The Parable of the Vineyard and the Vinedressers^(A)

12 He began to speak to them in parables. “A man planted a vineyard, and set a hedge around it, and dug a pit for the winepress, and built a tower, and rented it to vinedressers, and went to a far country. ² At harvest time he sent a servant to the vinedressers to receive from them some of the fruit of the vineyard. ³ But they seized him and beat him and sent him away empty-handed. ⁴ Then he sent another servant to them. They threw stones at him, and wounded him in the head, and sent him away shamefully handled. ⁵ Still he sent another, and they killed him. And there were many others. Some they beat, and some they killed.

⁶ “Having yet his one well-beloved son, he sent him last to them, saying, ‘They will revere my son.’

⁷ “But those vinedressers said among themselves, ‘This is the heir. Come, let us kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.’ ⁸ So they took him and killed him and threw him out of the vineyard.

⁹ “What then will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and kill the vinedressers and give the vineyard to others. ¹⁰ Have you not read this Scripture:

¹² Then they tried to seize Him, but feared the people, for they knew that He had spoken the parable against them. So they left Him and went their way.

The Parable of the Vineyard and the Vinedressers^(A)

⁹ He began to tell the people this parable: “A man planted a vineyard, and leased it to vinedressers, and went to a distant country for a long time. ¹⁰ At harvest time he sent a servant to the vinedressers so they might give him some fruit of the vineyard. But the vinedressers beat him and sent him away empty-handed. ¹¹ Again, he sent another servant. But they beat him also, and treated him shamefully, and sent him away empty-handed. ¹² Once again, he sent a third. And they wounded him also and drove him out.

¹³ “Then the owner of the vineyard said, ‘What shall I do? I will send my beloved son. Perhaps they will respect him when they see him.’

¹⁴ “But when the vinedressers saw him, they debated among themselves, saying, ‘This is the heir. Come, let us kill him, that the inheritance may be ours.’ ¹⁵ So they drove him out of the vineyard and killed him.

“What then will the owner of the vineyard do to them? ¹⁶ He will come and kill these vinedressers and will give the vineyard to others.”

When they heard this, they said, “May it not be so!”

¹⁷ He looked at them and said, “What then is this that is written:

¹⁸ Whoever falls on that stone will be broken. But he on whom it falls will be crushed to powder.”^[b]

¹⁹ The chief priests and the scribes tried to lay their hands on Him that same hour, but they feared the people. For they perceived that He had told this parable against them.