Mark 12:1-12
New King James Version
The Parable of the Wicked Vinedressers(A)
12 Then (B)He began to speak to them in parables: “A man planted a vineyard and set a hedge around it, dug a place for the wine vat and built a tower. And he leased it to [a]vinedressers and went into a far country. 2 Now at vintage-time he sent a servant to the vinedressers, that he might receive some of the fruit of the vineyard from the vinedressers. 3 And they took him and beat him and sent him away empty-handed. 4 Again he sent them another servant, [b]and at him they threw stones, wounded him in the head, and sent him away shamefully treated. 5 And again he sent another, and him they killed; and many others, (C)beating some and killing some. 6 Therefore still having one son, his beloved, he also sent him to them last, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’ 7 But those [c]vinedressers said among themselves, ‘This is the heir. Come, let us kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.’ 8 So they took him and (D)killed him and cast him out of the vineyard.
9 “Therefore what will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and destroy the vinedressers, and give the vineyard to others. 10 Have you not even read this Scripture:
(E)‘The stone which the builders rejected
Has become the chief cornerstone.
11 This was the Lord’s doing,
And it is marvelous in our eyes’?”
12 (F)And they sought to lay hands on Him, but feared the multitude, for they knew He had spoken the parable against them. So they left Him and went away.
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Mark 12:1-12
Lexham English Bible
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. 2 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. 3 And they seized him and[a] beat him[b] and sent him[c] away empty-handed. 4 And again he sent to them another slave, and that one they struck on the head and dishonored. 5 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. 6 He had one more, a beloved son. Last of all he sent him to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’ 7 But those tenant farmers said to one another, ‘This is the heir. Come, let us kill him and the inheritance will be ours!’ 8 And they seized and[e] killed him and threw him out of the vineyard. 9 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.
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- Mark 12:3 Here “and” is supplied because the previous participle (“seized”) has been translated as a finite verb
- Mark 12:3 Here the direct object is supplied from context in the English translation
- Mark 12:3 Here the direct object is supplied from context in the English translation
- Mark 12:5 The words “he sent” are not in the Greek text, but are an implied repetition from earlier in the verse
- Mark 12:8 Here “and” is supplied because the previous participle (“seized”) has been translated as a finite verb
- Mark 12:9 Some manuscripts have “What then”
- Mark 12:10 Literally “the head of the corner”
- Mark 12:11 A quotation from Ps 118:22–23
- Mark 12:12 Here “and” is supplied because the previous participle (“left”) has been translated as a finite verb
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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