Day 96

Luke 20:9–19 (NIV)

⁹ He went on to tell the people this parable: “A man planted a vineyard, rented it to some farmers and went away for a long time. ¹⁰ At harvest time he sent a servant to the tenants so they would give him some of the fruit of the vineyard. But the tenants beat him and sent him away empty-handed. ¹¹ He sent another servant, but that one also they beat and treated shamefully and sent away empty-handed. ¹² He sent still a third, and they wounded him and threw him out.

¹³ “Then the owner of the vineyard said, ‘What shall I do? I will send my son, whom I love; perhaps they will respect him.’ ¹⁴ “But when the tenants saw him, they talked the matter over. ‘This is the heir,’ they said. ‘Let’s kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.’ ¹⁵ So they threw him out of the vineyard and killed him. “What then will the owner of the vineyard do to them? ¹⁶ He will come and kill those tenants and give the vineyard to others.” When the people heard this, they said, “May this never be!” ¹⁷ Jesus looked directly at them and asked, “Then what is the meaning of that which is written: “ ‘The stone the builders rejected has become the capstone’? ¹⁸ Everyone who falls on that stone will be broken to pieces, but he on whom it falls will be crushed.”

¹⁹ The teachers of the law and the chief priests looked for a way to arrest him immediately, because they knew he had spoken this parable against them. But they were afraid of the people.

Pray for God to show you something to use from the passage

Read the Passage

Who is in the passage?

What action verbs do you see?

What other words stick out in your mind

Questions

Who do the actors in the parable represent?

What do you learn about God from this parable?

What does this parable say about the authority of the leaders? The authority of God?

Notes

Reading this parable we must remember what has just happened. The Religious leaders have just asked- "By whose authority do you do these things?" In this parable Jesus not only answers the question but he also calls into question the motives of the Leaders and all of Israel.

The vineyard idea of this parable reflects a judgment parable in Isa 5:1-7.

In Matt 21:33, and Mark 12 :1 the writers even tell of more the owner does to make the crop area secure and useful.

vs 9-10 In Israel the idea of tenet farming was common. An owner would provide the materials and plantings. The tenets would care for the crop until harvest. At harvest the agreed upon percentage would be dispersed between the farmers and the owner.

vs 10b- 11- Each action of the tenets who are now acting like they own the land becomes worse. To the point that their actions would be horrendous to the people listening to the parable. But now it even gets worse

13- the land owner, who now many would consider a fool for letting it go this long without a justified response, gives the tenets one more chance. He does not play it safe but rather shows how much He is willing to do to get the issue straight. While the owner may seem a fool he also realizes the chance he is taking. We see this in the word "perhaps" the tenets may or may not do the right thing. But for some reason the owner is willing to increase the risks for the good of the tenets.

vs 14 -15 the tenets understand the stakes have also increased. They "talk the matter over" - this isn't a decision made in haste. It is a deliberate action. It is premeditated making the action that much worse. Their reason isn't about the owner being bad or anything like that. It is about trying to take something that does not belong to them.

The throwing out is a symbol of their rejection of him as having owner rights. Their killing of him is a symbol of how far they are willing to go for their own.

15b-16- What the crowd listening would have thought would have happened long before finally comes true. The justified judgment is rendered. The giving of the vineyard to others is a statement that God has others, not just Israel that are His. (Israel has in mind that God is only for them and not anyone else)

So what do we learn from the parable about God?

· He is extremely patient- even after the leaders like Moses, the law, the prophets are rejected by Israel God still gives them a chance. The best Chance yet. He sends Jesus.

· While He is extremely patient there is a judgment to happen for how He is treated

· We see God's love for the people being so strong that even though He knows what will happen to Jesus, He gives Him anyway

· God is not just a God of Israel but of all people. Salvation is available to anyone!

What do we learn about the people-

· They are only interested in themselves. They do not accept that God is the one in charge

· They are without excuse- by their actions and their motivations they are clearly guilty

16b- the people's reaction to the parable is complete horror that such injustice would be done.

17-18 from Ps 118:22- (read Ps 118:15-29) Jesus takes the quote and applies to the parable and clearly the parable points to Him.

Jesus will be the judgment of all people. Though rejected He is the center of what God does in this world. No matter what we may say or do that fact does not change!

vs 19 - It is clear the parable is understood. What is ironic is the parable causes the very actions within the parable. Jesus has in the parable claimed He was from God and that the Leaders, if not all Israel, have no authority over God's ownership.

The question "By whose authority do you do these things" (vs 2) is answered. The leaders, and it turns out the people as well, just do not want to hear it!