Parable of the Workers in the Vineyard

Study of Matthew 20:1-20

“For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard. When he had agreed with the laborers for a denarius for the day, he sent them into his vineyard. And he went out about the third hour and saw others standing idle in the market place; and to those he said, ‘You also go into the vineyard, and whatever is right I will give you.’ And so they went. Again he went out about the sixth and the ninth hour, and did the same thing. And about the eleventh hour he went out and found others standing around; and he said to them, ‘Why have you been standing here idle all day long?’ They said to him, ‘Because no one hired us.’ He said to them, ‘You go into the vineyard too.’ “When evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, ‘Call the laborers and pay them their wages, beginning with the last group to the first.’ 

When those hired about the eleventh hour came, each one received a denarius. When those hired first came, they thought that they would receive more; but each of them also received a denarius. When they received it, they grumbled at the landowner, saying, ‘These last men have worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden and the scorching heat of the day.’ But he answered and said to one of them, ‘Friend, I am doing you no wrong; did you not agree with me for a denarius? Take what is yours and go, but I wish to give to this last man the same as to you. Is it not lawful for me to do what I wish with what is my own? Or is your eye envious because I am generous?’ So the last shall be first, and the first last.”

— Matthew 20:1-16

Jesus told this parable to develop more what He meant by what He said in the previous chapter with the saying  "But many who are first will be last; and the last, first" (Matthew 19:30). This is still within the theme of rewards prompted by Peter's question “Behold, we have left everything and followed You; what then will there be for us?” (Matthew 19:27). This parable is a preventive measure against wrong attitudes in expectation of rewards.

The kingdom of heaven is compared in similarity to a landowner who hired day laborers at different times of the day, with varying work hours, but gave them the same wages. The landowner's behavior is unusual. After hiring laborers earlier in the morning, probably 6am, he went out every 3 hours and hires also those he see 'standing idle in the market place'. He even hired the latest at 'eleventh hour' (5pm) when there is only little time left before dark. He seems to have pitied them because nobody hired them all day and may have nothing to feed their family.

Klyne Snodgrass tells us the background to help us understand the plight of day laborers:

"The life of a day laborer in the ancient world was difficult by any estimation. Unemployment was a continual problem, and many slaves had an easier life because their owners had a financial investment that required protection and adequate care. Day laborers involved no such investment and could be hired for short periods and overworked or even abused. But that does not tell us specifically about this parable and this owner. They are the “world” that forms the backdrop of the parable. 

The workday was about twelve hours — from sunrise to sunset (Ps 104:22-23), and the complaints of those first hired that they have borne the burden and heat of the day (v. 12) are pointers to the difficulty of the work and the Palestinian sun. The poverty of day laborers was so obvious that the Torah required that they be paid each day at sunset because they needed the money to survive (Lev 19:13; Deut 24:14-15). The rabbinic writings expect the same (m. Baba Meṣi‛a 9.12; b. Baba Meṣi‛a 83a, 110b). 

The Tosefta mentions deceit from owners who promised higher pay and from workers who did not deliver, workers who suffered from heat prostration, and specific instructions to pay in proportion to work actually done if a worker works only part of the day (t. Baba Meṣi‛a 7.1, 3). A denarius was usually considered the average daily wage for a day laborer. It was subsistence pay at best. Usual estimates are that an adult in ancient Palestine needed about half a denarius a day to live and that an income of 200 denarii per year marked the poverty line. Still, 200 denarii per year would hardly do more than keep a small family from going under."

We are not given the landowner's intention why he told his foreman to pay the latest group first and the earliest group last but it seems he deliberately wants to let the early group see that they all receive the same amount. When the earliest group got their pay they grumbled at the landowner, saying, ‘These last men have worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden and the scorching heat of the day.’

It's easier to understand the laborers' complaint than the landowner's seemingly unfair actions. As Klyne Snodgrass observes "For most of us injustice is what happens to our disadvantage, while what happens to our advantage is good luck."

But the landowner's answer sheds light.

But he answered and said to one of them, ‘Friend, I am doing you no wrong; did you not agree with me for a denarius? Take what is yours and go, but I wish to give to this last man the same as to you. Is it not lawful for me to do what I wish with what is my own? Or is your eye envious because I am generous?’

William Macdonald explains it well:

"It is important to notice that the first men were hired as a result of a bargaining agreement; all the others left the matter of pay to the landowner.

The first bargained for a denarius a day and got the wage agreed on. The others cast themselves on the farmer’s grace and got grace. Grace is better than justice. It is better to leave our rewards up to the Lord than to strike a bargain with Him.

The lesson, of course, is that God is sovereign. He can do as He pleases. And what He pleases will always be right, just, and fair. 

The farmer added, “Or is your eye evil because I am good?” 

This question exposes the selfish streak in human nature. The 6:00 a.m. men got exactly what they deserved, yet were jealous because the others got the same pay for working fewer hours. Many of us have to admit that it seems a bit unfair to us, too. This only proves that in the kingdom of heaven we must adopt an entirely new kind of thinking. We must abandon our greedy, competitive spirit and think like the Lord. The farmer knew that all these men needed money, so he paid them according to need rather than greed. No one received less than he deserved, but all received what they needed for themselves and their families. 

The lesson, according to James Stewart, is that the person “who thinks to bargain about final reward will always be wrong, and God’s loving-kindness will always have the last unchallengeable word.” 

The more we study the parable in this light, the more we realize that it is not only fair but eminently beautiful. Those who were hired at 6:00 a.m. should have counted it an added recompense to serve such a wonderful master all day. 20:16 

Jesus closed the parable with the words, “So the last will be first, and the first last” (see 19:30). 

There will be surprises in the matter of rewards. Some who thought they would be first will be last because their service was inspired by pride and selfish ambition. Others who served out of love and gratitude will be highly honored."

Klyne Snodgrass concurs:

"Reward is not a bad motive; it is a way to talk about what pleases God and assures that following Christ is not a fruitless endeavor. The disciples, like most humans, were into calculating reward and seeking privilege. Peter’s question was “What do we get for following?” (19:27), and he was assured that the reward is great.

The life of God’s kingdom with its focus on communal love cannot be experienced as long as we are comparing ourselves with others and calculating what is due us or being envious of what others receive. Even while we speak of justice, none of us is satisfied with average. We always think we deserve a little more.

We worry about justice, but too often we dress up as justice what in reality is jealousy, or we use justice as a weapon to limit generosity.

True justice — at least God’s justice — seeks mercy and ways to express love. If the parable is about the goodness of God, then it asks that we give up envy and calculation of reward and, rather, both embrace and imitate God’s goodness. That will mean that we give up the quest to be first, knowing that God’s standards are different, that what appears to be first will be last."

Some very important cautions from J.C. Ryle are also worth noting:

"Before we leave this parable, let us arm our minds with some necessary cautions. It is a portion of Scripture that is frequently perverted and misapplied. Men have often drawn from it, not milk, but poison. 

Let us beware of supposing, from anything in this parable, that salvation is in the slightest degree to be obtained by works. To suppose this is to overthrow the whole teaching of the Bible. Whatever a believer receives in the next world, is a matter of grace, and not of debt. God is never a debtor to us, in any sense whatever.When we have done all, we are unprofitable servants. (Luke 17:10.) 

Let us beware of supposing, from this parable, that the distinction between Jews and Gentiles is entirely done away by the Gospel. To suppose this is to contradict many plain prophecies, both of the Old Testament and New. In the matter of justification, there is no distinction between the believing Jew and the Greek. Yet Israel is still a special people, and not "numbered among the nations." God has many purposes concerning the Jews, which are yet to be fulfilled. 

Let us beware of supposing, from this parable, that all saved souls will have the same degree of glory. To suppose this, is to contradict many plain texts of Scripture. The title of all believers no doubt is the same--the righteousness of Christ. But all will not have the same place in heaven. "Every man shall receive his own reward, according to his own labor." (1 Cor. 3:8.)

Finally, let us beware of supposing from this parable, that it is safe for any one to put off repentance until the end of his days. To suppose this is a most dangerous delusion. The longer men refuse to obey Christ's voice, the less likely they are to be saved. "Now is the accepted time--now is the day of salvation." (2 Cor. 6:2.) Few are ever saved on their death-beds. One thief on the cross was saved, that none should despair; but only one, that none should presume. A false confidence in those words, "the eleventh hour," has ruined thousands of souls."