Luke 20
King James Version
20 And it came to pass, that on one of those days, as he taught the people in the temple, and preached the gospel, the chief priests and the scribes came upon him with the elders,
2 And spake unto him, saying, Tell us, by what authority doest thou these things? or who is he that gave thee this authority?
3 And he answered and said unto them, I will also ask you one thing; and answer me:
4 The baptism of John, was it from heaven, or of men?
5 And they reasoned with themselves, saying, If we shall say, From heaven; he will say, Why then believed ye him not?
6 But and if we say, Of men; all the people will stone us: for they be persuaded that John was a prophet.
7 And they answered, that they could not tell whence it was.
8 And Jesus said unto them, Neither tell I you by what authority I do these things.
9 Then began he to speak to the people this parable; A certain man planted a vineyard, and let it forth to husbandmen, and went into a far country for a long time.
10 And at the season he sent a servant to the husbandmen, that they should give him of the fruit of the vineyard: but the husbandmen beat him, and sent him away empty.
11 And again he sent another servant: and they beat him also, and entreated him shamefully, and sent him away empty.
12 And again he sent a third: and they wounded him also, and cast him out.
13 Then said the lord of the vineyard, What shall I do? I will send my beloved son: it may be they will reverence him when they see him.
14 But when the husbandmen saw him, they reasoned among themselves, saying, This is the heir: come, let us kill him, that the inheritance may be ours.
15 So they cast him out of the vineyard, and killed him. What therefore shall the lord of the vineyard do unto them?
16 He shall come and destroy these husbandmen, and shall give the vineyard to others. And when they heard it, they said, God forbid.
17 And he beheld them, and said, What is this then that is written, The stone which the builders rejected, the same is become the head of the corner?
18 Whosoever shall fall upon that stone shall be broken; but on whomsoever it shall fall, it will grind him to powder.
19 And the chief priests and the scribes the same hour sought to lay hands on him; and they feared the people: for they perceived that he had spoken this parable against them.
20 And they watched him, and sent forth spies, which should feign themselves just men, that they might take hold of his words, that so they might deliver him unto the power and authority of the governor.
21 And they asked him, saying, Master, we know that thou sayest and teachest rightly, neither acceptest thou the person of any, but teachest the way of God truly:
22 Is it lawful for us to give tribute unto Caesar, or no?
23 But he perceived their craftiness, and said unto them, Why tempt ye me?
24 Shew me a penny. Whose image and superscription hath it? They answered and said, Caesar's.
25 And he said unto them, Render therefore unto Caesar the things which be Caesar's, and unto God the things which be God's.
26 And they could not take hold of his words before the people: and they marvelled at his answer, and held their peace.
27 Then came to him certain of the Sadducees, which deny that there is any resurrection; and they asked him,
28 Saying, Master, Moses wrote unto us, If any man's brother die, having a wife, and he die without children, that his brother should take his wife, and raise up seed unto his brother.
29 There were therefore seven brethren: and the first took a wife, and died without children.
30 And the second took her to wife, and he died childless.
31 And the third took her; and in like manner the seven also: and they left no children, and died.
32 Last of all the woman died also.
33 Therefore in the resurrection whose wife of them is she? for seven had her to wife.
34 And Jesus answering said unto them, The children of this world marry, and are given in marriage:
35 But they which shall be accounted worthy to obtain that world, and the resurrection from the dead, neither marry, nor are given in marriage:
36 Neither can they die any more: for they are equal unto the angels; and are the children of God, being the children of the resurrection.
37 Now that the dead are raised, even Moses shewed at the bush, when he calleth the Lord the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.
38 For he is not a God of the dead, but of the living: for all live unto him.
39 Then certain of the scribes answering said, Master, thou hast well said.
40 And after that they durst not ask him any question at all.
41 And he said unto them, How say they that Christ is David's son?
42 And David himself saith in the book of Psalms, The Lord said unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand,
43 Till I make thine enemies thy footstool.
44 David therefore calleth him Lord, how is he then his son?
45 Then in the audience of all the people he said unto his disciples,
46 Beware of the scribes, which desire to walk in long robes, and love greetings in the markets, and the highest seats in the synagogues, and the chief rooms at feasts;
47 Which devour widows' houses, and for a shew make long prayers: the same shall receive greater damnation.
Luke 20
International Children’s Bible
The Leaders Question Jesus
20 One day Jesus was in the Temple, teaching the people and telling them the Good News. The leading priests, teachers of the law, and Jewish elders came up to talk with him. 2 They said, “Tell us! What authority do you have to do these things? Who gave you this authority?”
3 Jesus answered, “I will ask you a question too. Tell me: 4 When John baptized people, did that come from God or from man?”
5 The priests, the teachers of the law, and the Jewish leaders all talked about this. They said to each other, “If we answer, ‘John’s baptism was from God,’ then Jesus will say, ‘Then why did you not believe John?’ 6 But if we say, ‘John’s baptism was from man,’ then all the people will kill us with stones because they believe that John was a prophet.” 7 So they answered, “We don’t know the answer.”
8 So Jesus said to them, “Then I will not tell you by what authority I do these things!”
God Sends His Son
9 Then Jesus told the people this story: “A man planted a vineyard. The man leased the land to some farmers. Then he went away for a long time. 10 Later, it was time for the grapes to be picked. So the man sent a servant to those farmers to get his share of the grapes. But they beat the servant and sent him away with nothing. 11 Then he sent another servant. They beat this servant too. They showed no respect for him and sent him away with nothing. 12 So the man sent a third servant. The farmers hurt this servant badly and threw him out. 13 The owner of the vineyard said, ‘What will I do now? I will send my son whom I love very much. Maybe they will respect him!’ 14 When they saw the son, they said to each other, ‘This is the owner’s son. This vineyard will be his. If we kill him, then it will be ours!’ 15 So the farmers threw the son out of the vineyard and killed him.
“What will the owner of this vineyard do? 16 He will come and kill those farmers! Then he will give the vineyard to other farmers.”
The people heard this story. They said, “No! Let this never happen!”
17 But Jesus looked at them and said, “Then what does this verse mean:
‘The stone that the builders did not want
became the cornerstone’? Psalm 118:22
18 Everyone who falls on that stone will be broken. If that stone falls on you, it will crush you!”
19 The teachers of the law and the priests heard this story that Jesus told. They knew the story was about them. So they wanted to arrest Jesus at once. But they were afraid of what the people would do.
The Leaders Try to Trap Jesus
20 So they waited for the right time to get Jesus. They sent some spies who acted as if they were good men. They wanted to trap Jesus in what he said so they could hand him over to the authority and power of the governor. 21 So the spies asked Jesus, “Teacher, we know that what you say and teach is true. You teach the same to all people. You always teach the truth about God’s way. 22 Tell us, is it right that we pay taxes to Caesar or not?”
23 But Jesus knew that these men were trying to trick him. He said, 24 “Show me a coin. Whose name is on the coin? And whose picture is on it?”
They said, “Caesar’s.”
25 Jesus said to them, “Then give to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s. And give to God the things that are God’s.”
26 The men were amazed at his answer. They could say nothing. They were not able to trap Jesus in anything he said before the people.
Sadducees Try to Trick Jesus
27 Some Sadducees came to Jesus. (Sadducees believe that people will not rise from death.) They asked, 28 “Teacher, Moses wrote that a man’s brother might die. He leaves a wife but no children. Then that man must marry the widow and have children for his dead brother. 29 One time there were seven brothers. The first brother married, but died. He had no children. 30 Then the second brother married the widow, and he died. 31 And the third brother married the widow, and he died. The same thing happened with all the other brothers. They all died and had no children. 32 The woman was the last to die. 33 But all seven brothers married her. So when people rise from death, whose wife will the woman be?”
34 Jesus said to the Sadducees, “On earth, people marry each other. 35 But those who will be worthy to be raised from death and live again will not marry. 36 In that life they are like angels and cannot die. They are children of God, because they have been raised from death. 37 Moses clearly showed that the dead are raised to life. When Moses wrote about the burning bush,[a] he said that the Lord is ‘the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.’[b] 38 God is the God of living people, not dead people. All people are alive to God.”
39 Some of the teachers of the law said, “Teacher, your answer was good.” 40 No one was brave enough to ask him another question.
Is the Christ the Son of David?
41 Then Jesus said, “Why do people say that the Christ is the Son ofDavid? 42 In the book of Psalms, David himself says:
‘The Lord said to my Lord:
Sit by me at my right side,
43 until I put your enemies under your control.’[c] Psalm 110:1
44 David calls the Christ ‘Lord.’ But the Christ is also the son of David. How can both these things be true?”
Jesus Accuses the Leaders
45 While all the people were listening, Jesus said to his followers, 46 “Be careful of the teachers of the law. They like to walk around wearing clothes that look important. And they love for people to show respect to them in the marketplaces. They love to have the most important seats in the synagogues and at the feasts. 47 But they cheat widows and steal their houses. Then they try to make themselves look good by saying long prayers. God will punish these men very much.”
Footnotes
- 20:37 burning bush Read Exodus 3:1–12 in the Old Testament.
- 20:37 ‘the God of . . . Jacob’ These words are taken from Exodus 3:6.
- 20:43 until . . . control Literally, “until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.”
The Holy Bible, International Children’s Bible® Copyright© 1986, 1988, 1999, 2015 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission.
