Luke 20:9-18

content/bible_journal/luke_20:9-18.md

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+title = "Luke 20:9–18"
+date = "2023-01-23"
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+
+### [Read the passage.](https://biblia.com/bible/esv/Lk20.9-18)
+
+
+Having met the challenge to His authority, Jesus teaches a parable about a
+landowner and wicked tenants. The landowner sends slaves to get his portion of
+the harvest of the land from the tenants, but the tenants refuse to hand it
+over. Instead they beat the slaves and send them back to their master. Three
+times they are sent and three times they are beaten and turned away.
+
+In real life, after the first time the tenants refused to pay, a landowner
+would likely send soldiers to enforce the agreement he had with the tenants. In
+this story, though, the landowner sends his son whom he loves, thinking the
+tenants may respect him. However, the tenants see an opportunity to muddy up
+the legal waters. If the heir to the land is dead, then who might it pass to
+when the owner dies if not themselves? So they take the heir outside of the
+vineyard and kill him.
+
+At this point, Jesus tells the people that the landowner no longer has mercy on
+his wicked tenants, comes back to his vineyard, kills the tenants, and hands
+over the vineyard to others to manage. The reaction of the crowd is
+interesting, I think. "Surely not!" they cry (_v. 16_); a vehement rejection of
+what Jesus said. They understood that the parable was about God's relationship
+with Israel, where He sends the prophets to the people, who reject them.
+Eventually He sends His own Son, and He is killed, so they are thinking that
+Jesus says God will replace Israel as His chosen people.
+
+They have forgotten that God had already done that before, way back when they
+were about to enter the Promised Land for the first time. A whole generation of
+Israelites died in the wilderness except for Joshua and Caleb because of their
+unbelief. God's promise to Israel can't be broken, even by Himself, but the
+individuals within the group can be changed.
+
+Jesus is then very direct when He quotes Psalm 118 to them. The verse He
+mentions comes in the section celebrating God's victory over evil in the last
+days. Altogether He is linking the landowner's son with the rejected stone that
+brings about final victory, crushing those who stumble over it.
+
+* * *
+
+Let us rejoice and be glad in the Day of the Lord, when You prove Yourself the
+ruler of all the earth.