Matthew 21:33-44
The Parable of the Wicked Tenants (Mark 12:1-12; Luke 20:9-18)
“Listen to another parable: There was a landowner who planted a vineyard. He put a wall around it, dug a winepress in it, and built a tower. Then he rented it out to some tenants and went away on a journey.
When the harvest time drew near, he sent his servants to the tenants to collect his share of the fruit. But the tenants seized his servants. They beat one, killed another, and stoned a third.
Again, he sent other servants, more than the first group. But the tenants did the same to them.
Finally, he sent his son to them. ‘They will respect my son,’ he said.
But when the tenants saw the son, they said to one another, ‘This is the heir. Come, let us kill him and take his inheritance.’ So they seized him and threw him out of the vineyard and killed him.
Therefore, when the owner of the vineyard returns, what will he do to those tenants?”
“He will bring those wretches to a wretched end,” they replied, “and will rent out the vineyard to other tenants who will give him his share of the fruit at harvest time.”
Jesus said to them, “Have you never read in the Scriptures: ‘The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone. This is from the Lord, and it is marvelous in our eyes’?
Therefore I tell you that the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people who will produce its fruit. He who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces, but he on whom it falls will be crushed.”
When the chief priests and Pharisees heard Jesus’ parables, they knew He was speaking about them. Although they wanted to arrest Him, they feared the crowds, because they considered Jesus a prophet.”
Jesus, WHAT ARE YOU TRYING TO DO? Jesus has just told the story of the two sons, describing the one who has given lip service to obeying his father, only to fail, while the second has eventually obeyed his father, spending a hot dirty day in the vineyards. At this point, the scribes and Pharisees are fuming! One story told against them is bad enough, but now Jesus is following up with a second story, just in case any of his listeners have failed to get the point.
The professional religious people have spent centuries debating the coming of the Messiah-what will he look like? How will he behave? How should they welcome the Messiah? What place will they have in the Messiah’s kingdom? Now here comes Jesus, exploding all these lovely theories. Surely, surely, surely, Jesus can’t be the Messiah-he doesn’t come from the right place or the right family. Jesus isn’t saying any of the things these men expect the Messiah to say. But what are these men to do with Jesus’ stories?
Jesus is effectively saying that everything these men have treasured for so long is wrong, that they have wasted their lives in arguing over picky points of theology while they discourage common people from following God. These men think they have been looking for the Messiah, but now Messiah has come and he doesn’t fit their preconceived notions.
“When the harvest time drew near, he sent his servants to the tenants to collect his share of the fruit. But the tenants seized his servants. They beat one, killed another, and stoned a third. Again, he sent other servants, more than the first group. But the tenants did the same to them.” The dirty secret these religious professionals refuse to acknowledge is the abuse, torture, and murder of multiple prophets. Later, Jesus will weep over Jerusalem because of these murders. For example, righteous Isaiah was sawed in two by wicked King Manasseh while the professional religious people remained silent.
“Finally, he sent his son to them. ‘They will respect my son,’ he said. But when the tenants saw the son, they said to one another, ‘This is the heir. Come, let us kill him and take his inheritance.’ So they seized him and threw him out of the vineyard and killed him.” Now the scribes and Pharisees are really incensed! How dare Jesus imply that they would fail to recognize God’s son and that they would kill him? Perhaps some of the rabble listening so intently to Jesus might do something of the sort, but they would certainly never make such a terrible mistake. We know that Jesus is not merely telling a story but also predicting his eventual death at the hands of these same religious leaders.
“Therefore, when the owner of the vineyard returns, what will he do to those tenants?” “He will bring those wretches to a wretched end,” they replied, “and will rent out the vineyard to other tenants who will give him his share of the fruit at harvest time.” By this point, the crowd is fully engaged and is screaming for those horrible men to get the punishment they so richly deserve. The religious leaders, on the other hand, are beginning to wonder if they need to make a strategic retreat.
“Jesus said to them, “Have you never read in the Scriptures: ‘The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone. This is from the Lord, and it is marvelous in our eyes’?
Therefore I tell you that the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people who will produce its fruit. He who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces, but he on whom it falls will be crushed.”
When the chief priests and Pharisees heard Jesus’ parables, they knew He was speaking about them. Although they wanted to arrest Him, they feared the crowds, because they considered Jesus a prophet.”
Jesus is referring to himself as “the stone the builders rejected.” Nobody has to tell Jesus what the religious leaders think of him; he certainly knows and that is why he is telling this story. But Jesus is also trying to reach out to these same men, warning them to re-think their whole view of him.
One of the amazing things about Jesus that we may fail to understand is that Jesus loves those sneering religious leaders just as much as he does everyone else in the crowd. Jesus realizes that some of these men truly do want to know God, that not all of them are simply indulging in religious one-upmanship. All the time Jesus is telling these stories, he is hoping and praying that something he says will penetrate their preconceived notions, catching them unawares and prying them out of the hardened carapaces of beliefs in which they have imprisoned their hearts and minds. Jesus hopes that somewhere in that group, those who have been searching for God’s presence will experience a sudden moment of enlightenment and think “Aha!”
The question for us is simple: what kind of vineyard tenants are we? Are we willing to accept Jesus as the son of God, accept what Jesus has done for us, and follow hard after God for the rest of our lives? Are we willing to allow Jesus to turn our cherished beliefs upside down?
PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and for caring for us. Lord, thank You for sending Jesus to die for our sins. Thank You, that You will give us the power to follow hard after You if we only will ask. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.
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