The Parable of the Wicked Tenants

³³ “Listen to another parable. There was a landowner who planted a vineyard, put a fence around it, dug a winepress in it, and built a watchtower. Then he leased it to tenants and went away.^{(A) 34} When the harvest time had come, he sent his slaves to the tenants to collect his produce.^{(B) 35} But the tenants seized his slaves and beat one, killed another, and stoned another.^{(C) 36} Again he sent other slaves, more than the first, and they treated them in the same way. ³⁷ Then he sent his son to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’ ³⁸ But when the tenants saw the son, they said to themselves, ‘This is the heir; come, let us kill him and get his inheritance.’^{(D) 39} So they seized him, threw him out of the vineyard, and killed him. ⁴⁰ Now when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those tenants?” ⁴¹ They said to him, “He will put those wretches to a miserable death and lease the vineyard to other tenants who will give him the produce at the harvest time.”^(E)

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

⁴³ “Therefore I tell you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people that produces its fruits.^{(G) 44} The one who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces, and it will crush anyone on whom it falls.”^[b]

⁴⁵ When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard his parables, they realized that he was speaking about them. ⁴⁶ They wanted to arrest him, but they feared the crowds, because they regarded him as a prophet.^(H)

The Parable of the Wicked Tenants

⁹ He began to tell the people this parable: “A man planted a vineyard and leased it to tenants and went away for a long time.^{(A) 10} When the season came, he sent a slave to the tenants in order that they might give him his share of the produce of the vineyard, but the tenants beat him and sent him away empty-handed. ¹¹ Next he sent another slave; that one also they beat and insulted and sent away empty-handed. ¹² And he sent still a third; this one also they wounded and threw out. ¹³ Then the owner of the vineyard said, ‘What shall I do? I will send my beloved son; perhaps they will respect him.’ ¹⁴ But when the tenants saw him, they discussed it among themselves and said, ‘This is the heir; let us kill him so that the inheritance may be ours.’ ¹⁵ So they threw him out of the vineyard and killed him. What then will the owner of the vineyard do to them? ¹⁶ He will come and destroy those tenants and give the vineyard to others.” When they heard this, they said, “Heaven forbid!”^{(B) 17} But he looked at them and said, “What then does this text mean:

¹⁸ “Everyone who falls on that stone will be broken to pieces, and it will crush anyone on whom it falls.”^{(D) 19} When the scribes and chief priests realized that he had told this parable against them, they wanted to lay hands on him at that very hour, but they feared the people.^(E)