The First And The Last

The First and the Last

Matthew 20:1-16

For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire men to work in his vineyard. He agreed to pay them a denarius for the day and sent them into his vineyard. “About the third hour he went out and saw others standing in the marketplace doing nothing. He told them, ‘You also go and work in my vineyard, and I will pay you whatever is right.’ So they went. “He went out again about the sixth hour and the ninth hour and did the same thing. About the eleventh hour he went out and found still others standing around. He asked them, ‘Why have you been standing here all day long doing nothing?’ “‘Because no one has hired us,’ they answered. “He said to them, ‘You also go and work in my vineyard.’ “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.” “The workers who were hired about the eleventh hour came and each received a denarius. So when those came who were hired first, they expected to receive more. But each one of them also received a denarius. When they received it, they began to grumble against the landowner. ‘These men 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.’ “But he answered one of them, ‘Friend, I am not being unfair to you. Didn't you agree to work for a denarius? Take your pay and go. I want to give the man who was hired last the same as I gave you. Don't I have the right to do what I want with my own money? Or are you envious because I am generous?’ “So the last will be first, and the first will be last.”

Jesus told this parable to His disciples after He had spoken to the rich man who wanted to know what he had to do to earn eternal life. After Jesus told the man to sell everything he had and follow Him, the man left Jesus’ presence, choosing money over God. Peter then told Jesus that the Twelve had done already and asked what were they to get for their sacrifice. Jesus told them they, and indeed all people who followed and believes in Him would have eternal life in Heaven with God.

Jesus then told the parable of the laborers in the vineyard which is sometimes called the parable of the hours because the time in the parable is of some importance. In the parable the owner of a vineyard went out to hire people to work in his field. The landowner went out early in the morning and hired men to work for him, agreeing to a denarius for the day’s wage. Three hours later, called the third hour in the parable, the landowner went out again and hired more men, agreeing to pay whatever is right. He landowner went out again three and six hours after that, the sixth and ninth hour in the parable, and hired more men to work in his vineyard, agreeing to pay whatever is right. Two hours later, at the eleventh hour, the landowner went out again and hired man to work. At the end of the day, which would have been the twelfth hour, the landowner told his steward to pay each man a denarius and to pay those who were hired last first going to the last. The ones that were hired first and worked the full twelve hours were upset when they received the same amount of pay as those who worked only an hour, they expected more. The landowner rebuked those men by telling them he did not wrong them, they got the payment that was agreed upon. He asked the men if their eye was evil because he was so good? He said it was perfectly lawful for him to do what he wanted with his money.

The landowner in the parable is God and the workers are the believers who are called to faith. The denarius is eternal life and the vineyard is the earth. With this explanation in place we can easily understand what Jesus was telling us. God goes out searching for those to bring to faith. When He finds them, He sends these people to work for Him in the earth spreading the Word. God constantly goes out and brings people into faith and sends them out. At the end of the day, at the end of the world, the workers are paid, given reward of life eternal in the presence of God, and all are given the same life and the same heaven.