Matthew 20:14 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Take what belongs to you and go. I choose to give to this last worker as I give to you.

NIV: Take your pay and go. I want to give the one who was hired last the same as I gave you.

NASB: Take what is yours and go; but I want to give to this last person the same as to you.

CSB: Take what’s yours and go. I want to give this last man the same as I gave you.

NLT: Take your money and go. I wanted to pay this last worker the same as you.

KJV: Take that thine is, and go thy way: I will give unto this last, even as unto thee.

NKJV: Take what is yours and go your way. I wish to give to this last man the same as to you.

What reward will be received by those who follow Jesus in this life? Jesus has been clear that the disciples should not expect material reward on this side of eternity. Their path will be like His, full of trouble, persecution, and suffering (John 16:33). Still, He has been clear that they will be richly rewarded in the kingdom of heaven for all they have lost in this life (Matthew 19:27–30). Even more, they will inherit eternal life (Matthew 19:29).

Jesus' parable about the workers in the vineyard, though, shows that any reward in the kingdom of heaven is a gift of grace from the king. It is not based on a sliding scale of giving the most reward for the most work and lesser reward for lesser work. Does this mean everyone will receive the exact same thing, as each worker in the story receives the same denarius? Not necessarily. What it means is that the Lord will claim His right to give to each follower of Jesus as He chooses based on His own grace and power (Romans 9:15–23).

When the workers who worked the most grumble that their pay is equal to the workers who accomplished the least, the master tells them to take their pay and move on. Then he declares that he chooses to give the same amount to those who did far less. He claims his right as master to reward fairly or more than fairly, as he sees fit. Jesus' story suggests that God does the same in rewarding those who serve Him.

Matthew 20:1–16 is a parable illustrating what Jesus meant in saying that some of the last will be first and the first last in the kingdom of heaven (Matthew 19:30). When a master hires five groups of workers at different times throughout the day, he pays the last group the same amount that he pays the group hired early in the morning. Though that group grumbles, they received what they had agreed to earn and had not been cheated. The master insists he has the right to show generosity to whomever he wishes. Jesus concludes by saying, again, that the last will be first, and the first last. Themes found in this parable are echoed in the later portion of the parable of the prodigal son (Luke 15:25–32).

Jesus illustrates His earlier comments about how some of the "first will be last, and the last first" (Matthew 19:30) with a parable about hired workers. He then clearly tells His disciples about His impending death and resurrection. The mother of James and John asks Jesus to make her sons number two and three in His kingdom. Jesus tells the disciples that true greatness won't come by flaunting authority as the Gentile leaders do. Instead, they will become great by serving each other, even as a slave does, as Jesus Himself has done. He then heals two blind men immediately before entering Jerusalem.

Matthew 20 begins with a parable that illustrates Jesus' statement at the end of Matthew 19: In His kingdom, some of the first will be last and the last first. Still on their way to Jerusalem, Jesus tells the disciples for the third time that He will be killed and then raised on the third day. When asked, Jesus explains that it is not up to Him to grant the seats on His right and left hand in the kingdom and that His disciples will not become great in the way of Gentiles. Instead, they will find greatness by serving each other. A healing of two blind men leads into the triumphal entry, the first event in the last earthly week of Jesus' ministry.

The Gospel of Matthew clearly shows the influence of its writer's background, and his effort to reach a specific audience. Matthew was one of Jesus' twelve disciples, a Jewish man, and a former tax collector. This profession would have required literacy, and Matthew may have transcribed some of Jesus' words as they were spoken. This book is filled with references to the Old Testament, demonstrating to Israel that Jesus is the Promised One. Matthew also includes many references to coins, likely due to his former profession. Matthew records extensive accounts of Jesus' teaching, more than the other three Gospels.