The Pharisees tended to see themselves as the rulers of Israel rather than custodians appointed by God. So, Jesus tells a parable about an absentee landowner who entrusted his fields to tenants who were to work the fields and bring in the harvest. Wealthy landowners actually controlled much of the rural Roman Empire and the tenant farmers who worked the land were normally quite respectful to the owners. In this story, however, the tenants act as if they are the ones with the power, and they exploit it mercilessly, including killing the landowner’s son.   

The characters in the story are easily identified. The owner of the vineyard is God; the vineyard is Israel; the tenant farmers are the religious leaders; the servants are the prophets and priests God sent to Israel; and the son is Jesus. Jesus is challenging the corrupting power these leaders have amassed and is helping them to understand the role brokenness plays in the life of a leader (God uses leaders whose hearts have been broken). Jesus reminds them that everyone has a choice when it comes to brokenness. You can submit your will to God and be broken of arrogance and self-centeredness or you can refuse to submit and experience the crushing consequences. The choice is yours: broken before God or crushed by the world.

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