The Complete Sayings of Jesus

Christ's Authority Challenged — Parables: The Sons who Were of Two Minds; The Lord of the Vineyard, His Son, and the Murderous Husbandmen.

A.D. 30. Age 33 Jerusalem, in the Temple.

Matthew 21, 23-46: Mark 11, 27-33; 12, 1-12: Luke 20, 1-19.¹

ON one of those days, as Jesus was walking in the temple, and preached the gospel, the chief priests, and the scribes came with the elders, saying, By what authority doest thou these things? Jesus answered, I also will ask of you one question, which if ye will tell me, and answer me, I in like wise will tell you by what authority I do these things: The baptism of John, whence was it? was it from heaven, or of men? Answer me. They reasoned with themselves, saying, If we shall say, From heaven; he will say, Why then did ye not believe him? But and if we shall say, Of men; the people will stone us: for they be persuaded that John was indeed a prophet. They feared the people. And they answered, We cannot tell. Jesus saith unto them, Neither tell I you by what authority I do these things.

Then began he to speak by parables: But what think ye? A certain man had two sons; and he came to the first, and said, Son, go work to day in my vineyard. He answered and said, I will not: but afterward he repented, and went. And he came to the second, and said likewise. And he answered and said, I go, sir: and went not. Whether of them twain did the will of his father? They say, The first. Jesus saith, Verily I say unto you, That the publicans and the harlots go into the kingdom of God before you. For John came unto you in the way of righteousness, and ye believed him not: but the publicans and the harlots believed him: and ye, when ye had seen it, repented not afterward, that ye might believe him.

Hear another parable: There was a certain householder, which planted a vineyard, and set a hedge round about it, and digged a place in it for the winevat; and digged a winepress in it; and built a tower, and let it out to husbandmen, and went into a far country for a long time. And at the season when the time of the fruit drew near, he sent a servant to the husbandmen, that he might receive from them of the fruit of the vineyard: but the husbandmen caught him, and beat him, and sent him away empty. And again he sent unto them another servant; they beat him also, and at him they cast stones, and wounded him in the head, and handled him shamefully, and sent him away empty. And again he sent a third: and him they wounded also, and killed, and they cast him out: and many others, more than the first: and they did unto them likewise, beating some, and killing some. Having yet therefore one son, his well beloved, then said the lord of the vineyard, What shall I do? I will send my beloved son: last of all he sent unto them his son, saying, It may be they will reverence him, my son, when they see him. But when those husbandmen saw the son, they reasoned among themselves, saying, This is the heir; come, let us kill him, and let us seize on his inheritance, and the inheritance shall be ours. So they caught him, and slew him, and cast him out of the vineyard. When the lord therefore of the vineyard cometh, what will he do unto those husbandmen? He will come and miserably destroy those wicked men, and will let out his vineyard unto other husbandmen, which shall render him the fruits in their seasons. When they heard it, they said, God forbid. Jesus beheld them, and said, Did ye never read in the Scriptures? What is this then that is written? Have ye not read this Scripture: The stone which the builders rejected, the same is become the head of the corner: this was the Lord's doing, and it is marvellous in our eyes?² Therefore I say unto you, The kingdom of God shall be taken from you, and given to a nation bringing forth the fruits thereof. And whosoever shall fall on this stone shall be broken: but on whomsoever it shall fall, it will grind him to powder. The chief priests and Pharisees heard Jesus' parables: they perceived that he had spoken the parables against them. And they sought to lay hold on him, but feared the people, because they took him for a prophet; and they left him, and went their way.

Footnotes:

¹The text itself, as phrased by the three narrators of these episodes, furnishes interesting likenesses and contrasts (book, chapter, and verse indicated above.)

²Psalms 118, 22-23.