Parable of the Wicked Husbandmen

Biblical Text and Content

The parable appears in Matthew 21:33–46, Mark 12:1–12, and Luke 20:9–19. It is found in all three Synoptic Gospels, though the wording differs slightly in detail.

A man (in Matthew, "a certain householder") planted a vineyard. He hedged it round about, dug a winepress, and built a tower; then he let it out to husbandmen and went into a far country. When harvest time came, the owner sent servants to receive the fruit, but the husbandmen beat or killed them. Finally the owner sent his son, thinking, "They will reverence my son." The husbandmen, however, reasoned that if they killed the heir, the inheritance would be theirs, and so they killed the son as well.

Jesus said that the owner would come and destroy the husbandmen and give the vineyard to others. He then quoted Psalm 118:22: "The stone which the builders rejected is become the head of the corner." In Matthew, the listeners themselves supply this conclusion. In Luke, the listeners respond, "God forbid." The leaders, including the chief priests and the Pharisees, perceived that the parable was spoken against them. They therefore sought to seize Jesus but, fearing the crowd, did not lay hands on him.

Background

The parable comes after the Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem and the Cleansing of the Temple. Jesus told it following the episode in which the chief priests, scribes, and elders asked him in the temple by what authority he was doing these things (Mark 11:27–33).

The description of the vineyard's preparation closely parallels the Song of the Vineyard in Isaiah 5:1–7. In Isaiah, the vineyard represents "the house of Israel" (Isaiah 5:7). Absentee landowners in Palestine at the time are known to have leased their land to tenant farmers. Scholars differ, however, on whether the husbandmen's calculation—that killing the heir would allow them to take possession of the land—was actually feasible under the law or customs of the day.

Significance in the Wider Biblical Context

Accounts of God's messengers being repeatedly rejected also appear in the Old Testament. 2 Chronicles 36:15–16 records that the people mocked and despised the prophets whom God sent. Mark calls the son in the parable the "beloved son" (12:6; KJV "his wellbeloved"), the same expression used by the voice heard at the baptism of Jesus (1:11).

Mark writes that the husbandmen killed the son and then cast him out of the vineyard, whereas Matthew and Luke write that they cast him out of the vineyard and then killed him. The latter sequence is sometimes read in connection with Hebrews 13:12, which says that Jesus suffered outside the gate. The "rejected stone" verse is also applied to Jesus in Acts 4:11 and 1 Peter 2:7.

Interpretation and Points of Debate

• How to read the parable: Traditionally the parable has been read allegorically, with each element corresponding to something else: the owner represents God, the vineyard Israel, the servants the prophets, the son Jesus Christ, and the husbandmen the religious leaders. Beginning with the German scholar Adolf Jülicher in the late nineteenth century, a school of thought arose holding that a parable has only a single main point. Within this approach, some have argued that the section concerning the son was added by the early church. Many other scholars, by contrast, hold that the parable was allegorical in character from the beginning.
• Who loses the vineyard: Matthew 21:43 reads, "The kingdom of God shall be taken from you, and given to a nation bringing forth the fruits thereof." This verse has been used as a basis for the view that the church has replaced Israel. Many interpreters today, however, emphasize that the text directly addresses the leaders (21:45). Because covenant theology, dispensationalism, and other traditions understand the relationship between Israel and the church differently, they place different emphases in reading this verse.
• Distinguishing the text from added interpretation: The text does not name the servants; matching them to particular prophets is a matter of interpretation. In addition, Matthew 21:44 ("And whosoever shall fall on this stone…") is absent from some ancient manuscripts.

In Korean Churches

In Korean Protestant churches, this parable is frequently cited in sermons emphasizing a life that bears the fruit of the kingdom of God. It is also often used to teach stewardship—managing what has been entrusted to one as belonging to the master.