¹⁹ Yet he sent prophets among them to bring them back to the Lord; they testified against them, but they would not listen.^(A)

The Parable of the Wicked Tenants

⁹ He began to tell the people this parable: “A man planted a vineyard and leased it to tenants and went away for a long time.^{(A) 10} When the season came, he sent a slave to the tenants in order that they might give him his share of the produce of the vineyard, but the tenants beat him and sent him away empty-handed. ¹¹ Next he sent another slave; that one also they beat and insulted and sent away empty-handed. ¹² And he sent still a third; this one also they wounded and threw out. ¹³ Then the owner of the vineyard said, ‘What shall I do? I will send my beloved son; perhaps they will respect him.’ ¹⁴ But when the tenants saw him, they discussed it among themselves and said, ‘This is the heir; let us kill him so that the inheritance may 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?

³¹ He said to him, ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the prophets, neither will they be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.’ ”

⁴⁷ Woe to you! For you build the tombs of the prophets whom your ancestors killed.^{(A) 48} So you are witnesses and approve of the deeds of your ancestors, for they killed them, and you build their tombs. ⁴⁹ For this reason the Wisdom of God said, ‘I will send them prophets and apostles, some of whom they will kill and persecute,’^{(B) 50} so that this generation may be charged with the blood of all the prophets shed since the foundation of the world, ⁵¹ from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah, who perished between the altar and the sanctuary. Yes, I tell you, it will be charged against this generation.^(C)

¹⁶ “But blessed are your eyes, for they see, and your ears, for they hear.^(B)

⁹ If you have ears,^[a] hear!”^(A)

⁴ Yet I persistently sent to you all my servants the prophets, saying, “I beg you not to do this abominable thing that I hate!”^{(A) 5} But they did not listen or incline their ear, to turn from their wickedness and make no offerings to other gods.

⁵ and to heed the words of my servants the prophets whom I send to you urgently—though you have not heeded^(A)—

⁴ And though the Lord persistently sent you all his servants the prophets, you have neither listened nor inclined your ears to hear^{(A) 5} when they said, “Turn now, every one of you, from your evil way and wicked doings, and you will remain on the land that the Lord has given to you and your ancestors from of old and forever;^(B)

²⁵ From the day that your ancestors came out of the land of Egypt until this day, I have persistently sent all my servants the prophets to them, day after day,^{(A) 26} yet they did not listen to me or pay attention, but they stiffened their necks. They did worse than their ancestors did.^(B)