The Authority of Jesus Challenged

¹hOne day, ias Jesus1 was teaching the people in the temple and preaching the gospel, jthe chief priests and the scribes with the elders came up ²and said to him, “Tell us kby what authority you do these things, or who it is that gave you this authority.” ³He answered them, “I also will ask you a question. Now tell me, ⁴was the baptism of John lfrom heaven or from man?” ⁵And they discussed it with one another, saying, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will say, m‘Why did you not believe him?’ ⁶But if we say, ‘From man,’ all the people will stone us to death, for they are convinced that John was na prophet.” ⁷So they answered that they did not know where it came from. ⁸And Jesus said to them, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things.”

The Parable of the Wicked Tenants

⁹oAnd he began to tell the people this parable: “A man planted pa vineyard and qlet it out to tenants and rwent into another country for a long while. ¹⁰When the time came, he sent a servant2 to the tenants, so that qthey would give him some of the fruit of the vineyard. sBut the tenants beat him and sent him away empty-handed. ¹¹tAnd she sent another servant. But they also beat and utreated him shamefully, and sent him away empty-handed. ¹²sAnd he sent yet a third. This one also they wounded and cast out. ¹³Then the owner of the vineyard said, ‘What shall I do? I will send my vbeloved son; perhaps they will respect him.’ ¹⁴But when the tenants saw him, they said to themselves, w‘This is the heir. xLet us kill him, so that the inheritance may be ours.’ ¹⁵And they ythrew him out of the vineyard and killed him. What then will the owner of the vineyard do to them? ¹⁶zHe will acome and destroy those tenants and bgive the vineyard to others.” When they heard this, they said, “Surely not!” ¹⁷But he clooked directly at them and said, “What then is this that is written:

d“‘The stone that the builders rejected

has become the cornerstone’?3

¹⁸eEveryone who falls on that stone will be broken to pieces, and when it falls fon anyone, it will crush him.”

Paying Taxes to Caesar

¹⁹hThe scribes and the chief priests sought to lay hands on him at that very hour, for they perceived that he had told this parable against them, but they feared the people. ²⁰iSo they jwatched him and sent spies, who kpretended to be sincere, that they might lcatch him in something he said, so as to deliver him up to the authority and jurisdiction of mthe governor. ²¹So they asked him, “Teacher, we know that you speak and teach rightly, and oshow no partiality,4 but truly teach pthe way of God. ²²Is it lawful for us to give qtribute to rCaesar, or not?” ²³But he perceived their scraftiness, and said to them, ²⁴“Show me ta denarius.5 Whose likeness and inscription does it have?” They said, “Caesar's.” ²⁵He said to them, “Then urender to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's.” ²⁶And they were not able in the presence of the people vto catch him in what he said, but marveling at his answer they became silent.

Sadducees Ask About the Resurrection

²⁷There came to him wsome Sadducees, xthose who deny that there is a resurrection, ²⁸and they asked him a question, saying, “Teacher, Moses wrote for us ythat if a man's brother dies, having a wife but no children, the man6 must take the widow and raise up offspring for his brother. ²⁹Now there were seven brothers. The first took a wife, and died without children. ³⁰And the second ³¹and the third took her, and likewise all seven left no children and died. ³²Afterward the woman also died. ³³In the resurrection, therefore, whose wife will the woman be? For the seven had her as wife.”

³⁴And Jesus said to them, z“The sons of this age amarry and aare given in marriage, ³⁵but those who are bconsidered worthy to attain to cthat age and to the resurrection from the dead dneither marry dnor are given in marriage, ³⁶for ethey cannot die anymore, because they are fequal to angels and gare hsons of God, being isons7 of the resurrection. ³⁷But that the dead are raised, jeven Moses showed, in kthe passage about the bush, where he calls lthe Lord the God of Abraham and the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob. ³⁸Now he is not God of the dead, but of the living, for all mlive to him.” ³⁹Then some of the scribes nanswered, “Teacher, you have spoken well.” ⁴⁰For othey no longer dared to ask him any question.

Whose Son Is the Christ?

⁴¹pBut he said to them, “How can they say that qthe Christ is qDavid's son? ⁴²For David himself says in the Book of Psalms,

r“‘The Lord said to my Lord,

“Sit at my right hand,

⁴³until I make your enemies syour footstool.”’

⁴⁴David thus calls him Lord, so thow is he his son?”

Beware of the Scribes

⁴⁵uAnd in the hearing of all the people he said to his disciples, ⁴⁶“Beware of the scribes, who like to walk around in long robes, and love greetings in the marketplaces and the best seats in the synagogues and vthe places of honor at feasts, ⁴⁷wwho devour widows' houses and xfor a pretense make long prayers. They will receive the greater condemnation.”