*Matthew 20:1-19
Jesus emphasizes God’s fairness by illustrating how all workers receive the same reward despite varying hours.
- Parable of the Workers in the Vineyard:
- Jesus tells a parable comparing the kingdom of heaven to a landowner hiring workers for his vineyard.
- He agrees to pay the first group a denarius for the day’s work.
- The landowner goes out multiple times throughout the day, hiring workers at the third, sixth, ninth, and eleventh hours, promising to pay each one what is right.
- Payment Time and Discontent:
- At day’s end, the landowner instructs his foreman to pay the workers, starting with those hired last.
- Those hired at the eleventh hour receive a full denarius, causing expectations among those who worked longer.
- When the first-hired also receive one denarius, they complain about being paid the same as the latecomers despite working longer hours.
- Response from the Landowner:
- The landowner replies that he has not been unfair, as the first group agreed to their pay.
- He asserts his right to be generous with his own money and warns them against envy, declaring, “The last will be first, and the first will be last.”
- Jesus Foretells His Death and Resurrection:
- On their way to Jerusalem, Jesus takes the Twelve aside to prepare them.
- He predicts that he will be betrayed to the chief priests and scribes, who will condemn him to death and hand him over to the Gentiles.
- He will be mocked, flogged, and crucified, but will rise on the third day.
Matthew 20:1-19 teaches us about God’s grace and fairness. In the parable, workers hired late in the day received the same reward as those who worked all day, showing that God’s kindness isn’t based on how long we’ve followed Him but on His generosity. This reminds us not to compare ourselves to others but to be grateful for what God gives us. It also challenges us to treat others with the same kindness and fairness, knowing that God’s love is for everyone, no matter when they come to Him.
Matthew 20:1-19 (WEB)
20:1 “For the Kingdom of Heaven is like a man who was the master of a household, who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard. 2 When he had agreed with the laborers for a denarius a day, he sent them into his vineyard. 3 He went out about the third hour, and saw others standing idle in the marketplace. 4 He said to them, ‘You also go into the vineyard, and whatever is right I will give you.’ So they went their way. 5 Again he went out about the sixth and the ninth hour, and did likewise. 6 About the eleventh hour he went out and found others standing idle. He said to them, ‘Why do you stand here all day idle?’7 “They said to him, ‘Because no one has hired us.’“He said to them, ‘You also go into the vineyard, and you will receive whatever is right.’8 “When evening had come, the lord of the vineyard said to his manager, ‘Call the laborers and pay them their wages, beginning from the last to the first.’ 9 “When those who were hired at about the eleventh hour came, they each received a denarius. 10 When the first came, they supposed that they would receive more; and they likewise each received a denarius. 11 When they received it, they murmured against the master of the household, 12 saying, ‘These last have spent one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the day and the scorching heat!’13 “But he answered one of them, ‘Friend, I am doing you no wrong. Didn’t you agree with me for a denarius? 14 Take that which is yours, and go your way. It is my desire to give to this last just as much as to you. 15 Isn’t it lawful for me to do what I want to with what I own? Or is your eye evil, because I am good?’ 16 So the last will be first, and the first last. For many are called, but few are chosen.”17 As Jesus was going up to Jerusalem, he took the twelve disciples aside, and on the way he said to them, 18 “Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be delivered to the chief priests and scribes, and they will condemn him to death, 19 and will hand him over to the Gentiles to mock, to scourge, and to crucify; and the third day he will be raised up.”