61 Bible Verses about Privileges

For who makes you superior? What do you have that you did not receive? And if you did receive it, why do you boast as though you did not receive it?

Now in the sixth month of her pregnancy, the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a city in Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin engaged to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin's name was Mary. The angel came to her and said, "Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you!" read more.
Startled by his statement, she tried to figure out what his greeting meant. Then the angel told her, "Stop being afraid, Mary, because you have found favor with God. Listen! You will become pregnant and give birth to a son, and you are to name him Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David. He will rule over the house of Jacob forever, and his kingdom will never end." Mary asked the angel, "How can this happen, since I have not had relations with a man?" The angel answered her, "The Holy Spirit will come over you, and the power of the Most High will surround you. Therefore, the child will be holy and will be called the Son of God. And listen! Elizabeth, your relative, has herself conceived a son in her old age, this woman who was rumored to be barren is in her sixth month. Nothing is impossible with respect to any of God's promises." Then Mary said, "Truly I am the Lord's servant. Let everything you have said happen to me." Then the angel left her.

For by such grace you have been saved through faith. This does not come from you; it is the gift of God and not the result of actions, to put a stop to all boasting.

although I could have confidence in the flesh. If anyone thinks he can place confidence in the flesh, I have more reason to think so. Having been circumcised on the eighth day, I am of the nation of Israel, from the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews. As far as the Law is concerned, I was a Pharisee. As for my zeal, I was a persecutor of the church. As far as righteousness in the Law is concerned, I was blameless.read more.
But whatever things were assets to me, these I now consider a loss for the sake of the Messiah. What is more, I continue to consider all these things to be a loss for the sake of what is far more valuable, knowing the Messiah Jesus, my Lord. It is because of him that I have experienced the loss of all those things. Indeed, I consider them rubbish in order to gain the Messiah and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the Law, but one that comes through the faithfulness of the Messiah, the righteousness that comes from God and that depends on faith.

When I look at the heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars that you established what is man that you take notice of him, or the son of man that you pay attention to him? You made him a little less than divine, but you crowned him with glory and honor.read more.
You gave him dominion over the work of your hands, you put all things under his feet:

Then God said, "Let us make mankind in our image, to be like us. Let them be masters over the fish in the ocean, the birds that fly, the livestock, everything that crawls on the earth, and over the earth itself!" So God created mankind in his own image; in his own image God created them; he created them male and female. God blessed the humans by saying to them, "Be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth, and subdue it! Be masters over the fish in the ocean, the birds that fly, and every living thing that crawls on the earth!"

who are Israelis. To them belong the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the Law, the worship, and the promises. To the Israelis belong the patriarchs, and from them, the Messiah descended, who is God over all, the one who is forever blessed. Amen.

"It wasn't because you were more numerous than other people of the earth that the LORD committed himself to you and chose you. In fact, you were the least numerous of all the nations. But the LORD loved you and kept his oath that he made to your ancestors. The LORD brought you out with great power from slavery, from the control of Pharaoh, king of Egypt. Know that the LORD your God is God, the trusted God who faithfully keeps his covenant to the thousandth generation of those who love him and obey his commands.

And therefore you are great, Lord GOD, there is no one like you, there is no God except for you, just as we've heard with our own ears. "And who is like your people, like Israel, the one nation on earth that God went out to redeem as a people for himself, to make a name for himself, and to carry out for them great and awe-inspiring accomplishments, driving out nations and their gods in front of your people, whom you redeemed to yourself from Egypt? You have prepared your people Israel to be your very own people for ever, and you, LORD, have become their God!

So I ask, "God has not rejected his people, has he?" Of course not! I am an Israeli myself, a descendant of Abraham from the tribe of Benjamin. God has not rejected his people whom he chose long ago. Do you not know what the Scripture says in the story about Elijah, when he pleads with God against Israel? "Lord, they have killed your prophets and demolished your altars. I am the only one left, and they are trying to take my life." read more.
But what was the divine reply to him? "I have reserved for myself 7,000 people who have not knelt to worship Baal." So it is at the present time: there is a remnant, chosen by grace. But if this is by grace, then it is no longer on the basis of actions. Otherwise, grace would no longer be grace. What, then, does this mean? It means that Israel failed to obtain what it was seeking, but the selected group obtained it while the rest were hardened. As it is written, "To this day God has put them into deep sleep. Their eyes do not see, and their ears do not hear." And David says, "Let their table become a snare and a trap, a stumbling block and a punishment for them. Let their eyes be darkened so that they cannot see, and keep their backs forever bent." And so I ask, "They have not stumbled so as to fall, have they?" Of course not! On the contrary, because of their stumbling, salvation has come to the gentiles to make the Jews jealous. Now if their stumbling means riches for the world, and if their fall means riches for the gentiles, how much more will their full participation mean!

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus, the Messiah! He has blessed us in the Messiah with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realm, just as he chose us in the Messiah before the creation of the universe to be holy and blameless in his presence. In love he predestined us for adoption to himself through Jesus the Messiah, according to the pleasure of his will, read more.
so that we would praise his glorious grace that he gave us in the Beloved One. In union with him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our offenses, according to the riches of God's grace that he lavished on us, along with all wisdom and understanding,

Therefore, if anyone is in the Messiah, he is a new creation. Old things have disappeared, and look! all things have become new! All of this comes from God, who has reconciled us to himself through the Messiah and has given us the ministry of reconciliation, for through the Messiah, God was reconciling the world to himself by not counting their sins against them. He has committed his message of reconciliation to us. read more.
Therefore, we are the Messiah's representatives, as though God were pleading through us. We plead on the Messiah's behalf: "Be reconciled to God!" God made the one who did not know sin to be sin for us, so that God's righteousness would be produced in us.

Indeed, all of us once behaved like them in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of our flesh and senses. By nature we were destined for wrath, just like everyone else. But God, who is rich in mercy, because of his great love for us even when we were dead because of our offenses, made us alive together with the Messiah (by grace you have been saved), read more.
raised us up with him, and seated us with him in the heavenly realm in the Messiah Jesus, so that in the coming ages he might display the limitless riches of his grace that comes to us through his kindness in the Messiah Jesus. For by such grace you have been saved through faith. This does not come from you; it is the gift of God and not the result of actions, to put a stop to all boasting.

God has rescued us from the power of darkness and has brought us into the kingdom of the Son whom he loves, through whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

For through him, both of us have access to the Father by one Spirit.

Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus the Messiah. Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace by which we have been established, and we boast because of our hope in God's glory.

Therefore, my brothers, since we have confidence to enter the sanctuary by the blood of Jesus, the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain (that is, through his flesh), and since we have a great high priest over the household of God, read more.
let us continue to come near with sincere hearts in the full assurance that faith provides, because our hearts have been sprinkled clean from a guilty conscience, and our bodies have been washed with pure water.

You have not come to something that can be touched, to a blazing fire, to darkness, to gloom, to a trumpet's blast, or to a voice that made the hearers beg that not another word be spoken to them. For they could not endure the command that was given: "If even an animal touches the mountain, it must be stoned to death." read more.
Indeed, the sight was so terrifying that Moses said, "I am trembling with fear." Instead, you have come to Mount Zion, to the city of the living God, to the heavenly Jerusalem, to tens of thousands of angels joyfully gathered together, to the assembly of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, to a judge who is the God of all, to the spirits of righteous people who have been made perfect, to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better message than Abel's.

And this is eternal life: to know you, the only true God, and the one whom you sent Jesus the Messiah.

Then Jesus said loudly, "The one who believes in me does not believe in me only, but also in the one who sent me. The one who sees me sees the one who sent me. I've come into the world as light, so that everyone who believes in me won't remain in the darkness.

Jesus told him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. If you have known me, you will also know my Father. From now on you know him and have seen him."

But when the appropriate time had come, God sent his Son, born by a woman, born under the Law, in order to redeem those who were under the Law, and thus to adopt them as his children. Now because you are his children, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts to cry out, "Abba! Father!" read more.
So you are no longer a slave but a child, and if you are a child, then you are also an heir because of what God did.

For all who are led by God's Spirit are God's children. For you have not received a spirit of slavery that leads you into fear again. Instead, you have received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, "Abba! Father!" The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God's children. read more.
Now if we are children, we are heirs heirs of God and co-heirs with the Messiah if, in fact, we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.

For all of you are God's children through faith in the Messiah Jesus. Indeed, all of you who were baptized into the Messiah have clothed yourselves with the Messiah. Because all of you are one in the Messiah Jesus, a person is no longer a Jew or a Greek, a slave or a free person, a male or a female. read more.
And if you belong to the Messiah, then you are Abraham's descendants indeed, and heirs according to the promise.

You have forgotten the encouragement that is addressed to you as sons: "My son, do not think lightly of the Lord's discipline or give up when you are corrected by him. For the Lord disciplines the one he loves, and he punishes every son he accepts." What you endure disciplines you: God is treating you as sons. Is there a son whom his father does not discipline? read more.
Now if you are without any discipline, in which all sons share, then you are illegitimate and not God's sons. Furthermore, we had earthly fathers who disciplined us, and we respected them for it. We should submit even more to the Father of our spirits and live, shouldn't we? For a short time they disciplined us as they thought best, but God does it for our good, so that we may share in his holiness. No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, for those who have been trained by it, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace.

But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people to be his very own and to proclaim the wonderful deeds of the one who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God. Once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.

That is why you are no longer strangers and foreigners but fellow citizens with the saints and members of God's household, having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, the Messiah Jesus himself being the cornerstone. In union with him the whole building is joined together and rises into a holy sanctuary for the Lord. read more.
You, too, are being built in him, along with the others, into a place for God's Spirit to dwell.

Then turning to his disciples in private, he told them, "How blessed are the eyes that see what you see! Because I tell you, many prophets and kings wanted to see the things you see but didn't see them, and to hear the things you hear but didn't hear them."

Then the disciples came and asked Jesus, "Why do you speak to people in parables?" He answered them, "You have been given knowledge about the secrets of the kingdom from heaven, but it hasn't been given to them, because to anyone who has something, more will be given, and he will have more than enough. But from the one who doesn't have anything, even what he has will be taken away from him. read more.
That's why I speak to them in parables, because "they look but don't see, and they listen but don't hear or understand.' "With them the prophecy of Isaiah is being fulfilled, which says: "You will listen and listen but never understand. You will look and look but never comprehend, for this people's heart has become dull, and their ears are hard of hearing. They have shut their eyes so that they might not see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart and turn, and I would heal them.' "How blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear! I tell all of you with certainty, many prophets and righteous people longed to see the things you see but did not see them, and to hear the things you hear but did not hear them."

When he was alone with the Twelve and those around him, they began to ask him about the parables. He told them, "The secret about the kingdom of God has been given to you. But to those on the outside, everything comes in parables so that "they may see clearly but not perceive, and they may hear clearly but not understand, otherwise they might turn around and be forgiven.'"

Then his disciples began to ask him what this parable meant. So he said, "You have been given knowledge about the secrets of the kingdom of God. But to others they are given in parables, so that "they might look but not see, and they might listen but not understand.'"

I don't call you servants anymore, because a servant doesn't know what his master is doing. But I've called you friends, because I've made known to you everything that I've heard from my Father.

However, when we are among mature people, we do speak a message of wisdom, but not the wisdom of this world or of the rulers of this world, who are passing off the scene. Instead, we speak about God's wisdom in a hidden secret, which God destined before the world began for our glory. None of the rulers of this world understood it, because if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. read more.
But as it is written, "No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined the things that God has prepared for those who love him." But God has revealed those things to us by his Spirit. For the Spirit searches everything, even the deep things of God. Is there anyone who can understand his own thoughts except his own inner spirit? In the same way, no one can know the thoughts of God except God's Spirit. Now, we have not received the spirit of the world but the Spirit who comes from God, so that we can understand the things that were freely given to us by God.

Even the prophets, who prophesied about the grace that was to be yours, carefully researched and investigated this salvation. They tried to find out what era or specific time the Spirit of the Messiah in them kept referring to when he predicted the sufferings of the Messiah and the glories that would follow. It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves but you in regard to the things that have now been announced to you by those who brought you the good news through the Holy Spirit sent from heaven. These are things that even the angels desire to look into.

"I knew you before I formed you in the womb; I set you apart for me before you were born; I appointed you to be a prophet to the nations."

Then King David went in to the presence of the LORD, sat down, and said: "Who am I, Lord GOD, and what is my family, that you have brought me to this? And this is still a small thing to you, Lord GOD you also have spoken about the future of your servant's house, and this is the charter for mankind, O Lord GOD! "What more can David say to you, and you surely know your servant, Lord GOD. read more.
For the sake of your word and consistent with your desire, you have done all of these great things, informing your servant.

I don't call you servants anymore, because a servant doesn't know what his master is doing. But I've called you friends, because I've made known to you everything that I've heard from my Father. "You have not chosen me, but I have chosen you. I have appointed you to go and produce fruit that will last, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he will give it to you.

and finally he was seen by me, as though I were born abnormally late. For I am the least of the apostles and not even fit to be called an apostle because I persecuted God's church. But by God's grace I am what I am, and his grace shown to me was not wasted. Instead, I worked harder than all the others not I, of course, but God's grace that was with me.

But who am I, and who are my people, that we make such voluntary offerings as these? For all things come from you, and from your own hand we are giving to you. For we are aliens and vagrants in your presence, as were all of our ancestors. Our days on the earth pass away like shadows, and we have no hope. LORD our God, all of this abundance that we have given for building a temple for your great name was provided by you and all of it belongs to you.

I never desired anyone's silver, gold, or clothes. You yourselves know that I worked with my own hands to support myself and those who were with me. In every way I showed you that by working hard like this we should help the weak and remember the words that the Lord Jesus himself said, "It is more blessed to give than to receive.'"

We want you to know, brothers, about God's grace that was given to the churches of Macedonia. In spite of their terrible ordeal of suffering, their abundant joy and deep poverty have led them to be abundantly generous. I can testify that by their own free will they have given to the utmost of their ability, yes, even beyond their ability. read more.
They begged us earnestly for the privilege of participating in this ministry to the saints. We did not expect that! They gave themselves to the Lord first and then to us, since this was God's will. So we urged Titus to finish this work of kindness among you in the same way that he had started it. Indeed, the more your faith, speech, knowledge, enthusiasm, and love for us increase, the more we want you to be rich in this work of kindness. I am not commanding you but testing the genuineness of your love by the enthusiasm of others. For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus, the Messiah. Although he was rich, for your sakes he became poor, so that you, through his poverty, might become rich. I am giving you my opinion on this matter because it will be helpful to you. Last year you were not only willing to do something, but had already started to do it. Now finish what you began, so that your eagerness to do so may be matched by your eagerness to complete it. For if the eagerness is there, the gift is acceptable according to what you have, not according to what you do not have. Not that others should have relief while you have hardship. Rather, it is a question of fairness. At the present time, your surplus fills their need, so that their surplus may fill your need. In this way things are fair. As it is written, "The person who had much did not have too much, and the person who had little did not have too little."

Remember this: The person who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and the person who sows generously will also reap generously. Each of you must give what you have decided in your heart, not with regret or under compulsion, since God loves a cheerful giver. Besides, God is able to make every blessing of yours overflow for you, so that in every situation you will always have all you need for any good work. read more.
As it is written, "He scatters everywhere and gives to the poor; his righteousness lasts forever." Now he who supplies seed to the farmer and bread to eat will also supply you with seed and multiply it and enlarge the harvest that results from your righteousness. In every way you will grow richer and become even more generous, and this will cause others to give thanks to God because of us,

Think of us as servants of the Messiah and as servant managers entrusted with God's secrets. Now it is required of servant managers that each one should prove to be trustworthy.

"Who, then, is the faithful and wise servant whom his master has put in charge of his household to give the others their food at the right time? How blessed is that servant whom his master finds doing this when he comes! I tell all of you with certainty, he will put him in charge of all his property.read more.
"But if that wicked servant says to himself, "My master has been delayed,' and begins to beat his fellow servants and eat and drink with the drunks, that servant's master will come on a day when he doesn't expect him and at an hour that he doesn't know. Then his master will punish him severely and assign him a place with the hypocrites. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth."

The Lord said, "Who, then, is the faithful and careful servant manager whom his master will put in charge of giving all his other servants their share of food at the right time? How blessed is that servant whom his master finds doing this when he comes! I tell you with certainty, he will put him in charge of all his property. read more.
But if that servant says to himself, "My master is taking a long time to come back,' and begins to beat the other servants and to eat, drink, and get drunk, the master of that servant will come on a day when he doesn't expect him and at an hour that he doesn't know. Then his master will punish him severely and assign him a place with unfaithful people. That servant who knew what his master wanted but didn't prepare himself or do what was wanted will receive a severe beating. But the servant who did things that deserved a beating without knowing it will receive a light beating. Much will be required from everyone to whom much has been given. But even more will be demanded from the one to whom much has been entrusted."

You know that your body is a sanctuary of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have received from God, don't you? You do not belong to yourselves, because you were bought for a price. Therefore, glorify God with your bodies.

Continue to follow and be submissive to your leaders, since they are watching over your souls as those who will have to give a word of explanation. By doing this, you will be letting them carry out their duties joyfully, and not with grief, for that would be harmful for you.

Now the sons of Eli were worthless men who did not know the LORD. The custom of the priests with the people was that whenever a person offered a sacrifice, a servant of the priest would come with a three pronged fork in his hand while the meat was boiling, and he would stick it into the boiler or pot, and take everything the fork brought up that is, the priest would take it for himself. This is what they were supposed to do with all the Israelis who came there to Shiloh. read more.
But even before they burned the fat, the servant of the priest would come and say to the person offering the sacrifice, "Give me meat to roast for the priest. He won't accept boiled meat from you, but only raw." If the man told him, "They must surely burn up the fat first, and then take for yourself whatever you desire," the servant would say, "No, give it now, and if you don't, I'll take it by force!" By doing this, the sin of the young men was very serious in the LORD's sight because the men despised the LORD's offering.

One spring day, during the time of year when kings go off to war, David sent out Joab, along with his personal staff and all of Israel's army. They utterly destroyed the Ammonites and then attacked Rabbah while David remained in Jerusalem. Late one afternoon about dusk, David got up from his couch and was walking around on the roof of the royal palace. From there he watched a woman taking a bath, and she was very beautiful to look at. David sent word to inquire about her, and someone told him, "This is Eliam's daughter Bathsheba, the wife of Uriah the Hittite, isn't it?" read more.
So David sent some messengers, took her from her home, and she went to him, and he had sex with her. (She had been consecrating herself following her menstrual separation.) Then she returned to her home.

Meanwhile, there was a man named Naboth from Jezreel who owned a vineyard that was located contiguous to King Ahab's palace in Samaria. Ahab addressed Naboth and asked him, "I would like to plant a vegetable garden near my house. Please exchange your vineyard with a better one from me, or if you'd rather have cash, I'll buy it for its full value." But Naboth replied to Ahab, "No way! The LORD prohibits the sale to you of the inheritance of my ancestors!"read more.
Ahab went back to his palace, sullen and in a foul mood, because Naboth the Jezreelite had turned down Ahab's offer by saying "I will not transfer my ancestors' inheritance to you!" He laid down on his bed, curled up with his face to the wall, and refused to eat. But his wife Jezebel went to him and asked him, "How is it that you're so sullen and refusing to eat?" "I asked Naboth the Jezreelite, "Sell me your vineyard for cash, or if you want, I'll give you a better one in its place.' But he refused. He told me, "I won't give you my vineyard!'" "Aren't you the reigning king of Israel," his wife Jezebel replied. "Get up, have a meal, and get ready to be happy. I'll go get you the vineyard that Naboth the Jezreelite owns." So she wrote some memos in Ahab's name, set his personal seal to them, and sent them to the elders and nobles who lived with Naboth in his city. In the memos, she wrote the following directives: "Proclaim a public fast and seat Naboth in the front row. Seat two wicked men in front of him, and make them testify against him. Tell them to claim "You cursed God and the king.' Then take him out and stone him to death." So the leading men of the city, along with the elders and nobles who lived there, did precisely what Jezebel had directed them to do. They followed the instructions that she had set forth in the memos: They proclaimed a public fast and seated Naboth in the front row. Two wicked men came in, sat down in front of them, and testified against Naboth in public, "Naboth cursed God and the king!" So they took him outside the city and stoned him to death. Afterwards, they sent a message to Jezebel that said, "Naboth has been stoned. He's dead." When Jezebel heard that Naboth had been stoned to death, she told Ahab, "Get up and confiscate Naboth's vineyard that he refused to sell you for cash. Naboth the Jezreelite isn't alive anymore. He's dead!" So once he heard that Naboth was dead, Ahab got up, went down to the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite, and confiscated it.

When day came, the magistrates sent guards, who commanded, "Release those men." The jailer reported these words to Paul, and added, "The magistrates have sent word to release you. So come out now and go in peace." But Paul told the guards, "The magistrates have had us beaten publicly without a trial and have thrown us into jail, even though we are Roman citizens. Now are they going to throw us out secretly? Certainly not! Have them come and escort us out."read more.
The guards reported these words to the magistrates, and they became afraid when they heard that Paul and Silas were Roman citizens. So the magistrates came, apologized to them, and escorted them out. Then they asked them to leave the city.

Paul looked straight at the Council and said, "Brothers, with a clear conscience I have done my duty before God up to this very day." Then the high priest Ananias ordered the men standing near him to strike him on the mouth. At this Paul told him, "God will strike you, you whitewashed wall! How can you sit there and judge me according to the Law, and yet in violation of the Law order me to be struck?"

"Listen to another parable. There was a landowner who planted a vineyard, put a wall around it, dug a wine press in it, and built a watchtower. Then he leased it to tenant farmers and went abroad. When harvest time approached, he sent his servants to the tenant farmers to collect his produce. But the farmers took his servants and beat one, killed another, and attacked another with stones. read more.
Again, he sent other servants to them, a greater number than the first, but the tenant farmers treated them the same way. Finally, he sent his son to them, thinking, "They will respect my son.' But when the tenant farmers saw his son, they told one another, "This is the heir. Come on, let's kill him and get his inheritance!' So they grabbed him, threw him out of the vineyard, and killed him. Now when the owner of the vineyard returns, what will he do to those farmers?" They told him, "He will put those horrible men to a horrible death. Then he will lease the vineyard to other farmers who will give him his produce at harvest time." Jesus asked them, "Have you never read in the Scriptures, "The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone. This was the Lord's doing, and it is amazing in our eyes.'? That is why I tell you that the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people who will produce fruit for it.

Then Jesus began to speak to them in parables. "A man planted a vineyard. He put a wall around it, dug a pit for the wine press, and built a watchtower. Then he leased it to tenant farmers and went abroad. At the right time, he sent a servant to the farmers to collect from them a share of the produce from the vineyard. But the farmers grabbed the servant, beat him, and sent him back empty-handed. read more.
Again, the man sent another servant to them. They beat the servant over the head and treated him shamefully. Then the man sent another, and that one they killed. So it was with many other servants. Some of these they beat, and others they killed. He still had one more person to send, a son whom he loved. Finally, he sent him to them, saying, "They will respect my son.' But those farmers told one another, "This is the heir. Come on, let's kill him, and the inheritance will be ours!' So they grabbed him, killed him, and threw him out of the vineyard. "Now what will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come, execute the farmers, and give the vineyard to others.

Then he began to tell the people this parable: "A man planted a vineyard, leased it to tenant farmers, and went abroad for a long time. At the right time he sent a servant to the farmers in order to get his share of the produce of the vineyard. But the farmers beat him and sent him back empty-handed. He sent another servant, and they beat him, too, treated him shamefully, and sent him back empty-handed. read more.
Then he sent a third, and they wounded him and threw him out, too. "Then the owner of the vineyard said, "What should I do? I'll send my son whom I love. Maybe they'll respect him.' But when the farmers saw him, they talked it over among themselves and said, "This is the heir. Let's kill him so that the inheritance will be ours!' So they threw him out of the vineyard and killed him. Now what will the owner of the vineyard do to them? He will come and destroy those farmers and give the vineyard to others." Those who heard him said, "That must never happen!"

"Similarly, it is like a man going on a trip, who called his servants and turned his money over to them. To one man he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one, based on their ability. Then he went on his trip. "The one who received five talents went out at once and invested them and earned five more. read more.
In the same way, the one who had two talents earned two more. But the one who received one talent went off, dug a hole in the ground, and buried his master's money. "After a long time, the master of those servants returned and settled accounts with them. The one who had received five talents came up and brought five more talents. "Master,' he said, "you gave me five talents. See, I've earned five more talents.' "His master told him, "Well done, good and trustworthy servant! Since you've been trustworthy with a small amount, I'll put you in charge of a large amount. Come and share your master's joy!' "The one with two talents also came forward and said, "Master, you gave me two talents. See, I've earned two more talents. "Then the one who had received one talent came forward and said, "Master, I knew that you were a hard man, harvesting where you haven't planted and gathering where you haven't scattered any seed. Since I was afraid, I went off and hid your talent in the ground. Here, take what's yours!' "His master answered him, "You evil and lazy servant! So you knew that I harvested where I haven't planted and gathered where I haven't scattered any seed? Then you should've invested my money with the bankers. When I returned, I would've received my money back with interest.' Then the master said, "Take the talent from him and give it to the man who has the ten talents, because to everyone who has something, more will be given, and he'll have more than enough. But from the person who has nothing, even what he has will be taken away from him. Throw this useless servant into the darkness outside! In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.'"

So he said, "A prince went to a distant country to be appointed king and then to return. He called ten of his servants and gave them ten coins. He told them, "Invest this money until I come back.' But the citizens of his country hated him and sent a delegation to follow him and to announce, "We don't want this man to rule over us!'read more.
"After he was appointed king, the prince came back. He ordered the servants to whom he had given the money to be called so he could find out what they had earned by investing. The first servant came and said, "Sir, your coin has earned ten more coins.' The king told him, "Well done, good servant! Because you have been trustworthy in a very small thing, take charge of ten cities.' "The second servant came and said, "Your coin, sir, has earned five coins.' The king told him, "You take charge of five cities.' "Then the other servant came and said, "Sir, look! Here's your coin. I've kept it in a cloth for safekeeping because I was afraid of you. You are a hard man. You withdraw what you didn't deposit and harvest what you didn't plant.' The king told him, "I will judge you by your own words, you evil servant! You knew, did you, that I was a hard man, and that I withdraw what I didn't deposit and harvest what I didn't plant? Then why didn't you put my money in the bank? When I returned, I could have collected it with interest.' "So the king told those standing nearby, "Take the coin away from him and give it to the man who has the ten coins.' They answered him, "Sir, he already has ten coins!' "I tell you, to everyone who has something, more will be given, but from the person who has nothing, even what he has will be taken away. But as for these enemies of mine who didn't want me to be their king bring them here and slaughter them in my presence!'"