1 ON one of those days, as he was teaching the people in the Temple courts and proclaiming the good news, the high priests and the scribes came up with the elders

2 and said to him, "Tell us by what authority you are doing these things or who it is that gave you this authority."

3 He answered them, "I too will ask you a question and you must tell me:

4 the baptism of John, was it from heaven or from men?"

5 They conferred among themselves, saying, "If we say, 'From heaven,' he will say, 'Why then did you not believe him?'

6 and if we say, 'From men,' all the people will stone us; for they are persuaded that John was a prophet."

7 So they answered that they did not know where it came from.

8 Jesus said to them, "Neither will I tell you by what authority I am doing these things."

9 He began and gave the people this illustration: "A man planted a vineyard and let it out to grape-growers and went abroad for a long time.

10 At the proper season he sent to the grape-growers a servant for them to give him a part of the fruit of the vineyard. But the grape-growers beat him, and sent him away empty-handed.

11 He afterwards sent another servant. That one, too, they beat and insulted and sent away empty-handed.

12 Then he sent a third. But this one, too, they wounded and threw out.

13 The owner of the vineyard said, 'I will send my son, my beloved. Perhaps they will reverence him.'

14 But when the grape-growers saw him, they conferred with one another and said, 'This is the heir. Let us kill him so that the inheritance may be ours.'

15 So they threw him outside of the vineyard and killed him. What now will the owner of the vineyard do?

16 He will come and destroy those grape-growers and will give the vineyard to others." When they heard this, they exclaimed, "May it never be!"

17 He turned his eyes upon them and said, "What does this Scripture mean, 'The stone which the builders rejected \'97 that one has become the corner stone'?

18 Every one who falls upon that stone will be shattered, but whomever it falls on it will crush to pieces."

19 The scribes and the high priests were eager to lay hands on him at that very time, for they knew that he had aimed the illustration at them; but they were afraid of the people.

20 So watching insidiously for an opportunity they sent spies, who pretended to be honest men, to seize upon anything he might say, so as to hand him over to the authorities and to the power of the Governor.

21 They asked him, "Teacher, we know that you speak and teach correctly and that you do not regard personal influences, but you teach the way of God according to truth.

22 Is it right for us to give tribute to Caesar or not?"

23 He saw through their cunning and said to them,

24 "Show me a coin. Whose head and inscription does it have on it?" They said, "Caesar's."

25 He said to them, "Then pay to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and pay to God what belongs to God."

26 They could not seize upon his words before the people, and in astonishment at his answer they were silent.

27 There came to him some of the Sadducees, who deny that there is any resurrection, and asked him,

28 "Teacher, Moses wrote for us, 'If any one's married brother dies childless, that man must marry his brother's widow and raise up offspring for his brother.'

29 Well, there were seven brothers. The first took a wife and died childless.

30 The second

31 and the third and the rest of the seven took her and died leaving no children.

32 Finally the woman also died.

33 Now this woman \'97 whose wife will she be at the resurrection? For she was wife to the seven."

34 Jesus said to them, "The children of this world marry and are married,

35 but those who are judged worthy to reach that world and the resurrection of the dead neither marry nor are married,

36 neither can they die, for they are like angels and are children of God, since they are children of the resurrection.

37 But that the dead rise Moses has made known in the passage regarding the Bush where he calls the Lord 'the God of Abraham and the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob.'

38 He is not a God of dead men, but of living men. For all are alive to him."

39 Some of the scribes answered him, "Teacher, you have spoken well."

40 And they no longer dared to ask him anything.

41 He said to them, "How do they say that the Christ is the son of David?

42 David himself says in the book of Psalms, 'The Lord said to my Lord, Sit at my right

43 until I make your enemies your footstool.'

44 So David calls him 'Lord'; how is he then his son?"

45 While all the people were listening, he said to the disciples,

46 "Beware of the scribes, who like to walk in long robes and love salutations in the market-places and front seats in the synagogues and the best couches at dinners,

47 who devour widows' houses and in pretense make long prayers. These will receive unusual condemnation."