© Copyright 2001 Joseph Francis Alward

In this article I describe and compare the three synoptic parables of the wicked tenant and show evidence that an unflawed parable left Luke, acquired two errors on its way to Matthew, and eventually arrived at Mark with one more error.

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Luke 20	Matthew 21	Mark 12
15 So they threw him out of the vineyard and killed him.	39 So they took him and threw him out of the vineyard and killed him.	8 So they took him and killed him, and threw him out of the vineyard. Events seem to be transposed: One wouldn’t throw a “him” out of the vineyard, one would throw “his body.”
15 "What then will the owner of the vineyard do to them? 16a He will come and kill those tenants and give the vineyard to others.”	40 "Therefore, when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those tenants?" 41 "He will bring those wretches to a wretched end," they replied, "and he will rent the vineyard to other tenants, who will give him his share of the crop at harvest time."	9 "What then will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and kill those tenants and give the vineyard to others.
16b " When the people heard this, they said, "May this never be!" The crowd’s doubt give Jesus a reason for scolding them (below) for their lack of knowledge of scripture.	Matthew’s crowd doesn’t express the skepticism that Luke’s does; they're completely silent. This becomes a problem in 21:42.	Mark, too, apparently doesn't know that the parable requires the crowd to express doubt.
17 Jesus looked directly at them and asked, "Then what is the meaning of that which is written: "'The stone the builders rejected has become the capstone' ?" The crowd's doubt prompted Jesus to give a scolding explanation to them.	42 Jesus said to them, "Have you never read in the Scriptures: "'The stone the builders rejected has become the capstone; the Lord has done this, and it is marvelous in our eyes' ?" Jesus' apparent wonderment at their not having read scripture is inexplicable, given their silence.	10 Haven't you read this scripture: "'The stone the builders rejected has become the capstone; 11 the Lord has done this, and it is marvelous in our eyes' ?" Mark, like Matthew, has Jesus wondering for no good reason whether his audience remembers scripture.
	43 "Therefore I tell you that the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people who will produce its fruit.”
18 Everyone who falls on that stone will be broken to pieces, but he on whom it falls will be crushed.” (See Isaiah 8:14)	44 He who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces, but he on whom it falls will be crushed." This allusion to Isaiah doesn’t appear in some manuscripts, and appears out of place. This seems to be a later--and awkward--addition; it would make more sense if it changed places with 21:43.	Without a reference to Isaiah 8:14, Mark’s capstone verse (12:10) confuses readers: What does it have to do with killing the tenants in the immediately preceding verse (12:9)?

It seems that Luke had access to the "better" parable; whether he created it, or received it, is not important. During oral transmission to Matthew, it looks like the crowd silence in Luke 16b and the broken to pieces on a stone in Luke 18 were inadvertently omitted, or forgotten. Broken on stone seems to have been restored later as Matthew 21:44, but it was out of place. During the oral transmission to Mark of the doubly flawed Matthew, what appears to be a third error (Mark 12:8) was added.

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See also the following articles on Mark's gospel:

David and Jesus
Jesus Walks on Water
Loaves and Fishes