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12 He began to speak to them in parables. “A man planted a vineyard, put a hedge around it, dug a pit for the wine press, built a tower, rented it out to a farmer, and went into another country. When it was time, he sent a servant to the farmer to get from the farmer his share of the fruit of the vineyard. They took him, beat him, and sent him away empty. Again, he sent another servant to them; and they threw stones at him, wounded him in the head, and sent him away shamefully treated. Again he sent another; and they killed him; and many others, beating some, and killing some. Therefore still having one, his beloved son, he sent him last to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’ But those farmers said among themselves, ‘This is the heir. Come, let’s kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.’ They took him, killed him, and cast him out of the vineyard. What therefore will the lord of the vineyard do? He will come and destroy the farmers, and will give the vineyard to others. 10 Haven’t you even read this Scripture:

‘The stone which the builders rejected
    was made the head of the corner.
11 This was from the Lord.
    It is marvelous in our eyes’?”Psalm 118:22-23

12 They tried to seize him, but they feared the multitude; for they perceived that he spoke the parable against them. They left him, and went away. 13 They sent some of the Pharisees and the Herodians to him, that they might trap him with words. 14 When they had come, they asked him, “Teacher, we know that you are honest, and don’t defer to anyone; for you aren’t partial to anyone, but truly teach the way of God. Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not? 15 Shall we give, or shall we not give?”

But he, knowing their hypocrisy, said to them, “Why do you test me? Bring me a denarius, that I may see it.”

16 They brought it.

He said to them, “Whose is this image and inscription?”

They said to him, “Caesar’s.”

17 Jesus answered them, “Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.”

They marveled greatly at him.

18 Some Sadducees, who say that there is no resurrection, came to him. They asked him, saying, 19 “Teacher, Moses wrote to us, ‘If a man’s brother dies, and leaves a wife behind him, and leaves no children, that his brother should take his wife, and raise up offspring for his brother.’ 20 There were seven brothers. The first took a wife, and dying left no offspring. 21 The second took her, and died, leaving no children behind him. The third likewise; 22 and the seven took her and left no children. Last of all the woman also died. 23 In the resurrection, when they rise, whose wife will she be of them? For the seven had her as a wife.”

24 Jesus answered them, “Isn’t this because you are mistaken, not knowing the Scriptures, nor the power of God? 25 For when they will rise from the dead, they neither marry, nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven. 26 But about the dead, that they are raised; haven’t you read in the book of Moses, about the Bush, how God spoke to him, saying, ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’?Exodus 3:6 27 He is not the God of the dead, but of the living. You are therefore badly mistaken.”

28 One of the scribes came, and heard them questioning together, and knowing that he had answered them well, asked him, “Which commandment is the greatest of all?”

29 Jesus answered, “The greatest is, ‘Hear, Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one: 30 you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.’Deuteronomy 6:4-5 This is the first commandment. 31 The second is like this, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’Leviticus 19:18 There is no other commandment greater than these.”

32 The scribe said to him, “Truly, teacher, you have said well that he is one, and there is none other but he, 33 and to love him with all the heart, and with all the understanding, with all the soul, and with all the strength, and to love his neighbor as himself, is more important than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices.”

34 When Jesus saw that he answered wisely, he said to him, “You are not far from God’s Kingdom.”

No one dared ask him any question after that. 35 Jesus responded, as he taught in the temple, “How is it that the scribes say that the Christ is the son of David? 36 For David himself said in the Holy Spirit,

‘The Lord said to my Lord,
    “Sit at my right hand,
    until I make your enemies the footstool of your feet.”’Psalm 110:1

37 Therefore David himself calls him Lord, so how can he be his son?”

The common people heard him gladly. 38 In his teaching he said to them, “Beware of the scribes, who like to walk in long robes, and to get greetings in the marketplaces, 39 and the best seats in the synagogues, and the best places at feasts: 40 those who devour widows’ houses, and for a pretense make long prayers. These will receive greater condemnation.”

41 Jesus sat down opposite the treasury, and saw how the multitude cast money into the treasury. Many who were rich cast in much. 42 A poor widow came, and she cast in two small brass coins,[a] which equal a quadrans coin.[b] 43 He called his disciples to himself, and said to them, “Most certainly I tell you, this poor widow gave more than all those who are giving into the treasury, 44 for they all gave out of their abundance, but she, out of her poverty, gave all that she had to live on.”

Footnotes

  1. 12:42 literally, lepta (or widow’s mites). Lepta are very small brass coins worth half a quadrans each, which is a quarter of the copper assarion. Lepta are worth less than 1% of an agricultural worker’s daily wages.
  2. 12:42 A quadrans is a coin worth about 1/64 of a denarius. A denarius is about one day’s wages for an agricultural laborer.

The Parable of the Tenant Farmers in the Vineyard

12 And he began to speak to them in parables: “A man planted a vineyard, and put a fence around it, and dug a trough for the winepress, and built a watchtower, and leased it to tenant farmers, and went on a journey. And he sent a slave to the tenant farmers at the proper time, so that he could collect some of the fruit of the vineyard from the tenant farmers. And they seized him and[a] beat him[b] and sent him[c] away empty-handed. And again he sent to them another slave, and that one they struck on the head and dishonored. And he sent another, and that one they killed. And he sent[d] many others, some of whom they beat and some of whom they killed. He had one more, a beloved son. Last of all he sent him to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’ But those tenant farmers said to one another, ‘This is the heir. Come, let us kill him and the inheritance will be ours!’ And they seized and[e] killed him and threw him out of the vineyard. What[f] will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and destroy the tenant farmers and give the vineyard to others. 10 Have you not read this scripture:

‘The stone which the builders rejected,
    this has become the cornerstone.[g]
11 This came about from the Lord,
    and it is marvelous in our eyes’?”[h]

12 And they were seeking to arrest him, and they were afraid of the crowd, because they knew that he had told the parable with reference to them. And they left him and[i] went away.

Paying Taxes to Caesar

13 And they sent some of the Pharisees and the Herodians to him so that they could catch him unawares in a statement. 14 And when they[j] came, they said to him, “Teacher, we know that you are truthful and you do not care what anyone thinks,[k] because you do not regard the opinion of people[l] but teach the way of God in truth. Is it permitted to pay taxes to Caesar or not? Should we pay or should we not pay?” 15 But because he[m] knew their hypocrisy, he said to them, “Why are you testing me? Bring me a denarius so that I can look at it!”[n] 16 So they brought one.[o] And he said to them, “Whose image and inscription is this?” And they said to him, “Caesar’s.” 17 And Jesus said to them, “Give to Caesar the things of Caesar, and to God the things of God!” And they were utterly amazed at him.

A Question About Marriage and the Resurrection

18 And Sadducees—who say there is no resurrection—came up to him and began to ask[p] him, saying, 19 “Teacher, Moses wrote for us that if someone’s brother dies and he leaves behind a wife and does not leave a child, that his brother should take the wife and father[q] descendants for his brother. 20 There were seven brothers, and the first took a wife. And when he[r] died, he did not leave descendants. 21 And the second took her, and he died without leaving descendants. And the third likewise. 22 And the seven did not leave descendants. Last of all the woman also died. 23 In the resurrection, when they rise, whose[s] wife will she be? For the seven had her as wife. 24 Jesus said to them, “Are you not deceived because of this, because you[t] do not know the scriptures or the power of God? 25 For when they rise from the dead, they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven. 26 Now concerning the dead, that they are raised, have you not read in the book of Moses in the passage about the bush[u] how God spoke to him, saying, ‘I am the God of Abraham and the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob’?[v] 27 He is not God of the dead, but of the living. You are very much mistaken!”

The Greatest Commandment

28 And one of the scribes came up and[w] heard them debating. When he[x] saw that he answered them well, he asked him, “Which commandment is the most important of all?” 29 Jesus answered, “The most important is, ‘Listen, Israel! The Lord our God, the Lord is one. 30 And you shall love the Lord your God from your whole heart and from your whole soul and from your whole mind and from your whole strength.’[y] 31 The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’[z] There is no other commandment greater than these.” 32 And the scribe said to him, “That is true, Teacher. You have said correctly[aa] that he is one and there is no other except him. 33 And to love him from your[ab] whole heart and from your[ac] whole understanding and from your[ad] whole strength, and to love your[ae] neighbor as yourself, is much more than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices.” 34 And Jesus, when he[af] saw that he had answered thoughtfully, said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” And no one dared to put a question to him any longer.

David’s Son and Lord

35 And continuing, Jesus said while[ag] teaching in the temple courts,[ah] “How can the scribes say that the Christ is David’s son? 36 David himself said by the Holy Spirit,

‘The Lord said to my Lord,
    “Sit at my right hand,
until I put your enemies
    under your feet.”’[ai]

37 David himself calls him ‘Lord,’ and how is he his son?” And the large crowd was listening to him gladly.

Warning to Beware of the Scribes

38 And in his teaching he said, “Beware of the scribes, who like walking around in long robes and greetings in the marketplaces 39 and the best seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at banquets, 40 who devour the houses of widows and pray lengthy prayers for the sake of appearance. These will receive more severe condemnation!”

A Poor Widow’s Offering

41 And he sat down opposite the contribution box and[aj] was observing how the crowd was putting coins into the contribution box. And many rich people were putting in many coins.[ak] 42 And one poor widow came and[al] put in two small copper coins[am] (that is, a penny).[an] 43 And summoning his disciples, he said to them, “Truly I say to you that this poor widow put in more than all those who put offerings[ao] into the contribution box. 44 For they all contributed[ap] out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty put in everything she had, her whole means of subsistence.”

Footnotes

  1. Mark 12:3 Here “and” is supplied because the previous participle (“seized”) has been translated as a finite verb
  2. Mark 12:3 Here the direct object is supplied from context in the English translation
  3. Mark 12:3 Here the direct object is supplied from context in the English translation
  4. Mark 12:5 The words “he sent” are not in the Greek text, but are an implied repetition from earlier in the verse
  5. Mark 12:8 Here “and” is supplied because the previous participle (“seized”) has been translated as a finite verb
  6. Mark 12:9 Some manuscripts have “What then”
  7. Mark 12:10 Literally “the head of the corner”
  8. Mark 12:11 A quotation from Ps 118:22–23
  9. Mark 12:12 Here “and” is supplied because the previous participle (“left”) has been translated as a finite verb
  10. Mark 12:14 Here “when” is supplied as a component of the participle (“came”) which is understood as temporal
  11. Mark 12:14 Literally “it is not a care to you concerning anyone”
  12. Mark 12:14 Literally “because you do not look at the face of men”
  13. Mark 12:15 Here “because” is supplied as a component of the participle (“knew”) which is understood as causal
  14. Mark 12:15 *Here the direct object is supplied from context in the English translation
  15. Mark 12:16 *Here the direct object is supplied from context in the English translation
  16. Mark 12:18 The imperfect tense has been translated as ingressive here (“began to ask”)
  17. Mark 12:19 Literally “raise up”
  18. Mark 12:20 Here “when” is supplied as a component of the participle (“died”) which is understood as temporal
  19. Mark 12:23 Literally “who of them”
  20. Mark 12:24 Here “because” is supplied as a component of the participle (“know”) which is understood as causal
  21. Mark 12:26 Literally “at the bush”
  22. Mark 12:26 A quotation from Exod 3:6
  23. Mark 12:28 Here “and” is supplied because the previous participle (“came up”) has been translated as a finite verb
  24. Mark 12:28 Here “when” is supplied as a component of the participle (“saw”) which is understood as temporal
  25. Mark 12:30 A quotation from Deut 6:4–5; Josh 22:5
  26. Mark 12:31 A quotation from Lev 19:18
  27. Mark 12:32 Literally “in accordance with truth”
  28. Mark 12:33 Literally “the”; the Greek article is used here as a possessive pronoun
  29. Mark 12:33 Literally “the”; the Greek article is used here as a possessive pronoun
  30. Mark 12:33 Literally “the”; the Greek article is used here as a possessive pronoun
  31. Mark 12:33 Literally “the”; the Greek article is used here as a possessive pronoun
  32. Mark 12:34 Here “when” is supplied as a component of the participle (“saw”) which is understood as temporal
  33. Mark 12:35 Here “while” is supplied as a component of the participle (“teaching”) which is understood as temporal
  34. Mark 12:35 *Here “courts” is supplied to distinguish this area from the interior of the temple building itself
  35. Mark 12:36 A quotation from Ps 110:1
  36. Mark 12:41 Here “and” is supplied because the previous participle (“sat down”) has been translated as a finite verb
  37. Mark 12:41 Although often translated “large sums,” the plural here suggests large numbers of individual coins, which would make an impressive noise
  38. Mark 12:42 Here “and” is supplied because the previous participle (“came”) has been translated as a finite verb
  39. Mark 12:42 This coin was the lepton, worth 1/128 of a denarius
  40. Mark 12:42 This coin was the quadrans, the smallest Roman coin, worth 2 lepta
  41. Mark 12:43 Here the direct object is supplied from context in the English translation
  42. Mark 12:44 Literally “put in”