Luke 20

Luke 20:1-8

Luke 20:1–8 (ESV)

One day, as Jesus was teaching the people in the temple and preaching the gospel, the chief priests and the scribes with the elders came up and said to him, “Tell us by what authority you do these things, or who it is that gave you this authority.” He answered them, “I also will ask you a question. Now tell me, was the baptism of John from heaven or from man?” And they discussed it with one another, saying, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will say, ‘Why did you not believe him?’ But if we say, ‘From man,’ all the people will stone us to death, for they are convinced that John was a prophet.” So they answered that they did not know where it came from. And Jesus said to them, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things.”

Luke 20:1-8

One day, as Jesus was teaching the people in the temple and preaching the gospel, the chief priests and the scribes with the elders came up and said to him, “Tell us by what authority you do these things, or who it is that gave you this authority.”—Luke 20:1-2.

20:1–2. The powerful priestly aristocracy who ran the temple exercised their own authority over it; they would know that Jesus has not received the authority from themselves or from the Romans. They would not accept any other human authorization as legitimate, nor regard other humans as divinely authorized; they presumably believed that God had authorized them rather than someone else to be in charge of the religious aspects of the temple.

He answered them, “I also will ask you a question. Now tell me, was the baptism of John from heaven or from man?”—Luke 20:3-4.

20:3 I also will ask you a question Matthew’s account frames Jesus’ response as a condition: If the religious leaders answer Jesus’ question, then He will answer theirs. Although this condition is unstated in Luke, it is reflected in Jesus’ response in v. 8. 20:4 The baptism of John Described in ch. 3 as a baptism of repentance (3:3 and note)

20:3–4. Jesus’ question about John the Baptist concerns the principle of agency: in Jewish law, an authorized agent acted on behalf of the sender, backed by the sender’s full authority. “Heaven” was a Jewish circumlocution for God.

And they discussed it with one another, saying, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will say, ‘Why did you not believe him?’ But if we say, ‘From man,’ all the people will stone us to death, for they are convinced that John was a prophet.”—Luke 20:5-6.

20:6 stone us The Jewish law’s penalty for blasphemy (see Lev 24:11–16; compare John 8:59; 10:31–33).

20:5–7. The temple authorities, who had to please the Romans on the one hand and the populace on the other, were already accustomed to considering the political consequences of their statements.

So they answered that they did not know where it came from. And Jesus said to them, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things.”—Luke 20:7-8.

20:8 Neither will I tell you The religious leaders evade the dilemma that Jesus’ question presented (Luke 20:5–6); in the same way, Jesus avoids their attempt to trap Him in a statement that they could use against Him.

Luke 20:9-18, Parable of the Wicked Tenants

Luke 20:9–18 (ESV)

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.”

Luke 20:9–18 (ESV)

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.

20:9. Absentee landlords were common.

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.

20:10–12 He sent. The man sent three servants, probably representing the OT prophets, to check on the tenants. The second and third servants each received greater abuse than the one preceding him. Cf. the three servants in 19:15–25.

20:10. Payments were rendered at harvest time. Some contracts specified that the tenants would pay the landowner a percentage of the harvest; other contracts called for a fixed amount.

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.

20:11–12. Landowners always had power, socially and legally, to enforce their will on the tenants; a few even reportedly had hit squads to deal with troublesome tenants. Here the tenants act as if they are the ones with power, and they exploit it mercilessly (as opposed to the ancient ideal of a benevolent patron or landowner). This description fits the Jewish tradition that Israel martyred many of the prophets God sent to it.

13 Then the owner of the vineyard said, ‘What shall I do? I will send my beloved son; perhaps they will respect him.’

20:13 My beloved son recalls the words spoken by the Father to Jesus at his baptism (3:22; cf. Matt. 3:17), and therefore here it surely alludes to God’s sending of Jesus to proclaim the gospel of the kingdom to Israel, and their widespread rejection of him (see John 1:9–11).

20:13. In the light of 3:22, the “beloved son” clearly represents Jesus. Ancient hearers of the parable would regard the landowner as abnormal; naively benevolent, he counted on a kindness in his tenants that their behavior had already disproved. Rich or poor, all hearers at this point would agree that the landowner was in the right, and that he was benevolent—indeed, strikingly, foolishly benevolent.

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?

20:14 let us kill him Echoes Joseph’s hostile brothers in Gen 37:19–20. Joseph, like Jesus, enjoyed the status of beloved son, though the connotations are very different—with Jesus’ status also representing His divinity (Gen 37:3).

20:14–15. The tenants presume too much about the inheritance; although they could have seized it under certain legal conditions, the owner could also stipulate—and after their misdeeds certainly would—that someone else inherit the vineyard; or representatives of the emperor could have seized it. If a dead body were left in a vineyard, it would render the harvested food impure if the food got wet (Jewish interpretation of Lev 11:38).

20:15b What then will the owner … do to them introduces Jesus’ interpretation of the parable. The “owner” (lit., “lord”) represents God.

16 He will come and destroy those tenants and give the vineyard to others.” When they heard this, they said, “Surely not!”

20:16. The ancient hearers would wonder why the landowner had not come earlier and killed the tenants. The people’s negative response is only because they know how Jesus is applying it—against their own leaders (v. 19).

20:16 God will destroy those tenants. In a preliminary sense this happened during the destruction of Jerusalem in A.D. 70, but in a fuller sense it refers to the final judgment. Surely not! The hearers have some sense that the parable applies to the people of Israel, and they are hoping that it does not mean that God will give the land of Israel or the kingdom to others.

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’?

20:17. Here Jesus cites Psalm 118:22–23, another text from the Hallel (the crowd referred to 118:25–26 in Lk 19:38). The building here is the temple (Ps 118:18–21, 25–27); as the cornerstone of a new temple, Jesus is a threat to the builders of the old one.

18 Everyone who falls on that stone will be broken to pieces, and when it falls on anyone, it will crush him.”

20:18. “Falling on” the cornerstone reflects Isaiah 8:14–15 (cf. 28:16); the stone falling on the offender reflects Daniel 2:34, 44, where God’s kingdom, portrayed as a rock, crushes its earthly challengers. Jesus here uses a standard Jewish practice of expounding one text (cf. Lk 20:17) by citing others sharing the same key word or concept, in this case, the divine stone.

20:18 Everyone who falls (cf. Isa. 8:14–15; 1 Pet. 2:8) means everyone who stumbles at and rejects Jesus as the Messiah. When it falls on anyone refers to Christ coming back in judgment.

Luke 20:19-26

Luke 20:19–26 (ESV)

19 The scribes and the chief priests sought to lay hands on him at that very hour, for they perceived that he had told this parable against them, but they feared the people. 20 So they watched him and sent spies, who pretended to be sincere, that they might catch him in something he said, so as to deliver him up to the authority and jurisdiction of the governor. 21 So they asked him, “Teacher, we know that you speak and teach rightly, and show no partiality, but truly teach the way of God. 22 Is it lawful for us to give tribute to Caesar, or not?” 23 But he perceived their craftiness, and said to them, 24 “Show me a denarius. Whose likeness and inscription does it have?” They said, “Caesar’s.” 25 He said to them, “Then render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” 26 And they were not able in the presence of the people to catch him in what he said, but marveling at his answer they became silent.

Luke 20:19–26 (ESV)

19 The scribes and the chief priests sought to lay hands on him at that very hour, for they perceived that he had told this parable against them, but they feared the people. 20 So they watched him and sent spies, who pretended to be sincere, that they might catch him in something he said, so as to deliver him up to the authority and jurisdiction of the governor. 21 So they asked him, “Teacher, we know that you speak and teach rightly, and show no partiality, but truly teach the way of God.

20:19–21. Here Jesus’ opponents seek to force him to choose between revolution—which would get him in trouble with Rome—and accommodation to the Romans—which they suppose he opposes (because he opposed their leadership in the temple).

20:20 the jurisdiction of the governor (Pontius Pilate) If the religious leaders could produce witnesses of Jesus speaking against Caesar, then the Romans would arrest Him and perhaps execute Him as an enemy of the state.

20:21 you speak and teach rightly The spies flatter Jesus in an attempt to conceal their intention.

22 Is it lawful for us to give tribute to Caesar, or not?”

20:22. They pit the obligations of peace with Rome against the nationalistic, messianic fervor that they assume Jesus has generated; a disastrous tax revolt two decades earlier had shown where such fervor could lead. If he publicly takes the view characterized by those later called Zealots (no king but God), he can be arrested; if he rejects that view (which he does), he may compromise his following (cf. 23:18–19).

20:22 Is it permitted for us Their question is carefully crafted: A positive answer would alienate Jesus from the Jews, who opposed Roman taxation; a negative answer would incriminate Him against Rome.pay taxes to Caesar Since Jesus’ central message was that the kingdom of God had arrived (e.g., Luke 4:43; 8:1), a question about paying taxes to another kingdom—the Roman Empire—was fully relevant.

20:22 Judaeans began paying taxes to Rome in AD 6 when Caesar Augustus terminated the rule of Archelaus (son of Herod the Great) and made his territory a Roman province. According to the first-century historian Josephus, a Galilean (or Gaulanite) named Judas provoked widespread opposition over this taxation, maintaining that it was inconsistent with God’s sovereignty over Israel (Josephus, Jewish War 2.117–18; Antiquities 18.1–10). Taxation also was a motivating factor in the Jews’ revolt against Rome in AD 66, which ultimately led to the destruction of Jerusalem (Josephus, Jewish War 2.403–4; 6.422).

23 But he perceived their craftiness, and said to them, 24 “Show me a denarius. Whose likeness and inscription does it have?” They said, “Caesar’s.” 25 He said to them, “Then render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” 26 And they were not able in the presence of the people to catch him in what he said, but marveling at his answer they became silent.

20:23–26. Jewish Palestine circulated its own copper coins, which bore the name but not the image of the deified emperor. Nonetheless, foreign coins, which bore the emperor’s image and mention of his divine status, were in common circulation in Palestine, where neither gold nor silver coins were permitted to be struck. Revolutionaries in A.D. 6 had violently protested the use of such coins and incurred terrible Roman retaliation.

20:24 a denarius A coin representing about a day’s wages.

20:24 image The Greek word used here, eikōn, is the same word used in the Septuagint (the Greek translation of the OT) to describe people being made in the image of God (Gen 1:26–27).