The Parable of the Wedding Feast(A)

22 And Jesus answered (B)and spoke to them again by parables and said:

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The Parable of the Wedding Banquet(A)

22 Jesus spoke to them again in parables, saying:

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The Parable of the Workers in the Vineyard

20 “For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard. Now when he had agreed with the laborers for a denarius a day, he sent them into his vineyard. And he went out about the third hour and saw others standing idle in the marketplace, and said to them, ‘You also go into the vineyard, and whatever is right I will give you.’ So they went. Again he went out about the sixth and the ninth hour, and did likewise. And about the eleventh hour he went out and found others standing [a]idle, and said to them, ‘Why have you been standing here idle all day?’ They said to him, ‘Because no one hired us.’ He said to them, ‘You also go into the vineyard, [b]and whatever is right you will receive.’

“So when evening had come, the owner of the vineyard said to his steward, ‘Call the laborers and give them their wages, beginning with the last to the first.’ And when those came who were hired about the eleventh hour, they each received a denarius. 10 But when the first came, they supposed that they would receive more; and they likewise received each a denarius. 11 And when they had received it, they [c]complained against the landowner, 12 saying, ‘These last men have worked only one hour, and you made them equal to us who have borne the burden and the heat of the day.’ 13 But he answered one of them and said, ‘Friend, I am doing you no wrong. Did you not agree with me for a denarius? 14 Take what is yours and go your way. I wish to give to this last man the same as to you. 15 (A)Is it not lawful for me to do what I wish with my own things? Or (B)is your eye evil because I am good?’ 16 (C)So the last will be first, and the first last. (D)For[d] many are called, but few chosen.”

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Footnotes

  1. Matthew 20:6 NU omits idle
  2. Matthew 20:7 NU omits the rest of v. 7.
  3. Matthew 20:11 grumbled
  4. Matthew 20:16 NU omits the rest of v. 16.

The Parable of the Workers in the Vineyard

20 “For the kingdom of heaven is like(A) a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire workers for his vineyard.(B) He agreed to pay them a denarius[a] for the day and sent them into his vineyard.

“About nine in the morning he went out and saw others standing in the marketplace doing nothing. He told them, ‘You also go and work in my vineyard, and I will pay you whatever is right.’ So they went.

“He went out again about noon and about three in the afternoon and did the same thing. About five in the afternoon he went out and found still others standing around. He asked them, ‘Why have you been standing here all day long doing nothing?’

“‘Because no one has hired us,’ they answered.

“He said to them, ‘You also go and work in my vineyard.’

“When evening came,(C) the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, ‘Call the workers and pay them their wages, beginning with the last ones hired and going on to the first.’

“The workers who were hired about five in the afternoon came and each received a denarius. 10 So when those came who were hired first, they expected to receive more. But each one of them also received a denarius. 11 When they received it, they began to grumble(D) against the landowner. 12 ‘These who were hired last worked only one hour,’ they said, ‘and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the work and the heat(E) of the day.’

13 “But he answered one of them, ‘I am not being unfair to you, friend.(F) Didn’t you agree to work for a denarius? 14 Take your pay and go. I want to give the one who was hired last the same as I gave you. 15 Don’t I have the right to do what I want with my own money? Or are you envious because I am generous?’(G)

16 “So the last will be first, and the first will be last.”(H)

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Footnotes

  1. Matthew 20:2 A denarius was the usual daily wage of a day laborer.

An Unclean Spirit Returns(A)

43 (B)“When an unclean spirit goes out of a man, (C)he goes through dry places, seeking rest, and finds none. 44 Then he says, ‘I will return to my house from which I came.’ And when he comes, he finds it empty, swept, and put in order. 45 Then he goes and takes with him seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter and dwell there; (D)and the last state of that man is worse than the first. So shall it also be with this wicked generation.”

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43 “When an impure spirit comes out of a person, it goes through arid places seeking rest and does not find it. 44 Then it says, ‘I will return to the house I left.’ When it arrives, it finds the house unoccupied, swept clean and put in order. 45 Then it goes and takes with it seven other spirits more wicked than itself, and they go in and live there. And the final condition of that person is worse than the first.(A) That is how it will be with this wicked generation.”

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16 (A)Then He said to him, “A certain man gave a great supper and invited many,

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16 Jesus replied: “A certain man was preparing a great banquet and invited many guests.

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10 And He said, “To you it has been given to know the [a]mysteries of the kingdom of God, but to the rest it is given in parables, that

(A)‘Seeing they may not see,
And hearing they may not understand.’

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Footnotes

  1. Luke 8:10 secret or hidden truths

10 He said, “The knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of God has been given to you,(A) but to others I speak in parables, so that,

“‘though seeing, they may not see;
    though hearing, they may not understand.’[a](B)

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Footnotes

  1. Luke 8:10 Isaiah 6:9

Jesus’ Use of Parables

33 (A)And with many such parables He spoke the word to them as they were able to hear it. 34 But without a parable He did not speak to them. And when they were alone, (B)He explained all things to His disciples.

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33 With many similar parables Jesus spoke the word to them, as much as they could understand.(A) 34 He did not say anything to them without using a parable.(B) But when he was alone with his own disciples, he explained everything.

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The Parable of the Two Sons

28 “But what do you think? A man had two sons, and he came to the first and said, ‘Son, go, work today in my (A)vineyard.’ 29 He answered and said, ‘I will not,’ but afterward he regretted it and went. 30 Then he came to the second and said likewise. And he answered and said, ‘I go, sir,’ but he did not go. 31 Which of the two did the will of his father?”

They said to Him, “The first.”

Jesus said to them, (B)“Assuredly, I say to you that tax collectors and harlots enter the kingdom of God before you. 32 For (C)John came to you in the way of righteousness, and you did not believe him; (D)but tax collectors and harlots believed him; and when you saw it, you did not afterward [a]relent and believe him.

The Parable of the Wicked Vinedressers(E)

33 “Hear another parable: There was a certain landowner (F)who planted a vineyard and set a hedge around it, dug a winepress in it and built a tower. And he leased it to vinedressers and (G)went into a far country. 34 Now when vintage-time drew near, he sent his servants to the vinedressers, that they might receive its fruit. 35 (H)And the vinedressers took his servants, beat one, killed one, and stoned another. 36 Again he sent other servants, more than the first, and they did likewise to them. 37 Then last of all he sent his (I)son to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’ 38 But when the vinedressers saw the son, they said among themselves, (J)‘This is the heir. (K)Come, let us kill him and seize his inheritance.’ 39 (L)So they took him and cast him out of the vineyard and killed him.

40 “Therefore, when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those vinedressers?”

41 (M)They said to Him, (N)“He will destroy those wicked men miserably, (O)and lease his vineyard to other vinedressers who will [b]render to him the fruits in their seasons.”

42 Jesus said to them, “Have you never read in the Scriptures:

(P)‘The stone which the builders rejected
Has become the chief cornerstone.
This was the Lord’s doing,
And it is marvelous in our eyes’?

43 “Therefore I say to you, (Q)the kingdom of God will be taken from you and given to a nation bearing the fruits of it. 44 And (R)whoever falls on this stone will be broken; but on whomever it falls, (S)it will grind him to powder.”

45 Now when the chief priests and Pharisees heard His parables, they [c]perceived that He was speaking of them. 46 But when they sought to lay hands on Him, they (T)feared the multitudes, because (U)they took Him for a prophet.

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Footnotes

  1. Matthew 21:32 regret it
  2. Matthew 21:41 give
  3. Matthew 21:45 knew

The Parable of the Two Sons

28 “What do you think? There was a man who had two sons. He went to the first and said, ‘Son, go and work today in the vineyard.’(A)

29 “‘I will not,’ he answered, but later he changed his mind and went.

30 “Then the father went to the other son and said the same thing. He answered, ‘I will, sir,’ but he did not go.

31 “Which of the two did what his father wanted?”

“The first,” they answered.

Jesus said to them, “Truly I tell you, the tax collectors(B) and the prostitutes(C) are entering the kingdom of God ahead of you. 32 For John came to you to show you the way of righteousness,(D) and you did not believe him, but the tax collectors(E) and the prostitutes(F) did. And even after you saw this, you did not repent(G) and believe him.

The Parable of the Tenants(H)

33 “Listen to another parable: There was a landowner who planted(I) a vineyard. He put a wall around it, dug a winepress in it and built a watchtower.(J) Then he rented the vineyard to some farmers and moved to another place.(K) 34 When the harvest time approached, he sent his servants(L) to the tenants to collect his fruit.

35 “The tenants seized his servants; they beat one, killed another, and stoned a third.(M) 36 Then he sent other servants(N) to them, more than the first time, and the tenants treated them the same way. 37 Last of all, he sent his son to them. ‘They will respect my son,’ he said.

38 “But when the tenants saw the son, they said to each other, ‘This is the heir.(O) Come, let’s kill him(P) and take his inheritance.’(Q) 39 So they took him and threw him out of the vineyard and killed him.

40 “Therefore, when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those tenants?”

41 “He will bring those wretches to a wretched end,”(R) they replied, “and he will rent the vineyard to other tenants,(S) who will give him his share of the crop at harvest time.”

42 Jesus said to them, “Have you never read in the Scriptures:

“‘The stone the builders rejected
    has become the cornerstone;
the Lord has done this,
    and it is marvelous in our eyes’[a]?(T)

43 “Therefore I tell you that the kingdom of God will be taken away from you(U) and given to a people who will produce its fruit. 44 Anyone who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces; anyone on whom it falls will be crushed.”[b](V)

45 When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard Jesus’ parables, they knew he was talking about them. 46 They looked for a way to arrest him, but they were afraid of the crowd because the people held that he was a prophet.(W)

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Footnotes

  1. Matthew 21:42 Psalm 118:22,23
  2. Matthew 21:44 Some manuscripts do not have verse 44.

Then He spoke many things to them in parables, saying: (A)“Behold, a sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some seed fell by the wayside; and the birds came and devoured them. Some fell on stony places, where they did not have much earth; and they immediately sprang up because they had no depth of earth. But when the sun was up they were scorched, and because they had no root they withered away. And some fell among thorns, and the thorns sprang up and choked them. But others fell on good ground and yielded a crop: some (B)a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. (C)He who has ears to hear, let him hear!”

The Purpose of Parables(D)

10 And the disciples came and said to Him, “Why do You speak to them in parables?”

11 He answered and said to them, “Because (E)it has been given to you to know the [a]mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given.

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Footnotes

  1. Matthew 13:11 secret or hidden truths

Then he told them many things in parables, saying: “A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants. Still other seed fell on good soil, where it produced a crop—a hundred,(A) sixty or thirty times what was sown. Whoever has ears, let them hear.”(B)

10 The disciples came to him and asked, “Why do you speak to the people in parables?”

11 He replied, “Because the knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven(C) has been given to you,(D) but not to them.

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15 And Jesus said to them, “Can (A)the [a]friends of the bridegroom mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them? But the days will come when the bridegroom will be taken away from them, and (B)then they will fast. 16 No one puts a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old garment; for [b]the patch pulls away from the garment, and the tear is made worse. 17 Nor do they put new wine into old wineskins, or else the wineskins [c]break, the wine is spilled, and the wineskins are ruined. But they put new wine into new wineskins, and both are preserved.”

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Footnotes

  1. Matthew 9:15 Lit. sons of the bridechamber
  2. Matthew 9:16 Lit. that which is put on
  3. Matthew 9:17 burst

15 Jesus answered, “How can the guests of the bridegroom mourn while he is with them?(A) The time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them; then they will fast.(B)

16 “No one sews a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment, for the patch will pull away from the garment, making the tear worse. 17 Neither do people pour new wine into old wineskins. If they do, the skins will burst; the wine will run out and the wineskins will be ruined. No, they pour new wine into new wineskins, and both are preserved.”

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