Luke 20:9-19

Context

The Parable of the Tenants

20:9 Then¹ he began to tell the people this parable: “A man² planted a vineyard,³ leased it to tenant farmers,⁴ and went on a journey for a long time. 20:10 When harvest time came, he sent a slave⁵ to the tenants so that they would give⁶ him his portion of the crop.⁷ However, the tenants beat his slave⁸ and sent him away empty-handed. 20:11 So⁹ he sent another slave. They beat this one too, treated him outrageously, and sent him away empty-handed.¹⁰ 20:12 So¹¹ he sent still a third. They even wounded this one, and threw him out. 20:13 Then¹² the owner of the vineyard said, ‘What should I do? I will send my one dear son;¹³ perhaps they will respect him.’ 20:14 But when the tenants saw him, they said to one another, ‘This is the heir; let’s kill him so the inheritance will be ours!’ 20:15 So¹⁴ they threw him out of the vineyard and killed¹⁵ him. What then will the owner of the vineyard do to them? 20:16 He will come and destroy¹⁶ those tenants and give the vineyard to others.”¹⁷ When the people¹⁸ heard this, they said, “May this never happen!”¹⁹ 20:17 But Jesus²⁰ looked straight at them and said, “Then what is the meaning of that which is written: ‘The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone’?²¹ 20:18 Everyone who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces,²² and the one on whom it falls will be crushed.”²³ 20:19 Then²⁴ the experts in the law²⁵ and the chief priests wanted to arrest²⁶ him that very hour, because they realized he had told this parable against them. But²⁷ they were afraid of the people.

[20:9] ¹tn Here δέ (de) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative. The parable Jesus tells here actually addresses the question put to him by the leaders.

[20:9] ²tc ‡ There are several variants here, most of which involve variations in word order that do not affect translation. However, the presence or absence of τις (ti") after ἄνθρωπος (anqrwpo"), which would be translated “a certain man,” does affect translation. The witnesses that have τις include A W Θ Ë¹³ 1241 2542 al sy. Those that lack it include א B C D L Ψ Ë¹ 33 Ï it. Externally, the evidence is significantly stronger for the omission. Internally, however, there is some pause. A feature unique to Luke-Acts in the NT is to use the construction ἄνθρωπος τις (cf. 10:30; 12:16; 14:2, 16; 15:11; 16:1; 19:12; Acts 9:33). However, scribes who were familiar with this idiom may have inserted it here. In light of the overwhelming external support for the omission of τις, the shorter reading is preferred. NA²⁷ places τις in brackets, indicating some doubts as to its authenticity.

[20:9] ³sn The vineyard is a figure for Israel in the OT (Isa 5:1-7). The nation and its leaders are the tenants, so the vineyard here may well refer to the promise that resides within the nation. The imagery is like that in Rom 11:11-24.

[20:9] ⁴sn The leasing of land to tenant farmers was common in this period.

[20:10] ⁵sn This slave (along with the next two) represent the prophets God sent to the nation, who were mistreated and rejected.

[20:10] ⁶tc Instead of the future indicative δώσουσιν (dwsousin, “they will give”), most witnesses (C D W Θ Ψ Ë¹ Ï) have the aorist subjunctive δῶσιν (dwsin, “they might give”). The aorist subjunctive is expected following ἵνα ({ina, “so that”), so it is almost surely a motivated reading. Further, early and excellent witnesses, as well as a few others (א A B Ë¹³ 33 579 1241 2542 al), have δώσουσιν. It is thus more likely that the future indicative is authentic. For a discussion of this construction, see BDF §369.2.

[20:10] ⁷tn Grk “from the fruit of the vineyard.”

[20:10] ⁸tn Grk “him”; the referent (the slave sent by the owner) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[20:11] ⁹tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the implied result of the tenants’ mistreatment of the first slave.

[20:11] ¹⁰sn The slaves being sent empty-handed suggests that the vineyard was not producing any fruit – and thus neither was the nation of Israel.

[20:12] ¹¹tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the implied result of the tenants’ mistreatment of the first two slaves.

[20:13] ¹²tn Here δέ (de) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

[20:13] ¹³tn Grk “my beloved son.” See comment at Luke 3:22.

[20:15] ¹⁴tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the implied result of the tenants’ decision to kill the son.

[20:15] ¹⁵sn Throwing the heir out of the vineyard pictures Jesus’ death outside of Jerusalem.

[20:16] ¹⁶sn The statement that the owner will come and destroy those tenants is a promise of judgment; see Luke 13:34-35; 19:41-44.

[20:16] ¹⁷sn The warning that the owner would give the vineyard to others suggests that the care of the promise and the nation’s hope would be passed to others. This eventually looks to Gentile inclusion; see Eph 2:11-22.

[20:16] ¹⁸tn Grk “they”; the referent (the people addressed in v. 9) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[20:16] ¹⁹sn May this never happen! Jesus’ audience got the point and did not want to consider a story where the nation would suffer judgment.

[20:17] ²⁰tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[20:17] ²¹tn Or “capstone,” “keystone.” Although these meanings are lexically possible, the imagery in Eph 2:20-22 and 1 Cor 3:11 indicates that the term κεφαλὴ γωνίας (kefalh gwnia") refers to a cornerstone, not a capstone.

[20:18] ²²tn On this term, see BDAG 972 s.v. συνθλάω.

[20:18] ²³tn Grk “on whomever it falls, it will crush him.”

[20:19] ²⁴tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

[20:19] ²⁵tn Or “The scribes” See the note on the phrase “experts in the law” in 5:21.

[20:19] ²⁶tn Grk “tried to lay hands on him.”

[20:19] ²⁷tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” to indicate the contrast present in this context.