The Parable of the Wicked Tenants

9 ^oAnd 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. 10 When the time came, he sent a servant¹ 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. 11 ^tAnd ^she sent another servant. But they also beat and ^utreated him shamefully, and sent him away empty-handed. 12 ^sAnd he sent yet a third. This one also they wounded and cast out. 13 Then the owner of the vineyard said, ‘What shall I do? I will send my ^vbeloved son; perhaps they will respect him.’ 14 But 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.’ 15 And they ^ythrew him out of the vineyard and killed him. What then will the owner of the vineyard do to them? 16 ^zHe will ^acome and destroy those tenants and ^bgive the vineyard to others.” When they heard this, they said, “Surely not!” 17 But he ^clooked directly at them and said, “What then is this that is written:

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

Paying Taxes to Caesar

19 ^hThe 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.

11 ^yThis Jesus¹ is the stone that was ^zrejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone.² 12 And there is ^asalvation ^bin no one else, for ^cthere is no other ^dname under heaven given among men³ by which we must be saved.”

4 As you come to him, a living stone ⁿrejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, 5 ^oyou yourselves like living stones are being built up as ^pa spiritual house, to be ^qa holy priesthood, ^rto offer spiritual sacrifices ^sacceptable to God through Jesus Christ. 6 For it stands in Scripture:

7 So the honor is for you who ^vbelieve, but for those who ^vdo not believe,

8 and

They stumble because they disobey the word, ^yas they were destined to do.

13 But the Lord of hosts, ^qhim you shall honor as holy. Let him be your fear, and let him be your dread. 14 And he will become a ^rsanctuary and ^sa stone of offense and a rock of stumbling to both houses of Israel, a trap and a snare to the inhabitants of Jerusalem. 15 And many ^tshall stumble on it. They shall fall and be broken; they shall be snared and taken.”