1 Jesus then began to speak to them in parables: ‘A man planted a vineyard. He put a wall round it, dug a pit for the winepress and built a watchtower. Then he rented the vineyard to some farmers and moved to another place.
2 At harvest time he sent a servant to the tenants to collect from them some of the fruit of the vineyard.
3 But they seized him, beat him and sent him away empty-handed.
4 Then he sent another servant to them; they struck this man on the head and treated him shamefully.
5 He 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.”