| New Living Translation | Berean Study Bible |
| 1One day as Jesus was teaching the people and preaching the Good News in the Temple, the leading priests, the teachers of religious law, and the elders came up to him. | 1One day as Jesus was teaching the people in the temple courts and proclaiming the gospel, the chief priests and scribes, together with the elders, came up to Him. |
| 2They demanded, “By what authority are you doing all these things? Who gave you the right?” | 2“Tell us,” they said, “by what authority are You doing these things, and who gave You this authority?” |
| 3 “Let me ask you a question first,” he replied. | 3“I will also ask you a question,” Jesus replied. “Tell Me: |
| 4 “Did John’s authority to baptize come from heaven, or was it merely human?” | 4John’s baptism—was it from heaven, or from men?” |
| 5They talked it over among themselves. “If we say it was from heaven, he will ask why we didn’t believe John. | 5They deliberated among themselves and said, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ He will ask, ‘Why did you not believe him?’ |
| 6But if we say it was merely human, the people will stone us because they are convinced John was a prophet.” | 6But if we say, ‘From men,’ all the people will stone us, for they are convinced that John was a prophet.” |
| 7So they finally replied that they didn’t know. | 7So they answered that they did not know where it was from. |
| 8And Jesus responded, “Then I won’t tell you by what authority I do these things.” Parable of the Evil Farmers | 8And Jesus replied, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I am doing these things.” |
| 9Now Jesus turned to the people again and told them this story: “A man planted a vineyard, leased it to tenant farmers, and moved to another country to live for several years. | 9Then He proceeded to tell the people this parable: “A man planted a vineyard, rented it out to some tenants, and went away for a long time. |
| 10 At the time of the grape harvest, he sent one of his servants to collect his share of the crop. But the farmers attacked the servant, beat him up, and sent him back empty-handed. | 10At harvest time, he sent a servant to the tenants to collect his share of the fruit of the vineyard. But the tenants beat the servant and sent him away empty-handed. |
| 11 So the owner sent another servant, but they also insulted him, beat him up, and sent him away empty-handed. | 11So he sent another servant, but they beat him and treated him shamefully, sending him away empty-handed. |
| 12 A third man was sent, and they wounded him and chased him away. | 12Then he sent a third, but they wounded him and threw him out. |
| 13 “‘What will I do?’ the owner asked himself. ‘I know! I’ll send my cherished son. Surely they will respect him.’ | 13‘What shall I do?’ asked the owner of the vineyard. ‘I will send my beloved son. Perhaps they will respect him.’ |
| 14 “But when the tenant farmers saw his son, they said to each other, ‘Here comes the heir to this estate. Let’s kill him and get the estate for ourselves!’ | 14But when the tenants saw the son, they discussed it among themselves and said, ‘This is the heir. Let us kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.’ |
| 15 So they dragged him out of the vineyard and murdered him. “What do you suppose the owner of the vineyard will do to them?” Jesus asked. | 15So they threw him out of the vineyard and killed him. What then will the owner of the vineyard do to them? |
| 16 “I’ll tell you—he will come and kill those farmers and lease the vineyard to others.” “How terrible that such a thing should ever happen,” his listeners protested. | 16He will come and kill those tenants, and will give the vineyard to others.” And when the people heard this, they said, “May such a thing never happen!” |
| 17Jesus looked at them and said, “Then what does this Scripture mean? ‘The stone that the builders rejected has now become the cornerstone.’ | 17But Jesus looked directly at them and said, “Then what is the meaning of that which is written: ‘The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone’? |
| 18 Everyone who stumbles over that stone will be broken to pieces, and it will crush anyone it falls on.” | 18Everyone who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces, but he on whom it falls will be crushed.” |
| 19The teachers of religious law and the leading priests wanted to arrest Jesus immediately because they realized he was telling the story against them—they were the wicked farmers. But they were afraid of the people’s reaction. Taxes for Caesar | 19When the scribes and chief priests realized that Jesus had spoken this parable against them, they sought to arrest Him that very hour. But they were afraid of the people. |
| 20Watching for their opportunity, the leaders sent spies pretending to be honest men. They tried to get Jesus to say something that could be reported to the Roman governor so he would arrest Jesus. | 20So they watched Him closely and sent spies who pretended to be sincere. They were hoping to catch Him in His words in order to hand Him over to the rule and authority of the governor. |
| 21“Teacher,” they said, “we know that you speak and teach what is right and are not influenced by what others think. You teach the way of God truthfully. | 21“Teacher,” they inquired, “we know that You speak and teach correctly. You show no partiality, but teach the way of God in accordance with the truth. |
| 22Now tell us—is it right for us to pay taxes to Caesar or not?” | 22Is it lawful for us to pay taxes to Caesar or not?” |
| 23He saw through their trickery and said, | 23But Jesus saw through their duplicity and said to them, |
| 24 “Show me a Roman coin. Whose picture and title are stamped on it?” “Caesar’s,” they replied. | 24“Show Me a denarius. Whose image and inscription are on it?” “Caesar’s,” they answered. |
| 25 “Well then,” he said, “give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar, and give to God what belongs to God.” | 25So Jesus told them, “Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s.” |
| 26So they failed to trap him by what he said in front of the people. Instead, they were amazed by his answer, and they became silent. Discussion about Resurrection | 26And they were unable to trap Him in His words before the people; and amazed at His answer, they fell silent. |
| 27Then Jesus was approached by some Sadducees—religious leaders who say there is no resurrection from the dead. | 27Then some of the Sadducees, who say there is no resurrection, came to question Him. |
| 28They posed this question: “Teacher, Moses gave us a law that if a man dies, leaving a wife but no children, his brother should marry the widow and have a child who will carry on the brother’s name. | 28“Teacher,” they said, “Moses wrote for us that if a man’s brother dies and leaves a wife but no children, the man is to marry his brother’s widow and raise up offspring for him. |
| 29Well, suppose there were seven brothers. The oldest one married and then died without children. | 29Now there were seven brothers. The first one married a wife, but died childless. |
| 30So the second brother married the widow, but he also died. | 30Then the second |
| 31Then the third brother married her. This continued with all seven of them, who died without children. | 31and the third married the widow, and in the same way all seven died, leaving no children. |
| 32Finally, the woman also died. | 32And last of all, the woman died. |
| 33So tell us, whose wife will she be in the resurrection? For all seven were married to her!” | 33So then, in the resurrection, whose wife will she be? For all seven were married to her.” |
| 34Jesus replied, “Marriage is for people here on earth. | 34Jesus answered, “The sons of this age marry and are given in marriage. |
| 35 But in the age to come, those worthy of being raised from the dead will neither marry nor be given in marriage. | 35But those who are considered worthy to share in the age to come and in the resurrection from the dead will neither marry nor be given in marriage. |
| 36 And they will never die again. In this respect they will be like angels. They are children of God and children of the resurrection. | 36In fact, they can no longer die, because they are like the angels. And since they are sons of the resurrection, they are sons of God. |
| 37 “But now, as to whether the dead will be raised—even Moses proved this when he wrote about the burning bush. Long after Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob had died, he referred to the Lord as ‘the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.’ | 37Even Moses demonstrates that the dead are raised, in the passage about the burning bush. For he calls the Lord ‘the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.’ |
| 38 So he is the God of the living, not the dead, for they are all alive to him.” | 38He is not the God of the dead, but of the living, for to Him all are alive.” |
| 39“Well said, Teacher!” remarked some of the teachers of religious law who were standing there. | 39Some of the scribes answered, “Teacher, You have spoken well!” |
| 40And then no one dared to ask him any more questions. Whose Son Is the Messiah? | 40And they did not dare to question Him any further. |
| 41Then Jesus presented them with a question. “Why is it,” he asked, “that the Messiah is said to be the son of David? | 41Then Jesus declared, “How can it be said that the Christ is the Son of David? |
| 42 For David himself wrote in the book of Psalms: ‘The LORD said to my Lord, Sit in the place of honor at my right hand | 42For David himself says in the book of Psalms: ‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at My right hand |
| 43 until I humble your enemies, making them a footstool under your feet.’ | 43until I make Your enemies a footstool for Your feet.” ’ |
| 44 Since David called the Messiah ‘Lord,’ how can the Messiah be his son?” | 44Thus David calls Him ‘Lord.’ So how can He be David’s son?” |
| 45Then, with the crowds listening, he turned to his disciples and said, | 45In the hearing of all the people, Jesus said to His disciples, |
| 46 “Beware of these teachers of religious law! For they like to parade around in flowing robes and love to receive respectful greetings as they walk in the marketplaces. And how they love the seats of honor in the synagogues and the head table at banquets. | 46“Beware of the scribes. They like to walk around in long robes, and they love the greetings in the marketplaces, the chief seats in the synagogues, and the places of honor at banquets. |
| 47 Yet they shamelessly cheat widows out of their property and then pretend to be pious by making long prayers in public. Because of this, they will be severely punished.” | 47They defraud widows of their houses, and for a show make lengthy prayers. These men will receive greater condemnation.” |
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