Luke 20

20 ¹One of those days, as Jesus taught the people in the temple and preached good news, the chief priests and scribes came up with the elders, ²and asked him, "Tell us by what authority you do these things, or who gave you this authority."

³He answered them, "I also will ask you a question. Tell me: ⁴Was the baptism of John from heaven, or from man?"

⁵They discussed among themselves: "If we say, 'From heaven,' he'll say, 'Why didn't you believe him?' ⁶But if we say 'From man,' all the people will stone us, for they're convinced John was a 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 Father Sends His Beloved Son

⁹He began telling the people this parable: A man planted a vineyard, leased it to tenants, then went abroad for a long time. ¹⁰"At harvest he sent a servant to the tenant farmers for his share of the vineyard's fruit, but they beat him and sent him away empty-handed. ¹¹He sent another servant; they beat him too, humiliated him, and sent him away empty-handed. ¹²And he sent yet a third, but they wounded this one too and threw him out. ¹³The vineyard owner said, 'What should I do? I will send my beloved son; perhaps they will respect him.'

¹⁴But seeing him, the tenants reasoned among themselves: 'This is the heir. Let's kill him, so the inheritance becomes ours.' ¹⁵They threw him out of the vineyard and killed him. What then will the vineyard owner do to them?

¹⁶"He will come, destroy those tenants, and give the vineyard to others." Hearing this, they said, "Impossible!"

¹⁷He looked straight at them and asked, "Then what is this that's written: 'The stone the builders rejected became the cornerstone'? ^a a v17 A quotation from Psalm 118:22. ¹⁸Everyone who falls on that stone will be broken to pieces, and when it falls on anyone, it will crush him."

Give to Caesar, Give to the Father

¹⁹The scribes and chief priests wanted to arrest him then and there, knowing he'd told this parable against them—but they feared the people. ²⁰Watching closely, they sent spies pretending to be honest, to catch him in his words, so as to hand him over to the governor's rule and authority. ²¹They asked him, "Teacher, we know you speak and teach rightly, favor no one, but truly teach God's way. ²²Is it lawful for us to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?"

²³But he saw through their cunning and said,

²⁴"Show me a coin worth a day's wages. Whose image and inscription is on it?" They said, "Caesar's."

²⁵He said to them, "Then give Caesar what's Caesar's, and our Father what's our Father's."

²⁶They could not trap him in his words before the people, and amazed at his answer, they fell silent.

The Father Is God of the Living

²⁷Some Sadducees, who deny there is a resurrection, came and asked him, ²⁸"Teacher, Moses wrote for us: if a man dies leaving a wife but no children, his brother must marry the widow and raise offspring for him. ^b b v28 This describes the levirate marriage law recorded in Deuteronomy 25:5–6. ²⁹Now there were seven brothers. The first took a wife and died childless. ³⁰And the second, ³¹and the third took her, and likewise all seven left no children and died. ³²Finally the woman also died. ³³At the resurrection, then, whose wife will she be? For all seven had married her."

³⁴And Jesus said to them, "The people of this age marry and are given in marriage,

³⁵"But those considered worthy to reach that age and the resurrection from the dead neither marry nor are given in marriage. ³⁶For they can no longer die, because they are like angels and children of our Father, children of the resurrection. ³⁷But even Moses showed the dead are raised, at the bush passage, calling our Father the God of Abraham and of Isaac and of Jacob. ^c c v37 The burning bush account is in Exodus 3:2–6. ³⁸He isn't God of the dead but of the living, for all are alive to him."

³⁹Then some of the scribes answered, "Teacher, you have spoken well." ⁴⁰For they no longer dared to ask him anything.

Whose Son Is the Christ?

⁴¹But he said to them, "How can they say that the Christ is the son of David?

⁴²For David himself says in the Psalms, 'Our Father said to my Lord, "Sit at my right hand, ^d d v42 A quotation from Psalm 110:1. ⁴³until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet."'

⁴⁴David then calls him Lord—how is he his son?"

⁴⁵While all the people were listening, he said to his disciples,

⁴⁶"Watch out for the scribes, who want to walk in long robes, and love greetings in the marketplaces, the best seats in synagogues, and places of honor at feasts, ⁴⁷who devour widows' houses and pray long prayers for show. They will receive greater condemnation."