The Parable of the Vineyard Owner

12 Then Jesus began to speak to them in parables: “A man planted a vineyard, put a fence around it, dug a pit for the winepress, built a tower, leased it to farmers, and left the country. 2 At harvest time he sent a servant to the farmers to receive from them some of the fruit of the vineyard. 3 But they seized that servant, beat him, and sent him away empty-handed. 4 Again he sent to them another servant, and they [fn]threw stones at him, struck him on the head, and [fn]sent him away after dishonoring him. 5 [fn]Again he sent another, and that one they killed. He also sent many others, some of whom they beat, and some of whom they killed. 6 Now he still had [fn]his one beloved son. He sent him to them [fn]as well, last of all, saying, ‘They will have respect for my son.’ 7 But [fn]the farmers said to one another, ‘This is the heir. Come, let us kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.’ 8 So they took him, killed him, and threw him out of the vineyard. 9 What [fn]then will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and destroy those farmers and give the vineyard to others. 10 Have you not read this Scripture:

‘The stone the builders rejected

has become the cornerstone;

11 this was the Lord's doing,

and it is amazing in our eyes’?”

12 Then the chief priests, the scribes, and the elders were looking for a way to arrest Jesus because they knew he had spoken the parable against them. But they were afraid of the crowd, so they left him and went away.