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A Story about a Vineyard(A)

33 “Listen to another illustration. A landowner planted a vineyard. He put a wall around it, made a winepress, and built a watchtower. Then he leased it to vineyard workers and went on a trip.

34 “When the grapes were getting ripe, he sent his servants to the workers to collect his share of the produce. 35 The workers took his servants and beat one, killed another, and stoned a third to death. 36 So the landowner sent more servants. But the workers treated them the same way.

37 “Finally, he sent his son to them. He thought, ‘They will respect my son.’

38 “When the workers saw his son, they said to one another, ‘This is the heir. Let’s kill him and get his inheritance.’ 39 So they grabbed him, threw him out of the vineyard, and killed him.

40 “Now, when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those workers?”

41 They answered, “He will destroy those evil people. Then he will lease the vineyard to other workers who will give him his share of the produce when it is ready.”

42 Jesus asked them, “Have you never read in the Scriptures:

‘The stone that the builders rejected
has become the cornerstone.
The Lord is responsible for this,
and it is amazing for us to see’?

43 That is why I can guarantee that God’s kingdom will be taken away from you and given to a people who will produce what God wants. 44 Anyone who falls on this stone will be broken. If the stone falls on anyone, it will crush that person.” [a]

45 When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard his illustrations, they knew that he was talking about them. 46 They wanted to arrest him but were afraid of the crowds, who thought he was a prophet.

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Footnotes

  1. 21:44 Some manuscripts and translations omit this verse.

The Parable of the Tenants(A)

33 “Listen to another parable: There was a landowner who planted(B) a vineyard. He put a wall around it, dug a winepress in it and built a watchtower.(C) Then he rented the vineyard to some farmers and moved to another place.(D) 34 When the harvest time approached, he sent his servants(E) to the tenants to collect his fruit.

35 “The tenants seized his servants; they beat one, killed another, and stoned a third.(F) 36 Then he sent other servants(G) to them, more than the first time, and the tenants treated them the same way. 37 Last of all, he sent his son to them. ‘They will respect my son,’ he said.

38 “But when the tenants saw the son, they said to each other, ‘This is the heir.(H) Come, let’s kill him(I) and take his inheritance.’(J) 39 So they took him and threw him out of the vineyard and killed him.

40 “Therefore, when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those tenants?”

41 “He will bring those wretches to a wretched end,”(K) they replied, “and he will rent the vineyard to other tenants,(L) who will give him his share of the crop at harvest time.”

42 Jesus said to them, “Have you never read in the Scriptures:

“‘The stone the builders rejected
    has become the cornerstone;
the Lord has done this,
    and it is marvelous in our eyes’[a]?(M)

43 “Therefore I tell you that the kingdom of God will be taken away from you(N) and given to a people who will produce its fruit. 44 Anyone who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces; anyone on whom it falls will be crushed.”[b](O)

45 When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard Jesus’ parables, they knew he was talking about them. 46 They looked for a way to arrest him, but they were afraid of the crowd because the people held that he was a prophet.(P)

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Footnotes

  1. Matthew 21:42 Psalm 118:22,23
  2. Matthew 21:44 Some manuscripts do not have verse 44.

A Story about a Vineyard(A)

Then, using this illustration, Jesus spoke to the people: “A man planted a vineyard, leased it to vineyard workers, and went on a long trip.

10 “At the right time he sent a servant to the workers to obtain from them a share of the grapes from the vineyard. But the workers beat the servant and sent him back with nothing. 11 So he sent a different servant. The workers beat him, treated him shamefully, and sent him back with nothing. 12 Then he sent a third servant. But they injured this one and threw him out ⌞of the vineyard⌟.

13 “Then the owner of the vineyard said, ‘What should I do? I’ll send my son, whom I love. They’ll probably respect him.’

14 “When the workers saw him, they talked it over among themselves. They said, ‘This is the heir. Let’s kill him so that the inheritance will be ours.’ 15 So they threw him out of the vineyard and killed him.

“What will the owner of the vineyard do to them? 16 He will destroy these workers and give the vineyard to others.”

Those who heard him said, “That’s unthinkable!”

17 Then Jesus looked straight at them and asked, “What, then, does this Scripture verse mean:

‘The stone that the builders rejected
has become the cornerstone’?

18 Everyone who falls on that stone will be broken. If that stone falls on anyone, it will crush that person.”

19 The experts in Moses’ Teachings and the chief priests wanted to arrest him right there, but they were afraid of the people. They knew that he had directed this illustration at them.

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The Parable of the Tenants(A)

He went on to tell the people this parable: “A man planted a vineyard,(B) rented it to some farmers and went away for a long time.(C) 10 At harvest time he sent a servant to the tenants so they would give him some of the fruit of the vineyard. But the tenants beat him and sent him away empty-handed. 11 He sent another servant, but that one also they beat and treated shamefully and sent away empty-handed. 12 He sent still a third, and they wounded him and threw him out.

13 “Then the owner of the vineyard said, ‘What shall I do? I will send my son, whom I love;(D) perhaps they will respect him.’

14 “But when the tenants saw him, they talked the matter over. ‘This is the heir,’ they said. ‘Let’s kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.’ 15 So they threw him out of the vineyard and killed him.

“What then will the owner of the vineyard do to them? 16 He will come and kill those tenants(E) and give the vineyard to others.”

When the people heard this, they said, “God forbid!”

17 Jesus looked directly at them and asked, “Then what is the meaning of that which is written:

“‘The stone the builders rejected
    has become the cornerstone’[a]?(F)

18 Everyone who falls on that stone will be broken to pieces; anyone on whom it falls will be crushed.”(G)

19 The teachers of the law and the chief priests looked for a way to arrest him(H) immediately, because they knew he had spoken this parable against them. But they were afraid of the people.(I)

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Footnotes

  1. Luke 20:17 Psalm 118:22