Luke 20:12 - Printer Friendly

ESV: And he sent yet a third. This one also they wounded and cast out.

NIV: He sent still a third, and they wounded him and threw him out.

NASB: And he proceeded to send a third; but this one too they wounded and threw out.

CSB: And he sent yet a third, but they wounded this one too and threw him out.

NLT: A third man was sent, and they wounded him and chased him away.

KJV: And again he sent a third: and they wounded him also, and cast him out.

NKJV: And again he sent a third; and they wounded him also and cast him out.

The third servant is sent but his fate will be no better than that of the first two. Jesus is telling the parable of the wicked tenants (Luke 20:9–18). A landowner has planted a vineyard. When the vines are ready, he sends servants to his tenants to collect some of the grapes. Instead, the tenants beat the servants and give them nothing.

In the parable, the owner is God, the tenants are leaders, the vineyard is God's people, and the servants are prophets. God charged the leaders to guide the people rightly. They were to teach a proper relationship with the Lord, and in return they would receive the Lord's blessings. To ensure they were rightly leading the people, God occasionally sent prophets. But Israel's leadership does not show a history of treating prophets well. There are a few exceptions, such as Isaiah with king Hezekiah, but Isaiah was probably murdered by Manasseh, Hezekiah's evil son.

Jesus drives the point home, here, by mentioning three servants. All of them suffer the same fate. In Matthew's account, some of the servants are killed (Matthew 21:35). Finally, the landowner sends his son. The tenants kill him, too.

At that point, the landowner is finished. He drives the tenants out, kills them, and finds replacements. The Jewish leaders who are listening know Jesus is speaking about them: He's saying God is going to remove their authority as leaders of His followers and replace them. That just makes them want to destroy Jesus more (Luke 20:19).

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.