Now, just before we move on to our parable, “Jesus’s Parable of
the Vineyard,” let us read through Isaiah 5:1-7,
“Isaiah’s Parable of the Vineyard.” We’ll not comment on it –
but you should know Jesus’ parable’s background.
Isaiah 5:1-7
The Parable of the Vineyard
Let me sing now for my well-beloved (Isaiah sings now for his
well-beloved God)
A song of my beloved concerning His vineyard.
My well-beloved had a vineyard on a fertile hill.
He dug it all around, removed its stones,
And planted it with the choicest vine.
And He built a tower in the middle of it
And also hewed out a wine vat in it;
Then He expected it to produce good grapes,
But it produced only worthless ones.
( Now God
Speaks...)
“And now, O inhabitants of Jerusalem and men of Judah,
Judge between Me and My vineyard.
“What
more was there to do for My vineyard that I have not done in it? Why,
when I expected it to produce good grapes did it produce worthless ones?
“So
now let Me tell you what I am going to do to My vineyard:
I will remove its hedge
and it will be consumed; I will break down its wall and it will become
trampled ground.
“I will lay it waste; It
will not be pruned or hoed, But briars and thorns will come up. I will
also charge the clouds to rain no rain on it.”
For the vineyard of the
Lord of hosts is the house of Israel. And the men of Judah His
delightful plant.
Thus, He looked for
justice, but behold, bloodshed;
[He looked] For
righteousness, but behold, a cry of distress.
THE PARABLE OF:
THE VINEYARD OWNER AND THE MURDEROUS TENANTS
We find that there are 6 main characters involved in this parable
and we’ll identify who each represents.
First there is “the Landowner” and we’ll identify him as God.
Second is “the Vineyard” and we’ll identify it as the nation of
Israel.
Third will be “The Tenants” who rent and operate the vineyard while
the owner is absent, and we’ll identify them as all the unbelieving
wicked leadership and people of the nation of Israel.
Fourth is the Owner’s servants” who are working for the Owner, and
we’ll identify them as God’s Prophets and spokesmen (including a
donkey).
Fifth is the “Owner’s Son” who is Jesus the Son of God. And
Sixth, is the “Future tenants” who are the future believers (Jew and
Gentile) who will become members of “The Church, The Body of
Christ.”
THE LINEAR TEXT
Over the time these lessons on Jesus’ Parables have been in
development, I’ve come to use a technique called “The Linear Text.”
This method uses the joining together of the various gospel texts
that retell each of these parables. Then I take the most informative
verses from each and put together a text – in the original
story-order that rejoins all of the informative verses back into the
full parable.
And [Mt 21:33]
Jesus Said,
“Listen to another parable…
There was a landowner
[God] who PLANTED A VINEYARD AND PUT A WALL AROUND IT AND DUG A WINE
PRESS IN IT, AND BUILT A TOWER, and rented it out to vine-growers
[The nation of Israel] and went on a journey
[Lk 20:9c-11] for a long time.
So our story begins with God and the creation of man – the vineyard
He built around them. He then placed protection around them (the
wall). He then introduced the means to produce. Means to enable them
to multiply that produce (the Wine Press). And lastly God placed His
attention specifically upon all His creation (the Tower).
God placed man into His environment and then for the purposes of the
parable the story moves on to… after calling Abraham to Himself (and
then Isaac, Jacob, etc.) and making them become a nation named after
Jacob who had been renamed Israel (the Vine-Growers).
The verse indicates that they were given the responsibilities of
becoming God’s tenders of the Vineyard (the world of introducing
mankind to the “Owner” and bringing much fruit from them).
Over time, those vine-growers cultivated their vineyard for fruit
that was for their own benefit and not the Owner’s.
And then…
10
At the harvest time he sent a servant (Prophet) to the vine-growers, so that
they would give him some of the produce of the vineyard; but the
vine-growers beat him and sent him away empty-handed.
Remembering that this is a parable (an illustration of Jesus’
point), the “Harvest Time” in this story takes place over a large
period of Old Testament prophetic time – from the first prophets all
the way up to John the Baptist. As you study your scriptures you
will find that many of God’s prophets were persecuted, not-believed,
beaten, and often killed – so this first beating in this verse just
indicates the beginning years of God’s sent prophets and the way
they were received by the nation of Israel.
11
And he proceeded to send another slervant (Prophet); and they beat
[Mk 12:3b] wounded him in the
head, also and treated him shamefully
[Lk 20:11c-12] and sent him away empty-handed.
Because of his head wound, I like to think of this God sent prophet
as John the Baptist. It, of course, may be just a reference to how
many of God’s sent ones were treated. This one, among the many,
indicates that upon their death (return empty-handed), Israel’s
godless direction produced no product.
12
And he proceeded to send a third;
[Mt 21:36] Again he sent another group of servants
(Prophets) larger
than the first; and they did the same thing to them,
[Mk 12:5b] and one that they
killed and then killed many others.
And so we can see how disappointed God (the Owner) would be by the
end of sending His Prophets and getting no return. Of course, in
reality, many were true followers of God and His Covenant – but again,
the parable tells a pointed story about the corrupt religious
leadership – and their followers.
We’ve mentioned it many times in these Parable Studies, but it bears
mentioning again here. Once the nation had settled into Canaan (the
promised land – that never really came into its fullness) the
teachers of God’s Word slowly began re-writing it in order to place
rules of works, fake “holy” laws that placed tremendous burdens on
Israel’s people and released the religious leadership from their
moral and ethical laws that Moses had put in place. Over time… this
became an extremely corrupt way of “keeping God’s Covenanted Word.”
The servants that were sent represent the prophets that God had sent to His
people, Israel, and then were rejected and killed by the very people
who were claiming to be of God and being obedient to Him
- but they were not.
So, how could His audience of religious leaders claim their
obedience to God – as God’s people – and still reject John and Jesus
as His messengers?
13
The owner of the vineyard said, ‘What shall I do? I will send my
beloved son; saying, ‘They will respect my son.’
Again, the story of the parable tells a made-up story to make a
point – The Owner, God, did not worry and sit on
His hands and ask out loud, “What shall I do?” God’s program and
purposes are eternal. His program for Israel was started before
there was an earth, and will not end throughout eternity.
The two main statements in this verse are: “I will send my beloved
son” and for the story, “They will respect my son,” which is what
they should have done – but they did not.
[Mt
21:38]
But when the vine-growers saw the son, they said among themselves,
‘This is the heir; come, let us kill him and seize his inheritance.’
God sends His Son and He arrives as a baby, spends 30 years learning
people and Israel’s ways – apart from God’s requirements (His Word).
At 30 He reaches the required age to become a man old enough to lead
in a synagogue and He begins His public teaching ministry.
The religious leadership and their following fully expect that if
they do away with Jesus that they will be able to eventually
overcome the Romans and have their country and nation to themselves
– to rule. They fully expect that Jesus will make it impossible for
that to happen – that He will trigger an uprising against the Romans
and the nation and people will be removed from “their land.” He must
be killed!
[Mt
21:39] They took him, and threw him out of the vineyard and
killed him.
And that’s exactly what they did – They threw Him out of Jerusalem
and killed Him.
And now, Jesus asks the question in front of those religious leaders
(senior priests, Scribes, Pharisees and Sadducees) in order to make
them both aware and angry that He knows what they are doing, and
what they are going to do.
40
Therefore when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to
those vine-growers?” (Those unrighteous persons whom God "rented"
His precious vineyard)
These “tenants” would think that the fight for the property was
over, but it wasn’t over. The owner would now appear on the scene.
Therefore… Now that Jesus is back in Heaven with His
Father and the Holy Spirit… He is back in absolute unity with God
the 3-in-one, so He will return as “The Owner of the Vineyard!”
Jesus is asking them… “What will God do to those unrighteous leaders
and their followers for killing GOD’s SON?”
41
They *said to Him, “He will bring
those wretches to a wretched end, and will rent out the vineyard to
other vine-growers who will pay him the proceeds at the proper
seasons.”
We don't want to miss that this answer came from the unrighteous
religious leadership in contfuntation with Jesus. Their answer was
to get rid of the bad vine-growers and RE-RENT the vinyard - perhaps
to themselves! (more about that in a moment).
Back in Matthew 21:23 we saw to whom Jesus was addressing:
“the chief priests and the elders of the
people came to Him while He was teaching (disciples and
listening followers).
The paying of the proceeds refers to the product that His believers
produce in distribution of the Gospel and all those who become His
through their belief in His calling.
42
Jesus *said to them, “Did you never read in the Scriptures,
Psalm 118:22-23
‘THE
STONE WHICH THE BUILDERS REJECTED,
THIS
BECAME THE CHIEF CORNER stone;
THIS
CAME ABOUT FROM THE LORD,
AND
IT IS MARVELOUS IN OUR EYES’?
[Lk 20: 15b] When they heard it, they said, “May it
never be!”
Can you imagine? They listened to His parable, knew Isaiah 5:1-7 and
Psalm 118:22-23, and they looked at Him and said, “May it
never be!”
43
Therefore I [Jesus] say to you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from
you and
GIVEN to a people,
producing the fruit of it.
You will notice that this is not an “if this then that” statement.
Not this nation, not this people, but “The Kingdom of God will be
taken away from you!” How alarming is this statement to a believer,
I can’t imagine allowing myself into such a position and then being
told this. “The Kingdom of God will be taken away from you!”
We know this was prophesied against these unrighteous religious
rulers and all those who followed them. The Kingdom of God would
then be given to those who would believe The Son of God for their
salvation and entrance into that Kingdom – Please notice that this
Kingdom will be GIVEN to believers, not RENTED. The end result of
this gift is the production of the fruit of this Kingdom. The
multiplication of each vine plant as it produces more vine plants.
44
And he who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces; but on
whomever it falls, it will scatter him like dust.”
As we know this one “stumbling stone,” Jesus, became the
“Corner Stone of the Temple.” He is the One which the Kingdom Temple
is built upon – the Spiritual Temple, not the stone one. Anyone who
attempts to cast their wrath upon Him will be broken into pieces –
and anyone who His wrath comes down upon will be crushed and
scattered like dust.
45
When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard His parables, they
understood that He was speaking [Mk
12:12] against them. [Mt 20:46]
When they sought to seize Him, they feared the people,
because they considered Him to be a prophet.
These chief priests and Pharisees who had conspired to Kill Him were
too afraid to take any action at that time because of the coming
holiday, they feared the possible reaction of the people because
they considered Jesus to be one of God’s Prophets – but they knew
who He was – the prophesized Messiah, the Anointed One, The Christ –
and still they would kill Him in a little over a week – and all of
this parable would then become true.
FOLLOW-UP QUESTIONS
WITHOUT ANSWERS
1a. According to
Isaiah, how did God take care of the nation of Israel?
1b. According to
Isaiah, what was Israel’s response to God?
1c. What was
God’s question to the religious leadership of Isaiah’s time
770 years before the Gospel stories.
2a. Mt 21:40
“Therefore when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will
he do to those vine-growers?”
2b. And what did
Jesus tell them?
3. How does this
parable apply to you?
FOLLOW-UP QUESTIONS WITH ANSWERS
1a. According to Isaiah,
how did God take care of the nation of Israel?
Let me sing now for my well-beloved
A song of my beloved concerning His
vineyard.
My well-beloved had a vineyard on a
fertile hill.
He dug it all around, removed its
stones,
And planted it with the choicest vine.
And He built a tower in the middle of it
And also hewed out a wine vat in it;
Then He expected it to produce good
grapes,
1b. According to Isaiah, what was
Israel’s response to God?
But, it produced only worthless ones.
1c. What was God’s question to the
religious leadership of Isaiah’s time 770 years before the Gospel
stories.
“And now, O inhabitants of Jerusalem and
men of Judah,
Judge between Me and My vineyard.”
And God did judge them: First the
Northern Tribe of Israel was sent into captivity by Assyria 700
years before the Gospel stories and then He sent Judah, the last
semi-righteous nation, and the Assyrians, into captivity by the
Babylonians 610 years before our parable in the Gospels.
And these punishments did not change
their unrighteous rebellion against the God who had done everything
to cure them of their evil and unrighteous desires to become their
own gods.
2a. 40 Therefore when the owner of
the vineyard comes, what will he do to those vine-growers?”
41 They (the unrighteous leadership)
*said to Him, “He will bring those wretches to a wretched end, and
will rent out the vineyard to other vine-growers who will pay him
the proceeds at the proper seasons.”
2b. And what did Jesus tell them?
43 Therefore I say to you, the kingdom
of God will be taken away from you and given to a people, producing
the fruit of it.
And that, of course, brought about the
dismemberment of the Nation of Israel as His people of His Word…
until God’s plan of the Gospel is complete and is the beginning of
the story of the Gospel being placed into the hands of believing
people of the world.
3. How does this parable apply to
you?
The primary application comes in the
question, “Do you know Jesus Christ as your Lord, King, God, and
Savior?
Are you a Bonafede lover of God, Father,
Son, and Holy Spirit, and do you live the life that the Word of God
calls you to live. You cannot do that perfectly, no one just human
can – and He knows that, just continue to trust and rely on Him, His
mercy and grace… every day, or:
As you look at your life could it be
possible that you once claimed that relationship with Him… but like
the Jewish unrighteous leadership and their followers… did you
choose to identify with Him by name but have rejected Him and the
way of life He has designed for you, or:
Are one who just doesn’t know Jesus but
are interested in what He and The Word of God may have to offer for
you? If that describes you… find the nearest local believing church
and visit. Talk to others there, speak with the pastor, make sure
that it is Jesus they are offering, and go from there. Find Him
whatever the cost and then live in the love and grace of God – His
promises are for Eternity, not just for today.
The "The Ancient Path" Study materials
on this website are made available here free and may be copied for
use in Bible study groups, in limited numbers, providing that no
charge is made for them. Items that appear as copyrighted materials
that are not of our authorship are not to be copied without the
express permission of the original copyright holders. Every effort
has been made to give proper footnote credit for items that are
quoted.
J. Deering [AncientPath.net] is the
author and editor of this study.
AncientPath.net © 2024
Jeremiah 18:15
"Don't stumble from the Ancient Path"
2023-01-17 updated
