A Study of Matthew Chapter 20

 by Stan Feldsine (www.tojesusbeallglory.com)

Matthew 20:1-16 - The Parable of the Laborers in the Vineyard

Mat 19:30 But many who are first will be last, and many who are last will be first.

Mat 20:1-16 "For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire workers for his vineyard. (2) He agreed to pay them a denarius for the day and sent them into his vineyard.

The parable of the laborers is a continuation of the statement in Mat 19:30. This parable concerns the methodology for the distribution of rewards for service that will be given out at the Bema Judgment.

Workers arrived throughout this day at 6AM, 9AM, 12PM, 3PM and 5PM. 6PM was quitting time.

The workers who arrived at 6AM were promised a denarius, a normal days wage.

(3) "About nine in the morning he went out and saw others standing in the marketplace doing nothing. (4) He told them, 'You also go and work in my vineyard, and I will pay you whatever is right.' (5) So they went. "He went out again about noon and about three in the afternoon and did the same thing. (6) About five in the afternoon he went out and found still others standing around. He asked them, 'Why have you been standing here all day long doing nothing?' (7) "'Because no one has hired us,' they answered. "He said to them, 'You also go and work in my vineyard.'

At 9AM the landowner hires additional workers. He offers to pay them "what is right". The landowner did the same at noon and 3PM and 5PM, hiring additional workers each time and offering to pay them the same, what is right.

(8) "When evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, 'Call the workers and pay them their wages, beginning with the last ones hired and going on to the first.' (9) "The workers who were hired about five in the afternoon came and each received a denarius.

At 6PM, when evening came, the landowner gathered all of the workers to be paid. He started with those who had most recently been hired at 5PM and had worked for only one hour and continued with the rest of the workers. Each worker was paid a denarius, as was offered to those who started at 6AM.

(10) So when those came who were hired first, they expected to receive more. But each one of them also received a denarius. (11) When they received it, they began to grumble against the landowner. (12) 'These who were hired last worked only one hour,' they said, 'and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the work and the heat of the day.'

The parable has the workers who worked the least being paid first in front of those who had worked all day. As they were all paid the same amount, those who worked longer grumbled and complained they were not paid more.

(13) "But he answered one of them, 'I am not being unfair to you, friend. Didn't you agree to work for a denarius? (14) Take your pay and go. I want to give the one who was hired last the same as I gave you. (15) Don't I have the right to do what I want with my own money? Or are you envious because I am generous?'

The landowner's answer to this was to point out that he had done no wrong. They agreed to work for a denarius and they got paid a denarius. The landowner has the right to pay each working as he wants. He calls out the workers who were complaining, claiming they are envious of the landowners generosity, and are being greedy.

(16) "So the last will be first, and the first will be last."

And so it is at the judgment. The Lord will reward His workers as he wants, and some of those who are last in this age will be first in the next age, and some of those first in this age will be last in the next. The one who is generous should not be criticized, criticizing generosity is evil.

Matthew 20:17-19 - Jesus Foretells His Death a Third Time

Mat 20:17-19 Now Jesus was going up to Jerusalem. On the way, he took the Twelve aside and said to them, (18) "We are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and the teachers of the law. They will condemn him to death (19) and will hand him over to the Gentiles to be mocked and flogged and crucified. On the third day he will be raised to life!"

Jesus once again, the third time, instructs the disciples that He will be crucified. The time for this was quickly approaching, as they are heading to Jerusalem where all this will be fulfilled, and so Jesus provides the most detail yet. Mark provides additional details.

Mar 10:32-34 They were on their way up to Jerusalem, with Jesus leading the way, and the disciples were astonished, while those who followed were afraid. Again he took the Twelve aside and told them what was going to happen to him. (33) "We are going up to Jerusalem," he said, "and the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and the teachers of the law. They will condemn him to death and will hand him over to the Gentiles, (34) who will mock him and spit on him, flog him and kill him. Three days later he will rise."

Prophecies that speak of these events include Psalm 22 and Isaiah 53.

Luke's account adds the lack of understanding on the part of the disciples.

Luk 18:34 The disciples did not understand any of this. Its meaning was hidden from them, and they did not know what he was talking about.

The lack of understanding about what Jesus was telling them is evident

Matthew 20:20-28 - A Mother's Request

Mat 20:20-28 Then the mother of Zebedee's sons came to Jesus with her sons and, kneeling down, asked a favor of him. (21) "What is it you want?" he asked. She said, "Grant that one of these two sons of mine may sit at your right and the other at your left in your kingdom." (22) "You don't know what you are asking," Jesus said to them. "Can you drink the cup I am going to drink?" "We can," they answered. (23) Jesus said to them, "You will indeed drink from my cup, but to sit at my right or left is not for me to grant. These places belong to those for whom they have been prepared by my Father." (24) When the ten heard about this, they were indignant with the two brothers. (25) Jesus called them together and said, "You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. (26) Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, (27) and whoever wants to be first must be your slave-- (28) just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many."

The lack of understanding about what Jesus was telling them about His impending crucifixion is evident. After listening to Jesus speak of His coming suffering, a sure sign that the Kingdom is no longer at hand, they turn around and continue to speak of the Messianic Kingdom and their position's of authority in it.

Matthew indicates that their mother asked, but Mark shows the source as James and John themselves.

Jesus responds to James and John asking if they think they can partake in His sufferings. They indicate that they can, and as history reveals, they did. James was the first apostle to be martyred and John suffered the exile on the isle of Patmos.

Ultimately Jesus reveals that it is the Father's place to assign roles in the Kingdom, not His. Those closest to the King will reach their position in the same way Jesus did, through suffering.

Of course, the other disciples heard about this, and were indignant. All this provides another teaching opportunity for Jesus. Position in the Kingdom will not be granted through personal ambition or requests, rather position in the Kingdom will be rewarded based on a persons faithful service.

The Gentile rulers lorded it over their subjects, but Jesus served. He was the best example of this. The one who wants to be first must make themselves last.

Matthew 20:29-34 - Jesus Heals Two Blind Men

Mat 20:29-34 As Jesus and his disciples were leaving Jericho, a large crowd followed him. (30) Two blind men were sitting by the roadside, and when they heard that Jesus was going by, they shouted, "Lord, Son of David, have mercy on us!" (31) The crowd rebuked them and told them to be quiet, but they shouted all the louder, "Lord, Son of David, have mercy on us!" (32) Jesus stopped and called them. "What do you want me to do for you?" he asked. (33) "Lord," they answered, "we want our sight." (34) Jesus had compassion on them and touched their eyes. Immediately they received their sight and followed him.

Leaving Jericho, two blind men, one being Bartimaeus, began to call out to Jesus as He was passing by on the road.

Mar 10:46 Then they came to Jericho. As Jesus and his disciples, together with a large crowd, were leaving the city, a blind man, Bartimaeus (which means "son of Timaeus"), was sitting by the roadside begging.

These blind men called out to the "son of David", which is a term that represents Jesus's Messianic mission. The men probably would have been aware of the promises of the kingdom, which included healing, and called out to Jesus on that basis.

Isa 35:5-10 Then will the eyes of the blind be opened and the ears of the deaf unstopped. (6) Then will the lame leap like a deer, and the mute tongue shout for joy. Water will gush forth in the wilderness and streams in the desert. (7) The burning sand will become a pool, the thirsty ground bubbling springs. In the haunts where jackals once lay, grass and reeds and papyrus will grow. (8) And a highway will be there; it will be called the Way of Holiness; it will be for those who walk on that Way. The unclean will not journey on it; wicked fools will not go about on it. (9) No lion will be there, nor any ravenous beast; they will not be found there. But only the redeemed will walk there, (10) and those the LORD has rescued will return. They will enter Zion with singing; everlasting joy will crown their heads. Gladness and joy will overtake them, and sorrow and sighing will flee away.

But the Messianic Kingdom had been rejected, so the Lord could not do anything for them on the basis of the Kingdom. Jesus responds compassionately to faith. These blind men believed Jesus was the Messiah who was promised, and on the basis of that faith Jesus responded to them. Jesus asked them what they wanted, and the responded that they wanted sight, which Jesus promptly gave them.