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Matthew 21
The Voice
Matthew 21
The Voice
After a great parade, Jesus and His disciples walk into the temple area, and what He sees enrages Him. He sees moneychangers, buying and selling. He sees men sitting on benches, hawking doves to those who have come from the countryside to make a sacrifice. He sees that the salesmen and teachers have turned a sanctuary of worship into a place of spiritual prostitution. This is the place where Jesus came as a boy to sit with the great teachers. It is the place where His Father receives the offerings of His people. It is more than Jesus can take.
Can anyone be surprised at this other side to Jesus? He has turned out to be not just a kindly teacher; instead, He is the Anointed One, not to be taken lightly. In the midst of this scene filled with joy and chaos, there are extremes. Some are beginning to understand who this man from Galilee is—the Anointed—but the rulers are having great difficulty with the disruption to their orderly world.
21 Jesus, the disciples, and the great crowds were heading toward Jerusalem when they came to Bethphage on the Mount of Olives. Jesus stopped and beckoned to two of the disciples.
Jesus: 2 Go to the village over there. There you’ll find a donkey tied to a post and a foal beside it. Untie them and bring them to Me. 3 If anyone tries to stop you, then tell him, “The Master needs these,” and he will send the donkey and foal immediately.
4 He sent the disciples on ahead so His entry into Jerusalem could fulfill what the prophet Zechariah had long since foretold:
5 Tell this to Zion’s daughter,
“Look—your King is approaching,
seated humbly on a donkey,
a young foal, a beast of burden.”[a]
6 So the disciples went off and followed Jesus’ instructions. 7 They brought the donkey and foal to Jesus, they spread their cloaks on the animals, and Jesus sat down on them. 8 The great crowd followed suit, laying their cloaks on the road. Others cut leafy branches from the trees and scattered those before Jesus. 9 And the crowds went before Jesus, walked alongside Him, and processed behind—all singing.
Crowd: Hosanna, praises to the Son of David! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Eternal One! Hosanna in the highest![b]
The way Jesus enters the city on a lowly donkey, with crowds surrounding Him singing praises, surprises many within Jerusalem.
10 And that is how Jesus came into Jerusalem. The people noticed this strange parade. They wondered who this could be, this humble bearded man on a donkey who incited such songs.
Crowd: 11 This is Jesus, the prophet, from Nazareth in Galilee.
12 Jesus came to the temple. He drove out all those who were buying and selling. He upended the moneychangers’ tables and the dove-sellers’ benches.
Jesus: 13 It is written, “My house will be a house of prayer for all people,” but you have turned this house of prayer into a den of robbers.[c]
14 Then the blind and the lame came to the temple, and Jesus healed them. 15 Rings of children circled round and sang, “Hosanna to the Son of David.” But the priests and scribes didn’t understand. When they saw the upturned tables, the walking paralytics, and the singing children, they were shocked, indignant, and angry, and they did not understand.
Priests and Scribes: 16 Do you hear what these children are saying?
Jesus: Yes. Haven’t you read your own psalter? “From the mouths and souls of infants and toddlers, the most innocent, You have decreed praises for Yourself.”[d]
17 At that, Jesus left Jerusalem. He went to Bethany, where He spent the night.
18 The next morning, Jesus went back to the city. It was early and He was wanting breakfast, so 19 He stopped at a lone fig tree by the road. The fig tree, disappointingly, had no figs, only leaves.
Jesus: May you never bear fruit again!
Immediately the tree shriveled up. 20 The disciples were amazed.
Disciples: How did that fig tree wither so quickly?
Jesus: 21 I tell you this: if you have faith and do not doubt, then you will be able to wither a fig tree with one glance. You will be able to tell mountains to throw themselves into the ocean, and they will obey.
As Jesus says this, one or two disciples probably glance around the shadows of the early morning, confused and afraid. Jesus has just paraded into Jerusalem and upset the vendors and leaders with His bold talk. Now He is challenging His disciples to expect the physical creation to respond to their commands and faith. But Jesus isn’t finished.
Jesus: 22 If you believe, whatever you ask for in prayer will be granted.
23 Jesus returned to the temple and began to teach. The chief priests and elders came to Him and wanted to know who had given Him permission to disturb the temple precincts and to teach His crazy notions in this most sacred of spots.
Chief Priests and Elders: Who gave You the authority to do these things?
Jesus: 24 I will answer your question if first you answer one of Mine: 25 You saw John ritually cleansing people through baptism[e] for the redemption of their sins. Did John’s cleansing come from heaven, or was he simply washing people of his own whim?
The elders knew that this question was tricky; there was no simple answer. If they acknowledged that John’s ritual cleansing was from heaven, Jesus would ask why they had not accepted John’s authority. 26 But if they said he had dipped people simply by his own accord, they would outrage the people who believed John was a prophet.
Chief Priests and Elders: 27 We don’t know.
Jesus: Then neither will I tell you about the authority under which I am working. 28 But I will tell you a story, and you can tell Me what you make of it: There was a man who had two sons. He said to his first son,
Father: Go and work in the vineyard today.
First Son: 29 No, I will not.
But later the first son changed his mind and went. 30 Then the father went to his second son.
Father: Go and work in the vineyard today.
Second Son: Of course, Father.
But then he did not go. 31 So which of the sons did what the father wanted?
Chief Priests and Elders (answering at once): The first.
Jesus: I tell you this: the tax collectors and prostitutes will enter the kingdom of God ahead of you. 32 John came to show you the straight path, the path to righteousness. You did not believe him, but the tax collectors and the prostitutes did. Even as you saw the prostitutes and the tax collectors forgiven and washed clean, finding their footing on the straight path to righteousness, still you did not change your ways and believe.
33 Here is another story: A landowner planted a vineyard, put a wall around it, fitted it with a winepress, and built a watchtower. Then he rented the vineyard and left town. 34 When harvesttime came, the landowner sent his servants to collect rent—in the form of grapes—from his tenants. 35 The tenants attacked these rent-collecting servants. They killed one, stoned another, and beat a third. 36 The dismayed landowner sent another band of servants to try to collect his due, a larger group of servants this time, but the tenants did the same thing—capturing, beating, killing. 37 Finally the landowner sent his son to the tenants, thinking, “They will at least respect my son.” 38 But the tenants knew the son was the best way to get to the landowner, so when they saw the son approaching they said,
Tenants: This is the landowner’s heir apparent! Let’s kill him and take his inheritance.
39 And so they did; they threw him out of the vineyard and killed him.
40 What do you think the landowner will do when he comes and sees those tenants?
Chief Priests and Elders: 41 He will eviscerate them, to be sure! Then he will rent the vineyard to other tenants who will pay him at harvesttime.
Jesus: 42 I wonder if any of you has ever opened your own psalter:
The stone that the builders rejected
has become the very stone that holds together the entire foundation.
This is the work of the Eternal One,
and it is marvelous in our eyes.[f]
43 Therefore, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to people who will tend its sweet fruit and who will give the Creator His due. [44 He who falls on the stone will be broken to pieces, and he on whom the stone falls will be crushed.][g]
Jesus has just confronted the spiritual leaders of the land with hard reality. They have two choices: they can believe Him and repent, or they can disbelieve Him and call His stories rabble-rousing and craziness. In their minds, the cost of believing is just too high. Everything they have—their positions and standings in the community, their worldviews, their own images of themselves—is at stake. But they can’t openly condemn this popular teacher of the people.
45 And so the chief priests and the Pharisees, the teachers and the elders, knew that when Jesus told these stories He was speaking about them. 46 Not believing, they looked for a way to arrest Him—a stealthy way, though. They were afraid to make too bold a move against Him because all the people believed He was a prophet.
Footnotes
- 21:5 Zechariah 9:9
- 21:9 Psalm 118:26
- 21:13 Isaiah 56:7; Jeremiah 7:11
- 21:16 Psalm 8:2
- 21:25 Literally, immersing, an act of repentance
- 21:42 Psalm 118:22–23
- 21:44 Some manuscripts omit verse 44.
Matthew 21
Amplified Bible, Classic Edition
Matthew 21
Amplified Bible, Classic Edition
21 And when they came near Jerusalem and had reached Bethphage at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two disciples on ahead,
2 Saying to them, Go into the village that is opposite you, and at once you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her; untie [them] and bring [them] to Me.
3 If anyone says anything to you, you shall reply, The Lord needs them, and he will let them go without delay.
4 This happened that what was spoken by the prophet might be fulfilled, saying,
5 Say to the Daughter of Zion [inhabitants of Jerusalem], Behold, your King is coming to you, lowly and riding on a donkey, and on a colt, the foal of a donkey [a beast of burden].(A)
6 Then the disciples went and did as Jesus had directed them.
7 They brought the donkey and the colt and laid their coats upon them, and He seated Himself on them [the clothing].
8 And most of the crowd kept spreading their garments on the road, and others kept cutting branches from the trees and scattering them on the road.
9 And the crowds that went ahead of Him and those that followed Him kept shouting, Hosanna ([a]O be propitious, graciously inclined) to the Son of David, [[b]the Messiah]! Blessed (praised, glorified) is He Who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna (O be favorably disposed) in the highest [heaven]!(B)
10 And when He entered Jerusalem, all the city became agitated and [c][trembling with excitement] said, Who is [d]This?
11 And the crowds replied, This is the prophet Jesus from Nazareth of Galilee.
12 And Jesus went into the temple ([e]whole temple enclosure) and drove out all who bought and sold in the [f]sacred place, and He turned over the [g]four-footed tables of the money changers and the chairs of those who sold doves.
13 He said to them, The Scripture says, My house shall be called a house of prayer; but you have made it a den of robbers.(C)
14 And the blind and the lame came to Him in the [h]porches and courts of the temple, and He cured them.
15 But when the chief priests and the scribes saw the wonderful things that He did and the boys and the girls and the [i]youths and the maidens crying out in the [j]porches and courts of the temple, Hosanna (O be propitious, graciously inclined) to the Son of David! they were indignant.
16 And they said to Him, Do You hear what these are saying? And Jesus replied to them, Yes; have you never read, Out of the mouths of babes and unweaned infants You have made (provided) perfect praise?(D)
17 And leaving them, He departed from the city and went out to Bethany and lodged there.
18 In the early dawn the next morning, as He was coming back to the city, He was hungry.
19 And as He saw [k]one single leafy fig tree [l]above the roadside, He went to it but He found nothing but leaves on it [[m]seeing that in the fig tree the fruit appears at the same time as the leaves]. And He said to it, Never again shall fruit grow on you! And the fig tree withered up at once.
20 When the disciples saw it, they marveled greatly and asked, How is it that the fig tree has withered away all at once?
21 And Jesus answered them, Truly I say to you, if you have faith (a [n]firm relying trust) and do not doubt, you will not only do what has been done to the fig tree, but even if you say to this mountain, Be taken up and cast into the sea, it will be done.
22 And whatever you ask for in prayer, having faith and [really] believing, you will receive.
23 And when He entered the sacred [o]enclosure of the temple, the chief priests and elders of the people came up to Him as He was teaching and said, By what [p]power of authority are You doing these things, and who gave You this power of authority?
24 Jesus answered them, I also will ask you a question, and if you give Me the answer, then I also will tell you by what [q]power of authority I do these things.
25 The baptism of John—from where was it? From heaven or from men? And they reasoned and argued with one another, If we say, From heaven, [r]He will ask us, Why then did you not believe him?
26 But if we say, From men—we are afraid of and must reckon with the multitude, for they all regard John as a prophet.
27 So they answered Jesus, We do not know. And He said to them, Neither will I tell you by what [s]power of authority I do these things.
28 What do you think? There was a man who had two sons. He came to the first and said, Son, go and work today in the vineyard.
29 And he answered, I will not; but afterward he changed his mind and went.
30 Then the man came to the second and said the same [thing]. And he replied, I will [go], sir; but he did not go.
31 Which of the two did the will of the father? They replied, The first one. Jesus said to them, Truly I tell you, the tax collectors and the harlots will get into the kingdom of heaven before you.
32 For John came to you walking in the way of an upright man in right standing with God, and you did not believe him, but the tax collectors and the harlots did believe him; and you, even when you saw that, did not afterward change your minds and believe him [adhere to, trust in, and rely on what he told you].
33 Listen to another parable: There was a master of a house who planted a vineyard and put a hedge around it and dug a wine vat in it and built a watchtower. Then he let it out [for rent] to tenants and went into another country.
34 When the fruit season drew near, he sent his servants to the tenants to get his [share of the] fruit.
35 But the tenants took his servants and beat one, killed another, and stoned another.
36 Again he sent other servants, more than the first time, and they treated them the same way.
37 Finally he sent his own son to them, saying, They will respect and give heed to my son.
38 But when the tenants saw the son, they said to themselves, This is the heir; come on, let us kill him and have his inheritance.
39 And they took him and threw him out of the vineyard and killed him.
40 Now when the owner of the vineyard comes back, what will he do to those tenants?
41 They said to Him, He will put those wretches to a miserable death and rent the vineyard to other tenants [t]of such a character that they will give him the fruits promptly in their season.(E)
42 Jesus asked them, Have you never read in the Scriptures: The very Stone which the builders rejected and threw away has become the Cornerstone; this is the Lord’s doing, and it is marvelous in our eyes?(F)
43 I tell you, for this reason the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people who will produce the fruits of it.
44 [u]And whoever falls on this Stone will be broken to pieces, but he on whom It falls will be crushed to powder [and It will [v]winnow him, [w]scattering him like dust].(G)
45 And when the chief priests and the Pharisees heard His parables (comparisons, stories used to illustrate and explain), they perceived that He was talking about them.
46 And although they were trying to arrest Him, they feared the throngs because they regarded Him as a prophet.
Footnotes
- Matthew 21:9 Joseph Thayer, A Greek-English Lexicon.
- Matthew 21:9 Joseph Thayer, A Greek-English Lexicon.
- Matthew 21:10 Literal meaning.
- Matthew 21:10 Capitalized because of what He is, the spotless Son of God, not what the speakers may have thought He was.
- Matthew 21:12 Richard Trench, Synonyms of the New Testament.
- Matthew 21:12 Joseph Thayer, A Greek-English Lexicon.
- Matthew 21:12 James Moulton and George Milligan, The Vocabulary.
- Matthew 21:14 Richard Trench, Synonyms of the New Testament.
- Matthew 21:15 G. Abbott-Smith, Manual Greek Lexicon.
- Matthew 21:15 Richard Trench, Synonyms of the New Testament.
- Matthew 21:19 Literal meaning.
- Matthew 21:19 Joseph Thayer, A Greek-English Lexicon.
- Matthew 21:19 James Orr et al., eds., International Standard Bible Encyclopedia.
- Matthew 21:21 Hermann Cremer, Biblico-Theological Lexicon.
- Matthew 21:23 Richard Trench, Synonyms of the New Testament.
- Matthew 21:23 Joseph Thayer, A Greek-English Lexicon.
- Matthew 21:24 Joseph Thayer, A Greek-English Lexicon.
- Matthew 21:25 Capitalized because of what He is, the spotless Son of God, not what the speakers may have thought He was.
- Matthew 21:27 Joseph Thayer, A Greek-English Lexicon.
- Matthew 21:41 Marvin Vincent, Word Studies.
- Matthew 21:44 Some manuscripts do not contain verse 44.
- Matthew 21:44 Joseph Thayer, A Greek-English Lexicon.
- Matthew 21:44 Marvin Vincent, Word Studies.
Matthew 21
The Message
Matthew 21
The Message
The Royal Welcome
21 1-3 When they neared Jerusalem, having arrived at Bethphage on Mount Olives, Jesus sent two disciples with these instructions: “Go over to the village across from you. You’ll find a donkey tethered there, her colt with her. Untie her and bring them to me. If anyone asks what you’re doing, say, ‘The Master needs them!’ He will send them with you.”
4-5 This is the full story of what was sketched earlier by the prophet:
Tell Zion’s daughter,
“Look, your king’s on his way,
poised and ready, mounted
On a donkey, on a colt,
foal of a pack animal.”
6-9 The disciples went and did exactly what Jesus told them to do. They led the donkey and colt out, laid some of their clothes on them, and Jesus mounted. Nearly all the people in the crowd threw their garments down on the road, giving him a royal welcome. Others cut branches from the trees and threw them down as a welcome mat. Crowds went ahead and crowds followed, all of them calling out, “Hosanna to David’s son!” “Blessed is he who comes in God’s name!” “Hosanna in highest heaven!”
10 As he made his entrance into Jerusalem, the whole city was shaken. Unnerved, people were asking, “What’s going on here? Who is this?”
11 The parade crowd answered, “This is the prophet Jesus, the one from Nazareth in Galilee.”
He Kicked Over the Tables
12-14 Jesus went straight to the Temple and threw out everyone who had set up shop, buying and selling. He kicked over the tables of loan sharks and the stalls of dove merchants. He quoted this text:
My house was designated a house of prayer;
You have made it a hangout for thieves.
Now there was room for the blind and crippled to get in. They came to Jesus and he healed them.
15-16 When the religious leaders saw the outrageous things he was doing, and heard all the children running and shouting through the Temple, “Hosanna to David’s Son!” they were up in arms and took him to task. “Do you hear what these children are saying?”
Jesus said, “Yes, I hear them. And haven’t you read in God’s Word, ‘From the mouths of children and babies I’ll furnish a place of praise’?”
17 Fed up, Jesus spun around and left the city for Bethany, where he spent the night.
The Withered Fig Tree
18-20 Early the next morning Jesus was returning to the city. He was hungry. Seeing a lone fig tree alongside the road, he approached it anticipating a breakfast of figs. When he got to the tree, there was nothing but fig leaves. He said, “No more figs from this tree—ever!” The fig tree withered on the spot, a dry stick. The disciples saw it happen. They rubbed their eyes, saying, “Did we really see this? A leafy tree one minute, a dry stick the next?”
21-22 But Jesus was matter-of-fact: “Yes—and if you embrace this kingdom life and don’t doubt God, you’ll not only do minor feats like I did to the fig tree, but also triumph over huge obstacles. This mountain, for instance, you’ll tell, ‘Go jump in the lake,’ and it will jump. Absolutely everything, ranging from small to large, as you make it a part of your believing prayer, gets included as you lay hold of God.”
True Authority
23 Then he was back in the Temple, teaching. The high priests and leaders of the people came up and demanded, “Show us your credentials. Who authorized you to teach here?”
24-25 Jesus responded, “First let me ask you a question. You answer my question and I’ll answer yours. About the baptism of John—who authorized it: heaven or humans?”
25-27 They were on the spot and knew it. They pulled back into a huddle and whispered, “If we say ‘heaven,’ he’ll ask us why we didn’t believe him; if we say ‘humans,’ we’re up against it with the people because they all hold John up as a prophet.” They decided to concede that round to Jesus. “We don’t know,” they answered.
Jesus said, “Then neither will I answer your question.
The Story of Two Sons
28 “Tell me what you think of this story: A man had two sons. He went up to the first and said, ‘Son, go out for the day and work in the vineyard.’
29 “The son answered, ‘I don’t want to.’ Later on he thought better of it and went.
30 “The father gave the same command to the second son. He answered, ‘Sure, glad to.’ But he never went.
31-32 “Which of the two sons did what the father asked?”
They said, “The first.”
Jesus said, “Yes, and I tell you that crooks and whores are going to precede you into God’s kingdom. John came to you showing you the right road. You turned up your noses at him, but the crooks and whores believed him. Even when you saw their changed lives, you didn’t care enough to change and believe him.
The Story of the Greedy Farmhands
33-34 “Here’s another story. Listen closely. There was once a man, a wealthy farmer, who planted a vineyard. He fenced it, dug a winepress, put up a watchtower, then turned it over to the farmhands and went off on a trip. When it was time to harvest the grapes, he sent his servants back to collect his profits.
35-37 “The farmhands grabbed the first servant and beat him up. The next one they murdered. They threw stones at the third but he got away. The owner tried again, sending more servants. They got the same treatment. The owner was at the end of his rope. He decided to send his son. ‘Surely,’ he thought, ‘they will respect my son.’
38-39 “But when the farmhands saw the son arrive, they rubbed their hands in greed. ‘This is the heir! Let’s kill him and have it all for ourselves.’ They grabbed him, threw him out, and killed him.
40 “Now, when the owner of the vineyard arrives home from his trip, what do you think he will do to the farmhands?”
41 “He’ll kill them—a rotten bunch, and good riddance,” they answered. “Then he’ll assign the vineyard to farmhands who will hand over the profits when it’s time.”
42-44 Jesus said, “Right—and you can read it for yourselves in your Bibles:
The stone the masons threw out
is now the cornerstone.
This is God’s work;
we rub our eyes, we can hardly believe it!
“This is the way it is with you. God’s kingdom will be taken back from you and handed over to a people who will live out a kingdom life. Whoever stumbles on this Stone gets shattered; whoever the Stone falls on gets smashed.”
45-46 When the religious leaders heard this story, they knew it was aimed at them. They wanted to arrest Jesus and put him in jail, but, intimidated by public opinion, they held back. Most people held him to be a prophet of God.
Matthew 21
New International Version
Matthew 21
New International Version
Jesus Comes to Jerusalem as King(A)(B)
21 As they approached Jerusalem and came to Bethphage on the Mount of Olives,(C) Jesus sent two disciples, 2 saying to them, “Go to the village ahead of you, and at once you will find a donkey tied there, with her colt by her. Untie them and bring them to me. 3 If anyone says anything to you, say that the Lord needs them, and he will send them right away.”
4 This took place to fulfill(D) what was spoken through the prophet:
5 “Say to Daughter Zion,
‘See, your king comes to you,
gentle and riding on a donkey,
and on a colt, the foal of a donkey.’”[a](E)
6 The disciples went and did as Jesus had instructed them. 7 They brought the donkey and the colt and placed their cloaks on them for Jesus to sit on. 8 A very large crowd spread their cloaks(F) on the road, while others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. 9 The crowds that went ahead of him and those that followed shouted,
10 When Jesus entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred and asked, “Who is this?”
11 The crowds answered, “This is Jesus, the prophet(J) from Nazareth in Galilee.”
Jesus at the Temple(K)
12 Jesus entered the temple courts and drove out all who were buying(L) and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers(M) and the benches of those selling doves.(N) 13 “It is written,” he said to them, “‘My house will be called a house of prayer,’[e](O) but you are making it ‘a den of robbers.’[f]”(P)
14 The blind and the lame came to him at the temple, and he healed them.(Q) 15 But when the chief priests and the teachers of the law saw the wonderful things he did and the children shouting in the temple courts, “Hosanna to the Son of David,”(R) they were indignant.(S)
16 “Do you hear what these children are saying?” they asked him.
“Yes,” replied Jesus, “have you never read,
17 And he left them and went out of the city to Bethany,(U) where he spent the night.
Jesus Curses a Fig Tree(V)
18 Early in the morning, as Jesus was on his way back to the city, he was hungry. 19 Seeing a fig tree by the road, he went up to it but found nothing on it except leaves. Then he said to it, “May you never bear fruit again!” Immediately the tree withered.(W)
20 When the disciples saw this, they were amazed. “How did the fig tree wither so quickly?” they asked.
21 Jesus replied, “Truly I tell you, if you have faith and do not doubt,(X) not only can you do what was done to the fig tree, but also you can say to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and it will be done. 22 If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for(Y) in prayer.”
The Authority of Jesus Questioned(Z)
23 Jesus entered the temple courts, and, while he was teaching, the chief priests and the elders of the people came to him. “By what authority(AA) are you doing these things?” they asked. “And who gave you this authority?”
24 Jesus replied, “I will also ask you one question. If you answer me, I will tell you by what authority I am doing these things. 25 John’s baptism—where did it come from? Was it from heaven, or of human origin?”
They discussed it among themselves and said, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will ask, ‘Then why didn’t you believe him?’ 26 But if we say, ‘Of human origin’—we are afraid of the people, for they all hold that John was a prophet.”(AB)
27 So they answered Jesus, “We don’t know.”
Then he said, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I am doing these things.
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.’(AC)
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(AD) and the prostitutes(AE) are entering the kingdom of God ahead of you. 32 For John came to you to show you the way of righteousness,(AF) and you did not believe him, but the tax collectors(AG) and the prostitutes(AH) did. And even after you saw this, you did not repent(AI) and believe him.
The Parable of the Tenants(AJ)
33 “Listen to another parable: There was a landowner who planted(AK) a vineyard. He put a wall around it, dug a winepress in it and built a watchtower.(AL) Then he rented the vineyard to some farmers and moved to another place.(AM) 34 When the harvest time approached, he sent his servants(AN) to the tenants to collect his fruit.
35 “The tenants seized his servants; they beat one, killed another, and stoned a third.(AO) 36 Then he sent other servants(AP) 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.(AQ) Come, let’s kill him(AR) and take his inheritance.’(AS) 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,”(AT) they replied, “and he will rent the vineyard to other tenants,(AU) 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’[h]?(AV)
43 “Therefore I tell you that the kingdom of God will be taken away from you(AW) 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.”[i](AX)
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.(AY)
Footnotes
- Matthew 21:5 Zech. 9:9
- Matthew 21:9 A Hebrew expression meaning “Save!” which became an exclamation of praise; also in verse 15
- Matthew 21:9 Psalm 118:25,26
- Matthew 21:9 A Hebrew expression meaning “Save!” which became an exclamation of praise; also in verse 15
- Matthew 21:13 Isaiah 56:7
- Matthew 21:13 Jer. 7:11
- Matthew 21:16 Psalm 8:2 (see Septuagint)
- Matthew 21:42 Psalm 118:22,23
- Matthew 21:44 Some manuscripts do not have verse 44.
The Voice (VOICE)
The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
Amplified Bible, Classic Edition (AMPC) 
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The Message (MSG)
Copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson
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