The Life of Jesus

And certain of the Pharisees from the multitude said unto him, `Teacher, rebuke thy disciples;'

and he answering said to them, `I say to you, that, if these shall be silent, the stones will cry out!'

And when he came nigh, having seen the city, he wept over it,

saying--`If thou didst know, even thou, at least in this thy day, the things for thy peace; but now they were hid from thine eyes.

`Because days shall come upon thee, and thine enemies shall cast around thee a rampart, and compass thee round, and press thee on every side,

and lay thee low, and thy children within thee, and they shall not leave in thee a stone upon a stone, because thou didst not know the time of thy inspection.'

And having entered into the temple, he began to cast forth those selling in it, and those buying,

saying to them, `It hath been written, My house is a house of prayer--but ye made it a den of robbers.'

And he was teaching daily in the temple, but the chief priests and the scribes were seeking to destroy him--also the chiefs of the people--

and they were not finding what they shall do, for all the people were hanging on him, hearing him.

And it came to pass, on one of those days, as he is teaching the people in the temple, and proclaiming good news, the chief priests and the scribes, with the elders, came upon him ,

and spake unto him, saying, `Tell us by what authority thou dost these things? or who is he that gave to thee this authority?'

And he answering said unto them, `I will question you--I also--one thing, and tell me:

the baptism of John, from heaven was it, or from men?'

And they reasoned with themselves, saying--`If we may say, From heaven, he will say, Wherefore, then, did ye not believe him?

and if we may say, From men, all the people will stone us, for they are having been persuaded John to be a prophet.'

And they answered, that they knew not whence it was ,

and Jesus said to them, `Neither do I say to you by what authority I do these things.'

And he began to speak unto the people this simile: `A certain man planted a vineyard, and gave it out to husbandmen, and went abroad for a long time,

and at the season he sent unto the husbandmen a servant, that from the fruit of the vineyard they may give to him, but the husbandmen having beat him, did send him away empty.

`And he added to send another servant, and they that one also having beaten and dishonoured, did send away empty;

and he added to send a third, and this one also, having wounded, they did cast out.

`And the owner of the vineyard said, What shall I do? I will send my son--the beloved, perhaps having seen this one, they will do reverence;

and having seen him, the husbandmen reasoned among themselves, saying, This is the heir; come, we may kill him, that the inheritance may become ours;

and having cast him outside of the vineyard, they killed him ; what, then, shall the owner of the vineyard do to them?