Mark 12:1

Bible in Basic English (1941)

And he gave them teaching in the form of stories. A man had a vine-garden planted, and put a wall about it, and made a place for crushing out the wine, and put up a tower, and let it out to field-workers, and went into another country.

📖 Grammatical Analysis

Original Text

Καὶ ἤρξατο αὐτοῖς ἐν παραβολαῖς λέγεῖν. Ἀμπελῶνα ἐφύτευσεν ἄνθρωπος, καὶ περιέθηκεν φραγμόν, καὶ ὤρυξεν ὑπολήνιον, καὶ ᾠκοδόμησεν πύργον, καὶ ἐξέδοτο αὐτὸν γεωργοῖς, καὶ ἀπεδήμησεν.

Transliteration

And he ērxato to-them in parabolais legein. Ampelōna ephyteusen anthrōpos, and periethēken phragmon, and ōryxen hypolēnion, and ōkodomēsen pyrgon, and exedoto it to-geōrgois, and apedēmēsen.

Grammar Details

• *ērxato*: aorist middle indicative, 3rd singular - began
• *parabolais*: dative plural feminine - parables
• *legein*: present active infinitive - to speak/say
• *Ampelōna*: accusative singular masculine - vineyard
• *ephyteusen*: aorist active indicative, 3rd singular - planted
• *anthrōpos*: nominative singular masculine - man/person
• *periethēken*: aorist active indicative, 3rd singular - placed around
• *phragmon*: accusative singular masculine - fence/hedge
• *ōryxen*: aorist active indicative, 3rd singular - dug
• *hypolēnion*: accusative singular neuter - wine vat/pit under the winepress
• *ōkodomēsen*: aorist active indicative, 3rd singular - built
• *pyrgon*: accusative singular masculine - tower
• *exedoto*: aorist middle indicative, 3rd singular - gave out/leased
• *geōrgois*: dative plural masculine - farmers/vinedressers
• *apedēmēsen*: aorist active indicative, 3rd singular - went away/traveled abroad

Word Meanings

• *ērxato*: began/started
• *parabolais*: parables/analogies/comparisons
• *legein*: to speak/to say/to tell
• *ampelōna*: vineyard/vine-field
• *ephyteusen*: planted/established
• *anthrōpos*: man/human/person
• *periethēken*: placed around/set around/surrounded with
• *phragmon*: fence/hedge/wall
• *ōryxen*: dug/excavated
• *hypolēnion*: wine vat/pit under the winepress
• *ōkodomēsen*: built/constructed
• *pyrgon*: tower/watchtower
• *exedoto*: leased/rented out/gave out
• *geōrgois*: farmers/vinedressers/agricultural workers
• *apedēmēsen*: went away/traveled abroad/left the country

Referenced Verses

• Isa 5:1-4 : 1 Let me make a song about my loved one, a song of love for his vine-garden. My loved one had a vine-garden on a fertile hill: 2 And after working the earth of it with a spade, he took away its stones, and put in it a very special vine; and he put up a watchtower in the middle of it, hollowing out in the rock a place for the grape-crushing; and he was hoping that it would give the best grapes, but it gave common grapes. 3 And now, you people of Jerusalem and you men of Judah, be the judges between me and my vine-garden. 4 Is there anything which might have been done for my vine-garden which I have not done? why then, when I was hoping for the best grapes did it give me common grapes?
• Ps 80:8-9 : 8 You took a vine out of Egypt: driving out the nations, and planting it in their land. 9 You made ready a place for it, so that it might take deep root, and it sent out its branches over all the land. 10 The mountains were covered with its shade, and the great trees with its branches. 11 It sent out its arms to the Sea, and its branches to the River. 12 Why are its walls broken down by your hands, so that all who go by may take its fruit? 13 It is uprooted by the pigs from the woods, the beasts of the field get their food from it. 14 Come back, O God of armies: from heaven let your eyes be turned to this vine, and give your mind to it, 15 Even to the tree which was planted by your right hand, and to the branch which you made strong for yourself. 16 It is burned with fire; it is cut down: they are made waste by the wrath of your face.
• Matt 25:14 : 14 For it is as when a man, about to take a journey, got his servants together, and gave them his property.
• Mark 4:2 : 2 And he gave them teaching about a number of things in the form of stories, and said to them in his teaching, Give ear:
• Mark 4:11-13 : 11 And he said to them, To you is given the secret of the kingdom of God, but to those who are outside, all things are given in the form of stories; 12 So that seeing they may see, and it will not be clear to them; and hearing it, they will not get the sense; for fear that they may be turned again to me and have forgiveness. 13 And he said to them, If you are not clear about this story, how will you be clear about the others?
• Mark 4:33-34 : 33 And with a number of such stories he gave them his teaching, as they were able to take it: 34 And without a story he said nothing to them: but privately to his disciples he made all things clear.
• Mark 13:34 : 34 It is as when a man who is in another country for a time, having gone away from his house, and given authority to his servants and to everyone his work, gives the porter an order to keep watch.
• Song 8:11-12 : 11 Solomon had a vine-garden at Baal-hamon; he let out the vine-garden to keepers; every one had to give a thousand bits of silver for its fruit. 12 My vine-garden, which is mine, is before me: you, O Solomon, will have the thousand, and those who keep the fruit of them two hundred.
• Luke 8:10 : 10 And he said, To you is given knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of God; but to the others, they are given in stories, so that seeing, they may not see, and though they give hearing, the sense will not be clear to them.
• Luke 13:6-9 : 6 And he made up this story for them: A certain man had a fig-tree in his garden, and he came to get fruit from it, and there was no fruit. 7 And he said to the gardener, See, for three years I have been looking for fruit from this tree, and I have not had any: let it be cut down; why is it taking up space? 8 And he said, Lord, let it be for this year, and I will have the earth turned up round it, and put animal waste on it, to make it fertile: 9 And if, after that, it has fruit, it is well; if not, let it be cut down.
• Luke 15:13 : 13 And not long after, the younger son got together everything which was his and took a journey into a far-away country, and there all his money went in foolish living.
• Luke 19:12 : 12 So he said, A certain man of high birth went into a far-away country to get a kingdom for himself, and to come back.
• Luke 20:9-9 : 9 And he gave the people this story: A man made a vine-garden and gave the use of it to some field-workers and went into another country for a long time. 10 And at the right time he sent a servant to the workers to get part of the fruit from the vines; but the workmen gave him blows and sent him away with nothing. 11 And he sent another servant, and they gave blows to him in the same way, and put shame on him, and sent him away with nothing. 12 And he sent a third, and they gave him wounds and put him out. 13 And the lord of the garden said, What am I to do? I will send my dearly loved son; they may give respect to him. 14 But when the workmen saw him, they said to one another, This is he who will one day be the owner of the property: let us put him to death and the heritage will be ours. 15 And driving him out of the garden they put him to death. Now what will the lord do to these workmen? 16 He will come and put them to destruction and give the garden to others. And when he said this, they said, May it not be so. 17 But he, looking on them, said, Is it not in the Writings, The stone which the builders put on one side, the same has become the chief stone of the building? 18 Everyone falling on that stone will be broken, but the man on whom the stone comes down will be crushed to dust. 19 And the chief priests and the scribes made attempts to get their hands on him in that very hour; and they were in fear of the people, for they saw that he had made up this story against them.
• Luke 22:9 : 9 And they said to him, Where are we to get it ready?
• John 15:1-8 : 1 I am the true vine and my Father is the gardener. 2 He takes away every branch in me which has no fruit, and every branch which has fruit he makes clean, so that it may have more fruit. 3 You are clean, even now, through the teaching which I have given you. 4 Be in me at all times as I am in you. As the branch is not able to give fruit of itself, if it is not still on the vine, so you are not able to do so if you are not in me. 5 I am the vine, you are the branches: he who is in me at all times as I am in him, gives much fruit, because without me you are able to do nothing. 6 If a man does not keep himself in me, he becomes dead and is cut off like a dry branch; such branches are taken up and put in the fire and burned. 7 If you are in me at all times, and my words are in you, then anything for which you make a request will be done for you. 8 Here is my Father's glory, in that you give much fruit and so are my true disciples.
• Acts 7:38 : 38 This is the man who was in the church in the waste land with the angel who was talking to him in Sinai, and with our fathers; and to him were given the living words of God, so that he might give them to you.
• Acts 7:46-47 : 46 Who was pleasing to God; and he had a desire to make a holy tent for the God of Jacob. 47 But Solomon was the builder of his house.
• Rom 3:1-2 : 1 How then is the Jew better off? or what profit is there in circumcision? 2 Much in every way: first of all because the words of God were given to them.
• Rom 9:4-5 : 4 Who are Israelites: who have the place of sons, and the glory, and the agreements with God, and the giving of the law, and the worship, and the hope offered by God: 5 Whose are the fathers, and of whom came Christ in the flesh, who is over all, God, to whom be blessing for ever. So be it.
• Rom 11:17-24 : 17 But if some of the branches were broken off, and you, an olive-tree of the fields, were put in among them, and were given a part with them in the root by which the olive-tree is made fertile, 18 Do not be uplifted in pride over the branches: because it is not you who are the support of the root, but it is by the root that you are supported. 19 You will say, Branches were broken off so that I might be put in. 20 Truly, because they had no faith they were broken off, and you have your place by reason of your faith. Do not be lifted up in pride, but have fear; 21 For, if God did not have mercy on the natural branches, he will not have mercy on you. 22 See then that God is good but his rules are fixed: to those who were put away he was hard, but to you he has been good, on the condition that you keep in his mercy; if not, you will be cut off as they were. 23 And they, if they do not go on without faith, will be united to the tree again, because God is able to put them in again. 24 For if you were cut out of a field olive-tree, and against the natural use were united to a good olive-tree, how much more will these, the natural branches, be united again with the olive-tree which was theirs?
• Mark 12:1-9 : 1 And he gave them teaching in the form of stories. A man had a vine-garden planted, and put a wall about it, and made a place for crushing out the wine, and put up a tower, and let it out to field-workers, and went into another country. 2 And when the time came, he sent a servant to get from the workmen some of the fruit of the garden. 3 And they took him, and gave him blows, and sent him away with nothing. 4 And again he sent to them another servant; and they gave him wounds on the head, and were very cruel to him. 5 And he sent another; and they put him to death: and a number of others, whipping some, and putting some to death. 6 He still had one, a dearly loved son: he sent him last to them, saying, They will have respect for my son. 7 But those workmen said among themselves, This is he who will one day be the owner of the property; come, let us put him to death, and the heritage will be ours. 8 And they took him and put him to death, pushing his body out of the garden. 9 What then will the master of the garden do? He will come and put the workmen to death, and will give the garden into the hands of others. 10 Have you not seen this which is in the Writings: The stone which the builders put on one side, the same was made the chief stone of the building: 11 This was the Lord's doing, and it is a wonder in our eyes? 12 And they made attempts to take him; but they were in fear of the people, because they saw that the story was against them; and they went away from him.
• Ps 147:19-20 : 19 He makes his word clear to Jacob, teaching Israel his laws and his decisions. 20 He has not done these things for any other nation: and as for his laws, they have no knowledge of them. Let the Lord be praised.
• Neh 9:13-14 : 13 And you came down on Mount Sinai, and your voice came to them from heaven, giving them right decisions and true laws, good rules and orders: 14 And you gave them word of your holy Sabbath, and gave them orders and rules and a law, by the hand of Moses your servant:
• Ps 78:68-69 : 68 But he took the tribe of Judah for himself, and the mountain of Zion, in which he had pleasure. 69 And he made his holy place like the high heaven, like the earth which is fixed by him for ever.
• Isa 7:23 : 23 And it will be in that day that in every place where before there were a thousand vines valued at a thousand shekels of silver, there will be nothing but blackberries and thorns.
• Jer 2:21 : 21 But when you were planted by me, you were a noble vine, in every way a true seed: how then have you been changed into the branching plant of a strange vine?
• Ezek 20:11-12 : 11 And I gave them my rules and made clear to them my orders, which, if a man keeps them, will be life to him. 12 And further, I gave them my Sabbaths, to be a sign between me and them, so that it might be clear that I, who make them holy, am the Lord.
• Ezek 20:18-20 : 18 And I said to their children in the waste land, Do not be guided by the rules of your fathers or keep their orders or make yourselves unclean with their images: 19 I am the Lord your God; be guided by my rules and keep my orders and do them: 20 And keep my Sabbaths holy; and they will be a sign between me and you so that it may be clear to you that I am the Lord your God.
• Ezek 20:49 : 49 Then I said, Ah, Lord! they say of me, Is he not a maker of stories?
• Matt 13:10-15 : 10 And the disciples came and said to him, Why do you say things to them in the form of stories? 11 And he said to them in answer, To you is given the knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given. 12 Because whoever has, to him will be given, and he will have more; but from him who has not, even what he has will be taken away. 13 For this reason I put things into the form of stories; because they see without seeing, and give ear without hearing, and the sense is not clear to them. 14 And for them the words of Isaiah have come true, Though you give ear, you will not get knowledge; and seeing, you will see, but the sense will not be clear to you: 15 For the heart of this people has become fat and their ears are slow in hearing and their eyes are shut; for fear that they might see with their eyes and give hearing with their ears and become wise in their hearts and be turned again to me, so that I might make them well.
• Matt 13:34-35 : 34 All these things Jesus said to the people in the form of stories; and without a story he said nothing to them: 35 That it might come true which was said by the prophet, Opening my mouth, I will give out stories; I will give knowledge of things kept secret from before all time.
• Matt 21:28-22:14 : 28 But how does it seem to you? A man had two sons; and he came to the first, and said, Son, go and do work today in the vine-garden. 29 And he said in answer, I will not: but later, changing his decision, he went. 30 And he came to the second and said the same. And he made answer and said, I go, sir: and went not. 31 Which of the two did his father's pleasure? They say, The first. Jesus said to them, Truly I say to you, that tax-farmers and loose women are going into the kingdom of God before you. 32 For John came to you in the way of righteousness, and you had no faith in him, but the tax-farmers and the loose women had faith in him: and you, when you saw it, did not even have regret for your sins, so as to have faith in him. 33 Give ear to another story. A master of a house made a vine garden, and put a wall round it, and made a place for crushing out the wine, and made a tower, and let it out to field-workers, and went into another country. 34 And when the time for the fruit came near, he sent his servants to the workmen, to get the fruit. 35 And the workmen made an attack on his servants, giving blows to one, putting another to death, and stoning another. 36 Again, he sent other servants more in number than the first: and they did the same to them. 37 But after that he sent his son to them, saying, They will have respect for my son. 38 But when the workmen saw the son, they said among themselves, This is he who will one day be the owner of the property; come, let us put him to death and take his heritage. 39 And they took him and, driving him out of the vine-garden, put him to death. 40 When, then, the lord of the vine-garden comes, what will he do to those workmen? 41 They say to him, He will put those cruel men to a cruel death, and will let out the vine-garden to other workmen, who will give him the fruit when it is ready. 42 Jesus says to them, Did you never see in the Writings, The stone which the builders put on one side, the same has been made the chief stone of the building: this was the Lord's doing, and it is a wonder in our eyes? 43 For this reason I say to you, The kingdom of God will be taken away from you, and will be given to a nation producing the fruits of it. 44 Any man falling on this stone will be broken, but he on whom it comes down will be crushed to dust. 45 And when his stories came to the ears of the chief priests and the Pharisees, they saw that he was talking of them. 46 And though they had a desire to take him, they were in fear of the people, because in their eyes he was a prophet. 1 And Jesus, talking to them again in stories, said: 2 The kingdom of heaven is like a certain king, who made a feast when his son was married, 3 And sent out his servants to get in the guests to the feast: and they would not come. 4 Again he sent out other servants, with orders to say to the guests, See, I have made ready my feast: my oxen and my fat beasts have been put to death, and all things are ready: come to the feast. 5 But they gave no attention, and went about their business, one to his farm, another to his trade: 6 And the rest put violent hands on his servants, and did evil to them, and put them to death. 7 But the king was angry; and he sent his armies, and those who had put his servants to death he gave to destruction, burning down their town with fire. 8 Then he said to his servants, The feast is ready but the guests were not good enough. 9 Go then to the cross-roads, and get all those whom you see to come to the bride-feast. 10 And those servants went out into the streets, and got together all those whom they came across, bad and good: and the feast was full of guests. 11 But when the king came in to see the guests, he saw there a man who had not on a guest's robe; 12 And he says to him, Friend, how came you in here not having a guest's robe? And he had nothing to say. 13 Then the king said to the servants, Put cords round his hands and feet and put him out into the dark; there will be weeping and cries of sorrow. 14 For out of all to whom the good news has come, only a small number will get salvation.