Mar 12 | BSB | STEP | Then [Jesus] began to speak to them in parables: “A man planted a vineyard. He put a wall {around it} , dug a wine vat, and built a watchtower. Then he rented it out to [some] tenants and went away on a journey.

‏ Mark 12

The Parable of the Wicked Tenants

1 Then [Jesus] began to speak to them in parables: “A man planted a vineyard. He put a wall {around it} , dug a wine vat, and built a watchtower. Then he rented it out to [some] tenants and went away on a journey. 2 At harvest time, he sent a servant to the tenants to collect [his share] of the fruit of the vineyard. 3 But they seized [the servant] , beat [him] , and sent [him] away empty-handed. 4 Then he sent them another servant, and they struck {him} over the head and treated [him] shamefully. 5 He sent still another, and this one they killed. [He sent] many others; some they beat and [others] they killed. 6 Finally, having one beloved son, he sent him to them. ‘They will respect my son,’ he said. 7 But [the] tenants said to one another, ‘This is the heir. Come, let us kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.’ 8 So they seized [the son] , 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 will give the vineyard to others. 10 Have you never read this Scripture: ‘ [The] stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone. 11 This is from [the] Lord, and it is marvelous in our eyes’?” ^{▼▼Psalm 118:22,23} 12 At this, [the leaders] sought to arrest [Jesus] , for they knew that He had spoken [this] parable against them. But fearing the crowd, they left Him [and] went away.

Paying Taxes to Caesar

13 Later, they sent some of the Pharisees and Herodians to catch [Jesus] in [His] words. 14 “Teacher,” they said, “we know that You are honest and are swayed by no one. Indeed, You are impartial [and] teach the way of God in accordance with [the] truth. Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar or not? Should we pay [them] or not?” 15 But [Jesus] saw through their hypocrisy [and] said, “Why are you testing Me? Bring Me a denarius ^{▼▼A denarius was customarily a day's wage for a laborer (see Matthew 20:2)} to inspect.” 16 [So] they brought [it] , and He asked them, “Whose image [is] this? And [whose] inscription?” “Caesar’s,” they answered. 17 Then Jesus told them, “Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s.” And they marveled at Him.

The Sadducees and the Resurrection

18 Then the Sadducees, who say there is no resurrection, came to [Jesus] and questioned Him: 19 “Teacher, Moses wrote for us that if a man’s brother dies and leaves a wife but no children, [the man] is to marry [his brother’s] widow and raise up offspring for [him] . 20 [Now] there were seven brothers. The first [one] married and died, leaving no children. 21 Then the second [one] married [the widow] , [but] he also died [and] left no children. And the third [did] likewise. 22 In this way, none of the seven left [any] children. And last of all, the woman died. 23 In the resurrection, ^{▼▼Or In the resurrection, when they rise} whose wife will she be? For [all] seven were married to her.” 24 Jesus said to them, “vvv Aren’t you mistaken because you do not know the Scriptures [or] the power of God? 25 When the dead rise, they will neither marry nor be given in marriage. Instead, they will be like [the] angels in heaven. 26 But concerning the dead rising, have you not read about the [burning] bush in the book of Moses, how God told him, ‘I [am] the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? ^{▼▼Exodus 3:6} 27 He is not [the] God of [the] dead, but of [the] living. You are badly mistaken!”

The Greatest Commandment

28 Now one of the scribes had come up and heard their debate. Noticing how well [Jesus] had answered them, he asked Him, “Which commandment is [the] most important of all?” 29 Jesus replied, “This is the most important: ‘Hear O Israel, [the] Lord our God, [the] Lord is One. 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.’ ^{▼▼Deuteronomy 6:4,5} 31 [The] second [is] this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ ^{▼▼Leviticus 19:18} No other commandment is greater than these.” 32 “Right, Teacher,” the scribe replied. “You have stated correctly that [God] is One and there is no other but Him, 33 and to love Him with all [your] heart and with all [your] understanding and with all [your] strength, and to love [your] neighbor as yourself, which is more important than all burnt offerings and sacrifices.” 34 When Jesus saw that [the man] had answered wisely, He said, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” And no one dared to question Him [any] further.

Whose Son is the Christ?

35 While [Jesus] was teaching in the temple courts, [He] asked, “How {can} the scribes say that the Christ is [the] son of David? 36 Speaking by the Holy Spirit, David himself declared: ‘ [The] Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at My right hand until I put Your enemies under Your feet.”’ ^{▼▼Psalm 110:1} 37 David himself calls Him Lord. So how can He be [David’s] son?” And the large crowd listened to Him with delight.

Warning against the Scribes

38 In His teaching [Jesus] also said, “Watch out for the scribes. They like to walk around in long robes, [to receive] greetings in the marketplaces, 39 and [to have] the chief seats in the synagogues and [the] places of honor at banquets. 40 They defraud widows [of their] houses, and for a show make lengthy prayers. These [men] will receive greater condemnation.”

The Widow's Offering

41 As [Jesus] was sitting opposite the treasury, He watched the crowd putting money into [it] . And many rich [people] put in large amounts. 42 Then one poor widow came [and] put [in] two small copper coins, ^{▼▼Greek two lepta; a lepton was a Jewish copper coin worth about 1/128 of a denarius} which amounted to a small fraction of a denarius. 43 [Jesus] called His disciples {to Him} [and] said, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put more than all the [others] into the treasury. 44 For they all contributed out of their surplus, but she out of her poverty has put [in] all she had to live on.”