12 And he began to speak unto them by parables. A certain man planted a vineyard, and set an hedge about it, and digged a place for the winefat, and built a tower, and let it out to husbandmen, and went into a far country.

And at the season he sent to the husbandmen a servant, that he might receive from the husbandmen of the fruit of the vineyard.

And they caught him, and beat him, and sent him away empty.

And again he sent unto them another servant; and at him they cast stones, and wounded him in the head, and sent him away shamefully handled.

And again he sent another; and him they killed, and many others; beating some, and killing some.

Having yet therefore one son, his wellbeloved, he sent him also last unto them, saying, They will reverence my son.

But those husbandmen said among themselves, This is the heir; come, let us kill him, and the inheritance shall be ours.'

And they took him, and killed him, and cast him out of the vineyard.

What shall therefore the lord of the vineyard do? he will come and destroy the husbandmen, and will give the vineyard unto others.

10 And have ye not read this scripture; The stone which the builders rejected is become the head of the corner:

11 This was the Lord's doing, and it is marvellous in our eyes?

12 And they sought to lay hold on him, but feared the people: for they knew that he had spoken the parable against them: and they left him, and went their way.

13 And they send unto him certain of the Pharisees and of the Herodians, to catch him in his words.

14 And when they were come, they say unto him, Master, we know that thou art true, and carest for no man: for thou regardest not the person of men, but teachest the way of God in truth: Is it lawful to give tribute to Caesar, or not?

15 Shall we give, or shall we not give? But he, knowing their hypocrisy, said unto them, Why tempt ye me? bring me a penny, that I may see it.

16 And they brought it. And he saith unto them, Whose is this image and superscription? And they said unto him, Caesar's.

17 And Jesus answering said unto them, Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's. And they marvelled at him.

18 Then come unto him the Sadducees, which say there is no resurrection; and they asked him, saying,

19 Master, Moses wrote unto us, If a man's brother die, and leave his wife behind him, and leave no children, that his brother should take his wife, and raise up seed unto his brother.

20 Now there were seven brethren: and the first took a wife, and dying left no seed.

21 And the second took her, and died, neither left he any seed: and the third likewise.

22 And the seven had her, and left no seed: last of all the woman died also.

23 In the resurrection therefore, when they shall rise, whose wife shall she be of them? for the seven had her to wife.

24 And Jesus answering said unto them, Do ye not therefore err, because ye know not the scriptures, neither the power of God?

25 For when they shall rise from the dead, they neither marry, nor are given in marriage; but are as the angels which are in heaven.

26 And as touching the dead, that they rise: have ye not read in the book of Moses, how in the bush God spake unto him, saying, I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob?

27 He is not the God of the dead, but the God of the living: ye therefore do greatly err.

28 And one of the scribes came, and having heard them reasoning together, and perceiving that he had answered them well, asked him, Which is the first commandment of all?

29 And Jesus answered him, The first of all the commandments is, Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God is one Lord:

30 And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment.

31 And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these.

32 And the scribe said unto him, Well, Master, thou hast said the truth: for there is one God; and there is none other but he:

33 And to love him with all the heart, and with all the understanding, and with all the soul, and with all the strength, and to love his neighbour as himself, is more than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices.

34 And when Jesus saw that he answered discreetly, he said unto him, Thou art not far from the kingdom of God. And no man after that durst ask him any question.

35 And Jesus answered and said, while he taught in the temple, How say the scribes that Christ is the son of David?

36 For David himself said by the Holy Ghost, The Lord said to my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand, till I make thine enemies thy footstool.

37 David therefore himself calleth him Lord; and whence is he then his son? And the common people heard him gladly.

38 And he said unto them in his doctrine, Beware of the scribes, which love to go in long clothing, and love salutations in the marketplaces,

39 And the chief seats in the synagogues, and the uppermost rooms at feasts:

40 Which devour widows' houses, and for a pretence make long prayers: these shall receive greater damnation.

41 And Jesus sat over against the treasury, and beheld how the people cast money into the treasury: and many that were rich cast in much.

42 And there came a certain poor widow, and she threw in two mites, which make a farthing.

43 And he called unto him his disciples, and saith unto them, Verily I say unto you, That this poor widow hath cast more in, than all they which have cast into the treasury:

44 For all they did cast in of their abundance; but she of her want did cast in all that she had, even all her living.

The Parable of the Tenants

12 (A)And he began to speak to them in parables. “A man planted (B)a vineyard (C)and put a fence around it and dug a pit for the winepress and built a tower, and (D)leased it to tenants and (E)went into another country. When the season came, he sent a servant[a] to the tenants to get from them some of the fruit of the vineyard. (F)And they took him and beat him and sent him away empty-handed. (G)Again (H)he sent to them another servant, and (I)they struck him on the head and (J)treated him shamefully. (K)And he sent another, and him they killed. And so with many others: some they beat, and some they killed. He had still one other, (L)a beloved son. (M)Finally he sent him to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’ But those tenants said to one another, (N)‘This is the heir. Come, (O)let us kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.’ And they took him and killed him and (P)threw him out of the vineyard. What will the owner of the vineyard do? (Q)He will (R)come and destroy the tenants and (S)give the vineyard to others. 10 (T)Have you not read (U)this Scripture:

(V)“‘The stone that the builders rejected
    has become the cornerstone;[b]
11 this was the Lord's doing,
    and it is marvelous in our eyes’?”

12 And (W)they were seeking to arrest him (X)but feared the people, for they perceived that he had told the parable against them. So they (Y)left him and went away.

Paying Taxes to Caesar

13 (Z)And they sent to him some of (AA)the Pharisees and some of (AB)the Herodians, to (AC)trap him in his talk. 14 And they came and said to him, “Teacher, (AD)we know that you are true and do not care about anyone's opinion. For (AE)you are not swayed by appearances,[c] but truly teach (AF)the way of God. Is it lawful to pay (AG)taxes to (AH)Caesar, or not? Should we pay them, or should we not?” 15 But, knowing (AI)their hypocrisy, he said to them, “Why (AJ)put me to the test? Bring me (AK)a denarius[d] and let me look at it.” 16 And they brought one. And he said to them, “Whose likeness and inscription is this?” They said to him, “Caesar's.” 17 Jesus said to them, (AL)“Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's.” And they marveled at him.

The Sadducees Ask About the Resurrection

18 And (AM)Sadducees came to him, (AN)who say that there is no resurrection. And they asked him a question, saying, 19 “Teacher, Moses wrote for us that (AO)if a man's brother dies and leaves a wife, but leaves no child, the man[e] must take the widow and raise up offspring for his brother. 20 There were seven brothers; the first took a wife, and when he died left no offspring. 21 And the second took her, and died, leaving no offspring. And the third likewise. 22 And the seven left no offspring. Last of all the woman also died. 23 In the resurrection, when they rise again, whose wife will she be? For the seven had her as wife.”

24 Jesus said to them, “Is this not the reason you are wrong, because (AP)you know neither the Scriptures nor (AQ)the power of God? 25 For when they rise from the dead, they neither (AR)marry nor (AS)are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven. 26 And as for the dead being raised, (AT)have you not read in (AU)the book of Moses, in (AV)the passage about the bush, how God spoke to him, saying, (AW)‘I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? 27 He is not God of the dead, but of the living. You are quite wrong.”

The Great Commandment

28 (AX)And one of the scribes came up and heard them disputing with one another, and seeing that he answered them well, asked him, “Which commandment is the most important of all?” 29 Jesus answered, “The most important is, (AY)‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, (AZ)the Lord is one. 30 And 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.’ 31 (BA)The second is this: (BB)‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment (BC)greater than these.” 32 And the scribe said to him, “You are right, Teacher. You have truly said that (BD)he is one, and (BE)there is no other besides him. 33 And to love him with all the heart and with all (BF)the understanding and with all the strength, and to love one's neighbor as oneself, (BG)is much more than all (BH)whole burnt offerings and sacrifices.” 34 And when Jesus saw that he answered wisely, he said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” (BI)And after that no one dared to ask him any more questions.

Whose Son Is the Christ?

35 (BJ)And as (BK)Jesus taught in the temple, he said, “How can the scribes say that (BL)the Christ is the son of David? 36 David himself, (BM)in the Holy Spirit, declared,

(BN)“‘The Lord said to my Lord,
“Sit at my right hand,
    until I put your enemies (BO)under your feet.”’

37 David himself calls him Lord. So (BP)how is he his son?” And the great throng (BQ)heard him gladly.

Beware of the Scribes

38 (BR)And in his teaching he said, “Beware of the scribes, who like to walk around in long robes and like greetings in the marketplaces 39 and have the best seats in the synagogues and (BS)the places of honor at feasts, 40 (BT)who devour widows' houses and (BU)for a pretense make long prayers. They will receive the greater condemnation.”

The Widow's Offering

41 (BV)And he sat down opposite (BW)the treasury and watched the people (BX)putting money into the offering box. Many rich people put in large sums. 42 And a poor widow came and put in two (BY)small copper coins, which make a penny.[f] 43 And he called his disciples to him and said to them, “Truly, I say to you, (BZ)this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the offering box. 44 For they all contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her (CA)poverty has put in everything she had, all (CB)she had to live on.”

Footnotes

  1. Mark 12:2 Or bondservant; also verse 4
  2. Mark 12:10 Greek the head of the corner
  3. Mark 12:14 Greek you do not look at people's faces
  4. Mark 12:15 A denarius was a day's wage for a laborer
  5. Mark 12:19 Greek his brother
  6. Mark 12:42 Greek two lepta, which make a kodrantes; a kodrantes (Latin quadrans) was a Roman copper coin worth about 1/64 of a denarius (which was a day's wage for a laborer)

Parable of the Vine-growers

12 (A)And He began to speak to them in parables: (B)A man (C)planted a vineyard and put a [a]fence around it, and dug a vat under the wine press and built a tower, and leased it to [b]vine-growers and went on a journey. And at the harvest time he sent a slave to the vine-growers, in order to receive his share of the produce of the vineyard from the vine-growers. And they took him, and beat him, and sent him away empty-handed. And again he sent them another slave, and they wounded him in the head, and treated him shamefully. And he sent another, and that one they killed; and so with many others, beating some and killing others. He had one more man to send, a beloved son; he sent him to them last of all, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’ But those vine-growers said to one another, ‘This is the heir; come, let’s kill him, and the inheritance will be ours!’ And they took him and killed him, and threw him out of the vineyard. What will the [c]owner of the vineyard do? He will come and put the vine-growers to death, and give the vineyard to others. 10 Have you not even read this Scripture:

(D)A stone which the builders rejected,
This has become the [d]chief cornerstone;
11 (E)This came about from the Lord,
And it is marvelous in our eyes’?”

12 (F)And they were seeking to seize Him, and yet they feared the [e]people, for they understood that He told the parable against them. And so (G)they left Him and went away.

Jesus Answers the Pharisees, Sadducees, and Scribes

13 (H)Then they *sent some of the Pharisees and (I)Herodians to Him in order to (J)trap Him in a statement. 14 They came and *said to Him, “Teacher, we know that You are truthful and [f]do not care what anyone thinks; for You [g]are not partial to anyone, but You teach the way of God in truth. Is it [h]permissible to pay a [i]poll-tax to Caesar, or not? 15 Are we to pay, or not pay?” But He, knowing their hypocrisy, said to them, “Why are you testing Me? Bring Me a [j]denarius to look at.” 16 And they brought one. And He *said to them, “Whose image and inscription is this?” And they said to Him, “Caesar’s.” 17 And Jesus said to them, (K)Pay to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” And they were utterly amazed at Him.

18 (L)Some Sadducees (who say that there is no resurrection) *came to [k]Jesus, and began questioning Him, saying, 19 “Teacher, Moses wrote for us that (M)if a man’s brother dies and leaves behind a wife and does not leave a child, his brother is to [l]marry the wife and raise up [m]children for his brother. 20 There were seven brothers; and the first took a wife, and died leaving no children. 21 The second one [n]married her, and died leaving behind no children; and the third likewise; 22 and so the seven together left no children. Last of all the woman also died. 23 In the resurrection, which one’s wife will she be? For each of the seven had her as his wife.” 24 Jesus said to them, “Is this not the reason you are mistaken, that you do not [o]understand the Scriptures nor 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 But [p]regarding the fact that the dead rise, have you not read in the book of Moses, (N)in the passage about the burning bush, how God spoke to him, saying, ‘(O)I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? 27 (P)He is not the God [q]of the dead, but of the living; you are greatly mistaken.”

28 (Q)One of the scribes came up and heard them arguing, and (R)recognizing that He had answered them well, asked Him, “What commandment is the [r]foremost of all?” 29 Jesus answered, “The [s]foremost is, ‘(S)Hear, Israel! The Lord is our God, the Lord is one; 30 (T)and 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.’ 31 The second is this: ‘(U)You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.” 32 And the scribe said to Him, “Well said, Teacher; You have truly stated that (V)He is One, and there is no other besides Him; 33 (W)and to love Him with all the heart, and with all the understanding, and with all the strength, and to love one’s neighbor as oneself, (X)is much more than all the burnt offerings and sacrifices.” 34 When Jesus saw that he had answered intelligently, He said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” (Y)And then, no one dared any longer to question Him.

35 (Z)And Jesus responded and began saying, as He (AA)taught in the temple area, “How is it that the scribes say that the [t]Christ is the (AB)son of David? 36 David himself said [u]in the Holy Spirit,

(AC)The Lord said to my Lord,
Sit at My right hand,
Until I put Your enemies under Your feet.”’

37 David himself calls Him ‘Lord’; so in what sense is He his son?” And (AD)the large crowd [v]enjoyed listening to Him.

38 (AE)And in His teaching He was saying: “Beware of the scribes who like to walk around in long robes, and like (AF)personal greetings in the marketplaces, 39 and seats of honor in the synagogues, and places of honor at banquets, 40 (AG)who devour widows’ houses, and for appearance’s sake offer long prayers. These will receive all the more condemnation.”

The Widow’s Coins

41 (AH)And Jesus sat down opposite (AI)the treasury, and began watching how the [w]people were (AJ)putting [x]money into the treasury; and many rich people were putting in large amounts. 42 And a poor widow came and put in two [y]lepta coins, which amount to a [z]quadrans. 43 Calling His disciples to Him, He said to them, “Truly I say to you, this poor widow put in more than all [aa]the contributors to the treasury; 44 for they all put in out of their [ab]surplus, but she, out of her poverty, put in all she owned, [ac]all she had (AK)to live on.”

Footnotes

  1. Mark 12:1 Or hedge
  2. Mark 12:1 Or tenant farmers, also vv 2, 7, 9
  3. Mark 12:9 Lit lord
  4. Mark 12:10 Lit head of the corner
  5. Mark 12:12 Lit crowd
  6. Mark 12:14 Lit it is not a concern to You about anyone
  7. Mark 12:14 Lit do not look at the face of people
  8. Mark 12:14 I.e., by Jewish law and tradition
  9. Mark 12:14 I.e., a tax on each person in the census
  10. Mark 12:15 The denarius was a day’s wages for a laborer
  11. Mark 12:18 Lit Him
  12. Mark 12:19 Lit take
  13. Mark 12:19 Lit seed, also vv 20-22
  14. Mark 12:21 Lit took
  15. Mark 12:24 Or know
  16. Mark 12:26 Lit concerning the dead, that they rise
  17. Mark 12:27 Or of corpses
  18. Mark 12:28 Or first
  19. Mark 12:29 Or first
  20. Mark 12:35 I.e., Messiah
  21. Mark 12:36 Or by
  22. Mark 12:37 Lit was gladly hearing Him
  23. Mark 12:41 Lit crowd was
  24. Mark 12:41 I.e., copper coins
  25. Mark 12:42 The smallest Greek copper coin, about 1/128 of a laborer’s daily wage
  26. Mark 12:42 A small Roman copper coin, worth about 1/64 of a laborer’s daily wage
  27. Mark 12:43 Lit those who were putting in
  28. Mark 12:44 Or abundance
  29. Mark 12:44 Lit her whole livelihood