Luke 20:9–18 (ESV)
The Parable of the Wicked Tenants
9 And he began to
tell the people this parable: “A man planted a vineyard and let it out to tenants and went into another country for a long while. 10 When the time came, he sent a servant to the tenants, so that they would give him some of the fruit of the vineyard.
But the tenants beat him and sent him away empty-handed. 11 And he sent another servant. But they also beat and treated him shamefully, and sent him away empty-handed. 12 And he sent yet a third. This one also they wounded and cast out. 13 Then the owner of
the vineyard said, ‘What shall I do? I will send my beloved son; perhaps they will respect him.’ 14 But when the tenants saw him, they said to themselves, ‘This is the heir. Let us kill him, so that the inheritance may be ours.’ 15
And they threw him out of the vineyard and killed him. What then will the owner of the vineyard do to them? 16 He will come and destroy those tenants and give the vineyard to others.” When they heard this, they said, “Surely not!” 17 But
he looked directly at them and said, “What then is this that is written:
“ ‘The stone that the builders rejected
has become the cornerstone’?
18 Everyone
who falls on that stone will be broken to pieces, and when it falls on anyone, it will crush him.”
If you don’t understand what is going on in this parable, then go back and reread it, but remember this:
1)
God is the owner
2) The vineyard is Israel
3) The servants are the prophets
4) The tenants are the religious leaders
5) The beloved son is Jesus.
When
you reread this, then you can put this all together because the religious leaders were killing the prophets and they plotted and killed Jesus on the cross. God’s final attempt was sending his Son (Jesus). God is patient and persistent, and
he wants to get his message out.
I pray: O Lord, we live in a world today where Christians are persecuted, even in America. Help us to keep our eyes focused on you. Amen.