The second son represented the leading men of the Jewish nation. Some of the Pharisees had repented and received the baptism of John; but the leaders would not acknowledge that he came from God. His warnings and denunciations did not lead them to reformation. They "rejected the counsel of God against themselves, being not baptized of him." Luke 7:30. They treated his message with disdain. Like the second son, who, when called, said, "I go, sir," but went not, the priests and rulers professed obedience, but acted disobedience. They made great professions of piety, they claimed to be obeying the law of God, but they rendered only a false obedience. The publicans were denounced and cursed by the Pharisees as infidels; but they showed by their faith and works that 596 they were going into the kingdom of heaven before those self-righteous men who had been given great light, but whose works did not correspond to their profession of godliness.

Den første søn var et billede på jødefolkets ledende mænd. Nogle af farisæerne havde omvendt sig og modtaget Johannes dåb, men de magthavende ville ikke erkende, at han var sendt af Gud. Hans advarsler og fordømmelse førte dem ikke til omvendelse. De "vragede Guds plan med dem selv og blev ikke døbt af ham". Luk. 7,30. De behandlede hans budskab med foragt. Ligesom den første søn, der, da der blev kaldt på ham, sagde: "Ja, herre!" men ikke gik derhen, sådan foregav præsterne og de ældste lydighed, men handlede i ulydighed. De kom med mange forsikringer om fromhed, de hævdede at adlyde Guds lov, men det var kun en falsk lydighed. Farisæerne anklagede og fordømte tolderne som vantro; men de viste ved deres tro og gerninger, at de gik ind i Himmeriget førend disse selvretfærdige mænd, der havde fået meget lys, men hvis gerninger ikke rimede sammen med deres forsikringer om gudsfrygt.