The
Barren Fig Tree,
Which
Represents the Jewish Priesthood and indeed all of Judaism
Jesus'
Authority Challenged by the Chief Priests
When
He came into the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the
people came to Him as He was teaching, and said, By what authority do
You these things? and who gave You this authority? Jesus
answered them, I also will ask you one
thing, which if you can tell Me, I in like wise will tell you by what
authority I do these things. The
baptism of John, whence was it? from heaven, or of men?
And they reasoned among themselves, saying, If we shall say, From
heaven; He will say to us, Why did you not then believe him? But if
we shall say, Of men; we fear the people; for all hold John as a
prophet. And they answered Jesus, We cannot tell. To this He said to
them, Neither can I tell you by what
authority I do these things. (parallel
passages Mark 11:27-33, Luke 20:1-8)
The
Wicked Landowner
Hear
another parable: There was a certain householder, which planted a
vineyard, and hedged it round about, and dug a wine-press in it, and
built a tower, and let it out to husbandmen, and went into a far
country: And
when the time of the fruit drew near, he sent his servants to the
husbandmen, that they might receive the fruits of it.
And the husbandmen took his servants,
and beat one, and killed another, and stoned another.
Again, he sent other servants more than
the first: and they did to them likewise.
But last of all he sent to them his son,
saying, They will reverence my son. But
when the husbandmen saw the son, they said among themselves, This is
the heir; come, let us kill him, and let us seize on his inheritance.
And they caught him, and cast
him
out
of the vineyard, and slew
him.
When
the lord therefore of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those
husbandmen?
They said to Him, He will miserably destroy those wicked men, and
will let out his
vineyard to other husbandmen, which shall render him the fruits in
their seasons.
The householders here is Satan within the High Priest's of Israel, their master, the husbandmen are the lower level Priest's, the servants are the prophets and of course the son is Jesus Himself. The vineyard Israel and indeed Jerusalem as the set of Judaism, from which Jesus was rejected and sent out for execution at the hands of the people through the householders and husbandmen; the new husbandmen are the heirs of His kingdom, and not yet revealed by Him.
To this Jesus said to them, Did you never read in the scriptures, The stone which the builders rejected, the same is become the head of the corner: this is the Lord's doing, and it is marvelous in our eyes? Therefore say I to you, The kingdom of God shall be taken from you, and given to a nation bringing forth the fruits thereof. And whoever shall fall on this stone shall be broken: but on whomsoever it shall fall, it will grind him to powder.
When the chief priests and Pharisees had heard His parables, they perceived that He spoke of them. But when they sought to lay hands on Him, they feared the multitude, because they took Him for a prophet. (parallel passages Mark 12:1-12, Luke 20:9-19, the land owner is God the Father and the husbandmen are the Priests and the servants are the prophets which means Jesus is the Son and the stone rejected by the builders, who again are the Priests of this parable.)
The next passages are taken from the Last Passover or Marriage Feast of the Lamb of God, but before I go there I must look at what Jesus warns all of us not to become a part of, as recorded in Matthew 9, Mark 2:21 and Luke 5:36.
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