Thematic Bible: The evil sharecroppers

Then he began to speak to them in figures. "A man once planted a vineyard and fenced it in and hewed out a wine-vat and built a watch tower, and he leased it to tenants and left the neighborhood. At the proper time he sent a slave to the tenants to get from them a share of the vintage. And they took him and beat him and sent him back empty-handed. read more.
And again he sent another slave to them. And they beat him over the head and treated him shamefully. And he sent another; and him they killed; and so with many others, some they beat and some they killed. He still had one left to send, a dearly loved son. He sent him to them last of all, thinking, 'They will respect my son.' But the tenants said to one another, 'This is his heir! Come on, let us kill him, and the property will belong to us!' So they took him and killed him, and threw his body outside of the vineyard. What will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come back and put the tenants to death and give the vineyard to others. Did you never read this passage of Scripture: " 'That stone which the builders rejected Has become the cornerstone; This came from the Lord And seems marvelous to us'?" And they tried to have him arrested, but they were afraid of the people, for they knew that the illustration was aimed at them. And they left him and went away.

"Listen to another figure. There was a land owner who planted a vineyard and fenced it in, and hewed out a wine-vat in it, and built a watch-tower, and leased it to tenants, and left the neighborhood. When the time for the vintage approached he sent his slaves to the tenants to receive his share. But the tenants took his slaves and beat one and killed another and stoned a third. read more.
Again he sent other slaves and more of them than he had sent at first, and they treated them in the same way. Finally he sent his son to them, thinking, 'They will respect my son.' But when the tenants saw his son, they said to one another. 'This is his heir! Come on, let us kill him, and get his inheritance!' So they took him and drove him out of the vineyard and killed him. When the owner of the vineyard comes back, therefore, what will he do to these tenants?" They said to him, "He will put the wretches to a miserable death, and let the vineyard to other tenants who will give him his share of the vintage when it is due." Jesus said to them, "Did you never read in the Scriptures, " 'That stone which the builders rejected Has become the cornerstone; This came from the Lord, And seems marvelous to us'? "That, I tell you, is why the Kingdom of God will be taken away from you, and given to a people that will produce its proper fruit. Whoever falls on that stone will be shattered, but whoever it falls upon will be pulverized."

Then he went on to give the people this illustration: "A man once planted a vineyard, and leased it to tenants, and went away for along absence. And at the proper time he sent a slave to the tenants to have them give him a share of the vintage, but the tenants beat him, and sent him back empty-handed. And again he sent another slave, and they beat him also and mistreated him and sent him back empty-handed. read more.
And again he sent a third, but they wounded him too, and threw him outside. Then the owner of the vineyard said, 'What can I do? I will send them my dear son; perhaps they will respect him.' But when the tenants saw him, they argued with one another, 'This is his heir! Let us kill him, so that the property will belong to us!' So they drove him out of the vineyard and killed him. Now what will the owner of the vineyard do to them? He will come and put those tenants to death, and give the vineyard to others." When they heard this they said, "Heaven forbid!" He looked at them and said, "Then what does this saying of Scripture mean, "'That stone which the builders rejected Has become the cornerstone'? Whoever falls on that stone will be shattered, but whoever it falls upon will be pulverized."