Mark 12
The Parable of the Tenants
12:1 Then he began to speak to them in parables: “A man planted a vineyard. He put a fence around it, dug a pit for its winepress, and built a watchtower. Then he leased it to tenant farmers and went on a journey.
After the Jews rejected Jesus and called Him demon-possessed, Jesus began to speak to them in parables. The man in this parable is Jesus. The vineyard is Israel. God planted the nation of Israel and placed a fence around her to protect her from Gentile invaders. He dug a winepress so that Israel could produce fruit. He leased the land to the Israelites. Jesus left Israel in charge of the land so they could produce good fruit.
12:2 At harvest time he sent a slave to the tenants to collect from them his portion of the crop.
The slave was one of the Jewish prophets.
12:3 But those tenants seized his slave, beat him, and sent him away empty-handed.
When the Jewish prophet arrived to collect the fruit from the harvest, the Jews beat him and sent him away.
12:4 So he sent another slave to them again. This one they struck on the head and treated outrageously.
God sent another prophet to Israel, but he was beaten as well.
12:5 He sent another, and that one they killed. This happened to many others, some of whom were beaten, others killed.
The Jews beat and killed all of the prophets who were sent to them.
12:6 He had one left, his one dear son. Finally he sent him to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’
Finally, God sent Jesus, the Son of God, to the Jewish people.
12:7 But those tenants said to one another, ‘This is the heir. Come, let’s kill him and the inheritance will be ours!’
The tenants were the Pharisees and Sadducees. Jesus predicted they would kill Him so they could remain in power.
12:8 So they seized him, killed him, and threw his body out of the vineyard.
Jesus predicted His own death.
12:9 What then will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and destroy those tenants and give the vineyard to others.
Jesus asked the Pharisees, “What will the owner do to these tenants”. The Pharisees did not yet understand that Jesus was talking about them. Their answer was their own judgment. The Pharisees will be destroyed in 70 A.D. at the Temple destruction. The Jews will be removed from the land of Israel.
12:10 Have you not read this scripture: ‘The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone.12:11 This is from the Lord, and it is marvelous in our eyes’?”
Jesus quoted Psalm 118. When the Jews built the temple, they could not find the cornerstone. When the construction was finished, they found out that the stone which they rejected was the cornerstone. Just as the cornerstone of the temple was rejected, so would Jesus be rejected.
12:12 Now they wanted to arrest him (but they feared the crowd), because they realized that he told this parable against them. So they left him and went away.
After they condemned themselves, they realized that the parable was about them. Therefore, they began looking for a reason to arrest Jesus.
Paying Taxes to Caesar
12:13 Then they sent some of the Pharisees and Herodians to trap him with his own words.
The Pharisees and Herodians were going to attempt to trap the Creator God of the universe with political words. The Herodians were the wealthy Jews who wanted to keep King Herod in power so they could remain in power.
12:14 When they came they said to him, “Teacher, we know that you are truthful and do not court anyone’s favor, because you show no partiality but teach the way of God in accordance with the truth. Is it right to pay taxes to Caesar or not? Should we pay or shouldn’t we?”
Notice that they called Jesus “teacher” and not Lord. They set up their trap with flattery. If Jesus said “no”, then He would be guilty of treason. If Jesus said “yes”, then He would lose His Jewish followers. They were looking for a Messiah to deliver them from Rome, not pay tribute to Rome.
12:15 But he saw through their hypocrisy and said to them, “Why are you testing me? Bring me a denarius and let me look at it.”
Jesus let them know that He saw through their deception, but He would answer their question anyway.
12:16 So they brought one, and he said to them, “Whose image is this, and whose inscription?” They replied, “Caesar’s.”
Jesus asked them for the inscription on the coin.
12:17 Then Jesus said to them, “Give to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” And they were utterly amazed at him.
When a believer works in the secular world, then he is to give to Caesar what is Caesar’s and give to the Lord what is the Lord’s.
Marriage and the Resurrection
12:18 Sadducees (who say there is no resurrection) also came to him and asked him,
The Sadducees were liberals who only believed in the first five books of the Bible. The Sadducees compromised more with the Romans, so they were the government’s preferential Jewish group.
12:19 “Teacher, Moses wrote for us: ‘If a man’s brother dies and leaves a wife but no children, that man must marry the widow and father children for his brother.’ 12:20 There were seven brothers. The first one married, and when he died he had no children. 12:21 The second married her and died without any children, and likewise the third. 12:22 None of the seven had children. Finally, the woman died too. 12:23 In the resurrection, when they rise again, whose wife will she be? For all seven had married her.”
The Sadducees used this argument for years against the conservative Pharisees. The Pharisees were never able to answer the question.
12:24 Jesus said to them, “Aren’t you deceived for this reason, because you don’t know the scriptures or the power of God?
The Sadducees were deceived, because they only believed part of the Word of God. There are many believers today who are deceived by the teachings of the satanic world system, simply because they refuse to take the time to study the entire counsel of the Word of God.
12:25 For when they rise from the dead, they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven.
This answer did not come from Scripture. Jesus gave a supernatural answer that no human would know. There is no marriage in heaven. Fallen angels once procreated with women on earth (Genesis 6), but they were imprisoned for life in Tartarus.
12:26 Now as for the dead being raised, have you not read in the book of Moses, in the passage about the bush, how God said to him, ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’?
Since the Sadducees only believed the first five books of the Bible, then Jesus quoted from Exodus 3:6.
12:27 He is not the God of the dead but of the living. You are badly mistaken!”
Although Abraham, Isaac, and Abraham had been dead for over 400 years, God told Moses that they were still living. Therefore, the Sadducees were teaching a huge theological error.
The Greatest Commandment
12:28 Now one of the experts in the law came and heard them debating. When he saw that Jesus answered them well, he asked him, “Which commandment is the most important of all?”
The different rabbinical schools often debated which commandment was the most important.
12:29 Jesus answered, “The most important is: ‘Listen, Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. 12:30 Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.’
Jesus quoted the Shema from Deuteronomy 6:4-5. In Hebrew, this could be translated as “Hear this Israel, Jehovah the triune plural God is one united Jehovah” Love Jehovah your triune plural God with all of your personality, with all of your life, with all of your thoughts, and with all of your physical strength”.
12:31 The second is: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”
Jesus quoted from Leviticus 19:18. These two laws sum up the entire Mosaic Law.
12:32 The expert in the law said to him, “That is true, Teacher; you are right to say that he is one, and there is no one else besides him.
Notice that Jesus was not called “Lord”, but “teacher”. However, even the enemies of Christ respected His answer.
12:33 And to love him with all your heart, with all your mind, and with all your strength and to love your neighbor as yourself is more important than all burnt offerings and sacrifices.”
Loving God with personality, thoughts, and acts was more important than the ritual sacrifices. The purpose of the ritual sacrifices was to show Israel that they were sinners and to point to Jesus as their Messiah.
12:34 When Jesus saw that he had answered thoughtfully, he said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” Then no one dared any longer to question him.
The scribe was close to becoming a believer. No one dared to ask Jesus anymore questions. They had no question which could remove the Truth.
The Messiah: David’s Son and Lord
12:35 While Jesus was teaching in the temple courts, he said, “How is it that the experts in the law say that the Christ is David’s son?
Jesus now turned the tables and asked the religious leaders a question. The Pharisees taught that David would give birth to the Messiah.
12:36 David himself, by the Holy Spirit, said, ‘The Lord said to my lord, “Sit at my right hand, until I put your enemies under your feet.”’
Jesus quoted from Psalm 110. God the Father is telling God the Son to sit at His right hand until God the Father defeats the enemies of God the Son. After God the Father defeats all of the enemies of God the Son, then he will give the Millennial Kingdom to the Son.
12:37 If David himself calls him ‘Lord,’ how can he be his son?” And the large crowd was listening to him with delight.
How could David call the Messiah his son when He was also his God?
Warnings About Experts in the Law
12:38 In his teaching Jesus also said, “Watch out for the experts in the law. They like walking around in long robes and elaborate greetings in the marketplaces, 12:39 and the best seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at banquets. 12:40 They devour widows’ property, and as a show make long prayers. These men will receive a more severe punishment.”
Jesus was not a seeker-friendly teacher. He warned the people to beware of the Jewish religious leaders. The religious leaders enjoyed walking around in their long robes. They enjoyed the attention they received when walking down the streets and marketplaces. They enjoyed receiving the best seats in the synagogues and banquets. However, they were all hypocrites. They would steal property from a poor widow. They prayed long prayers for show. They will all be punished by God.
The Widow’s Offering
12:41 Then he sat down opposite the offering box, and watched the crowd putting coins into it. Many rich people were throwing in large amounts. 12:42 And a poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, worth less than a penny. 12:43 He called his disciples and said to them, “I tell you the truth, this poor widow has put more into the offering box than all the others. 12:44 For they all gave out of their wealth. But she, out of her poverty, put in what she had to live on, everything she had.”
Notice that Jesus watches how much His people give. The wealthy gave for show. The poor widow gave everything she had.