The Parable about the Tenant Farmers

(Matthew 21:33-46; Luke 20:9-19)

1Then Jesusa began to speak to them in parables. “A man planted a vineyard. He put a wall around it, dug a pit for the wine press, and built a watchtower. Then he leased it to tenant farmers and went abroad. 2At the right time, he sent a servant to the farmers to collect from them a share of the produce from the vineyard. 3But the farmersb grabbed the servant,c beat him, and sent him back empty-handed. 4Again, the mand sent another servant to them. They beat the servante over the head and treated him shamefully. 5Then the manf sent another, and that one they killed. So it was with many other servants.g Some of these they beat, and others they killed. 6He still had one more person to send,h a son whom he loved. Finally, he sent him to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’ 7But those farmers told one another, ‘This is the heir. Come on, let’s kill him, and the inheritance will be ours!’ 8So they grabbed him, killed him, and threw him out of the vineyard.

9“Now what will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come, execute the farmers, and give the vineyard to others. 10Haven’t you ever read this Scripture:

‘The stone that the builders rejected

has become the cornerstone.i

11This was the Lord’sj doing,

and it is amazing in our eyes’?”k

12They were trying to arrest him but were afraid of the crowd. Realizing that he had spoken this parable against them, they left him alone and went away.

A Question about Paying Taxes

(Matthew 22:15-22; Luke 20:20-26)

13Then they sent some Pharisees and some Herodiansl to him, intending to trap him in what he said. 14They came and told him, “Teacher, we know that you are sincere. You don’t favor any individual, because you pay no attention to external appearance. Rather, you teach the way of God truthfully. Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar or not? Should we pay them or shouldn’t we?”

15Seeing through their hypocrisy, Jesusm replied to them, “Why are you testing me? Bring me a denarius and let me look at it.”

16So they brought one. Then he asked them, “Whose face and name are on this?”

They told him, “Caesar’s.”

17So Jesus told them, “Give back to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” And they were utterly amazed at him.

A Question about the Resurrection

(Matthew 22:23-33; Luke 20:27-40)

18Then some Sadducees, who claim there is no resurrection, came to Jesusn and asked him, 19“Teacher, Moses wrote for us that if a man’s brother dies and leaves a wife but no child, he should marry the widow and have children for his brother.o 20There were seven brothers. The first one married and died without having children. 21Then the second married her and died without having children, and so did the third. 22None of the seven left any children. Last of all, the woman died, too. 23In the resurrection, whose wife will she be, since all seven had married her?”p

24Jesus answered them, “Aren’t you mistaken because you don’t know the Scriptures or God’s power? 25When peopleq rise from the dead, they neither marry nor are given in marriage but are like the angels in heaven. 26As for the dead being raised, haven’t you read in the book of Moses, in the story about the bush, how God said, ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’?r 27He is not the God of the dead, but of the living. You are badly mistaken!”

The Greatest Commandment

(Matthew 22:34-40; Luke 10:25-28)

28Then one of the scribes came near and heard the Sadduceess arguing with one another. He saw how well Jesust answered them, so he asked him, “Which commandment is the most important of them all?”

29Jesus answered, “The most important is, ‘Hear, O Israel, the Lordu our God is one Lord,v 30and you must love the Lordw your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.’x 31The second is this: ‘You must love your neighbor as yourself.’y No other commandment is greater than these.”

32Then the scribe told him, “Well said,z Teacher! You have told the truth that ‘Godaa is one, and there is no other besides him.’bb 33To 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 the burnt offerings and sacrifices.”

34When Jesus saw how wisely the mancc answered, he told him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” After that, no one dared to ask him another question.

A Question about David’s Son

(Matthew 22:41-46; Luke 20:41-44)

35While Jesus was teaching in the Temple, he asked, “How can the scribes say that the Messiahdd is David’s son? 36David himself said by the Holy Spirit,

‘The Lordee told my Lord,

“Sit at my right hand,

until I put your enemies under your feet.”’ff

37David himself calls him ‘Lord,’ so how can he be his son?” And the large crowd kept listening to him with delight.

Jesus Denounces the Scribes

(Matthew 23:1-36; Luke 20:45-47)

38As he taught, he said, “Beware of the scribes! They like to walk around in long robes, to be greeted in the marketplaces, 39and to have the best seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at banquets. 40They devour widows’ housesgg and say long prayers to cover it up. They will receive greater condemnation!”

The Widow’s Offering

(Luke 21:1-4)

41As Jesushh sat facing the offering box, he watched how the crowd was dropping their money into it.ii Many rich people were dropping in large amounts. 42Then a destitute widow came and dropped in two small copper coins,jj worth about a cent.kk 43He called his disciples and told them, “I tell all of youll with certainty, this destitute widow has dropped in more than everyone who is contributing to the offering box, 44because all of them contributed out of their surplus, but out of her poverty she has given everything she had to live on.”