New Living Translation

New American Standard Bible 1995

1Then Jesus began teaching them with stories: “A man planted a vineyard. He built a wall around it, dug a pit for pressing out the grape juice, and built a lookout tower. Then he leased the vineyard to tenant farmers and moved to another country.

1And He began to speak to them in parables: "A man PLANTED A VINEYARD AND PUT A WALL AROUND IT, AND DUG A VAT UNDER THE WINE PRESS AND BUILT A TOWER, and rented it out to vine-growers and went on a journey.

2 At the time of the grape harvest, he sent one of his servants to collect his share of the crop.

2"At the harvest time he sent a slave to the vine-growers, in order to receive some of the produce of the vineyard from the vine-growers.

3 But the farmers grabbed the servant, beat him up, and sent him back empty-handed.

3"They took him, and beat him and sent him away empty-handed.

4 The owner then sent another servant, but they insulted him and beat him over the head.

4"Again he sent them another slave, and they wounded him in the head, and treated him shamefully.

5 The next servant he sent was killed. Others he sent were either beaten or killed,

5"And he sent another, and that one they killed; and so with many others, beating some and killing others.

6 until there was only one left—his son whom he loved dearly. The owner finally sent him, thinking, ‘Surely they will respect my son.’

6"He had one more to send, a beloved son; he sent him last of all to them, saying, 'They will respect my son.'

7 “But the tenant farmers said to one another, ‘Here comes the heir to this estate. Let’s kill him and get the estate for ourselves!’

7"But those vine-growers said to one another, 'This is the heir; come, let us kill him, and the inheritance will be ours!'

8 So they grabbed him and murdered him and threw his body out of the vineyard.

8"They took him, and killed him and threw him out of the vineyard.

9 “What do you suppose the owner of the vineyard will do?” Jesus asked. “I’ll tell you—he will come and kill those farmers and lease the vineyard to others.

9"What will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and destroy the vine-growers, and will give the vineyard to others.

10 Didn’t you ever read this in the Scriptures? ‘The stone that the builders rejected has now become the cornerstone.

10"Have you not even read this Scripture: 'THE STONE WHICH THE BUILDERS REJECTED, THIS BECAME THE CHIEF CORNER stone;

11 This is the LORD ’s doing, and it is wonderful to see.’ ”

11THIS CAME ABOUT FROM THE LORD, AND IT IS MARVELOUS IN OUR EYES '?"

12The religious leaders wanted to arrest Jesus because they realized he was telling the story against them—they were the wicked farmers. But they were afraid of the crowd, so they left him and went away. Taxes for Caesar

12And they were seeking to seize Him, and yet they feared the people, for they understood that He spoke the parable against them. And so they left Him and went away.

13Later the leaders sent some Pharisees and supporters of Herod to trap Jesus into saying something for which he could be arrested.

13Then they sent some of the Pharisees and Herodians to Him in order to trap Him in a statement.

14“Teacher,” they said, “we know how honest you are. You are impartial and don’t play favorites. You teach the way of God truthfully. Now tell us—is it right to pay taxes to Caesar or not?

14They came and said to Him, "Teacher, we know that You are truthful and defer to no one; for You are not partial to any, but teach the way of God in truth. Is it lawful to pay a poll-tax to Caesar, or not?

15Should we pay them, or shouldn’t we?” Jesus saw through their hypocrisy and said, “Why are you trying to trap me? Show me a Roman coin, and I’ll tell you.”

15"Shall we pay or shall we not pay?" But He, knowing their hypocrisy, said to them, "Why are you testing Me? Bring Me a denarius to look at."

16When they handed it to him, he asked, “Whose picture and title are stamped on it?” “Caesar’s,” they replied.

16They brought one. And He said to them, "Whose likeness and inscription is this?" And they said to Him, "Caesar's."

17 “Well, then,” Jesus said, “give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar, and give to God what belongs to God.” His reply completely amazed them. Discussion about Resurrection

17And Jesus said to them, "Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's." And they were amazed at Him.

18Then Jesus was approached by some Sadducees—religious leaders who say there is no resurrection from the dead. They posed this question:

18Some Sadducees (who say that there is no resurrection) came to Jesus, and began questioning Him, saying,

19“Teacher, Moses gave us a law that if a man dies, leaving a wife without children, his brother should marry the widow and have a child who will carry on the brother’s name.

19"Teacher, Moses wrote for us that IF A MAN'S BROTHER DIES and leaves behind a wife AND LEAVES NO CHILD, HIS BROTHER SHOULD MARRY THE WIFE AND RAISE UP CHILDREN TO HIS BROTHER.

20Well, suppose there were seven brothers. The oldest one married and then died without children.

20"There were seven brothers; and the first took a wife, and died leaving no children.

21So the second brother married the widow, but he also died without children. Then the third brother married her.

21"The second one married her, and died leaving behind no children; and the third likewise;

22This continued with all seven of them, and still there were no children. Last of all, the woman also died.

22and so all seven left no children. Last of all the woman died also.

23So tell us, whose wife will she be in the resurrection? For all seven were married to her.”

23"In the resurrection, when they rise again, which one's wife will she be? For all seven had married her."

24Jesus replied, “Your mistake is that you don’t know the Scriptures, and you don’t know the power of God.

24Jesus said to them, "Is this not the reason you are mistaken, that you do not understand the Scriptures or the power of God?

25 For when the dead rise, they will neither marry nor be given in marriage. In this respect they will be like the angels in heaven.

25"For when they rise from the dead, they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven.

26 “But now, as to whether the dead will be raised—haven’t you ever read about this in the writings of Moses, in the story of the burning bush? Long after Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob had died, God said to Moses, ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.’

26"But regarding the fact that the dead rise again, have you not read in the book of Moses, in the passage about the burning bush, how God spoke to him, saying, 'I AM THE GOD OF ABRAHAM, AND THE GOD OF ISAAC, and the God of Jacob '?

27 So he is the God of the living, not the dead. You have made a serious error.” The Most Important Commandment

27"He is not the God of the dead, but of the living; you are greatly mistaken."

28One of the teachers of religious law was standing there listening to the debate. He realized that Jesus had answered well, so he asked, “Of all the commandments, which is the most important?”

28One of the scribes came and heard them arguing, and recognizing that He had answered them well, asked Him, "What commandment is the foremost of all?"

29Jesus replied, “The most important commandment is this: ‘Listen, O Israel! The LORD our God is the one and only LORD .

29Jesus answered, "The foremost is, 'HEAR, O ISRAEL! THE LORD OUR GOD IS ONE LORD;

30 And you must love the LORD your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength.’

30AND YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND, AND WITH ALL YOUR STRENGTH.'

31 The second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ No other commandment is greater than these.”

31"The second is this, 'YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.' There is no other commandment greater than these."

32The teacher of religious law replied, “Well said, Teacher. You have spoken the truth by saying that there is only one God and no other.

32The scribe said to Him, "Right, Teacher; You have truly stated that HE IS ONE, AND THERE IS NO ONE ELSE BESIDES HIM;

33And I know it is important to love him with all my heart and all my understanding and all my strength, and to love my neighbor as myself. This is more important than to offer all of the burnt offerings and sacrifices required in the law.”

33AND TO LOVE HIM WITH ALL THE HEART AND WITH ALL THE UNDERSTANDING AND WITH ALL THE STRENGTH, AND TO LOVE ONE'S NEIGHBOR AS HIMSELF, is much more than all burnt offerings and sacrifices."

34Realizing how much the man understood, Jesus said to him, “You are not far from the Kingdom of God.” And after that, no one dared to ask him any more questions. Whose Son Is the Messiah?

34When Jesus saw that he had answered intelligently, He said to him, "You are not far from the kingdom of God." After that, no one would venture to ask Him any more questions.

35Later, as Jesus was teaching the people in the Temple, he asked, “Why do the teachers of religious law claim that the Messiah is the son of David?

35And Jesus began to say, as He taught in the temple, "How is it that the scribes say that the Christ is the son of David?

36 For David himself, speaking under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, said, ‘The LORD said to my Lord, Sit in the place of honor at my right hand until I humble your enemies beneath your feet.’

36"David himself said in the Holy Spirit, 'THE LORD SAID TO MY LORD, "SIT AT MY RIGHT HAND, UNTIL I PUT YOUR ENEMIES BENEATH YOUR FEET."'

37 Since David himself called the Messiah ‘my Lord,’ how can the Messiah be his son?” The large crowd listened to him with great delight.

37"David himself calls Him 'Lord'; so in what sense is He his son?" And the large crowd enjoyed listening to Him.

38Jesus also taught: “Beware of these teachers of religious law! For they like to parade around in flowing robes and receive respectful greetings as they walk in the marketplaces.

38In His teaching He was saying: "Beware of the scribes who like to walk around in long robes, and like respectful greetings in the market places,

39 And how they love the seats of honor in the synagogues and the head table at banquets.

39and chief seats in the synagogues and places of honor at banquets,

40 Yet they shamelessly cheat widows out of their property and then pretend to be pious by making long prayers in public. Because of this, they will be more severely punished.” The Widow’s Offering

40who devour widows' houses, and for appearance's sake offer long prayers; these will receive greater condemnation."

41Jesus sat down near the collection box in the Temple and watched as the crowds dropped in their money. Many rich people put in large amounts.

41And He sat down opposite the treasury, and began observing how the people were putting money into the treasury; and many rich people were putting in large sums.

42Then a poor widow came and dropped in two small coins.

42A poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which amount to a cent.

43Jesus called his disciples to him and said, “I tell you the truth, this poor widow has given more than all the others who are making contributions.

43Calling His disciples to Him, He said to them, "Truly I say to you, this poor widow put in more than all the contributors to the treasury;

44 For they gave a tiny part of their surplus, but she, poor as she is, has given everything she had to live on.”

44for they all put in out of their surplus, but she, out of her poverty, put in all she owned, all she had to live on."

Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

New American Standard Bible Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, Calif. All rights reserved. For Permission to Quote Information visit //www.lockman.org