Luke - Chapter 20

Passage

And it happened on one of the days, as he was teaching the people in the temple and preaching the gospel, that the chief priests and the scribes, with the ancients, came together And spoke to him, saying: Tell us, by what authority are you doing these things? Or, who is it that has given you this authority? And Jesus answered and said to them: I will also ask you one thing. Answer me: The baptism of John, was it from heaven, or from men? But they reasoned among themselves, saying: If we say, From heaven, he will say: Why then did you not believe him? But if we say, From men, the whole people will stone us. For they are convinced that John was a prophet. And they answered that they did not know where it was from. And Jesus said to them: Neither do I tell you by what authority I do these things. And he began to tell the people this parable: A certain man planted a vineyard and leased it to tenants: and he was away for a long time. And at the right season he sent a servant to the tenants, so that they would give him some of the fruit of the vineyard. But they beat him and sent him away empty-handed. And again he sent another servant. But they beat him also and, treating him shamefully, sent him away empty-handed. And again he sent a third: and they wounded him also and threw him out. Then the lord of the vineyard said: What shall I do? I will send my beloved son. Perhaps, when they see him, they will respect him. But when the tenants saw him, they reasoned among themselves, saying: This is the heir. Let us kill him, so that the inheritance may be ours. So throwing him out of the vineyard, they killed him. What therefore will the lord of the vineyard do to them? He will come and will destroy these tenants and will give the vineyard to others. When they heard this, they said to him: God forbid. But he, looking at them, said: What then is this that is written: The stone which the builders rejected has become the head of the corner? Whoever falls upon that stone shall be broken: and upon whomever it falls, it will grind him to powder. And the chief priests and the scribes tried to lay hands on him that same hour: but they feared the people, for they knew that he had spoken this parable against them. And watching him closely, they sent spies who pretended to be just, so that they might catch him in his words and hand him over to the authority and power of the governor. And they asked him, saying: Master, we know that you speak and teach rightly: and you do not show favor to anyone, but teach the way of God in truth. Is it lawful for us to give tribute to Caesar, or not? But he, seeing their cunning, said to them: Why do you test me? Show me a penny. Whose image and inscription does it have? They answered and said to him: Caesar's. And he said to them: Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar's: and to God the things that are God's. And they could not find fault with his word before the people: and wondering at his answer, they kept silent. And some of the Sadducees, who deny that there is any resurrection, came to him: and they asked him, Saying: Master, Moses wrote for us: If any man's brother dies, having a wife, and he leaves no children, his brother should take her as his wife and raise up offspring for his brother. There were therefore seven brothers: and the first took a wife and died without children. And the next took her as his wife: and he also died childless. And the third took her. And in the same way all the seven: and they left no children and died. Last of all the woman died also. In the resurrection therefore, whose wife of them shall she be? For all seven had her as wife. And Jesus said to them: The children of this world marry and are given in marriage: But those who shall be counted worthy of that world and of the resurrection from the dead shall neither marry nor be given in marriage. Nor can they die any more, for they are equal to the angels and are the children of God, being the children of the resurrection. Now that the dead rise again, Moses also showed at the bush, when he called the Lord the God of Abraham and the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob. For he is not the God of the dead, but of the living: for all live to him. And some of the scribes answered and said to him: Master, you have spoken well. And after that they did not dare to ask him any more questions. But he said to them: How do they say that the Christ is the son of David? And David himself says in the book of Psalms: The Lord said to my Lord, sit at my right hand, Until I make your enemies your footstool. David then calls him Lord. And how is he his son? And in the hearing of all the people, he said to his disciples: Beware of the scribes, who like to walk in long robes and love greetings in the marketplace and the first chairs in the synagogues and the places of honor at feasts: Who devour the houses of widows, making long prayers for show. These shall receive greater damnation.