And the chief priests and the scribes sought to lay hands on him the same hour: but they feared the people, for they knew that he spoke this parable to them.
και εζητησαν οι αρχιερεις και οι γραμματεις επιβαλειν επ αυτον τας χειρας εν αυτη τη ωρα και εφοβηθησαν εγνωσαν γαρ οτι προς αυτους την παραβολην ταυτην ειπεν
9 Church Fathers comment on this verse · 10 commentaries
Yet, at that moment, upon realizing that the Lord had addressed this parable to them, they conspired against Him and would have seized Him had they not been afraid of the crowd. The Scriptures declare, ‘Thou shalt not slay the innocent and upright’ (Exodus 23:7); however, they disregard this command, yielding instead to the fear of human anger, and, avoiding the overt act of violence, they devise further schemes against Him.
Once more, the assembly of Pharisees is stirred to intense outrage; they draw their bow of jealousy and clench their teeth against Him who beckons them to life. They launch an assault on Him who seeks to deliver, having lowered Himself from His majestic and divine stature to our human state; they conspire against the one who became incarnate to eliminate death. The sole factor that curbed their audaciousness, as indicated by the insightful evangelist, was their fear of the crowds. This suggests that a sense of reverence for God did not hold them back; the commandment given through Moses, which explicitly states, “Thou shalt not kill the holy and righteous,” failed to temper their harshness. Their dread of the people far outweighed their respect for the Almighty.
But what incited such a dreadful and unrestrained fury within them? It is noted that “they knew” He had spoken this parable about them. Which parable? Certainly, the one in which He illustrated them as wicked and unfaithful stewards who had derided and slain the holy prophets God sent to encourage them to honor Him by yielding abundant spiritual fruit. They had similarly treated the Son Himself, the Lord of the vineyard. For they put Him to death as well, saying, “Here is the heir; let us go and kill Him, that the inheritance may be ours.” Yet they missed their opportunity, provoking divine wrath; indeed, they opposed the heavenly decrees and brought upon themselves the anger of God. Those “who were wicked perished wickedly,” being dismissed from their role as caretakers, while the Master of the estate entrusted the vineyard to others. This explains their grievance against Christ. Nonetheless, was it not their responsibility, having been forewarned about the impending consequences, to evade the peril and surmount its barriers? The path to this was straightforward and uncomplicated. They should have embraced Him who calls them to redemption; they ought to have honored in faith Him who justifies the ungodly, who clears all guilt, and through His grace, which holds no record of wrongs, saves those ensnared in sin.
The gathering of the Pharisees rages once more with unchecked fury. They ready their arrows of jealousy, clenching their teeth against Him who grants life. They launch fierce assaults on Him who seeks to save humanity, who, from the splendor befitting the Divine, humbled Himself to share in our mortal state. They conspire to eliminate Him who took on flesh to conquer death. The insightful evangelist reveals the reason for their brazen intent, stating that they feared the populace (Luke 20:19). He recognized that their actions did not stem from a genuine fear of the Almighty, nor did the commandment delivered through Moses, which commands, “Thou shalt not kill the innocent and righteous” (Ex 23:7, LXX), serve as a constraint for them. Instead, they chose to prioritize human approval over reverence for God.
In this particular passage, Matthew articulated the message with greater clarity in that chapter.
The Sanhedrin, feeling enraged by Jesus Christ's public exposure of their hypocrisy, decided it best to remain quiet until a more opportune moment, opting not to resort to any overt acts of violence against Him. This assumed restraint stemmed from their fear of the crowds who held Jesus in high regard. Nonetheless, the wounded egos of the scribes could not tolerate remaining inactive for long; within moments, a new scheme was concocted against the God-Man, masterminded by the Pharisees. When the hypocrites realized He was still addressing the people in the temple, they conspired to send some of their allies to Him with the intent of trapping Him in His words. Jesus’ well-known candor and the openness with which He shared His thoughts assured them of potential success. All that was necessary was to devise a question that was both seemingly innocent and perilous, phrasing it in a way that concealed their true intent.
To emphasize the rejection experienced by God's chosen people due to their persistent defiance, the Lord referenced the words of the prophet and Psalmist, who had previously foretold the wonder of the builders dismissing the very stone meant to be the cornerstone. He noted that alternative workers would be sought for the harvest of the Lord. Drawing from a psalm for illustration, He expressed this idea with the imagery present in the psalm: He who stumbles upon this rock will be shattered, and upon it he will fall.
This reflects two forms of brokenness: the initial brokenness of repentance leading to the embrace of the Messiah’s reign, and the second brokenness, representing God’s judgment, akin to the vision described by Daniel, which involved the blow of a stone against the feet of the great statue (Dan. 2:45 cf. Is. 8:14-15).
The final remarks of Jesus regarding the initial parable left no room for uncertainty that the subsequent parable would similarly condemn their transgressions. The message of this second parable was so evident that the religious leaders and the corrupt among the Jewish community must have seen themselves reflected in the nefarious vinedressers; they likely suspected that Jesus was aware of their plot to take His life. Indeed, they were fully conscious of it. The chief priests and Pharisees, resentful towards Jesus due to His public reproach of them, would have eagerly moved to seize Him and put Him to death themselves, yet they feared the people, who, though they may not have viewed Him as the Messiah, considered Him a prophet and might rise to defend Him.
The significance and intent of these parables became increasingly apparent to them, igniting a desire for retribution. Yet they were held back by fear, for Christ remained a profound prophet in the eyes of the people.
At that moment, they realized completely that He had directed this parable towards them, and their anger grew even more intense; they intended to take hold of Him, yet they were fearful of the large crowd gathered around the Lord.
Jesus Christ, looking intently at those around Him, reminded them of the words from Psalm 117, particularly verses 22 and 23, which prophetically depicted their actions towards Him: ‘Have ye not read in any of the Scriptures, ’The stone which the builders rejected, this is the head of the corner: of the Lord is this stone, and it is marvellous in your sight.’ The imagery from the Psalmist draws upon construction, where the most substantial stone serves as the cornerstone linking two walls at an intersection. Christ became the cornerstone of the holy Church, bringing together all people—both Jews and Gentiles—through a single faith (Acts 4:11; 1 Pet. 2:7; Rom. 9:33).
Consequently, He declared, ‘the Kingdom of God shall be taken from you and given to those who produce its fruits,’ referring to a spiritual Israel comprised of Abraham's children by faith (Rom. 4:16), rather than those of Jewish descent. The Jews, in their steadfast rejection of faith, turned away from the cornerstone, to their own detriment; for it is said that those who stumble upon this stone will be shattered, and those upon whom it falls will be utterly destroyed. Some stumbled over the stone, lured by the humble appearance of the God-Man; as a result, they were deprived of participating in the Kingdom of Christ and faced severe loss. Others, hardened and malicious in their unbelief, prepared themselves for destruction, aware of their actions. The Jewish people felt the weight of this crushing stone when the Romans subdued them, and those who mirror their disbelief will likewise face judgment at the end of times. The chief priests, scribes, and Pharisees recognized that the Savior’s parables were directed at them. The national disgrace stoked their animosity towards Jesus, prompting them to think about seizing Him, yet they feared the populace who regarded Him as a prophet. From the Lord's stern admonitions, they gleaned what they needed to know: that the Messiah they had rejected identified Himself as the cornerstone upon which the joy of the new Israel would rest; that He was aware of their hostile, murderous intents; and that the sufferings and death awaiting Him did not deter Him, as He remained committed to fulfilling all that was ordained for humanity's salvation through God's overarching providence. Instead of reflecting upon their disputes with open hearts, the adversaries of Christ persisted in their malice.
Passages read together with this verse.
Greek text, 29 words with lemma, transliteration and Strong’s number. Tap to expand.
THEOSIS