By Randall L. Broad
Read Exodus 13:17-15:18; Matthew 21:23-46; Psalm 26:1-12;
Proverbs 6:16-19
February 1st is
one of the best days of the entire year to read the One Year Bible. There are
rich narratives to be found in both testaments.
The Old Testament tells the
story of the parting of the Red Sea. This is a popular and well known story
with a deep and significant meaning. In my original post in 2013, I wrote
about this event, however, today this commentary will focus on the reading from
the Book of Matthew because there is a so much contained in these twenty-three
verses.
Jesus has already entered
Jerusalem (vv. 21:1-11), turned over the tables of the money changers in the
temple (vv. 12-17) and cursed a fig tree (vv. 18-22) His entry into Jerusalem
and the cleansing of the temple draws attention to Himself and attracts the
notice of the temple leaders … And today, Jesus is confronted by the chief
priest and the elders of the people (v. 23) who demand to know by whose
authority “are you doing these things.” The confrontation between Jesus and the
elders sets the stage for everything we read today in the New Testament. The
temple leaders call into question Jesus’ authority and He rebukes them by
asking a question He know they cannot answer (vv. 24-27). They will not admit
John’s practice of baptizing people is from heaven because that would affirm
Jesus’ authority. Nor can they admit it is from men primarily because they fear
the people who think John was a prophet (v. 26). In the end all the temple
leaders can answer is “We do not know.” Jesus then tells two
parables about the judgment of Israel (vv. 32-40).
Both parables are about a
vineyard–an ancient symbol for Israel. The first is the Parable of the Two
Sons:
28“What do you think? There was a man who had two
sons. He went to the first and said, ‘Son, go and work today in the vineyard.’
29“ ‘I will not,’ he answered, but later he
changed his mind and went.
30“Then the father went to the other son and said
the same thing. He answered, ‘I will, sir,’ but he did not go.
31“Which of the two did what his father wanted?”
“The
first,” they answered.
Jesus
said to them, “Truly I tell you, the tax collectors and the prostitutes are
entering the kingdom of God ahead of you. 32For John came to you to
show you the way of righteousness, and you did not believe him, but the tax
collectors and the prostitutes did. And even after you saw this, you did not
repent and believe him.
Matthew 21:28-32
In the first parable
neither son is righteous. The first one is defiant and disrespectful of his
father (vv. 28-29) and the second one lies and deceives him (v. 30): actions
the temple leaders would have found unthinkable. For the New Testament believer
the repentance of the first son is his saving grace, but the legalistic
Sadducees would have had no such understanding. For them the second son honored
his father at least in words if not in deeds. The Christian sees the first son
as the sinner who repents of his sin (defiance) and who later does the right
thing. There is no such repentance on the part of the second son for his heart
was filled with lies and deception. Take this parable in the context of the
circumstances Jesus was in and think about it in the terms of John’s baptism.
The first son is the sinner who repents in response to John’s preaching, and
the second son is the people who refused to believe and obey John’s message or
even acknowledge its heavenly authority. The Parable of the Two Sons teaches us
in the Kingdom of God what you do is more important than what you say.
The second is the Parable
of the Tenants.
33“Listen to another parable: There was a
landowner who planted a vineyard. He put a wall around it, dug a winepress in
it and built a watchtower. Then he rented the vineyard to some farmers and
moved to another place. 34When the harvest time approached, he sent
his servants to the tenants to collect his fruit.
35“The tenants seized his servants; they beat one,
killed another, and stoned a third. 36Then he sent other servants to
them, more than the first time, and the tenants treated them the same way. 37Last
of all, he sent his son to them. ‘They will respect my son,’ he said.
38“But when the tenants saw the son, they said to
each other, ‘This is the heir. Come, let’s kill him and take his inheritance.’ 39So
they took him and threw him out of the vineyard and killed him.
40“Therefore, when the owner of the vineyard
comes, what will he do to those tenants?”
Matthew 21:33-40
The second parable contains a prophetic as well
as judicial meaning.
“The vineyard is the people of Israel; the
master of the vineyard is God; the husbandmen are the priests and the rulers
who controlled the affairs of Israel; the servants were sent and ill-treated
are the prophets whom God sent in every age and who were sometimes disregarded
and sometimes martyred; the son is Jesus himself.”[1]
The vineyard has been
created with everything needed to be secure and prosperous–walls, a winepress,
and a watchtower. God then turns the vineyard over to His tenants and leaves
them to live as they think is right (v. 33). But when the Owner comes to claim
His share of the harvest (v. 34) the tenants beat, stone, and kill his servants
(vv. 35-36). Last of all, the landlord
sends His son and the tenants kill Him as well (vv. 37-39). Jesus concludes by
asking:
40“Therefore, when the owner of the vineyard
comes, what will he do to those tenants?”
41“He will bring those wretches to a wretched
end,” they replied, “and he will rent the vineyard to other tenants, who will
give him his share of the crop at harvest time.”
Matthew 21:40-41
The Pharisees themselves
state the practical truth of this parable–in the end all men will be judged by
God and the Kingdom will be given to those who will be obedient to Him. This
parable stresses God’s right as the final authority and judge.
There is one more very
important lesson to this parable which sums up everything Jesus is saying in
these last few chapters of Matthew’s gospel–just as the vineyard will be taken
from the tenants–the task of bringing all men to God will be taken from Israel
and given to the Church.
43“Therefore I tell you that the
kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people who will
produce its fruit.
Matthew 21:43
These twenty-three verses
contain a significant change in Jesus teaching that will be the focal point of
His message throughout the last week of His life–accept me or reject me, the
choice is yours but by the choice you make you will judge yourself.
Walk with the Lord …
Ephesians 1:17
(RLB250201)
© Copyright 2017: Randall L. Broad
Disclaimer: This commentary is written by Randall L. Broad. It is in no way affiliated with or represents any denomination, university, church, or pastor. Any errors or omissions are purely my responsibility.
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