Luke 20:10 Meaning and Explanation
“And at the season he sent a servant to the husbandmen, that they should give him of the fruit of the vineyard: but the husbandmen beat him, and sent him away empty.”
King James Version (KJV)
Read this verse in context with translation switching:
Read Full Chapter →At harvest the owner sends a servant for his share of the fruit, but the tenants beat him and send him away empty.
What Does Luke 20:10 Mean?
The owner asks only what a vineyard exists to give — fruit, in its season. The sent servant stands for the prophets God sent to Israel generation after generation, calling his people back to the justice and faithfulness he had planted them to bear (Isaiah 5:7).
The tenants' violence shocks because the request is so reasonable: God claims only the fruit of what God planted. The beaten servant, sent back with nothing, compresses centuries of prophetic history — Elijah hunted, Jeremiah in the stocks, and still the owner keeps sending. The verse opens one of Scripture's most piercing portraits of divine patience, and it quietly asks the reader: what fruit, this season, is the Owner looking for from me?
Frequently Asked Questions About Luke 20:10
What does Luke 20:10 mean?
At harvest the owner sends a servant for his share of the fruit, but the tenants beat him and send him away empty.