And this son agrees, saying, “I go, sir.” But later he changes his mind and doesn’t go after all. The father says the same to the second son: “Go and work in the vineyard today. The man goes to the first and says, “Go, son, and work in the vineyard today.” The son says, “I will not.” But later, he changes his mind and goes anyway and works. This is what sets Jesus up to share today’s parable. And he says that neither will he answer their questions about authority. The religious leaders realize that either answer puts them in a bind - either the people who thought John was a prophet will be mad at them, or they will have to explain why they said they didn’t believe what John was preaching. Jesus asks them if the baptism John the Baptist proclaimed had a heavenly or a human origin. Jesus, who often answers questions with questions, tells them that he’ll answer if they answer a question of his, also a question about authority in its way.
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When he enters the temple to teach, the chief priests and elders, the religious leaders of the temple, come over to him immediately and question where he gets his authority to teach. Jesus tells this parable from inside the temple.
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Just a few weeks ago we heard another gospel lesson set in this time frame, and remember that this time for Jesus is filled with particularly tense interactions with the religious leaders, to whom Jesus speaks more directly and critically than ever. In our gospel lesson today, our second text from Matthew is set during what we call Holy Week, just after Jesus enters Jerusalem, greeting by adoring fans, and just before Jesus is arrested, tried, and crucified.