Luke 20:11 - Printer Friendly

ESV: And he sent another servant. But they also beat and treated him shamefully, and sent him away empty-handed.

NIV: He sent another servant, but that one also they beat and treated shamefully and sent away empty-handed.

NASB: And he proceeded to send another slave; but they beat him also and treated him shamefully, and sent him away empty-handed.

CSB: He sent yet another servant, but they beat that one too, treated him shamefully, and sent him away empty-handed.

NLT: So the owner sent another servant, but they also insulted him, beat him up, and sent him away empty-handed.

KJV: And again he sent another servant: and they beat him also, and entreated him shamefully, and sent him away empty.

NKJV: Again he sent another servant; and they beat him also, treated him shamefully, and sent him away empty-handed.

Jesus is using the parable of the wicked tenants to warn a group of Jerusalem businessmen and high priests. If they do not accept the authority of God's messengers, they're going to lose everything (Luke 20:9–18).

In the parable, a landowner sends a servant to collect some of the grapes from tenants who take care of his vineyard. When the first servant arrives, the tenants beat him; they do the same for the second. "Shamefully" means disrespectfully, which was a great offense in an honor/shame culture such as the ancient Middle East. By shaming the servant, they show public disrespect for the servant's master.

The parable is an allegory: a simplified symbolic representation of other events or persons. In this case, the landowner is God. The tenants are the Jewish leaders (Luke 20:19). The servants are God's prophets. Being God's prophet in the days of the Old Testament was dangerous (1 Kings 18:4; Acts 7:51–53).

The job of the prophets was mainly to remind the kings what God wanted them to do: to rule the people justly, encourage God-worship, destroy pagan idols, and rely on God for the nation's protection. Some kings did this well, but most didn't. The kings' sins were a major factor in the dissolution of the northern kingdom of Israel and the Babylonian captivity of the southern kingdom of Judah. It is why the Romans ruled over Israel during Jesus' earthly ministry.

The Jews had such a long history of abusing God's prophets that Jesus spends three verses repeating the fates of these poor servants. Matthew 21:35–36 explains that sometimes the servants went in groups, and some of them were killed.

Luke 20:9–18 records Jesus' response to religious leaders who challenged His authority (Luke 20:1–8). This comes in the form of the parable of the wicked tenants. The underlying meaning is that as the Son of God, Jesus has proper authority over religious leaders. However, the leaders of His era will kill Him, and God will destroy them. In the mirrored structure of Luke 20, the parallel argument is that Jesus is also superior to the line of the Jewish kings (Luke 20:41–44). In between, religious leaders foolishly challenge Jesus' understanding of the Mosaic law (Luke 20:19–40). This passage echoes the records in Matthew 21:33–46 and Mark 12:1–12.

After His triumphal entry into Jerusalem, Jesus find Himself in conflict with the city's religious leaders. Elders, priests, scribes, Pharisees, and Sadducees all attempt to discredit Him. This comes mostly in challenging Jesus with trick questions. Jesus deftly handles those challenges without falling into the trap. He provides several teachings about His role as the Son of God and directly warns the Jewish people against their generation of scribes, who are arrogant and pretentious.

Luke 20 is a chiasm about authority. Jesus has entered Jerusalem and cleansed the temple (Luke 19:28–46). Now, the priests and teachers attack Jesus' authority in religion, law, and doctrine; Jesus defends Himself and shows their sinful lifestyles disqualify them for authority. After holding up a widow as a better role model (Luke 21:1–4), Jesus warns His disciples about the challenges they will face in the coming years, including the destruction of Jerusalem (Luke 21:5–38). The events in Luke 20 are also discussed in Matthew 21—23 and Mark 11—12.

Luke was a traveling companion of Paul (Acts 16:10) and a physician (Colossians 4:14). Unlike Matthew, Mark, and John, Luke writes his gospel as an historian, rather than as a first-hand eyewitness. His extensive writings also include the book of Acts (Acts 1:1–3). These are deliberately organized, carefully researched accounts of those events. The gospel of Luke focuses on the earthly ministry of Jesus Christ. Luke's Gentile perspective presents Christ as a Savior for all people, offering both forgiveness and direction to those who follow Him.