Mark 12: 1-12 HCSB
1 Then He began to speak to them in parables: "A man planted a vineyard, put a fence around it, dug out a pit for a winepress, and built a watchtower. Then he leased it to tenant farmers and went away. 2 At harvest time he sent a slave to the farmers to collect some of the fruit of the vineyard from the farmers. 3 But they took him, beat him, and sent him away empty-handed. 4 Again he sent another slave to them, and they hit him on the head and treated him shamefully. 5 Then he sent another, and they killed that one. [He] also [sent] many others; they beat some and they killed some. 6 "He still had one to send, a beloved son. Finally he sent him to them, saying, 'They will respect my son.' 7 "But those tenant farmers said among themselves, 'This is the heir. Come, let's kill him, and the inheritance will be ours!' 8 So they seized him, killed him, and threw him out of the vineyard. 9 "Therefore, what will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and destroy the farmers and give the vineyard to others. 10 Haven't you read this Scripture: The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone. 11 This came from the Lord and is wonderful in our eyes ?" 12 Because they knew He had said this parable against them, they were looking for a way to arrest Him, but they were afraid of the crowd. So they left Him and went away.
We see the tension between Jesus and the religious leaders escalate, it is now merely days until Jesus trial and crucifixion. Jesus uses this parable to tell them he knows exactly who they are and what they are planning. The slaves in the story represent moses and the prophets. The reference in verse 10 is to Isaiah 28: 16, a messianic prophecy.
Mark 12: 13-17 HCSB
13 Then they sent some of the Pharisees and the Herodians to Him to trap Him by what He said. 14 When they came, they said to Him, "Teacher, we know You are truthful and defer to no one, for You don't show partiality but teach truthfully the way of God. Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar or not? 15 Should we pay, or should we not pay?" But knowing their hypocrisy, He said to them, "Why are you testing Me? Bring Me a denarius to look at." 16 So they brought one. "Whose image and inscription is this?" He asked them. "Caesar's," they said. 17 Then Jesus told them, "Give back to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's." And they were amazed at Him.
First they try to set Jesus up with some insincere flattery, and then they ask a trick question that could incite the crowd to violence or be considered treason against Rome no matter how Jesus answers. The Jewish people hated Romes oppressive tax system and the tax collectors who regularly cheated the people. Jesus answers in a way that both defuses the trap and cuts to the true heart of the question. By asking for a coin and remarking on the image and inscription, Jesus shows that the coin already belongs to Caesar, so there is no harm in returning it. Taxes are necessary in a civilized society to pay for things of the common good, from roads to police and judges. Everything ultimately belongs to God, It is he who deserves our utmost devotion and respect, both in our time and our money.
Mark 12: 18-27 HCSB
18 Some Sadducee's, who say there is no resurrection, came to Him and questioned Him: 19 "Teacher, Moses wrote for us that if a man's brother dies , leaves his wife behind, and leaves no child, his brother should take the wife and produce offspring for his brother. 20 There were seven brothers. The first took a wife, and dying, left no offspring. 21 The second also took her, and he died, leaving no offspring. And the third likewise. 22 The seven also left no offspring. Last of all, the woman died too. 23 In the resurrection, when they rise, whose wife will she be, since the seven had married her?" 24 Jesus told them, "Are you not deceived because you don't know the Scriptures or the power of God? 25 For when they rise from the dead, they neither marry nor are given in marriage but are like angels in heaven. 26 Now concerning the dead being raised-haven't you read in the book of Moses, in the passage about the burning bush, how God spoke to him: I am the God of Abraham and the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob ? 27 He is not God of the dead but of the living. You are badly deceived."
The pharisees and Sadducee's were opposing sects in the political religious faction of the Jewish temple, with the Sadducee's actually being the more conservative and legalistic of the two. The Sadducee's only accepted the books of Moses (Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus,Numbers,Deuteronomy) as scripture and did not believe in an afterlife or a spiritual world beyond the physical. It shows how bothered they were by Jesus that they would work together to oppose him. It also shows how hypocritical and cynical they are that they would use a riddle based on something they did not even believe to try to trick Jesus. Once again, Jesus not only defuses they trap, but cuts to the heart of the matter and exposes their beliefs as false. By using a proof text from Exodus, Jesus not only proves that there is an afterlife, but in a way they cannot deny and still claim to rever the books of Moses.
Mark 12: 28-34 HCSB
28 One of the scribes approached. When he heard them debating and saw that Jesus answered them well, he asked Him, "Which commandment is the most important of all?" 29 "This is the most important," Jesus answered: Listen, Israel! The Lord our God, the Lord is One. 30 Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength. 31 "The second is: Love your neighbor as yourself. There is no other commandment greater than these." 32 Then the scribe said to Him, "You are right, Teacher! You have correctly said that He is One, and there is no one else except Him. 33 And to love Him with all your heart, with all your understanding, and with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself, is far more [important] than all the burnt offerings and sacrifices." 34 When Jesus saw that he answered intelligently, He said to him, "You are not far from the kingdom of God." And no one dared to question Him any longer.
This is yet another test, but this an honest question of Jesus beliefs and teachings rather than just a trap or trick question. This scribe seems to be a much more honest seeker of Gods will, but there is still a bit of arrogance in the they way he congratulates Jesus on the correct answer, like he is speaking to a young student rather than respected teacher. Jesus response, an equivalent to "you are almost there" is both an approval and a gentle putting the man in his place in the teacher student relationship.
Mark 12: 35-40 HCSB
35 So Jesus asked this question as He taught in the temple complex, "How can the scribes say that the Messiah is the Son of David? 36 David himself says by the Holy Spirit: The Lord declared to my Lord, 'Sit at My right hand until I put Your enemies under Your feet.' 37 David himself calls Him 'Lord'; how then can the Messiah be his Son?" And the large crowd was listening to Him with delight. 38 He also said in His teaching, "Beware of the scribes, who want to go around in long robes, and who want greetings in the marketplaces, 39 the front seats in the synagogues, and the places of honor at banquets. 40 They devour widows' houses and say long prayers just for show. These will receive harsher punishment."
Many are now starting to believe that Jesus might be the promised messiah, but they still don't know what type of savior the messiah is truly suppose to be. Jesus is hinting at his own divinity here as well. Jesus also openly calls out the religious leaders for their hypocrisy here, which will further push them to have him killed.
Mark 12: 41-44 HCSB
41 Sitting across from the temple treasury, He watched how the crowd dropped money into the treasury. Many rich people were putting in large sums. 42 And a poor widow came and dropped in two tiny coins worth very little./ 64 of a daily wage, was the smallest Roman coin. 43 Summoning His disciples, He said to them, "I assure you: This poor widow has put in more than all those giving to the temple treasury. 44 For they all gave out of their surplus, but she out of her poverty has put in everything she possessed-all she had to live on."
HCSB is the only translation I have seen that gives the value of the coins, rather than the amount of coins.
Once again this is a dig a the wealthy religious leaders, by declaring her greater than them due to her faith and sacrifice.
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