The Parable of the Tenant Farmers in the Vineyard

⁹ And he began to tell the people this parable: “A man^[a] planted a vineyard, and leased it to tenant farmers, and went on a journey for a long time. ¹⁰ And at the proper time he sent a slave to the tenant farmers, so that they would give him some of the fruit of the vineyard. But the tenant farmers sent him away empty-handed after^[b] beating him.^{[c] 11} And he proceeded to send another slave, but they beat and dishonored that one also, and^[d] sent him^[e] away empty-handed. ¹² And he proceeded to send a third, but they wounded and^[f] threw out this one also. ¹³ So the owner of the vineyard said, ‘What should I do? I will send my beloved son; perhaps they will respect him.’ ¹⁴ But when^[g] the tenant farmers saw him, they began to reason^[h] with one another, saying, ‘This is the heir. Let us kill him so that the inheritance will become ours!’ ¹⁵ And they threw him out of the vineyard and^[i] killed him.^[j] What then will the owner of the vineyard do to them? ¹⁶ He will come and destroy those tenant farmers and give the vineyard to others.” And when they^[k] heard this,^[l] they said, “May this never happen!” ¹⁷ But he looked intently at them and^[m] said, “What then is this that is written:

¹⁸ Everyone who falls on that stone will be broken to pieces, and the one on whom it falls—it will crush him!” ¹⁹ And the scribes and the chief priests sought to lay their^[o] hands on him at that same hour, and they were afraid of the people, for they knew that he had told this parable with reference to them.