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Jesus tells a story about a garden

12 Then Jesus began to speak again to the important Jews. He told them stories. He said, ‘There was a man who made a garden. He planted vines to grow grapes there. He built a wall around the garden. He dug a hole in the ground where he could make the grapes into wine. He also built a tall building to watch over the garden. [ a ] He found some farmers who would work in the garden for him. Then he went away to another country. [ b ]

2 At the time for the harvest, the man sent a servant to speak to the farmers. [ c ] He wanted them to give him some fruit from the garden. 3 But the farmers took hold of the servant and they hit him with sticks. They sent him away with nothing. 4 So the man sent another servant to the farmers. They also hit this servant on the head, and they did other bad things to him. 5 The man then sent another servant, but the farmers killed this servant. He sent many other servants to them. The farmers hit some of these servants with sticks and they killed other servants.

6 The man had only one person that he could still send. This was his own son. The man loved him very much. [ d ] So, last of all, he sent his son to the farmers. He thought, “The farmers will surely respect my son.”

7 But those farmers said to each other, “This is the son of our master. The garden will belong to him when his father dies. We should kill the son and then the garden will be ours.” 8 So the farmers took the son and they killed him. Then they threw his dead body out of the garden.’ [ e ]

9 Jesus then asked, ‘What will the master of the garden do then? I tell you, he will come and he will kill those farmers. Then he will give the garden to other people to take care of it. 10 I am sure that you have read these words in the Bible: [ f ]

“The builders refused to use a certain stone. [ g ]
They thought that it had no value.
But now that stone has become the most important stone at the corner of the building.
11 The Lord God did this.
And we can see that he did something great.” ’

12 The Jewish leaders knew that Jesus had told this story about them. They were the bad farmers in the story. So they wanted to take hold of Jesus. But they were afraid of the crowd. So they left him and they went away.

The Pharisees ask about the money that Caesar demanded

13 Then the leaders sent some Pharisees to Jesus. They also sent some men who were friends of King Herod. They tried to use Jesus' words to cause trouble for him. 14 These men came to Jesus and they said, ‘Teacher, we know that you only say true things. It does not matter to you what other people think. If someone is important, you do not change your answers to make them happy. You really do teach us what God wants us to do. Tell us, should we pay our taxes to the Roman ruler, Caesar? Is it right to give that money to him, or not?’

15 Jesus knew that those men were not honest. So he said, ‘You just ask that question to cause trouble for me. Now, bring me a coin. I want to see it.’ 16 So they brought a coin to him. Jesus asked them, ‘Whose picture is on this coin? Whose name is on it?’

They replied, ‘It is Caesar's picture and Caesar's name.’

17 Jesus then said to them, ‘So you should give to Caesar the things that belong to him. And give to God the things that belong to God.’

They were very surprised at his answer.

The Sadducees ask Jesus a question

18 Also, some Sadducees came to Jesus. Sadducees do not believe that anyone becomes alive again after they die. [ h ] They wanted to ask Jesus a question.

19 ‘Teacher,’ they said to him, ‘Moses wrote these things for us in the Bible: If a man dies without children, his brother must marry the man's wife. Then their children will be called the children of the brother who died. 20 But once there were seven brothers. The oldest brother married a woman. But he died before they had any children. 21 So the second brother married her. He also died without children. Then the third brother married this woman. 22 And the same thing happened to all seven brothers. They all died but they had no children. After all this, the woman also died. 23 You teach that at some time dead people will become alive again. On that day, whose wife will that woman be? She had married all seven of those brothers.’

24 Jesus said to the Sadducees, ‘You are very wrong. This is because you do not know the Bible. And you do not know how powerful God is. 25 All people who have died will become alive again one day. But then men and women will not marry. They will not have husbands or wives. Instead, they will be like the angels in heaven. 26 But God does make dead people alive again! You have read what Moses wrote about the bush in the wilderness. There, God said to Moses, “I am the God of Abraham. I am the God of Isaac. And I am the God of Jacob.” [ i ] 27 God is not the God of people who are dead. He is the God of people who are alive. So you see, you are very wrong.’

Jesus teaches people about the most important rule

28 One of the teachers of God's Law came near to the group of people. He heard Jesus speaking with the leaders. The teacher knew that Jesus had answered them well. So then the teacher asked Jesus, ‘Which rule is the most important among God's Laws?’

29 Jesus replied, ‘This rule is the most important rule: “Listen, Israel's people! The Lord alone is our God. There is no other Lord. 30 Love the Lord, your God completely. Love him with all your mind and with all your strength. Love him in everything that you think and you do.” [ j ] 31 The second most important rule is this: “You should love other people as much as you love yourself.” No other rules are as important as these two.’

32 The teacher of God's Law said to Jesus, ‘Teacher, you have answered well. You are right to say that the Lord is the only God. And there is no other God except him. 33 We must love him completely, with all our mind and with all our strength. We must also love other people as much as we love ourselves. This is more important than all the gifts or animals that we could offer to God.’

34 Jesus heard that the man had answered well. So Jesus said to him, ‘You are almost ready for God to rule in your life.’ After that, everybody was afraid to ask Jesus any more questions.

Jesus teaches the people about the Messiah

35 Jesus was teaching people in the yard at the temple. He said, ‘The teachers of God's Law say that the Messiah is King David's son. [ k ] What do you think about that? 36 The Holy Spirit helped David himself to say: [ l ]

“The Lord God said to my Lord:
Sit at my right side until I win against your enemies.
The you will be able to put your feet on them.” [ m ]

37 In these words, David himself calls the Messiah his Lord. So can you really say that the Messiah is David's son?’ [ n ]

The large crowd liked to listen to the things that Jesus was saying. It made them happy.

38 As Jesus was teaching the people, he said, ‘Be careful not to do the same as the teachers of God's Law. They want people to think that they are important. So they walk about in beautiful long clothes. They like people to praise them in the market place. 39 They want to sit in the best seats in the meeting places. They choose the most important places at special meals. 40 But these men take things away from women after their husbands have died, even their houses. Then they pray for a long time so that other people will praise them. Because they do these things, God will punish those men much more than other people.’

Jesus talks about people who give to God

41 Many people were giving their gifts for the temple. There was a box for money there. People threw their coins into it. Jesus sat near the box and he watched them. Many rich people put a lot of money into the box. 42 But then a woman came there. Her husband had died and she was very poor. She put two small coins that had only a little value into the box.

43 Jesus asked his disciples to come to him. He said to them, ‘I tell you this: This poor woman has put a better gift into the box than all the other people have put in there. 44 All those rich people have plenty of money. They only put a small part of that into the box. But this woman has almost nothing. She put in all the money that she had. That was all the money that she needed to live.’

Footnotes

  1. 12:1 From a tall building, someone could watch for any animals or bad people who were coming to the garden.
  2. 12:1 In this story, the man was like God. The garden was like Israel, and the farmers were like the leaders in Israel.
  3. 12:2 The servants that the master sent to the field were like the prophets.
  4. 12:6 The master's son was like Jesus.
  5. 12:8 The farmers were cruel to the man's servants because the farmers did not want to obey the man. They killed his son for the same reason. They are like people who do not want to obey God. God may give them many chances to change their minds. But if they do not obey God, he will certainly punish them in the end.
  6. 12:10 See Psalms 118:22-23 .
  7. 12:10 The stone is like Jesus. The leaders did not think that he was important. But God decided that Jesus was important. In the end, he will rule over everybody and over everything.
  8. 12:18 The Sadducees were a group of Jewish leaders. They taught that death was the end.
  9. 12:26 See Exodus 3:4-6 .
  10. 12:30 See Deuteronomy 6:4-5 ; Joshua 22:5 .
  11. 12:35 The Messiah was a special person that the Jews were waiting for. They believed that God would send him to save them.
  12. 12:36 See Psalms 110:1
  13. 12:36 In this verse the first time that David says ‘Lord’ he is talking about God. The second time that he says ‘Lord’ he is talking about Jesus, the Messiah.
  14. 12:37 Jesus explained a very important fact to the teachers of God's Law. Jesus is a man but he is also God.

God Sends His Son ( A )

12 Jesus used stories to teach the people. He said, “A man planted a vineyard. He put a wall around the field and dug a hole for a winepress. Then he built a tower. He leased the land to some farmers and left for a trip.

2 “Later, it was time for the grapes to be picked. So the man sent a servant to the farmers to get his share of the grapes. 3 But the farmers grabbed the servant and beat him. They sent him away with nothing. 4 Then the man sent another servant to the farmers. They hit this servant on the head, showing no respect for him. 5 So the man sent another servant. The farmers killed this servant. The man sent many other servants to the farmers. The farmers beat some of them and killed the others.

6 “The man had only one person left to send to the farmers. It was his son. He loved his son, but he decided to send him. He said, ‘The farmers will respect my son.’

7 “But the farmers said to each other, ‘This is the owner’s son, and this vineyard will be his. If we kill him, it will be ours.’ 8 So they took the son, threw him out of the vineyard, and killed him.

9 “So what will the man who owns the vineyard do? He will go and kill those farmers. Then he will lease the land to others. 10 Surely you have read this in the Scriptures:

‘The stone that the builders refused to accept
became the cornerstone.
11 The Lord did this,
and it is wonderful to us.’” ( B )

12 When these Jewish leaders heard this story, they knew it was about them. They wanted to find a way to arrest Jesus, but they were afraid of what the crowd would do. So they left him and went away.

The Jewish Leaders Try to Trick Jesus ( C )

13 Later, the Jewish leaders sent some Pharisees and some men from the group called Herodians to Jesus. They wanted to catch him saying something wrong. 14 They went to Jesus and said, “Teacher, we know that you are an honest man. You are not afraid of what others think about you. All people are the same to you. And you teach the truth about God’s way. Tell us, is it right to pay taxes to Caesar? Should we pay them or not?”

15 But Jesus knew that these men were really trying to trick him. He said, “Why are you trying to catch me saying something wrong? Bring me a silver coin. Let me see it.” 16 They gave Jesus a coin and he asked, “Whose picture is on the coin? And whose name is written on it?” They answered, “It is Caesar’s picture and Caesar’s name.”

17 Then Jesus said to them, “Give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar, and give to God what belongs to God.” The men were amazed at what Jesus said.

Some Sadducees Try to Trick Jesus ( D )

18 Then some Sadducees came to Jesus. (Sadducees believe that no one will rise from death.) They asked him a question: 19 “Teacher, Moses wrote that if a married man dies and had no children, his brother must marry the woman. Then they will have children for the dead brother. [ a ] 20 There were seven brothers. The first brother married but died. He had no children. 21 So the second brother married the woman. But he also died and had no children. The same thing happened with the third brother. 22 All seven brothers married the woman and died. None of the brothers had any children with her. And she was the last to die. 23 But all seven brothers had married her. So at the time when people rise from death, whose wife will she be?”

24 Jesus answered, “How could you be so wrong? It’s because you don’t know what the Scriptures say. And you don’t know anything about God’s power. 25 When people rise from death, there will be no marriage. People will not be married to each other. All people will be like angels in heaven. 26 Surely you have read what God said about people rising from death. In the book where Moses wrote about the burning bush, [ b ] it says that God told Moses this: ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.’ [ c ] 27 So they were not still dead, because he is the God only of living people. You Sadducees are so wrong!”

Which Command Is the Most Important? ( E )

28 One of the teachers of the law came to Jesus. He heard Jesus arguing with the Sadducees and the Pharisees. He saw that Jesus gave good answers to their questions. So he asked him, “Which of the commands is the most important?”

29 Jesus answered, “The most important command is this: ‘People of Israel, listen! The Lord our God is the only Lord. 30 Love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength.’ [ d ] 31 The second most important command is this: ‘Love your neighbor [ e ] the same as you love yourself.’ [ f ] These two commands are the most important.”

32 The man answered, “That was a good answer, Teacher. You are right in saying that God is the only Lord and that there is no other God. 33 And you must love God with all your heart, all your mind, and all your strength. And you must love others the same as you love yourself. These commands are more important than all the animals and sacrifices we offer to God.”

34 Jesus saw that the man answered him wisely. So he said to him, “You are close to God’s kingdom.” And after that time, no one was brave enough to ask Jesus any more questions.

Is the Messiah David’s Son or David’s Lord? ( F )

35 Jesus was teaching in the Temple area. He asked, “Why do the teachers of the law say that the Messiah is the son of David? 36 With the help of the Holy Spirit, David himself says,

‘The Lord God said to my Lord:
Sit by me at my right side,
and I will put your enemies under your control. [ g ] ’ ( G )

37 David himself calls the Messiah ‘Lord.’ So how can the Messiah be David’s son?” Many people listened to Jesus and were very pleased.

Jesus Criticizes the Teachers of the Law ( H )

38 Jesus continued teaching. He said, “Be careful of the teachers of the law. They like to walk around wearing clothes that look important. And they love for people to show respect to them in the marketplaces. 39 They love to have the most important seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at banquets. 40 But they cheat widows and take their homes. Then they try to make themselves look good by saying long prayers. God will punish them very much.”

True Giving ( I )

41 Jesus sat near the Temple collection box [ h ] and watched as people put money into it. Many rich people put in a lot of money. 42 Then a poor widow came and put in two very small copper coins, worth less than a penny.

43 Jesus called his followers to him and said, “This poor widow put in only two small coins. But the truth is, she gave more than all those rich people. 44 They have plenty, and they gave only what they did not need. This woman is very poor, but she gave all she had. It was money she needed to live on.”

Footnotes

  1. Mark 12:19 if … dead brother See Deut. 25:5, 6.
  2. Mark 12:26 burning bush See Ex. 3:1-12.
  3. Mark 12:26 Quote from Ex. 3:6 .
  4. Mark 12:30 Quote from Deut. 6:4-5 .
  5. Mark 12:31 your neighbor Or “others.” Jesus’ teaching in Lk. 10:25-37 makes clear that this includes anyone in need.
  6. Mark 12:31 Quote from Lev. 19:18 .
  7. Mark 12:36 control Literally, “feet.”
  8. Mark 12:41 collection box A special box in the Jewish place for worship where people put their gifts to God.

12 And he began to speak unto them by parables. A certain man planted a vineyard, and set an hedge about it, and digged a place for the winefat, and built a tower, and let it out to husbandmen, and went into a far country.

2 And at the season he sent to the husbandmen a servant, that he might receive from the husbandmen of the fruit of the vineyard.

3 And they caught him, and beat him, and sent him away empty.

4 And again he sent unto them another servant; and at him they cast stones, and wounded him in the head, and sent him away shamefully handled.

5 And again he sent another; and him they killed, and many others; beating some, and killing some.

6 Having yet therefore one son, his wellbeloved, he sent him also last unto them, saying, They will reverence my son.

7 But those husbandmen said among themselves, This is the heir; come, let us kill him, and the inheritance shall be ours.'

8 And they took him, and killed him, and cast him out of the vineyard.

9 What shall therefore the lord of the vineyard do? he will come and destroy the husbandmen, and will give the vineyard unto others.

10 And have ye not read this scripture; The stone which the builders rejected is become the head of the corner:

11 This was the Lord's doing, and it is marvellous in our eyes?

12 And they sought to lay hold on him, but feared the people: for they knew that he had spoken the parable against them: and they left him, and went their way.

13 And they send unto him certain of the Pharisees and of the Herodians, to catch him in his words.

14 And when they were come, they say unto him, Master, we know that thou art true, and carest for no man: for thou regardest not the person of men, but teachest the way of God in truth: Is it lawful to give tribute to Caesar, or not?

15 Shall we give, or shall we not give? But he, knowing their hypocrisy, said unto them, Why tempt ye me? bring me a penny, that I may see it.

16 And they brought it. And he saith unto them, Whose is this image and superscription? And they said unto him, Caesar's.

17 And Jesus answering said unto them, Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's. And they marvelled at him.

18 Then come unto him the Sadducees, which say there is no resurrection; and they asked him, saying,

19 Master, Moses wrote unto us, If a man's brother die, and leave his wife behind him, and leave no children, that his brother should take his wife, and raise up seed unto his brother.

20 Now there were seven brethren: and the first took a wife, and dying left no seed.

21 And the second took her, and died, neither left he any seed: and the third likewise.

22 And the seven had her, and left no seed: last of all the woman died also.

23 In the resurrection therefore, when they shall rise, whose wife shall she be of them? for the seven had her to wife.

24 And Jesus answering said unto them, Do ye not therefore err, because ye know not the scriptures, neither the power of God?

25 For when they shall rise from the dead, they neither marry, nor are given in marriage; but are as the angels which are in heaven.

26 And as touching the dead, that they rise: have ye not read in the book of Moses, how in the bush God spake unto him, saying, I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob?

27 He is not the God of the dead, but the God of the living: ye therefore do greatly err.

28 And one of the scribes came, and having heard them reasoning together, and perceiving that he had answered them well, asked him, Which is the first commandment of all?

29 And Jesus answered him, The first of all the commandments is, Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God is one Lord:

30 And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment.

31 And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these.

32 And the scribe said unto him, Well, Master, thou hast said the truth: for there is one God; and there is none other but he:

33 And to love him with all the heart, and with all the understanding, and with all the soul, and with all the strength, and to love his neighbour as himself, is more than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices.

34 And when Jesus saw that he answered discreetly, he said unto him, Thou art not far from the kingdom of God. And no man after that durst ask him any question.

35 And Jesus answered and said, while he taught in the temple, How say the scribes that Christ is the son of David?

36 For David himself said by the Holy Ghost, The Lord said to my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand, till I make thine enemies thy footstool.

37 David therefore himself calleth him Lord; and whence is he then his son? And the common people heard him gladly.

38 And he said unto them in his doctrine, Beware of the scribes, which love to go in long clothing, and love salutations in the marketplaces,

39 And the chief seats in the synagogues, and the uppermost rooms at feasts:

40 Which devour widows' houses, and for a pretence make long prayers: these shall receive greater damnation.

41 And Jesus sat over against the treasury, and beheld how the people cast money into the treasury: and many that were rich cast in much.

42 And there came a certain poor widow, and she threw in two mites, which make a farthing.

43 And he called unto him his disciples, and saith unto them, Verily I say unto you, That this poor widow hath cast more in, than all they which have cast into the treasury:

44 For all they did cast in of their abundance; but she of her want did cast in all that she had, even all her living.

Parable of the Vine-growers

12 ( A ) And He began to speak to them in parables: “ ( B ) A man ( C ) planted a vineyard and put a [ a ] fence around it, and dug a vat under the wine press and built a tower, and leased it to [ b ] vine-growers and went on a journey. 2 And at the harvest time he sent a slave to the vine-growers, in order to receive his share of the produce of the vineyard from the vine-growers. 3 And they took him, and beat him, and sent him away empty-handed. 4 And again he sent them another slave, and they wounded him in the head, and treated him shamefully. 5 And he sent another, and that one they killed; and so with many others, beating some and killing others. 6 He had one more man to send , a beloved son; he sent him to them last of all , saying, ‘They will respect my son.’ 7 But those vine-growers said to one another, ‘This is the heir; come, let’s kill him, and the inheritance will be ours!’ 8 And they took him and killed him, and threw him out of the vineyard. 9 What will the [ c ] owner of the vineyard do? He will come and put the vine-growers to death, and give the vineyard to others. 10 Have you not even read this Scripture:

‘ ( D ) A stone which the builders rejected ,
This has become the [ d ] chief cornerstone ;
11 ( E ) This came about from the Lord ,
And it is marvelous in our eyes ’?”

12 ( F ) And they were seeking to seize Him, and yet they feared the [ e ] people, for they understood that He told the parable against them. And so ( G ) they left Him and went away.

Jesus Answers the Pharisees, Sadducees, and Scribes

13 ( H ) Then they *sent some of the Pharisees and ( I ) Herodians to Him in order to ( J ) trap Him in a statement. 14 They came and *said to Him, “Teacher, we know that You are truthful and [ f ] do not care what anyone thinks; for You [ g ] are not partial to anyone, but You teach the way of God in truth. Is it [ h ] permissible to pay a [ i ] poll-tax to Caesar, or not? 15 Are we to pay, or not pay?” But He, knowing their hypocrisy, said to them, “Why are you testing Me? Bring Me a [ j ] denarius to look at.” 16 And they brought one . And He *said to them, “Whose image and inscription is this?” And they said to Him, “Caesar’s.” 17 And Jesus said to them, “ ( K ) Pay to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” And they were utterly amazed at Him.

18 ( L ) Some Sadducees (who say that there is no resurrection) *came to [ k ] Jesus, and began questioning Him, saying, 19 “Teacher, Moses wrote for us that ( M ) if a man’s brother dies and leaves behind a wife and does not leave a child, his brother is to [ l ] marry the wife and raise up [ m ] children for his brother. 20 There were seven brothers; and the first took a wife, and died leaving no children. 21 The second one [ n ] married her, and died leaving behind no children; and the third likewise; 22 and so the seven together left no children. Last of all the woman also died. 23 In the resurrection, which one’s wife will she be? For each of the seven had her as his wife.” 24 Jesus said to them, “Is this not the reason you are mistaken, that you do not [ o ] understand the Scriptures nor the power of God? 25 For when they rise from the dead, they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven. 26 But [ p ] regarding the fact that the dead rise, have you not read in the book of Moses, ( N ) in the passage about the burning bush, how God spoke to him, saying, ‘ ( O ) I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob ’? 27 ( P ) He is not the God [ q ] of the dead, but of the living; you are greatly mistaken.”

28 ( Q ) One of the scribes came up and heard them arguing, and ( R ) recognizing that He had answered them well, asked Him, “What commandment is the [ r ] foremost of all?” 29 Jesus answered, “The [ s ] foremost is, ‘ ( S ) Hear, Israel! The Lord is our God, the Lord is one ; 30 ( T ) and 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 this: ‘ ( U ) You shall love your neighbor as yourself .’ There is no other commandment greater than these.” 32 And the scribe said to Him, “Well said , Teacher; You have truly stated that ( V ) He is One, and there is no other besides Him ; 33 ( W ) and to love Him with all the heart, and with all the understanding, and with all the strength, and to love one’s neighbor as oneself, ( X ) is much more than all the burnt offerings and sacrifices.” 34 When Jesus saw that he had answered intelligently, He said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” ( Y ) And then , no one dared any longer to question Him.

35 ( Z ) And Jesus responded and began saying, as He ( AA ) taught in the temple area , “How is it that the scribes say that the [ t ] Christ is the ( AB ) son of David? 36 David himself said [ u ] in the Holy Spirit,

‘ ( AC ) The Lord said to my Lord ,
“ Sit at My right hand ,
Until I put Your enemies under Your feet .”’

37 David himself calls Him ‘Lord’; so in what sense is He his son?” And ( AD ) the large crowd [ v ] enjoyed listening to Him.

38 ( AE ) And in His teaching He was saying: “Beware of the scribes who like to walk around in long robes, and like ( AF ) personal greetings in the marketplaces, 39 and seats of honor in the synagogues, and places of honor at banquets, 40 ( AG ) who devour widows’ houses, and for appearance’s sake offer long prayers. These will receive all the more condemnation.”

The Widow’s Coins

41 ( AH ) And Jesus sat down opposite ( AI ) the treasury, and began watching how the [ w ] people were ( AJ ) putting [ x ] money into the treasury; and many rich people were putting in large amounts. 42 And a poor widow came and put in two [ y ] lepta coins, which amount to a [ z ] quadrans. 43 Calling His disciples to Him, He said to them, “Truly I say to you, this poor widow put in more than all [ aa ] the contributors to the treasury; 44 for they all put in out of their [ ab ] surplus, but she, out of her poverty, put in all she owned, [ ac ] all she had ( AK ) to live on.”

Footnotes

  1. Mark 12:1 Or hedge
  2. Mark 12:1 Or tenant farmers , also vv 2, 7, 9
  3. Mark 12:9 Lit lord
  4. Mark 12:10 Lit head of the corner
  5. Mark 12:12 Lit crowd
  6. Mark 12:14 Lit it is not a concern to You about anyone
  7. Mark 12:14 Lit do not look at the face of people
  8. Mark 12:14 I.e., by Jewish law and tradition
  9. Mark 12:14 I.e., a tax on each person in the census
  10. Mark 12:15 The denarius was a day’s wages for a laborer
  11. Mark 12:18 Lit Him
  12. Mark 12:19 Lit take
  13. Mark 12:19 Lit seed , also vv 20-22
  14. Mark 12:21 Lit took
  15. Mark 12:24 Or know
  16. Mark 12:26 Lit concerning the dead, that they rise
  17. Mark 12:27 Or of corpses
  18. Mark 12:28 Or first
  19. Mark 12:29 Or first
  20. Mark 12:35 I.e., Messiah
  21. Mark 12:36 Or by
  22. Mark 12:37 Lit was gladly hearing Him
  23. Mark 12:41 Lit crowd was
  24. Mark 12:41 I.e., copper coins
  25. Mark 12:42 The smallest Greek copper coin, about 1/128 of a laborer’s daily wage
  26. Mark 12:42 A small Roman copper coin, worth about 1/64 of a laborer’s daily wage
  27. Mark 12:43 Lit those who were putting in
  28. Mark 12:44 Or abundance
  29. Mark 12:44 Lit her whole livelihood

The Parable of the Tenants ( A )

12 Jesus then began to speak to them in parables: “A man planted a vineyard. ( B ) He put a wall around it, dug a pit for the winepress and built a watchtower. Then he rented the vineyard to some farmers and moved to another place. 2 At harvest time he sent a servant to the tenants to collect from them some of the fruit of the vineyard. 3 But they seized him, beat him and sent him away empty-handed. 4 Then he sent another servant to them; they struck this man on the head and treated him shamefully. 5 He sent still another, and that one they killed. He sent many others; some of them they beat, others they killed.

6 “He had one left to send, a son, whom he loved. He sent him last of all, ( C ) saying, ‘They will respect my son.’

7 “But the tenants said to one another, ‘This is the heir. Come, let’s 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 those tenants and give the vineyard to others. 10 Haven’t you read this passage of Scripture:

“‘The stone the builders rejected
has become the cornerstone; ( D )
11 the Lord has done this,
and it is marvelous in our eyes’ [ a ] ?” ( E )

12 Then the chief priests, the teachers of the law and the elders looked for a way to arrest him because they knew he had spoken the parable against them. But they were afraid of the crowd; ( F ) so they left him and went away. ( G )

Paying the Imperial Tax to Caesar ( H )

13 Later they sent some of the Pharisees and Herodians ( I ) to Jesus to catch him ( J ) in his words. 14 They came to him and said, “Teacher, we know that you are a man of integrity. You aren’t swayed by others, because you pay no attention to who they are; but you teach the way of God in accordance with the truth. Is it right to pay the imperial tax [ b ] to Caesar or not? 15 Should we pay or shouldn’t we?”

But Jesus knew their hypocrisy. “Why are you trying to trap me?” he asked. “Bring me a denarius and let me look at it.” 16 They brought the coin, and he asked them, “Whose image is this? And whose inscription?”

“Caesar’s,” they replied.

17 Then Jesus said to them, “Give back to Caesar what is Caesar’s and to God what is God’s.” ( K )

And they were amazed at him.

Marriage at the Resurrection ( L )

18 Then the Sadducees, ( M ) who say there is no resurrection, ( N ) came to him with a question. 19 “Teacher,” they said, “Moses wrote for us that if a man’s brother dies and leaves a wife but no children, the man must marry the widow and raise up offspring for his brother. ( O ) 20 Now there were seven brothers. The first one married and died without leaving any children. 21 The second one married the widow, but he also died, leaving no child. It was the same with the third. 22 In fact, none of the seven left any children. Last of all, the woman died too. 23 At the resurrection [ c ] whose wife will she be, since the seven were married to her?”

24 Jesus replied, “Are you not in error because you do not know the Scriptures ( P ) or the power of God? 25 When the dead rise, they will neither marry nor be given in marriage; they will be like the angels in heaven. ( Q ) 26 Now about the dead rising—have you not read in the Book of Moses, in the account of the burning bush, how God said to him, ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’ [ d ] ? ( R ) 27 He is not the God of the dead, but of the living. You are badly mistaken!”

The Greatest Commandment ( S )

28 One of the teachers of the law ( T ) came and heard them debating. Noticing that Jesus had given them a good answer, he asked him, “Of all the commandments, which is the most important?”

29 “The most important one,” answered Jesus, “is this: ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. [ e ] 30 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ [ f ] ( U ) 31 The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ [ g ] ( V ) There is no commandment greater than these.”

32 “Well said, teacher,” the man replied. “You are right in saying that God is one and there is no other but him. ( W ) 33 To love him with all your heart, with all your understanding and with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself is more important than all burnt offerings and sacrifices.” ( X )

34 When Jesus saw that he had answered wisely, he said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” ( Y ) And from then on no one dared ask him any more questions. ( Z )

Whose Son Is the Messiah? ( AA ) ( AB )

35 While Jesus was teaching in the temple courts, ( AC ) he asked, “Why do the teachers of the law say that the Messiah is the son of David? ( AD ) 36 David himself, speaking by the Holy Spirit, ( AE ) declared:

“‘The Lord said to my Lord:
“Sit at my right hand
until I put your enemies
under your feet.”’ [ h ] ( AF )

37 David himself calls him ‘Lord.’ How then can he be his son?”

The large crowd ( AG ) listened to him with delight.

Warning Against the Teachers of the Law

38 As he taught, Jesus said, “Watch out for the teachers of the law. They like to walk around in flowing robes and be greeted with respect in the marketplaces, 39 and have the most important seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at banquets. ( AH ) 40 They devour widows’ houses and for a show make lengthy prayers. These men will be punished most severely.”

The Widow’s Offering ( AI )

41 Jesus sat down opposite the place where the offerings were put ( AJ ) and watched the crowd putting their money into the temple treasury. Many rich people threw in large amounts. 42 But a poor widow came and put in two very small copper coins, worth only a few cents.

43 Calling his disciples to him, Jesus said, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others. 44 They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything—all she had to live on.” ( AK )

Footnotes

  1. Mark 12:11 Psalm 118:22,23
  2. Mark 12:14 A special tax levied on subject peoples, not on Roman citizens
  3. Mark 12:23 Some manuscripts resurrection, when people rise from the dead,
  4. Mark 12:26 Exodus 3:6
  5. Mark 12:29 Or The Lord our God is one Lord
  6. Mark 12:30 Deut. 6:4,5
  7. Mark 12:31 Lev. 19:18
  8. Mark 12:36 Psalm 110:1
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