 And having responded, Jesus was saying while teaching in the temple, “How is it that the scribes say that the Christ is the son of David? 36 David himself said by the Holy Spirit [in Ps 110:1], ‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Be sitting on My right side until I put Your enemies under Your feet”’. 37 David himself calls Him ‘Lord’. And in what[q] way is He his son?”
Jesus Warns The Crowds To Beware of The Scribes
And the large crowd was listening-to Him with-pleasure. 38 And in His teaching He was saying, “Beware of the scribes— the ones delighting to walk around in robes, and to receive greetings in the marketplaces, 39 and seats-of-honor in the synagogues, and places-of-honor at the banquets. 40 They are the ones devouring[r] the houses of the widows, and praying long for a pretense[s]. These ones will receive greater condemnation”.
Jesus Uses The Widow’s Offering To Illustrate True Giving
41 And having sat-down opposite the treasury[t], He was observing how the crowd throws money into the treasury. And many rich ones were throwing much money. 42 And one poor widow having come threw two leptos[u], which is a quadrans[v]. 43 And having summoned His disciples, He said to them, “Truly I say to you that this poor widow threw more than all the ones throwing into the treasury. 44 For they all threw out of the money abounding[w] to them. But this one, out of her need[x], threw all that she was having— her whole living[y]”.
Footnotes
- Mark 12:10 That is, the cornerstone of the foundation; or, the capstone of the arch.
- Mark 12:12 seize Him. And. Or, seize Him, and-yet.
- Mark 12:12 crowd. For they knew. That is, for the chief priests and elders knew. Or, crowd, for they knew. That is, the crowd knew.
- Mark 12:13 That is, ones politically linked to Herod’s family.
- Mark 12:14 That is, any constituency or individual.
- Mark 12:14 That is, You do not show partiality to anyone.
- Mark 12:14 That is, a tax based on a census and paid to Rome. Is it lawful to pay taxes to a foreign king?
- Mark 12:15 This Roman silver coin was a day’s wage for a laborer.
- Mark 12:16 Or, likeness.
- Mark 12:17 Or, Render, Pay.
- Mark 12:17 That is, belonging to.
- Mark 12:19 That is, offspring, and thus, a posterity.
- Mark 12:24 Or, deceived, going-astray; deceiving yourselves.
- Mark 12:25 That is, not subject to death (and so not needing to marry and procreate), and members of God’s family, not separate families. See Lk 20:36.
- Mark 12:28 Or, first.
- Mark 12:32 truth, You said that. Or, truth You spoke, because.
- Mark 12:37 If Messiah is David’s own Lord, how can He be his distant physical descendant?
- Mark 12:40 That is, taking financial advantage based on spiritual pretexts.
- Mark 12:40 That is, a falsely alleged motive.
- Mark 12:41 That is, the temple treasury in general; or, specifically the trumpet shaped receptacles in which the offerings were placed.
- Mark 12:42 That is, copper Jewish coins. This is the smallest denomination of Jewish coin, 1/128th of a denarius.
- Mark 12:42 This is the smallest denomination of Roman coin.
- Mark 12:44 Or, overflowing, being left over. They gave out of their excess.
- Mark 12:44 Or, lack, want. She gave out of what was already not enough.
- Mark 12:44 That is, means of living.
Mark 12
New International Version
Mark 12
New International Version
The Parable of the Tenants(A)
12 Jesus then began to speak to them in parables: “A man planted a vineyard.(B) He put a wall around it, dug a pit for the winepress and built a watchtower. Then he rented the vineyard to some farmers and moved to another place. 2 At harvest time he sent a servant to the tenants to collect from them some of the fruit of the vineyard. 3 But they seized him, beat him and sent him away empty-handed. 4 Then he sent another servant to them; they struck this man on the head and treated him shamefully. 5 He sent still another, and that one they killed. He sent many others; some of them they beat, others they killed.
6 “He had one left to send, a son, whom he loved. He sent him last of all,(C) saying, ‘They will respect my son.’
7 “But the tenants said to one another, ‘This is the heir. Come, let’s kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.’ 8 So they took him and killed him, and threw him out of the vineyard.
9 “What then will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and kill those tenants and give the vineyard to others. 10 Haven’t you read this passage of Scripture:
“‘The stone the builders rejected
has become the cornerstone;(D)
11 the Lord has done this,
and it is marvelous in our eyes’[a]?”(E)
12 Then the chief priests, the teachers of the law and the elders looked for a way to arrest him because they knew he had spoken the parable against them. But they were afraid of the crowd;(F) so they left him and went away.(G)
Paying the Imperial Tax to Caesar(H)
13 Later they sent some of the Pharisees and Herodians(I) to Jesus to catch him(J) in his words. 14 They came to him and said, “Teacher, we know that you are a man of integrity. You aren’t swayed by others, because you pay no attention to who they are; but you teach the way of God in accordance with the truth. Is it right to pay the imperial tax[b] to Caesar or not? 15 Should we pay or shouldn’t we?”
But Jesus knew their hypocrisy. “Why are you trying to trap me?” he asked. “Bring me a denarius and let me look at it.” 16 They brought the coin, and he asked them, “Whose image is this? And whose inscription?”
“Caesar’s,” they replied.
17 Then Jesus said to them, “Give back to Caesar what is Caesar’s and to God what is God’s.”(K)
And they were amazed at him.
Marriage at the Resurrection(L)
18 Then the Sadducees,(M) who say there is no resurrection,(N) came to him with a question. 19 “Teacher,” they said, “Moses wrote for us that if a man’s brother dies and leaves a wife but no children, the man must marry the widow and raise up offspring for his brother.(O) 20 Now there were seven brothers. The first one married and died without leaving any children. 21 The second one married the widow, but he also died, leaving no child. It was the same with the third. 22 In fact, none of the seven left any children. Last of all, the woman died too. 23 At the resurrection[c] whose wife will she be, since the seven were married to her?”
24 Jesus replied, “Are you not in error because you do not know the Scriptures(P) or the power of God? 25 When the dead rise, they will neither marry nor be given in marriage; they will be like the angels in heaven.(Q) 26 Now about the dead rising—have you not read in the Book of Moses, in the account of the burning bush, how God said to him, ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’[d]?(R) 27 He is not the God of the dead, but of the living. You are badly mistaken!”
The Greatest Commandment(S)
28 One of the teachers of the law(T) came and heard them debating. Noticing that Jesus had given them a good answer, he asked him, “Of all the commandments, which is the most important?”
29 “The most important one,” answered Jesus, “is this: ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.[e] 30 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’[f](U) 31 The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’[g](V) There is no commandment greater than these.”
32 “Well said, teacher,” the man replied. “You are right in saying that God is one and there is no other but him.(W) 33 To love him with all your heart, with all your understanding and with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself is more important than all burnt offerings and sacrifices.”(X)
34 When Jesus saw that he had answered wisely, he said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.”(Y) And from then on no one dared ask him any more questions.(Z)
Whose Son Is the Messiah?(AA)(AB)
35 While Jesus was teaching in the temple courts,(AC) he asked, “Why do the teachers of the law say that the Messiah is the son of David?(AD) 36 David himself, speaking by the Holy Spirit,(AE) declared:
37 David himself calls him ‘Lord.’ How then can he be his son?”
The large crowd(AG) listened to him with delight.
Warning Against the Teachers of the Law
38 As he taught, Jesus said, “Watch out for the teachers of the law. They like to walk around in flowing robes and be greeted with respect in the marketplaces, 39 and have the most important seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at banquets.(AH) 40 They devour widows’ houses and for a show make lengthy prayers. These men will be punished most severely.”
The Widow’s Offering(AI)
41 Jesus sat down opposite the place where the offerings were put(AJ) and watched the crowd putting their money into the temple treasury. Many rich people threw in large amounts. 42 But a poor widow came and put in two very small copper coins, worth only a few cents.
43 Calling his disciples to him, Jesus said, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others. 44 They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything—all she had to live on.”(AK)
Footnotes
- Mark 12:11 Psalm 118:22,23
- Mark 12:14 A special tax levied on subject peoples, not on Roman citizens
- Mark 12:23 Some manuscripts resurrection, when people rise from the dead,
- Mark 12:26 Exodus 3:6
- Mark 12:29 Or The Lord our God is one Lord
- Mark 12:30 Deut. 6:4,5
- Mark 12:31 Lev. 19:18
- Mark 12:36 Psalm 110:1
Disciples’ Literal New Testament (DLNT) 
Disciples' Literal New Testament: Serving Modern Disciples by More Fully Reflecting the Writing Style of the Ancient Disciples, Copyright © 2011 Michael J. Magill. All Rights Reserved. Published by Reyma Publishing
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.