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12 And He began to speak unto them by parables: “A certain man planted a vineyard, and set a hedge about it, and dug a place for the wine vat, and built a watchtower; and he leased it out to husbandmen and went into a far country.

And at the harvest 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 therefore shall 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 has become the head of the corner;

11 this was the Lord’s doing, and it is marvelous in our eyes.’”

12 And they sought to lay hold on Him, but they 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 sent unto Him certain of the Pharisees and of the Herodians to catch Him in His words.

14 And when they had come, they said 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 said unto them, “Whose image and superscription is this?” 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 marveled at Him.

18 Then came unto Him the Sadducees, who say that there is no resurrection. And they asked Him, saying,

19 “Master, Moses wrote unto us that if a man’s brother die, and leave his wife behind him, and leave no children, then 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 leaving any seed. And the third likewise.

22 So 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, for all seven had her for a 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 who are in Heaven.

26 And concerning the dead, that they rise: have ye not read in the book of Moses, how in the bush God spoke 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 neighbor as thyself.’ There is no 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 than He.

33 And to love Him with all the heart, with all the understanding, with all the soul, and with all the strength, and to love his neighbor 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 dared 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 at My right hand until 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, who 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 who devour widows’ houses, and for a pretense make long prayers: these shall receive greater damnation.”

41 And Jesus sat opposite the treasury, and beheld how the people cast money into the treasury. And many who 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 said unto them, “Verily I say unto you, that this poor widow hath cast more in than all they that have cast into the treasury;

44 for they all cast in of their abundance, but she of her want cast in all that she had, even all her living.”

13 And as He went out of the temple, one of His disciples said unto Him, “Master, see what manner of stones and what buildings are here!”

And Jesus answering, said unto him, “Seest thou these great buildings? There shall not be left one stone upon another that shall not be thrown down.”

And as He sat on the Mount of Olives opposite the temple, Peter and James and John and Andrew asked Him privately,

“Tell us, when shall these things be? And what shall be the sign when all these things shall be fulfilled?”

And Jesus answering them, began to say, “Take heed lest any man deceive you.

For many shall come in My name, saying, ‘I am Christ!’ and shall deceive many.

And when ye shall hear of wars and rumors of wars, be ye not troubled, for such things must come to pass; but the end shall not be yet.

For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom; and there shall be earthquakes in divers places, and there shall be famines and troubles. These are the beginnings of sorrows.

“But take heed for yourselves, for they shall deliver you up to councils, and in the synagogues ye shall be beaten. And ye shall be brought before rulers and kings for My sake, for a testimony against them.

10 And the Gospel must first be proclaimed among all nations.

11 But when then shall lead you and deliver you up, take no thought beforehand what ye shall speak; neither need ye premeditate. But whatsoever shall be given you in that hour, that speak ye; for it is not ye that speak, but the Holy Ghost.

12 Now the brother shall betray the brother to death, and the father the son; and children shall rise up against their parents and shall cause them to be put to death.

13 And ye shall be hated by all men for My name’s sake; but he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.

14 “But when ye shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing where it ought not be” (let him that readeth understand), “then let them that be in Judea flee to the mountains.

15 And let him that is on the housetop not go down into the house, neither enter therein to take any thing out of his house.

16 And let him that is in the field not turn back again to take up his garment.

17 But woe to them that are with child and to them that give suck in those days!

18 And pray ye that your flight be not in the winter.

19 For in those days shall be affliction such as was not from the beginning of the creation which God created until this time, neither shall be.

20 And except that the Lord had shortened those days, no flesh should be saved; but for the elect’s sake, whom He hath chosen, He hath shortened the days.

21 And then if any man shall say to you, ‘Lo, here is Christ!’ or, ‘Lo, He is there!’ believe him not;

22 for false christs and false prophets shall rise, and shall show signs and wonders to seduce, if it were possible, even the elect.

23 But take ye heed; behold, I have foretold you all things.

24 “But in those days, after that tribulation, ‘the sun shall be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light,

25 and the stars of heaven shall fall, and the powers that are in heaven shall be shaken.’

26 And then shall they see the Son of Man coming in the clouds with great power and glory.

27 And then shall He send His angels and shall gather together His elect from the four winds, from the uttermost part of the earth to the uttermost part of heaven.

28 “Now learn a parable of the fig tree: When her branch is yet tender and putteth forth leaves, ye know that summer is near.

29 So ye in like manner, when ye shall see these things come to pass, know that it is nigh, even at the doors.

30 Verily I say unto you, that this generation shall not pass till all these things be done.

31 Heaven and earth shall pass away, but My words shall not pass away.

32 But of that day and that hour knoweth no man — no, not the angels who are in Heaven, neither the Son, but only the Father.

33 “Take ye heed, watch and pray; for ye know not when the time is.

34 For the Son of Man is as a man taking a far journey, who left his house and gave authority to his servants, and to every man his work, and commanded the doorkeeper to watch.

35 Watch ye therefore, for ye know not when the Master of the house cometh — at evening, or at midnight, or at the cockcrowing, or in the morning —

36 lest coming suddenly, He find you sleeping.

37 And what I say unto you, I say unto all: Watch!”

The Parable of the Tenants(A)

12 Jesus then began to speak to them in parables: “A man planted a vineyard.(B) He put a wall around it, dug a pit for the winepress and built a watchtower. Then he rented the vineyard to some farmers and moved to another place. At harvest time he sent a servant to the tenants to collect from them some of the fruit of the vineyard. But they seized him, beat him and sent him away empty-handed. Then he sent another servant to them; they struck this man on the head and treated him shamefully. He sent still another, and that one they killed. He sent many others; some of them they beat, others they killed.

“He had one left to send, a son, whom he loved. He sent him last of all,(C) saying, ‘They will respect my son.’

“But the tenants said to one another, ‘This is the heir. Come, let’s kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.’ So they took him and killed him, and threw him out of the vineyard.

“What then will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and kill those tenants and give the vineyard to others. 10 Haven’t you read this passage of Scripture:

“‘The stone the builders rejected
    has become the cornerstone;(D)
11 the Lord has done this,
    and it is marvelous in our eyes’[a]?”(E)

12 Then the chief priests, the teachers of the law and the elders looked for a way to arrest him because they knew he had spoken the parable against them. But they were afraid of the crowd;(F) so they left him and went away.(G)

Paying the Imperial Tax to Caesar(H)

13 Later they sent some of the Pharisees and Herodians(I) to Jesus to catch him(J) in his words. 14 They came to him and said, “Teacher, we know that you are a man of integrity. You aren’t swayed by others, because you pay no attention to who they are; but you teach the way of God in accordance with the truth. Is it right to pay the imperial tax[b] to Caesar or not? 15 Should we pay or shouldn’t we?”

But Jesus knew their hypocrisy. “Why are you trying to trap me?” he asked. “Bring me a denarius and let me look at it.” 16 They brought the coin, and he asked them, “Whose image is this? And whose inscription?”

“Caesar’s,” they replied.

17 Then Jesus said to them, “Give back to Caesar what is Caesar’s and to God what is God’s.”(K)

And they were amazed at him.

Marriage at the Resurrection(L)

18 Then the Sadducees,(M) who say there is no resurrection,(N) came to him with a question. 19 “Teacher,” they said, “Moses wrote for us that if a man’s brother dies and leaves a wife but no children, the man must marry the widow and raise up offspring for his brother.(O) 20 Now there were seven brothers. The first one married and died without leaving any children. 21 The second one married the widow, but he also died, leaving no child. It was the same with the third. 22 In fact, none of the seven left any children. Last of all, the woman died too. 23 At the resurrection[c] whose wife will she be, since the seven were married to her?”

24 Jesus replied, “Are you not in error because you do not know the Scriptures(P) or the power of God? 25 When the dead rise, they will neither marry nor be given in marriage; they will be like the angels in heaven.(Q) 26 Now about the dead rising—have you not read in the Book of Moses, in the account of the burning bush, how God said to him, ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’[d]?(R) 27 He is not the God of the dead, but of the living. You are badly mistaken!”

The Greatest Commandment(S)

28 One of the teachers of the law(T) came and heard them debating. Noticing that Jesus had given them a good answer, he asked him, “Of all the commandments, which is the most important?”

29 “The most important one,” answered Jesus, “is this: ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.[e] 30 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’[f](U) 31 The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’[g](V) There is no commandment greater than these.”

32 “Well said, teacher,” the man replied. “You are right in saying that God is one and there is no other but him.(W) 33 To love him with all your heart, with all your understanding and with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself is more important than all burnt offerings and sacrifices.”(X)

34 When Jesus saw that he had answered wisely, he said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.”(Y) And from then on no one dared ask him any more questions.(Z)

Whose Son Is the Messiah?(AA)(AB)

35 While Jesus was teaching in the temple courts,(AC) he asked, “Why do the teachers of the law say that the Messiah is the son of David?(AD) 36 David himself, speaking by the Holy Spirit,(AE) declared:

“‘The Lord said to my Lord:
    “Sit at my right hand
until I put your enemies
    under your feet.”’[h](AF)

37 David himself calls him ‘Lord.’ How then can he be his son?”

The large crowd(AG) listened to him with delight.

Warning Against the Teachers of the Law

38 As he taught, Jesus said, “Watch out for the teachers of the law. They like to walk around in flowing robes and be greeted with respect in the marketplaces, 39 and have the most important seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at banquets.(AH) 40 They devour widows’ houses and for a show make lengthy prayers. These men will be punished most severely.”

The Widow’s Offering(AI)

41 Jesus sat down opposite the place where the offerings were put(AJ) and watched the crowd putting their money into the temple treasury. Many rich people threw in large amounts. 42 But a poor widow came and put in two very small copper coins, worth only a few cents.

43 Calling his disciples to him, Jesus said, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others. 44 They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything—all she had to live on.”(AK)

The Destruction of the Temple and Signs of the End Times(AL)

13 As Jesus was leaving the temple, one of his disciples said to him, “Look, Teacher! What massive stones! What magnificent buildings!”

“Do you see all these great buildings?” replied Jesus. “Not one stone here will be left on another; every one will be thrown down.”(AM)

As Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives(AN) opposite the temple, Peter, James, John(AO) and Andrew asked him privately, “Tell us, when will these things happen? And what will be the sign that they are all about to be fulfilled?”

Jesus said to them: “Watch out that no one deceives you.(AP) Many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am he,’ and will deceive many. When you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be earthquakes in various places, and famines. These are the beginning of birth pains.

“You must be on your guard. You will be handed over to the local councils and flogged in the synagogues.(AQ) On account of me you will stand before governors and kings as witnesses to them. 10 And the gospel must first be preached to all nations. 11 Whenever you are arrested and brought to trial, do not worry beforehand about what to say. Just say whatever is given you at the time, for it is not you speaking, but the Holy Spirit.(AR)

12 “Brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child. Children will rebel against their parents and have them put to death.(AS) 13 Everyone will hate you because of me,(AT) but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved.(AU)

14 “When you see ‘the abomination that causes desolation’[i](AV) standing where it[j] does not belong—let the reader understand—then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. 15 Let no one on the housetop go down or enter the house to take anything out. 16 Let no one in the field go back to get their cloak. 17 How dreadful it will be in those days for pregnant women and nursing mothers!(AW) 18 Pray that this will not take place in winter, 19 because those will be days of distress unequaled from the beginning, when God created the world,(AX) until now—and never to be equaled again.(AY)

20 “If the Lord had not cut short those days, no one would survive. But for the sake of the elect, whom he has chosen, he has shortened them. 21 At that time if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Messiah!’ or, ‘Look, there he is!’ do not believe it.(AZ) 22 For false messiahs and false prophets(BA) will appear and perform signs and wonders(BB) to deceive, if possible, even the elect. 23 So be on your guard;(BC) I have told you everything ahead of time.

24 “But in those days, following that distress,

“‘the sun will be darkened,
    and the moon will not give its light;
25 the stars will fall from the sky,
    and the heavenly bodies will be shaken.’[k](BD)

26 “At that time people will see the Son of Man coming in clouds(BE) with great power and glory. 27 And he will send his angels and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of the heavens.(BF)

28 “Now learn this lesson from the fig tree: As soon as its twigs get tender and its leaves come out, you know that summer is near. 29 Even so, when you see these things happening, you know that it[l] is near, right at the door. 30 Truly I tell you, this generation(BG) will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened.(BH) 31 Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.(BI)

The Day and Hour Unknown

32 “But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.(BJ) 33 Be on guard! Be alert[m]!(BK) You do not know when that time will come. 34 It’s like a man going away: He leaves his house and puts his servants(BL) in charge, each with their assigned task, and tells the one at the door to keep watch.

35 “Therefore keep watch because you do not know when the owner of the house will come back—whether in the evening, or at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or at dawn. 36 If he comes suddenly, do not let him find you sleeping. 37 What I say to you, I say to everyone: ‘Watch!’”(BM)

Footnotes

  1. Mark 12:11 Psalm 118:22,23
  2. Mark 12:14 A special tax levied on subject peoples, not on Roman citizens
  3. Mark 12:23 Some manuscripts resurrection, when people rise from the dead,
  4. Mark 12:26 Exodus 3:6
  5. Mark 12:29 Or The Lord our God is one Lord
  6. Mark 12:30 Deut. 6:4,5
  7. Mark 12:31 Lev. 19:18
  8. Mark 12:36 Psalm 110:1
  9. Mark 13:14 Daniel 9:27; 11:31; 12:11
  10. Mark 13:14 Or he
  11. Mark 13:25 Isaiah 13:10; 34:4
  12. Mark 13:29 Or he
  13. Mark 13:33 Some manuscripts alert and pray