Luke 20
20
The Authority of Jesus Is Questioned
1One day Jesus was teaching the people in the temple courtyard and announcing the good news to them. The chief priests, the teachers of the law, and the elders came up to him. 2“Tell us who gave you the right to do these things,” they asked together. “Who gave you this authority?”
3Jesus replied, “Let me ask you a question. Tell me, 4was John’s baptism from heaven, or did it come from people?”
5They talked it over among themselves and realized, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he’ll ask, ‘Then why didn’t you believe him?’ 6But if we say, ‘From people,’ all the people will throw stones at us to kill us, because they believe John was a prophet.”
7So they answered Jesus, “We don’t know where John’s baptism came from.”
8Jesus replied, “Then I won’t tell you who gave me the right to do these things, either.”
The Story of the Renters
9Jesus went on to tell the people a story. “A man planted a vineyard,” he said. “He rented it out to some farmers, then he went away for a long time. 10At harvest time, he sent a slave to the renters to collect some of the fruit of the vineyard. But the renters beat that slave and sent him away with nothing. 11So the man sent another slave, but they beat him, too. They treated him badly and sent him away with nothing. 12The man sent a third slave, but the renters wounded him and threw him out.
13“Then the owner of the vineyard said, ‘What should I do? I have a son, and I love him. I’ll send him; maybe they’ll respect him.’
14“But when the renters saw the son, they talked the matter over. ‘This is the one who will receive all the owner’s property someday,’ they said. ‘Let’s kill him, and then everything will be ours.’ 15So they threw him out of the vineyard and killed him.
“What will the owner of that vineyard do to the renters? 16He will come and kill them and give the vineyard to others.”
When the people heard this, they said, “We hope this never happens!”
17Jesus looked right at them and said, “Then what’s the meaning of what has been written:
“ ‘The stone that the builders didn’t accept
has become the most important stone of all’?
18Everyone who falls on that stone will be broken to pieces, and the stone will crush anyone it falls on.”
19The teachers of the law and the chief priests looked for a way to arrest Jesus at once, because they knew he had told that story against them. But they were afraid of the people.
Is It Right to Pay the Royal Tax to Caesar?
20The religious leaders sent spies to keep a close watch on Jesus. The spies pretended to be sincere, but they were hoping that they could trap Jesus in something he said. Then they could hand him over to the power and authority of the governor. 21So the spies questioned Jesus. “Teacher,” they said, “we know that you speak and teach what is right. We know you don’t favor one person over another. You teach the way of God truthfully. 22So is it right for us to pay taxes to Caesar or not?”
23Jesus knew they were trying to trick him, and he said to them, 24“Show me a silver coin. Whose picture and words are on it?”
“Caesar’s,” they replied.
25He said to them, “Then give back to Caesar what belongs to Caesar, and give back to God what belongs to God.”
26They weren’t able to trap him with what he had said there in front of all the people. They were amazed by his answer and had nothing more to say.
Marriage When the Dead Rise
27Some of the Sadducees, who don’t believe that people rise from the dead, came to Jesus with a question. 28“Teacher,” they said, “Moses wrote for us that if a man’s brother dies and leaves a wife but no children, that man must marry the widow in order to provide children to carry on his dead brother’s name. 29There were seven brothers. The first one married a woman and died without leaving any children. 30So the second brother married her, 31and then the third—one after another, the seven brothers married her, but they all died and none left any children. 32Finally, the woman died too. 33Now then, when the dead rise, whose wife will she be? All seven brothers were married to her.”
34Jesus answered, “People in this world get married and their parents give them in marriage. 35But it won’t be like that when the dead rise. Those who are considered worthy to take part in the world to come won’t get married, and they won’t be given in marriage. 36They won’t die anymore, because they will be like the angels. They are God’s children, because they are given a new form of life when the dead rise. 37But even Moses showed that the dead rise, in the story of the burning bush. The Lord said to him, ‘I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.’ 38He is not the God of the dead, but of the living, because in his eyes, everyone is alive.”
39Some of the teachers of the law responded, “You have spoken well, teacher!” 40And no one dared to ask him any more questions.
Whose Son Is the Messiah?
41Then Jesus said to them, “Why do people say that the Messiah is the son of David? 42David himself says in the Book of Psalms,
“ ‘The Lord said to my Lord,
“Sit at my right hand
43until I put your enemies
under your control.” ’
44David calls him ‘Lord.’ So how can he be David’s son?”
Warning Against the Teachers of the Law
45While all the people were listening, Jesus said to his disciples, 46“Watch out for the teachers of the law. They like to walk around in long robes, to be greeted with respect in the marketplace, to have the most important seats in the synagogues, and to have the places of honor at banquets. 47But they cheat widows out of their houses and say long prayers to show off. God will punish them severely.”
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Radiate™ New Testament
Copyright © 1995, 1996, 1998, 2014, 2020 by Biblica, Inc.
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Luke 20
20
1-2One day he was teaching the people in the Temple, proclaiming the Message. The high priests, religion scholars, and leaders confronted him and demanded, “Show us your credentials. Who authorized you to speak and act like this?”
3-4Jesus answered, “First, let me ask you a question: About the baptism of John—who authorized it, heaven or humans?”
5-7They were on the spot, and knew it. They pulled back into a huddle and whispered, “If we say ‘heaven,’ he’ll ask us why we didn’t believe him; if we say ‘humans,’ the people will tear us limb from limb, convinced as they are that John was God’s prophet.” They agreed to concede that round to Jesus and said they didn’t know.
8Jesus said, “Then neither will I answer your question.”
The Story of Corrupt Farmhands
9-12Jesus told another story to the people: “A man planted a vineyard. He handed it over to farmhands and went off on a trip. He was gone a long time. In time he sent a servant back to the farmhands to collect the profits, but they beat him up and sent him off empty-handed. He decided to try again and sent another servant. That one they beat black-and-blue, and sent him off empty-handed. He tried a third time. They worked that servant over from head to foot and dumped him in the street.
13“Then the owner of the vineyard said, ‘I know what I’ll do: I’ll send my beloved son. They’re bound to respect my son.’
14-15a “But when the farmhands saw him coming, they quickly put their heads together. ‘This is our chance—this is the heir! Let’s kill him and have it all to ourselves.’ They killed him and threw him over the fence.
15b-16 “What do you think the owner of the vineyard will do? Right. He’ll come and get rid of everyone. Then he’ll assign the care of the vineyard to others.”
Those who were listening said, “Oh, no! He’d never do that!”
17-18But Jesus didn’t back down. “Why, then, do you think this was written:
That stone the masons threw out—
It’s now the cornerstone!?
“Anyone falling over that stone will break every bone in his body; if the stone falls on anyone, he’ll be smashed to smithereens.”
19The religion scholars and high priests wanted to lynch him on the spot, but they were intimidated by public opinion. They knew the story was about them.
Paying Taxes
20-22Watching for a chance to get him, they sent spies who posed as honest inquirers, hoping to trick him into saying something that would get him in trouble with the law. So they asked him, “Teacher, we know that you’re honest and straightforward when you teach, that you don’t pander to anyone but teach the way of God accurately. Tell us: Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar or not?”
23-24He knew they were laying for him and said, “Show me a coin. Now, this engraving, who does it look like and what does it say?”
25“Caesar,” they said.
Jesus said, “Then give Caesar what is his and give God what is his.”
26Try as they might, they couldn’t trap him into saying anything incriminating. His answer caught them off guard and left them speechless.
All Intimacies Will Be with God
27-33Some Sadducees came up. This is the Jewish party that denies any possibility of resurrection. They asked, “Teacher, Moses wrote us that if a man dies and leaves a wife but no child, his brother is obligated to marry her and give her children. Well, there once were seven brothers. The first took a wife. He died childless. The second married her and died, then the third, and eventually all seven had their turn, but no child. After all that, the wife died. That wife, now—in the resurrection whose wife is she? All seven married her.”
34-38Jesus said, “Marriage is a major preoccupation here, but not there. Those who are included in the resurrection of the dead will no longer be concerned with marriage nor, of course, with death. They will have better things to think about, if you can believe it. All ecstasies and intimacies then will be with God. Even Moses exclaimed about resurrection at the burning bush, saying, ‘God: God of Abraham, God of Isaac, God of Jacob!’ God isn’t the God of dead men, but of the living. To him all are alive.”
39-40Some of the religion scholars said, “Teacher, that’s a great answer!” For a while, anyway, no one dared put questions to him.
* * *
41-44Then he put a question to them: “How is it that they say that the Messiah is David’s son? In the Book of Psalms, David clearly says,
God said to my Master,
“Sit here at my right hand
until I put your enemies under your feet.”
“David here designates the Messiah as ‘my Master’—so how can the Messiah also be his ‘son’?”
45-47With everybody listening, Jesus spoke to his disciples. “Watch out for the religion scholars. They love to walk around in academic gowns, preen in the radiance of public flattery, bask in prominent positions, sit at the head table at every church function. And all the time they are exploiting the weak and helpless. The longer their prayers, the worse they get. But they’ll pay for it in the end.”
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THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson. All rights reserved. Used by permission of NavPress. Represented by Tyndale House Publishers.