The source of Jesus’s authority
- And it happened on one of the days of Him teaching the people in the temple and proclaiming the gospel, that the chief priests and the scribes with the elders approached,
- and they spoke, saying to Him: “Tell us by what authority you’re doing these things, or who is the man who gave you this authority?”
- And answering, He said to them: “I also will question you about a matter, and you tell Me:
- “The baptism of John; was it from heaven or from men?”
- And they deliberated among themselves, saying: “If we answer “from heaven”, He will say “Why didn’t you believe him?”.
- “But if we say “from men”, all the people will stone us, for they’re *persuaded that John is a prophet.
- And they answered: “We don’t *know where it came from.”
- And Jesus told them: “Then neither am I telling you by what authority I’m doing these things.”
The parable of the vinegrowers
- And He began to tell this parable to the people: “A man planted a vineyard, and hired it out to vinegrowers, and traveled to another country for a considerable season.
- “And at an appropriate season, he sent a slave to the vinegrowers so they will give fruit from the vineyard to him. But having beaten him, the vinegrowers sent him away empty-handed.
- “And he proceeded to send another slave, but having beaten and shamefully mistreated that slave, they sent him away empty-handed.
- “And he proceeded to send a third slave, but having also wounded this slave, they threw him out.
- “And the lord of the vineyard said: “What should I do? I will send my beloved son. Perhaps they will be turned in shame and revere this son of mine.
- “But having seen him, the vinegrowers were reasoning with one another, saying: “This man is the heir; we should kill him so that the inheritance might become ours.”
- “And having thrown him outside the vineyard, they killed him. Therefore, what will the lord of the vineyard do to them?
- “He will go and destroy these vinegrowers and will give the vineyard to others.” But having heard this, they said: “May it never happen!”
- And having looked at them, He said: “So what’s this that was *written: “The stone that the men building rejected, this became the head cornerstone.”
- “Every man who falls on that stone will be shattered; but on whomever it falls, it will crush him to pieces and scatter him like chaff.
- And the scribes and the chief priests sought to lay hands on Him at that hour, even though they were frightened of the people, for they understood that He spoke this parable against them.
Tribute tax to Ceasar
- And having scrutinized Him, they sent spies pretending themselves to be righteous so that they could catch Him in a statement, so as to hand Him over to the rulership and authority of the governor.
- And they questioned Him, saying: “Teacher, we *know that you speak and teach uprightly, and that you don’t accept a man’s appearance, but teach the way of God for truth‘s sake.
- “Is it lawful for us to give the tribute tax to Caesar, or not?”
- But having discerned their trickery, He said to them:
- “Show Me a denarius; whose image and inscription does it have?” And they said: “Caesar’s”
- And He said to them: “Accordingly, repay the things of Caesar to Caesar, and the things of God to God.”
- And they weren’t mentally strong enough to catch Him in a statement in the sight of the people. And having marveled at His answer, they became silent.
On the resurrection
- And having approached Him, some of the Sadducees (the men disputing the resurrection, saying there isn’t one) questioned Him,
- saying: “Teacher, Moses wrote to us that if someone’s brother dies while having a wife, and that man is childless, that his brother should take the wife as his wife and raise up seed for his brother.
- “So, there were seven brothers. And having taken a wife, the first died childless.
- “And the second [took the wife as his wife, and that man died childless.]
- “And the third took her as his wife. And then similarly, all of the seven didn’t leave children and died,
- “and the woman died last.
- “So in the resurrection, whose wife does the woman become? For the seven brothers all had her as a wife.”
- And Jesus told them: “The sons of this present age marry and give their daughters in marriage.
- “But the men deemed worthy to obtain that future age and the resurrection from the dead neither marry nor give their daughters in marriage,
- “for neither are they still able to die, for they are equal to angels and are sons of God, being sons of the resurrection.
- “But that the dead are raised, even Moses revealed this at the burning bush in how he calls the Lord: Abraham’s God, and Isaac’s God, and Jacob’s God.
- “And He isn’t God of the dead, but the living; for to Him, all live.”
- And answering, some of the scribes said: “Teacher, you spoke nobly.”
- For they were no longer daring to ask Him anything.
How is the Anointed David’s Son?
- And He said to them: “How do they declare the Anointed to be David’s son?
- “For David himself says in the book of Psalms: ‘The Lord said to my Lord, sit on My right hand
- “until I put your enemies under your feet as a footstool.
- “So since David calls Him Lord, how is He also his son?”
Beware the scribes + the widow’s gift (continued in next chapter)
- And with all the people listening, He told His disciples:
- “Beware of the scribes, the men wanting to walk in long robes and loving greetings in the marketplaces, and chief seats in the synagogues, and chief seats at dinners;
- “men who devour the houses of widows and pray long prayers for appearance’s sake. These men will receive abundantly more judgement.”