Matthew 21:36 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Again he sent other servants, more than the first. And they did the same to them.

NIV: Then he sent other servants to them, more than the first time, and the tenants treated them the same way.

NASB: Again, he sent other slaves, more than the first; and they did the same things to them.

CSB: Again, he sent other servants, more than the first group, and they did the same to them.

NLT: So the landowner sent a larger group of his servants to collect for him, but the results were the same.

KJV: Again, he sent other servants more than the first: and they did unto them likewise.

NKJV: Again he sent other servants, more than the first, and they did likewise to them.

Jesus is sharing a parable about some renters of a vineyard who refuse to pay their rent to the landowner. Instead of handing over the owner's share of the crops when his servants came to collect it, the tenants beat and kill the servants. When the owner sends another group, the tenants do the same to them.

The renters, or tenants, in the parable represent Israel's religious leaders. Much as a shepherd is responsible for caring for the safety of a flock of sheep (Jeremiah 3:15), or tenants were charged with tending the vineyard, so too were the religious leaders of Israel meant to care for the people. God is the landowner, and, in the following verse, Jesus is the landowner's son.

The depravity of the tenant is increased as the story continues. Not content to reject and kill servants sent by the landowner, they will even try to usurp the position of the landowner's son (Matthew 21:37–38).

Matthew 21:33–46 begins with another vineyard-related parable from Jesus. This one involves tenants who refused to pay the owner His agreed upon share of the crops. Instead, they mistreated and killed the servants he sent and then killed the owner's son. Jesus compares Israel's religious leaders to these tenants, saying the kingdom of God will be taken from them. Jesus identifies Himself in a psalm about a stone rejected by the builders but chosen by the Lord to be the cornerstone. All who reject Him will fall on the cornerstone or have it fall on and crush them.

Jesus fulfills a prophecy from Zechariah about the coming of the king to Jerusalem by riding in on a donkey. The people celebrate and praise Him as the Messiah. Jesus drives the marketers and moneychangers out of the temple and heals some people. He curses a fig tree and tells the disciples nothing will be impossible for them with faith. Jesus forces cowardly and hypocritical religious leaders to back down with a question about John the Baptist. He then exposes their fraudulent spirituality with two parables about vineyards. Jesus applies to Himself a psalm about a rejected stone being made the cornerstone by the Lord.

Matthew 21 finds Jesus arriving near Jerusalem after leaving Jericho in the previous chapter. His triumphal entry is accomplished riding a donkey, and to raucous praise, fulfilling a prophecy about the Messiah. Jesus cleanses the marketplace from the temple, heals, and presents lessons about faith and Israel's failed leadership. This leads into further conversations which Matthew compiles from Jesus' interactions with the Pharisees.

The Gospel of Matthew clearly shows the influence of its writer's background, and his effort to reach a specific audience. Matthew was one of Jesus' twelve disciples, a Jewish man, and a former tax collector. This profession would have required literacy, and Matthew may have transcribed some of Jesus' words as they were spoken. This book is filled with references to the Old Testament, demonstrating to Israel that Jesus is the Promised One. Matthew also includes many references to coins, likely due to his former profession. Matthew records extensive accounts of Jesus' teaching, more than the other three Gospels.

Accessed 5/2/2024 4:53:09 AM