The Parable of the Hidden Treasure

⁴⁴ “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and hid; and for joy over it he goes and ^(A)sells all that he has and ^(B)buys that field.

^16 (A)“But to what shall I liken this generation? It is like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling to their companions, ¹⁷ and saying:

¹⁸ For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon.’ ¹⁹ The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Look, a glutton and a ^[b]winebibber, ^(B)a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’ ^(C)But wisdom is justified by her ^[c]children.”

^31 [a]And the Lord said, ^(A)“To what then shall I liken the men of this generation, and what are they like? ³² They are like children sitting in the marketplace and calling to one another, saying:

³³ For ^(B)John the Baptist came ^(C)neither eating bread nor drinking wine, and you say, ‘He has a demon.’ ³⁴ The Son of Man has come ^(D)eating and drinking, and you say, ‘Look, a glutton and a ^[b]winebibber, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’ ^35 (E)But wisdom is justified by all her children.”

The Parable of the Barren Fig Tree

⁶ He also spoke this parable: ^(A)“A certain man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard, and he came seeking fruit on it and found none. ⁷ Then he said to the keeper of his vineyard, ‘Look, for three years I have come seeking fruit on this fig tree and find none. Cut it down; why does it ^[a]use up the ground?’ ⁸ But he answered and said to him, ‘Sir, let it alone this year also, until I dig around it and fertilize it. ^9 [b]And if it bears fruit, well. But if not, after that you can ^(B)cut it down.’ ”

The Parable of the Wicked Vinedressers^(A)

³³ “Hear another parable: There was a certain landowner ^(B)who planted a vineyard and set a hedge around it, dug a winepress in it and built a tower. And he leased it to vinedressers and ^(C)went into a far country. ³⁴ Now when vintage-time drew near, he sent his servants to the vinedressers, that they might receive its fruit. ^35 (D)And the vinedressers took his servants, beat one, killed one, and stoned another. ³⁶ Again he sent other servants, more than the first, and they did likewise to them. ³⁷ Then last of all he sent his ^(E)son to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’ ³⁸ But when the vinedressers saw the son, they said among themselves, ^(F)‘This is the heir. ^(G)Come, let us kill him and seize his inheritance.’ ^39 (H)So they took him and cast him out of the vineyard and killed him.

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

^41 (I)They said to Him, ^(J)“He will destroy those wicked men miserably, ^(K)and lease his vineyard to other vinedressers who will ^[a]render to him the fruits in their seasons.”

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

⁴³ “Therefore I say to you, ^(M)the kingdom of God will be taken from you and given to a nation bearing the fruits of it. ⁴⁴ And ^(N)whoever falls on this stone will be broken; but on whomever it falls, ^(O)it will grind him to powder.”

⁴⁵ Now when the chief priests and Pharisees heard His parables, they ^[b]perceived that He was speaking of them. ⁴⁶ But when they sought to lay hands on Him, they ^(P)feared the multitudes, because ^(Q)they took Him for a prophet.

The Parable of the Wicked Vinedressers^(A)

12 Then ^(B)He began to speak to them in parables: “A man planted a vineyard and set a hedge around it, dug a place for the wine vat and built a tower. And he leased it to ^[a]vinedressers and went into a far country. ² Now at vintage-time he sent a servant to the vinedressers, that he might receive some of the fruit of the vineyard from the vinedressers. ³ And they took him and beat him and sent him away empty-handed. ⁴ Again he sent them another servant, ^[b]and at him they threw stones, wounded him in the head, and sent him away shamefully treated. ⁵ And again he sent another, and him they killed; and many others, ^(C)beating some and killing some. ⁶ Therefore still having one son, his beloved, he also sent him to them last, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’ ⁷ But those ^[c]vinedressers said among themselves, ‘This is the heir. Come, let us kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.’ ⁸ So they took him and ^(D)killed him and cast him out of the vineyard.

⁹ “Therefore what will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and destroy the vinedressers, and give the vineyard to others. ¹⁰ Have you not even read this Scripture:

^12 (F)And they sought to lay hands on Him, but feared the multitude, for they knew He had spoken the parable against them. So they left Him and went away.

⁹ But when you hear of ^(A)wars and commotions, do not be terrified; for these things must come to pass first, but the end will not come immediately.”

^10 (B)Then He said to them, “Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. ¹¹ And there will be great ^(C)earthquakes in various places, and famines and pestilences; and there will be fearful sights and great signs from heaven. ^12 (D)But before all these things, they will lay their hands on you and persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues and ^(E)prisons. ^(F)You will be brought before kings and rulers ^(G)for My name’s sake. ¹³ But ^(H)it will turn out for you as an occasion for testimony. ^14 (I)Therefore settle it in your hearts not to meditate beforehand on what you will ^[a]answer; ¹⁵ for I will give you a mouth and wisdom ^(J)which all your adversaries will not be able to contradict or ^[b]resist. ^16 (K)You will be betrayed even by parents and brothers, relatives and friends; and they will put ^(L)some of you to death. ¹⁷ And ^(M)you will be hated by all for My name’s sake. ^18 (N)But not a hair of your head shall be lost. ¹⁹ By your patience possess your souls.