Mark12

Jesus teaches through the parable of the wicked husbandmen, foretelling his rejection by the religious leaders and the transfer of God's favor. He skillfully answers questions from the Pharisees and Sadducees regarding tribute to Caesar and the resurrection, affirming divine authority and the nature of the afterlife. Jesus then declares the greatest commandments are to love God and neighbor, warns against the hypocrisy of the scribes, and commends the sacrificial giving of a poor widow.

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The Parable of the Wicked Tenants

And he began to speak unto them in parables. A man planted a vineyard, and set a hedge about it, and digged a pit for the winepress, and built a tower, and let it out to husbandmen, and went into another country.

And at the season he sent to the husbandmen a servant, that he might receive from the husbandmen of the fruits of the vineyard.

And they took him, and beat him, and sent him away empty.

And again he sent unto them another servant; and him they wounded in the head, and handled shamefully.

And he sent another; and him they killed: and many others; beating some, and killing some.

He had yet one, a beloved son: he sent him last unto them, saying, They will reverence my son.

But those husbandmen said among themselves, This is the heir; come, let us kill him, and the inheritance shall be ours.

And they took him, and killed him, and cast him forth out of the vineyard.

What therefore will the lord of the vineyard do? he will come and destroy the husbandmen, and will give the vineyard unto others.

Have ye not read even this scripture: The stone which the builders rejected, The same was made the head of the corner;

This was from the Lord, And it is marvellous in our eyes?

And they sought to lay hold on him; and they feared the multitude; for they perceived that he spake the parable against them: and they left him, and went away.

Paying Taxes to Caesar

And they send unto him certain of the Pharisees and of the Herodians, that they might catch him in talk.

And when they were come, they say unto him, Teacher, we know that thou art true, and carest not for any one; for thou regardest not the person of men, but of a truth teachest the way of God: Is it lawful to give tribute unto Cæsar, or not?

Shall we give, or shall we not give? But he, knowing their hypocrisy, said unto them, Why make ye trial of me? bring me a denarius, that I may see it.

And they brought it. And he saith unto them, Whose is this image and superscription? And they said unto him, Cæsar’s.

And Jesus said unto them, Render unto Cæsar the things that are Cæsar’s, and unto God the things that are God’s. And they marvelled greatly at him.

The Sadducees Question the Resurrection

And there come unto him Sadducees, who say that there is no resurrection; and they asked him, saying,

Teacher, Moses wrote unto us, If a man’s brother die, and leave a wife behind him, and leave no child, that his brother should take his wife, and raise up seed unto his brother.

There were seven brethren: and the first took a wife, and dying left no seed;

and the second took her, and died, leaving no seed behind him; and the third likewise:

and the seven left no seed. Last of all the woman also died.

In the resurrection whose wife shall she be of them? for the seven had her to wife.

Jesus said unto them, Is it not for this cause that ye err, that ye know not the scriptures, nor the power of God?

For when they shall rise from the dead, they neither marry, nor are given in marriage; but are as angels in heaven.

But as touching the dead, that they are raised; have ye not read in the book of Moses, in the place concerning the Bush, how God spake unto him, saying, I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob?

He is not the God of the dead, but of the living: ye do greatly err.

The Greatest Commandment

And one of the scribes came, and heard them questioning together, and knowing that he had answered them well, asked him, What commandment is the first of all?

Jesus answered, The first is, Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God, the Lord is one:

and thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength.

The second is this, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these.

And the scribe said unto him, Of a truth, Teacher, thou hast well said that he is one; and there is none other but he:

and to love him with all the heart, and with all the understanding, and with all the strength, and to love his neighbor as himself, is much more than all whole burnt-offerings and sacrifices.

And when Jesus saw that he answered discreetly, he said unto him, Thou art not far from the kingdom of God. And no man after that durst ask him any question.

Is the Christ David's Son?

And Jesus answered and said, as he taught in the temple, How say the scribes that the Christ is the son of David?

David himself said in the Holy Spirit, The Lord said unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand, Till I make thine enemies the footstool of thy feet.

David himself calleth him Lord; and whence is he his son? And the common people heard him gladly.

Warning Against the Scribes

And in his teaching he said, Beware of the scribes, who desire to walk in long robes, andto have salutations in the marketplaces,

and chief seats in the synagogues, and chief places at feasts:

they that devour widows’ houses, and for a pretence make long prayers; these shall receive greater condemnation.

The Widow's Offering

And he sat down over against the treasury, and beheld how the multitude cast money into the treasury: and many that were rich cast in much.

And there came a poor widow, and she cast in two mites, which make a farthing.

And he called unto him his disciples, and said unto them, Verily I say unto you, This poor widow cast in more than all they that are casting into the treasury:

for they all did cast in of their superfluity; but she of her want did cast in all that she had, even all her living.

Study Notes for Mark 12

Verse 1

This parable, drawn from imagery in Isaiah 5, is an allegory for God’s relationship with Israel, where the vineyard represents God’s people and the owner represents God himself. This parable is directed specifically at the Jewish religious leaders.

Verse 6

The 'wellbeloved son' clearly represents Jesus himself, indicating that the religious leaders are about to commit the ultimate act of rejection against God’s final messenger.

Verse 9

This rhetorical question serves as a prophetic warning: the leadership role (the vineyard) will be taken away from those who have rejected God’s messengers and Son, and given to others.

Verse 10

Jesus quotes Psalm 118:22–23, identifying himself as the rejected stone. This Messianic prophecy indicates that the rejection by the builders (the Jewish leaders) is part of God’s sovereign plan.

Verse 12

The leaders understood that Jesus was speaking directly against them, confirming the confrontational nature of this parable near the end of his ministry. Their fear of the crowd prevented immediate action.

Verse 13

The Pharisees (nationalists opposed to Roman rule) and the Herodians (Jewish supporters of Rome) collaborated here to create an impossible political and religious trap for Jesus.

Verse 14

If Jesus had said 'Yes,' he would alienate the masses; if he had said 'No,' he would be arrested for sedition against Rome. The flattery precedes the trap.

Verse 17

Jesus masterfully avoids the trap, establishing the principle that civil obligations (to Caesar) and religious obligations (to God) are distinct but must both be met. The ultimate allegiance belongs to God.

Verse 18

The Sadducees accepted only the Pentateuch (the first five books of Moses) as authoritative scripture and denied the resurrection, angels, and spirits.

Verse 19

They refer to the Levirate law (Deuteronomy 25:5–10), which required a brother to marry his deceased brother’s childless widow to preserve the family line. They use this law to ridicule the idea of resurrection.

Verse 24

Jesus diagnoses their error: they fail to grasp the deeper meaning of Scripture (which implies resurrection) and the limitlessness of God’s power to transform reality.

Verse 25

Jesus clarifies that the nature of life in the resurrection is transformed; earthly institutions like marriage are not needed, as believers will exist in a perfected spiritual state.

Verse 26

By quoting Exodus 3:6 (from the Book of Moses, which the Sadducees accepted), Jesus uses their own acknowledged scripture to prove the resurrection.

Verse 27

God’s identification as the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob implies that these patriarchs must still exist and be alive in some form, proving the reality of life after death.

Verse 28

This scribe genuinely seeks wisdom, contrasting with the previous challengers. This question was common in rabbinic debates about the hierarchy of the 613 Mosaic laws.

Verse 29

Jesus quotes the *Shema* (Deuteronomy 6:4–5), the central declaration of Jewish faith, emphasizing the singularity and sovereignty of God as the foundation for all obedience.

Verse 30

The demand for total, holistic love (heart, soul, mind, strength) shows that true obedience is internal and comprehensive, not just ritualistic.

Verse 31

Jesus links the love of God (vertical) directly to the love of neighbor (horizontal, quoting Leviticus 19:18). These two commandments summarize the entire Mosaic Law.

Verse 33

The scribe accurately concludes that true love and ethical living supersedes the performance of ritual sacrifices, reflecting a profound understanding of prophetic teaching.

Verse 34

To be 'not far from the kingdom' means the scribe understood the core requirements of faith, though he still needed to fully commit to Jesus as the Messiah.

Verse 35

Jesus now challenges the established theological understanding of the Messiah, turning the questioning back on the religious authorities and asserting his divine authority.

Verse 36

Jesus quotes Psalm 110:1, a key Messianic Psalm. David, speaking by the Holy Ghost, calls his descendant (the Messiah) his 'Lord.' This implies the Messiah’s pre-existence and divine status.

Verse 37

This rhetorical question highlights the paradox: the Christ must be both the physical descendant of David *and* superior to him (Lord). This points toward the Messiah's dual human and divine nature.

Verse 38

Jesus shifts from teaching theology to condemning hypocrisy, focusing on the outward show of piety exhibited by the Scribes.

Verse 40

'Devour widows’ houses' likely refers to exploiting vulnerable persons through legalistic manipulation, or using long, public prayers as a cover for financial corruption.

Verse 41

The treasury was located in the Court of the Women, where thirteen trumpet-shaped receptacles received donations for various temple needs.

Verse 42

A mite (*lepton*) was the smallest Jewish coin. The two mites, which make a farthing (*kodrantes*), represented the very minimum offering, yet it was all she had.

Verse 43

Jesus emphasizes that God measures generosity not by the amount given, but by the proportion sacrificed relative to one's total resources, highlighting the widow’s radical self-denial.

Verse 44

The rich gave from their surplus, incurring no personal cost, whereas the widow’s gift was sacrificial and total—it was 'all her living,' defining true generosity.

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Mark12

The Parable of the Wicked Tenants

Paying Taxes to Caesar

The Sadducees Question the Resurrection

The Greatest Commandment

Is the Christ David's Son?

Warning Against the Scribes

The Widow's Offering

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