Mark 12 begins with part 2 of a confrontation between Jesus and the Pharisees (v1-12). Then a fresh confrontation results in their amazement at His wisdom (v13-17). Next the Sadducees make an attempt to trap Jesus (v18-27). With their failure, one more question is asked of Jesus (v28-34). And finally, Jesus teaches in the Temple courts, asking His own question to get His audience thinking about the identity of the Christ; He points out the hypocrisy of the religious leaders, and He notes the generosity of a poor widow to end the chapter. Let’s take a look:
The Parable of the Tenants
1He then began to speak to them in parables: "A man planted a vineyard. He put a wall around it, dug a pit for the winepress and built a watchtower. Then he rented the vineyard to some farmers and went away on a journey. 2At harvest time he sent a servant to the tenants to collect from them some of the fruit of the vineyard. 3But they seized him, beat him and sent him away empty-handed. 4Then he sent another servant to them; they struck this man on the head and treated him shamefully. 5He sent still another, and that one they killed. He sent many others; some of them they beat, others they killed.
6"He had one left to send, a son, whom he loved. He sent him last of all, saying, 'They will respect my son.'
7"But the tenants said to one another, 'This is the heir. Come, let's kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.' 8So they took him and killed him, and threw him out of the vineyard.
9"What then will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and kill those tenants and give the vineyard to others. 10Haven't you read this scripture:
" 'The stone the builders rejected
has become the capstone[1] ;
11the Lord has done this,
and it is marvelous in our eyes'[2] ?"
12Then they looked for a way to arrest him because they knew he had spoken the parable against them. But they were afraid of the crowd; so they left him and went away.
We start with Jesus speaking to “them” in parables. He is still addressing the religious leaders, namely the Pharisees, who questioned His authority at the end of chapter 11. This is part 2 of that confrontation, and Jesus is provoking them. V12 confirms their understanding that Jesus was speaking against them, and they didn’t like it. But there was nothing they could do at this moment, because the crowd was too great. Let’s consider the parable, its message, and how it answers their original question about Jesus’ authority.
This is the Parable of the Tenants (cf Isaiah 5:1-7), which clearly reveals that rebellion against God’s authority is truly absurd. God is the owner of the vineyard, and the religious leaders are the tenants. God sends prophets to help the tenants, but they treat them horribly for a long period of time (essentially the Old Testament prophets). The owner is upset and decides to send his son to gain their respect. But the tenants cruelly kill the son, hoping to inherit the property for themselves. Jesus asks, “What then will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and kill those tenants and give the vineyard to others” (v9). Of course, this is such a vivid image of exactly what was about to happen. God sent His Son after dozens of prophets before, and the religious leaders refuse to accept His authority. This parable effectively answers their question about Jesus’ authority from Mark 11. God will take away their authority over His vineyard and give it to the disciples of Jesus. Jesus backs up His story with Scripture, pointing to Psalm 118:22-23 about His identity as both the cornerstone and the stone that the builders rejected. Even this is the marvelous work of God!
Paying Taxes to Caesar
13Later they sent some of the Pharisees and Herodians to Jesus to catch him in his words. 14They came to him and said, "Teacher, we know you are a man of integrity. You aren't swayed by men, because you pay no attention to who they are; but you teach the way of God in accordance with the truth. Is it right to pay taxes to Caesar or not? 15Should we pay or shouldn't we?"
16But Jesus knew their hypocrisy. "Why are you trying to trap me?" he asked. "Bring me a denarius and let me look at it." They brought the coin, and he asked them, "Whose portrait is this? And whose inscription?"
"Caesar's," they replied.
17Then Jesus said to them, "Give to Caesar what is Caesar's and to God what is God's."
And they were amazed at him.
In this short passage, we see a surprising partnership when the Pharisees team up with the Herodians (cf Mark 3:6) to try to trap Jesus with His political stance on the issue of taxation. The Pharisees were adamantly against the tax policy in question, and they thought the Roman government was over them as a punishment from God. On the contrary, the Herodians were in favor of the tax, thinking that the Roman government over the Jews was actually good for the economy and general living conditions, at least for the wealthy. But here the two groups, usually opposed, see an opportunity to unite in an effort to ruin the reputation of Jesus – either among the people or with the Romans. They really don’t care about what’s right and true with the question; they just want Jesus to suffer by giving His answer. It’s a “Heads, I win, Tails, you lose” coin toss, at least on the surface. But with remarkable – yet unsurprising when considering that “Jesus knew their hypocrisy” (v15) – wisdom, Jesus takes the relatively important topic of politics (cf 1 Peter 2:13-17; 1 Timothy 2:1-4) and makes it miniscule in comparison with the supremely important topic of honoring the authority of God. Jesus acknowledges the legitimacy of human governmental authority, which is limited in scope and derived from God, while at the same time declaring the supremacy of divine authority, which is absolute and all-encompassing.
Throughout Jesus’ ministry we have seen the religious leaders foolishly persist in their rebellion to divine authority. We must remember Romans 13, which clearly states that “there is no authority except that which God has established.” Throughout the Old Testament, we saw the people of God – Israel – as a geo-political entity. But with Jesus’ coming and once-for-all sacrifice, He ushers in a new state of Israel, where the people of God are not tied to a physical geo-political entity in any way. This reality, while all we have ever known (despite some Americans thinking that the USA is God’s exclusive nation in the world today), was a difficult change for the people of Jesus’ day to grasp. Jesus makes it pretty simple: we are to submit willingly for God’s sake to whatever human authority is over us, all the while honoring God. When there’s conflict between these, we side with God. For example, “we must obey God rather than men” (Acts 5:29) when prohibited by human government from doing what God expressly commands (like sharing the gospel) and when commanded by human government to do what God prohibits (consider Daniel and the Hebrew midwives).
It's commonplace to hear our “secular” governing officials claim neutrality by leaving God out of the public sphere. But there is never a time when omitting God is merely neutral, because He is over all! When Jesus asks, “Whose image is on the coin?” He’s implying a level of ownership and authority. Of course, if Caesar’s image is on the coin, then we should give the coin to Caesar. But in the same, since humans are made in the image of God, we belong to Him and must give ourselves, wholly, to Him. God gets all of every person, no exception, ever. This far-reaching principle that Jesus teaches covers more than taxation and politics; it addresses the primary issue of either rejecting or submitting to God’s authority. And “they were amazed at Him” (v17). There was no doubt to the Pharisees and Herodians regarding Jesus’ meaning. They were astounded at His wisdom. And we should be as well. The appropriate response is to “render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar’s and to God the things that are God’s.” It’s fine to make legal efforts to persuade the government to issue Godly decrees, but even when they don’t, as assuredly Rome did not, we are to submit to the government out of respect for God.
Marriage at the Resurrection
18Then the Sadducees, who say there is no resurrection, came to him with a question. 19"Teacher," they said, "Moses wrote for us that if a man's brother dies and leaves a wife but no children, the man must marry the widow and have children for his brother. 20Now there were seven brothers. The first one married and died without leaving any children. 21The second one married the widow, but he also died, leaving no child. It was the same with the third. 22In fact, none of the seven left any children. Last of all, the woman died too. 23At the resurrection[3] whose wife will she be, since the seven were married to her?"
24Jesus replied, "Are you not in error because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God? 25When the dead rise, they will neither marry nor be given in marriage; they will be like the angels in heaven. 26Now about the dead rising--have you not read in the book of Moses, in the account of the bush, how God said to him, 'I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob'[4] ? 27He is not the God of the dead, but of the living. You are badly mistaken!"
The Sadducees were sad, you see, because they didn’t believe in anything supernatural, including and especially the resurrection and life after death. They were the minority in Jewish culture at the time, but they made up a large percentage of the elite ruling class – the Sanhedrin. Jesus was just as much a threat to their status in the Roman world as He was to the Pharisees and their reputation with the laity. Therefore, the Sadducees wanted to make Jesus look foolish by posing a strange hypothetical question involving marriage in the afterlife. And while they were certainly more secular than the Pharisees, the Sadducees did hold the Torah (the writings of Moses in the first five books of the Old Testament) in higher regard than the rest of Scripture, so you’ll notice Jesus answer their question with appeal to Moses.
The question posed involves seven brothers, each of whom died while married but with no heir. The strange thing was that each brother in succession married the same woman, each his older brother’s widow, after a legitimate provision made in Jewish tradition in order to hopefully keep the ancestral lineage alive for a given family. This provision would both help a vulnerable woman avoid destitution and potentially maintain a family lineage for future inheritance of God’s land provision. But the question specifically from the Sadducees was which brother would have this woman as wife in heaven. Of course, they didn’t believe in heaven, so their hypothetical situation was not practical for them. It was just a way to make Jesus, and by way of implication, anyone who believed in an afterlife, look foolish. Since there was no heir to prioritize one husband over another, presumably the afterlife would be awkward for all of them, since they’d all be alive together.
Jesus is not stumped. He simply says the Sadducees are wrong with their questioning for two specific reasons. In v24, Jesus says that the Sadducees do not know the Scriptures and neither do they know the power of God. And then in v25-27, Jesus unpacks His assessment of their error. First in v25, Jesus elaborates on their lack of knowledge of the power of God. The Sadducees, along with everyone who denies supernatural realities in human history, including the afterlife consisting of heaven and hell, do not know the power of God. They are using mere human reason, limited to their own experiences as individuals and/or within this particular group, to make a determination about the afterlife that they cannot possibly know with that human reason alone. They do not know, and practically deny, the power of God. As one pastor noted, it’s like they were denying the existence of oak trees, because all they could see was an acorn. Or trying to explain a butterfly when all you can see is the caterpillar. Or visualizing the various colors of flowers when all you have is a package of seeds. Jesus says things will be different in the afterlife; there will be no marriage as we know it here. In that regard, humans will be more like angels. That’s the transformative power of God that the Sadducees do not know.
And second, in v26-27, Jesus gets to the real point of the Sadducees questioning: their disbelief in the resurrection. They lack knowledge of Scripture! Jesus points to the passage in Exodus 3:6 with the burning bush, which is something the Sadducees would have disbelieved, even though it came from Moses, whom they generally revered. There God names Himself as the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, men who had died long before this appearance to Moses. And yet, He identifies Himself in light of them, which proves that they live! God is therefore, “not the God of the dead, but of the living” (v27). Jesus could have gone to other Old Testament passages to make His point, but He stays with Moses, because the Sadducees would have been more likely to appreciate that text over others. As God’s creatures, we must rely on His Word for knowledge of truth and interpretation of what we observe in the world. And thankfully, when we deny truth, considering it to be absurd out of our own pride, God’s Word calls us to repent and trust Him.
The Greatest Commandment
28One of the teachers of the law came and heard them debating. Noticing that Jesus had given them a good answer, he asked him, "Of all the commandments, which is the most important?"
29"The most important one," answered Jesus, "is this: 'Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one.[5] 30Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.'[6] 31The second is this: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.'[7] There is no commandment greater than these."
32"Well said, teacher," the man replied. "You are right in saying that God is one and there is no other but him. 33To love him with all your heart, with all your understanding and with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself is more important than all burnt offerings and sacrifices."
34When Jesus saw that he had answered wisely, he said to him, "You are not far from the kingdom of God." And from then on no one dared ask him any more questions.
This teacher of the law (a scribe of the Pharisees according to Matthew’s parallel account) comes to Jesus and overheard His debate with the Sadducees (v18-27). The man agreed with Jesus over the Sadducees in that scenario, and so he dared to ask, with genuine sincerity, a common question of the day, “What matters most when it comes to obeying God?” How would you answer that question? Would your answer be about obeying the Ten Commandments? That seems to be what this expert in the law was presuming. But Jesus, in quoting the Shema (Deuteronomy 6:4-5), starts His answer with a most fundamental element to grasp, that there is one God (v29). With this foundational reminder, Jesus is saying, with the full tradition of Judaism supporting, that everything flows from this truth. Nothing else should be considered until this fact is settled, for all truth after this must be reached with this reality in mind. In the 1993 movie, Rudy, Father Cavanaugh says to the title character, “Son, in 35 years of religious study, I have only come up with two hard incontrovertible facts: there is a God, and I’m not Him.” That’s the right place to start any further contemplation, for without that, only conjecture would remain.
So with the most important thing – that only God is God – noted, Jesus completes the quote from Deuteronomy 6:4-5 in v30, saying that we must love the Lord our God supremely with our whole being. When first hearing this, we may wonder why God needs most of all for us to love Him; perhaps He is insecure. But, of course, God is not needy; rather, this command ultimately reveals the love of God toward us, for He knows that only in truly loving Him will we find joy and fulfillment in this life and the next. We are not ultimately required to obey or submit out of duty, though that will (super)naturally follow. As clay in the hands of the potter, we are made to love God. And good will result from that.
Jesus adds a second answer to the initial question about the greatest commandment. He says we are not only to love God, after recognizing Him as the only true God; but we are also to love others as ourselves. The reality is that individual humans, from the moment of conception, love themselves and seek their own best interest. That’s a natural and expected reality. But insofar as that is true, and as a result of loving God, we should love others in the same way that we love ourselves. This is, perhaps, an ironic fruit of loving God. It’s as if we are vessels who, when rightly filled with love for God, overflow such that love for others results. That’s the proper way to be human, and it results in great good for ourselves and those around us. It doesn’t come without pain, as we remain sinners in a fallen world with other sinners nearby. But it’s a taste of what heaven will be like, when love is all there is. And lest we forget, true love for others does not equate to affirming them in their sin. Rather, loving others can be best seen in encouraging them to love God more and more, by honoring Him, obeying Him, coming to know Him more, etc.
Finally in this passage, we see the response from the scribe in v32-33 and Jesus’ follow-up in v34. The scribe again acknowledges Jesus’ right answer, as he did eavesdropping on His debate with the Sadducees, and he elaborates appropriately, summarizing Jesus’ answer by repeating it in his own words. This wise response was affirmed by Jesus, who says, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” But we don’t hear, “You are in the kingdom of God.” The scribe was not yet trusting Christ to forgive his sins! Do you?
Whose Son Is the Christ
35While Jesus was teaching in the temple courts, he asked, "How is it that the teachers of the law say that the Christ[8] is the son of David? 36David himself, speaking by the Holy Spirit, declared:
" 'The Lord said to my Lord:
"Sit at my right hand
until I put your enemies
under your feet." '[9] 37David himself calls him 'Lord.' How then can he be his son?"
The large crowd listened to him with delight.
38As he taught, Jesus said, "Watch out for the teachers of the law. They like to walk around in flowing robes and be greeted in the marketplaces, 39and have the most important seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at banquets. 40They devour widows' houses and for a show make lengthy prayers. Such men will be punished most severely."
The Widow's Offering
41Jesus sat down opposite the place where the offerings were put and watched the crowd putting their money into the temple treasury. Many rich people threw in large amounts. 42But a poor widow came and put in two very small copper coins,[10] worth only a fraction of a penny.[11]
43Calling his disciples to him, Jesus said, "I tell you the truth, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others. 44They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything--all she had to live on."
In this final passage of Mark 12, we have Jesus in the temple courts providing helpful insight on God’s perspective in three unique areas. First, in v35-37, Jesus asks a question regarding the identity of the Christ. Second, in v38-40, Jesus issues a warning of the danger of self-seeking. And third, in v41-44, Jesus reveals the honor of self-giving.
First, Jesus quotes Psalm 110 – the most quoted Old Testament passage in the New Testament – to get the crowd to consider the identity of the Christ. If the promised Messiah is the Son of David, then how can the same individual also be the Lord of David? Of course, Jesus is both truly human as a descendant of King David and truly Divine as the Lord of not only David himself but of all creation. From Psalm 110, we learn that the Messiah is not only the coming King but also the great High Priest, in the order of Melchizedek. One important take away from these verses is to note that Jesus sees the Old Scriptures as written by man inspired by the Holy Spirit (v36). The point of Jesus teaching the crowd on this point is to encourage them to worship Him! We should do that as well.
Next, in His continued teaching, Jesus brought a warning for the crowd about the hypocrisy of the scribes (Pharisees). They love public praise and distinction among the people, but they prey on the vulnerable and seek their own glory. Their prayers were a pretense, insincere and seeking attention from men rather than genuinely praising God. Their clothes were worn to gain respect from men and not out of humility, modesty, and respect before God and man. Scribes often taught outside the synagogue for a fee, and wealthy widows would regularly hire them for their religious interpretation. But the scribes were in it only for the money, taking advantage of the vulnerable in their midst. Jesus says they would “be punished most severely” (v40), receiving a greater condemnation than others who would not be guilty of exploiting and abusing their positions of authority, using intimidation to better their standing in society. James says that not many should be teachers, because there’s a increased risk factor in terms of judgment. Those who are called to lead and steward are held to a higher standard of performance by the Lord.
Finally, Jesus sat to watch the crowd make their freewill offerings at the Temple treasury. He acknowledges the generosity of the poor woman who gave her last penny over the wealthier persons who gave far more. They gave out of abundance, but this widow gave out of her poverty. It’s easy to justify her gift of her last penny, suggesting that she had no dependents to care for, or that she had family or even the religious community to rely on for provision. But her willingness to give up everything is what Jesus commends. Her gift was small, but it was a sacrifice; many who gave far more weren’t sacrificing with their generosity, because they had plenty more waiting for them. Her gift was made in faith and dependence on God while seeking His kingdom. This example is both convicting – because we should all give more sacrificially than we do – and also encouraging – because we do not need to compare dollar amounts with those around us. We can glorify God with a small gift if the sacrifice is real and motive is right.
Footnotes
- 12:10 Or cornerstone
- 12:11 Psalm 118:22,23
- 12:23 Some manuscripts resurrection, when men rise from the dead,
- 12:26 Exodus 3:6
- 12:29 Or the Lord our God is one Lord
- 12:30 Deut. 6:4,5
- 12:31 Lev. 19:18
- 12:35 Or Messiah
- 12:36 Psalm 110:1
- 12:42 Greek two lepta
- 12:42 Greek kodrantes
Bible text from
Gospelcom.net. Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984 by
International Bible Society.