The stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone. This was the LORD's doing, and it is marvelous in our eyes

 

Then they came again to Jerusalem.  And as He was walking in the temple, the chief priests, the scribes, and the elders came to Him.  And they said to Him, "By what authority are You doing these things?  And who gave You this authority to do these things?"  But Jesus answered and said to them, "I also will ask you one question; then answer Me, and I will tell you by what authority I do these things:  The baptism of John -- was it from heaven or from men?  Answer Me."  And they reasoned among themselves, saying, "If we say, 'From heaven,' He will say, 'Why then did you not believe him?'  But if we say, 'From men'" -- they feared the people, for all counted John to have been a prophet indeed.  So they answered and said to Jesus, "We do not know."  And Jesus answered and said to them, "Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things."

Then He began to speak to them in parables:  "A man planted a vineyard and set a hedge around it, dug a place for the wine vat and built a tower.  And he leased it to vinedressers and went into a far country.  Now at vintage-time he sent a servant to the vinedressers, that he might receive some of the fruit of the vineyard from the vinedressers.  And they took him and beat him and sent him away empty-handed.  Again he sent them another servant, and at him they threw stones, wounded him in the head, and sent him away shamefully treated.  And again he sent another, and him they killed; and many others, beating some and killing some.  Therefore still having one son, his beloved, he also sent him to them last, saying, 'They will respect my son.'  But those vinedressers said among themselves, "This is the heir.  Come, let us kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.'  So they took him and killed him and cast him out of the vineyard.  Therefore what will the owner of the vineyard do?  He will come and destroy the vinedressers, and give the vineyard to others.  Have you not even read this Scripture:

'The stone which the builders rejected

Has become the chief cornerstone.

This was the LORD's doing,

And it is marvelous in our eyes'?"

And they sought to lay hands on Him, but feared the multitude, for they knew He had spoken the parable against them.  So they left Him and went away.

 

- Mark 11:27—12:12 

 

Yesterday, we read that the next day after Christ's Triumphal Entry (Palm Sunday), when He and the disciples had come out from Bethany, He was hungry.  And seeing from afar a fig tree having leaves, He went to see if perhaps He would find something on it.  When He came to it, He found nothing but leaves, for it was not the season for figs.  In response Jesus said to it, "Let no one eat fruit from you ever again."  And His disciples heard it.  So they came to Jerusalem.  Then Jesus went into the temple and began to drive out those who bought and sold in the temple, and overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who sold doves.  And He would not allow anyone to carry wares through the temple.  Then He taught, saying to them, "Is it not written, 'My house shall be called a house of prayer for all nations'?  But you have made it a 'den of thieves.'"  And the scribes and chief priests heard it and sought how they might destroy Him; for they feared Him, because all the people were astonished at His teaching.  When evening had come, He went out of the city.  Now in the morning, as they passed by, they saw the fig tree dried up from the roots.  And Peter, remembering, said to Him, "Rabbi, look!  The fig tree which You cursed has withered away."  So Jesus answered and said to them, "Have faith in God.  For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, 'Be removed and be cast into the sea,' and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says.  Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.  And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him, that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses.  But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses." 

Then they came again to Jerusalem.  And as He was walking in the temple, the chief priests, the scribes, and the elders came to Him.  And they said to Him, "By what authority are You doing these things?  And who gave You this authority to do these things?"  But Jesus answered and said to them, "I also will ask you one question; then answer Me, and I will tell you by what authority I do these things:  The baptism of John -- was it from heaven or from men?  Answer Me."  And they reasoned among themselves, saying, "If we say, 'From heaven,' He will say, 'Why then did you not believe him?'  But if we say, 'From men'" -- they feared the people, for all counted John to have been a prophet indeed.  So they answered and said to Jesus, "We do not know."  And Jesus answered and said to them, "Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things."  My study Bible informs us that since Christ is not a Levitical priest, the chief priests and the elders challenge His authority to cleanse the temple (see yesterday's reading, above).  As Jesus is careful not to reveal Himself to scoffers, He confounds them with a different question about John.  This is an important question, because it exposes the leaders' hypocrisy, for they feared the people, as all counted John to have been a prophet indeed.  My study Bible says that both the elders' question and Christ's question require the same answer -- and therefore would lead a person to confess that Jesus has come from heaven.  By not answering them directly, it says, Christ teaches us not to answer people who come asking about holy things with a malicious intent.

 

 Then He began to speak to them in parables:  "A man planted a vineyard and set a hedge around it, dug a place for the wine vat and built a tower.  And he leased it to vinedressers and went into a far country.  Now at vintage-time he sent a servant to the vinedressers, that he might receive some of the fruit of the vineyard from the vinedressers.  And they took him and beat him and sent him away empty-handed.  Again he sent them another servant, and at him they threw stones, wounded him in the head, and sent him away shamefully treated.  And again he sent another, and him they killed; and many others, beating some and killing some.  Therefore still having one son, his beloved, he also sent him to them last, saying, 'They will respect my son.'  But those vinedressers said among themselves, "This is the heir.  Come, let us kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.'  So they took him and killed him and cast him out of the vineyard.  Therefore what will the owner of the vineyard do?  He will come and destroy the vinedressers, and give the vineyard to others."  Have you not even read this Scripture:  'The stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone.  This was the LORD's doing, and it is marvelous in our eyes'?"  And they sought to lay hands on Him, but feared the multitude, for they knew He had spoken the parable against them.  So they left Him and went away.  In this parable, my study Bible explains, the man who planted a vineyard represents God the Father, and the vineyard itself refers to God's people.  The vinedressers are the religious leaders who are entrusted to care for the people, and to guide them in producing spiritual fruit (see the symbolic withering of the fruitless fig tree in yesterday's reading, above).  Each servant who is sent by the owner is an Old Testament prophet, who comes to call people back to God.  The beloved son is a reference to Christ Himself.  When the son is cast out of the vineyard to be killed, this part of the parable is understood on two levels.  First, that Jesus was killed outside of Jerusalem (Golgotha, where crucifixions took place, was outside the city walls of the time); and second, that Jesus was crucified by foreign soldiers, not by those of His own "vineyard."  The others who will later receive the vineyard are the Gentiles brought into the Church.  Jesus quotes from Psalm 118:22-23, referring to Himself as the stone the builders rejected which becomes the chief cornerstone via the LORD's doing, which the text explains the leader and the people understand.

My study Bible explains that Jesus speaks in parables and riddles in part as He won't directly address those who ask Him questions maliciously about holy things, and this teaches us to do the same.  It seems that if we think about this carefully, we may observe that they don't really want to know the truth.  They are not looking for an honest answer from Jesus about holy things, but seek instead simply to trap Him, with hostile intent.  Therefore, they don't honestly deserve a real answer from Him; in a sense, it's none of their business -- because, although it is their given task as spiritual leaders, they've made it none of their business.  They have made it none of their business by being more interested in their positions and what they gain than the spiritual welfare of those in their charge.  This is given to us in today's reading when it is clear that they know the people believe John to have been a truly holy man, a prophet sent from God, and the leaders are afraid to confess their rejection of John.  It is doubled when the same answer is true for Christ Himself, that they reject Him although the people do not.  We can apply this understanding to our own lives, for it teaches us a powerful truth about our own spirituality and the welfare of our souls.  For we either make that a concern of ours -- business of ours -- or we don't.  There is a choice involved in our own welfare and spiritual standing.  We concern ourselves with such choices, or we do not.  We have the freedom to ignore the state of our souls entirely, focusing purely on worldly gain or loss or standing or failing, or choosing to incorporate -- even place first in our lives -- where we stand with God at all times.  This is always a choice on offer to us.  Repentance is the very process by which we turn from a "wrong direction" in terms of a relationship with God to a "right direction."  We turn from an ignorance or deliberate evasion of that relationship to restoring it and seeking to establish it more firmly.  In a sense, this is where the religious leaders are.  Jesus is there in the temple, having cleansed it from the money changers and animal sellers, establishing Himself with the authority these religious leaders question.  If it were not possible for them to repent by anything other than their own long road of choices behind them, then He would not be there speaking to them.  They still have the choice open to them, but they are not really interested in what He has to say.  They are too busy guarding their important and powerful places, with the exception of a few we can read about in the Gospels, such as Joseph of Arimathea (a Pharisee himself) or Nicodemus, or even those whom John's Gospel mentions who believed in Him but were afraid to say so because of the powerful among the Pharisees who were against Jesus (John 12:42).  St. Paul himself writes that he was a Pharisee, and the son of a Pharisee, and trained by the great teacher Gamaliel (Acts 22:3, 23:6; see also Acts 5:33-40).  As long as we are alive, we have the capability to repent.  The one thing that prevents us from doing so is a long, long road behind us going in the opposite direction.  In that we may lose our capability for reconsideration of our own choices.  But, as we are taught in the Gospels, with God all things are possible (see this reading).  Thus, we are to understand that sincerely calling upon God will have its results, and these men who will seek to destroy Jesus are capable of understanding what He has to tell them if they seek God with a sincere heart.  Since we know there were those on the Council who not only bravely followed Jesus, but who also secretly believed in Him but feared to openly say so, it is clear that this choice was open to each individual -- and we might conclude that it is always open to each one of us, to our friends, our family members, and those whom we love.  For Christ's truth, as St. Paul writes, reaches down into the deepest part of us, into places we thought could not be separated or divided from us, in order to reach and to teach in our most secret places, even hidden from us (see Hebrews 4:12).  Let us remember that Christ's words are for all of us, just as the people listen to the disputes in the temple, and among them many perceive the holiness of God's word.