23. And when he came into the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people came to him as he was teaching, saying, By what authority doest thou these things? and who gave thee this authority?
24. And Jesus answering said to them, I also will ask you one thing, which if ye tell me, I also will tell you by what authority I do these things:
25. The baptism of John, whence was it? of heaven or of men? And they reasoned among themselves, saying, If we should say, Of heaven, he will say to us, Why then have ye not believed him?
26. but if we should say, Of men, we fear the crowd, for all hold John for a prophet.
27. And answering Jesus they said, We do not know. He also said to them, Neither do I tell you by what authority I do these things.
28. But what think ye? A man had two children, and coming to the first he said, Child, go to-day, work in my vineyard.
29. And he answering said, I will not; but afterwards repenting himself he went.
30. And coming to the second he said likewise; and he answering said, I go, sir, and went not.
31. Which of the two did the will of the father? They say to him, The first. Jesus says to them, Verily I say unto you that the tax-gatherers and the harlots go into the kingdom of God before you.
32. For John came to you in the way of righteousness, and ye believed him not; but the tax-gatherers and the harlots believed him; but ye when ye saw it repented not yourselves afterwards to believe him.
33. Hear another parable: There was a householder who planted a vineyard, and made a fence round it, and dug a winepress in it, and built a tower, and let it out to husbandmen, and left the country.
34. But when the time of fruit drew near, he sent his bondmen to the husbandmen to receive his fruits.
35. And the husbandmen took his bondmen, and beat one, killed another, and stoned another.
36. Again he sent other bondmen more than the first, and they did to them in like manner.
37. And at last he sent to them his son, saying, They will have respect for my son.
38. But the husbandmen, seeing the son, said among themselves, This is the heir; come, let us kill him and possess his inheritance.
39. And they took him, and cast him forth out of the vineyard, and killed him.
40. When therefore the lord of the vineyard comes, what shall he do to those husbandmen?
41. They say to him, He will miserably destroy those evil men, and let out the vineyard to other husbandmen, who shall render him the fruits in their seasons.