Mark 12:1

The Parable of the Tenants

12:1 Then ¹  he began to speak to them in parables: “A man planted a vineyard. ²  He put a fence around it, dug a pit for its winepress, and built a watchtower. Then ³  he leased it to tenant farmers ⁴  and went on a journey.

Mark 13:34

13:34 It is like a man going on a journey. He left his house and put his slaves ⁵  in charge, assigning ⁶  to each his work, and commanded the doorkeeper to stay alert.

Mark 14:13

14:13 He sent two of his disciples and told them, “Go into the city, and a man carrying a jar ⁷  of water will meet you. Follow him.

Mark 14:21

14:21 For the Son of Man will go as it is written about him, but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would be better for him if he had never been born.”

[12:1]  ¹ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

[12:1]  ² sn 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.

[12:1]  ³ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

[12:1]  ⁴ sn The leasing of land to tenant farmers was common in this period.

[13:34]  ⁵ tn See the note on the word “slave” in 10:44.

[13:34]  ⁶ tn Grk “giving.”

[14:13]  ⁹ sn Since women usually carried these jars, it would have been no problem for the two disciples (Luke 22:8 states that they were Peter and John) to recognize the man Jesus was referring to.