The Green Bay Packers had the 2^nd overall pick in the 1989 NFL draft. The Packers could have chosen one of these future Hall of Famers: Barry Sanders, Derrick Thomas, Deion Sanders, or Troy Aikman. Instead, they choose Tony Mandarich. He played four seasons at GB, never lived up to expectations, and ended up being a dud. The Packers organization rejected four of the best players ever to play the game in favor of a washout.

Today we’ll see how the nation of Israel mishandled a much more significant choice. When given the opportunity to recognize their Messiah, they chose to reject him. The results for Israel would be catastrophic.

Last week, we looked at the first part of this passage, where the Jewish religious leaders attempted to discredit Jesus by questioning his authority. In response to that exchange, Jesus tells this parable.

Jesus often used parables to teach truth. In this case, the parable reveals God’s dissatisfaction with the Jews and his intent to punish them for their disobedience.

This parable also shows the fate of those who have had multiple opportunities to accept the truth but keep rejecting it. Many people hear the Gospel time after time and reject it each time. Eventually, their opportunities will run out, and they’ll face severe judgment. God will hold them accountable for the fact that they knew the truth and rejected it time after time.

The main theme of the parable is that God is about to destroy the nation of Israel. They have officially rejected their Messiah, and God is about to officially reject them. Judgment is coming, and the only way to avoid it is to fall at the feet of Jesus.

Let’s take a closer look the Parable of the Terrible Tenants.