Mark 12

By the similitude of a vine yard let out to husbandmen who misused and killed their Lords servants and son Christ declares to the Jews their rejection and destruction 1 Answers the question whether it be lawful to give tribute to Cesar 13 as also the question of the seduces concerning a woman which had had seven husbands and proves against them the resurrection from the dead 18 declares which is the greatest commandment 28 teacheth that the Messiah is both the Lord and the son of David 35 warns his bearers of the ambition and of the hypocrisy of the Scribe s38 commends the small alms for poor widow 41.

1. And he began to say unto them by similitude [Gr parables see the exposition thereof Matthew 13:3] a man planted a vineyard [see the exposition of the similitude Matthew 21:33] and set a fence about it [or mound hedge] and digged a wine-press trough [namely into the wine runs and is gathered together under the press]and built a tower and hired it out [Gr gave it out] to husbandmen [or tillers of the land whereby here are chiefly understood laborers in the vineyards] and traveled out of the land.

2. And when the time was [that is at the fit or due time when the fruits being rip were gathered in] he sent a servant to the husbandmen and he might receive from the husbandmen of the fruit of the vineyard.

3. But they took him and beat him and sent him away empty.

4. And again he sent another servant unto them and at him they cast stones and wounded him in the head and sent hi away shamefully misused [Gr dishonored]

5. And again he sent another and him they killed and many other whereof they beat some and kill some.

6. Having then one son yet whom he loved he sent hi also at last unto them [Gr the last] saying surely they will respect my son

7. But those husbandmen said to one another those are the heir come let us kill him and the inheritance shall be ours.

8. And they took and killed him and cast him out without the vineyard.

9. What shall therefore the Lord of the vineyard do? He shall come and destroy the husbandmen and give the vineyard to others this the Pharisees themselves answer to the demand of Christ in Matthew 21 verse 41 and is here ascribe to Christ because the repeated the same answer and approved of it ]

10. Have ye not also had the Scripture? The stone which the builders rejected the same is become on head of the corner [see the exposition hereof Matthew 21 verse 42]

11. Of the Lord this is done [otherwise hac namely res thing or hoc namely caput head of the cornet is come to pass by the Lord] and it is marvelous in our eyes.

12. And they sought to take but they feared the multitude for they understood that he spake that similitude of them and they left him and went their way.

13. And they sent unto him some of the Pharisees and the Herodians [of the Herodian see the exposition Matthew 22:16] that they might catch him [the Greek word is a similitude taken from the hunters and fishers who catch wild beasts or fishes with snares nets and traps] in his speech [or by their word that is by their question]

14. Now these came and said unto him master we know that thou art true and carest for no man for thou respectest not the person of men [Gr the face see hereof Matthew 22:16] but thou taechest the way of God [that is the doctrine which God prescribes to come to salvation] in truth is it lawful to give tribute to Cesar or not? Shall we give or not give?

15. And he knowing their hypocrisy said unto them what tempt ye me? Bring me a penny [Gr denarius’s whereof Matthew 18:28] that I may see it.

16. And they brought one and he said unto them whose is this image and the superscription? And they said unto him Cesar’s.

17. And Jesus answering said unto them give therefore unto Cesar that which is Cesar’s and to God that which is Gods and they marveled at him.

18. And the seduces [of the sect of the seduces see Acts 23:8] came unto him which say that there is no resurrection and asked him saying.

19. Master Moses wrote unto us [this law pertained to the civil laws of the Jews and likewise something ceremonial and therefore ceased with the Jewish polity] if any mans brother die and leave a wife behind him and leave no children but his brother shall take the wife of the same and raise up seed unto his brother [that is a son which bare the name of the deceased and was his heir.]

20. Now there were seven brethren and the first took a wife and dying left no seed behind.

21. The second took her also and died and this likewise left no seed behind and the third likewise.

22. And all the seven took the same and left no seed behind last of the entire wife died also.

23. In the resurrection thereof they shall be risen whose wife shall she be of these? For those seven had her to wife.

24. And Jesus answering said unto them do ye not err therefore because ye know not the scripture neither the power of God?

25. For when they shall be risen from dead they do not marry neither are given in marriage but they are as angels which are in the heaven.

26. But concerning the dead that they shall be raised up have ye not read in the book of Moses how God spake to him in the thorn-bush [or bramble-bush or bramble as Luke 6 verse 44] saying I am the God of Abraham and the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob?

27. God is not a God of the dead but a God of the living [of the sense and force of this argument see Matthew 22:32] ye therefore do err greatly [Gr much]

28. and one of the scribes hearing that they heard words together [that is disputed together by mutual questioning and answers]and knowing that he had answered them well came unto him and asked him which is the first commandment of all ?[that is the chiefest and greatest of the whole law of God]

29. And Jesus answered him the first of all commandments is hear o Israel the Lord our God is an only Lord [the Hebrew word Jehova here rendered Lord signifies the divine essence which subfist in and of itself from all eternity and gives all things their being .]

30. And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul and with all thane understanding [or cogitation that is weighing pondering in the understanding] and with all thy strength this is first commandment.

31. And the second like to this is this thou shalt love thy neighbor as thy self there is no other commandment greater than these [namely these two principal commandment]

32. And the scribes said unto him master thou hast said well in truth that there is no only God and there is none other but he.

33. And to love him with all the heart and with all the understanding and with all the soul and with all the strength and to love his neighbor as himself is more then all burnt-offerings and sacrifices [burnt-offerings were offerings which were laid upon the altar and there were wholly burnt sacrifices of which but a part was only burnt on the altar and the other parts were eaten as well by the priest and Levites as by those that offered although sometimes this word is also taken more largely see Leviticus chapter 1 and 2 &c.]

34. And Jesus seeing that he had answered understandingly said unto him thou art not far from the kingdom of God [for as much as this his confession seemed to proceed from a teachable disposition verse32 and thus far agreed with the doctrine of Christ and the knowledge of law might be a means to bring him further to knowledge of himself and so forward unto Christ Galatians 3:19] and no man durst ask him any more.

35. And Jesus answered and said teaching in the temple how the scribes that the Christ is a son of David said?

36. For David himself said by the Holy Ghost the lord said unto my Lord sit at my right hand [see further hereof Matthew 22:44] until I shall have put thine enemies for a footstool of thy feet.

37. David therefore himself calleth he his Lord and how is he his son? [Gr whence] and the multitude of the people heard him gladly

38. And he said unto them in his doctrine beware of the Scribes [Gr look before ye viz that ye be not deceived by their outward shews not by their example be brought to the like hypocrisy]which love to walk in long garments [Gr stoilais which signifies long coats and gowns down to the feet thereby to be the most esteemed and regarded by man so that the Christ doth not here reject the garments but the ambition which was hidden under them] and he saluted [Gr salutation namely to have them] in the markets .

39. And have the foremost feats in the synagogue and upper places at meats [Gr supper]

40. Who cat up the window houses and that under the shews of praying long these shall receive heavier [Gr more abundant] judgment [that is heavier punishment in the judgment]

41. And Jesus being set over against the treasure-chest [of the treasure-chest see 2 Kings 12:9 and Matthew 27:6] say how the multitude cast money [Gr brass] into the treasure-chest and many rich ones cast much into it.

42. And there came a poor widow which cast two small pieces of money intoit which is a farthing [Gr Kedrantes from the Latin Quadrans that is the forth part of an obolus which was the sixth part of drachin of silver which sixth part according to our rekoning is about a stiver so that a quadrans after our account is about the fourth part of a silver]

43. And Jesus having called his disciples unto him said unto them verily I say unto thee that this poor widow hath cast in more then all those that hath cast into the treasure-chest

44. For they all of their abundance there into but she of her want [or of that whereof she had need herself] hath cast all that she had there into her whole livelihood [Gr life that is what she had left and needed for a live upon.]