He was then present, a man despised, yet with title to forgive sins, proved by immediate power to heal. Matthew 20:16 New International Version 16 "So the last will be first, and the first will be last." Read full chapter Matthew 20:16 in all English translations Matthew 19 Matthew 21 New International Version (NIV) Holy Bible, New International Version, NIV Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. Used by permission. It was true that He was made of woman, and made under the law; but He was Jehovah Himself, that lowly Nazarene. [Note: Wiersbe, 1:73.]. Then shalt thou call, saith the good and faithful servant, and I will answer. A hook is cast into the sea, and the fish that takes it produces the required money for Peter as for his gracious Master and Lord. Warning those who were using this Love feast as an excuse just to sort of gorge themselves, and they were not really realizing the spiritual significance of these things. Who could touch the leper save Emmanuel? The Jewish day began at sunrise, 6 a.m., and the hours were counted from then until 6 p.m., when officially the next day began. Surely not by inaccuracy; surely not by indifference to order, but contrariwise by divine wisdom that arranged the facts with a view to a purpose worthy of itself: God's arrangement of all things more particularly in this part of Matthew to give us an adequate manifestation of the Messiah; and, as we have seen, first, what He was to the appeal of the Jew; next, what He was and would be to Gentile faith, in still richer form and fulness. And He prophesied so accurately the things.First of all, He is going to be betrayed. So, then, we learn that the mother of James and John was named Salome, and that she was the sister of Mary the mother of Jesus. The devil was tricked by God. Jesus purpose in telling this story was to illustrate what he had just said concerning Gods unexpected gift to those who at present appear to be disadvantaged (see Matthew 19:30). Pentateuch There are gates on the East which is the direction of the dawn, and whereby a man may enter in the glad morning of his days; there are gates on the West which is the direction of the setting sun, and whereby a man may enter in his age. Thus, in the chapter before us, we have a very comprehensive sketch of the Lord's manifestation from that time, and in type going on to the end of the age. "Christ demands that the driving force in your life must be love. He would send fit messengers, nor would the work be done till the rejected Messiah, the Son of man, came. c. I wish to give to this last man the same as to you: The landowner did nothing to explain why he did it, other than simply to say I wish. The reasons for the landowners generosity were completely in the landowner himself, and not in the ones who received. There is simply the great, tremendous truth that without Jesus Christ and his life of service and his death of love, we could never have found our way back to the love of God. Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands." The Lord admired the faith superior to Israel's, and took that occasion to intimate the casting out of the sons or natural heirs of the kingdom, and the entrance of many from east and west to sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of the heavens. Deuteronomy 15:9; 1 Samuel 18:9). (Carson), ii. But Luke saith, they understood none of these things; that is, surely they believed none of them, the saying was hid from them. (Poole), v. When our Lord told the twelve that he would die, they imagined that it was a parable, concealing some deep mystery. God proves what He is by the revelation of Jesus. Historical Books He now takes His place of rejection; for Him it is manifest even now by their inmost thoughts of Him when revealed. i. To underscore this, Jesus will give a parable (20:1-16) that amplifies the principle: 'many that are first shall be last; and the last shall be first'," (20:16; 16:25). When do you suppose these conversations actually occurred, if we go to the question of their date? The aggravation of it; "It is because I am good." Those first hired are actually paid least in proportion to their labor and receive the least pleasure from their pay. We have the natural tie here brought into prominence; and this was a claim that Christ slighted not. But they were so desperate, they weren't discouraged, they even cried louder, "Jesus, thou son of David have mercy on us. a. They supposed that they would receive more: The men who worked for the landowner all day saw the men who worked for only an hour come away from the pay table, and they supposed, If the landowner is paying these guys a full days pay for one hours work, then we will get far more., i. At the great day, though the dead in Christ shall rise first, yet they which are alive and remain, on whom the ends of the world (the eleventh hour of its day) comes, shall be caught up together with them in the clouds; no preference shall be given to seniority, but every man shall stand in his own lot at the end of the days. Under grace, we cant come to God complaining, Dont I deserve better than this; because God will reply, Does this mean that you really want Me to give you what you deserve?. See here. She said to him, "Speak the word that these two sons of mine may sit, one on your right hand, and one on your left, in your Kingdom." Let not those that come in at the eleventh hour, be put behind the rest, but, lest they should be discouraged, call them first. The delivered demoniacs are, to my mind, clearly the foreshadow of the Lord's grace in the latter days, separating a remnant to Himself, and banishing the power of Satan from this small but sufficient witness of His salvation. When God settles all the accounts, then things are going to be valued by his standards and not the world's standards. Start FREE. The Lord increase thy earnestness and faith! (Clarke), 2018 David Guzik No distribution beyond personal use without permission, The Whole Bible Oh, what a heart is ours! What can be conceived so perfectly to illustrate the great design of the gospel of Matthew? And they went their way. To eat with unwashed hands defileth not a man. When they heard that Jesus was passing by: They knew this might be their last time to meet Jesus. But I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the day of judgment, than for you . He was going to build His Church "upon this rock" Himself, the Son of God. For him the cup was martyrdom. Have mercy on us, O Lord, Son of David! Secondly, Others are savingly wrought upon in middle age; Go work in the vineyard, at the third, sixth, or ninth hour. 2. It is a direct violation of both the two great commandments at once; both that of love to God, in whose will we should acquiesce, and love to our neighbour, in whose welfare we should rejoice. Not even their wonderful "attitude" entitled them to a day's pay. It shall not be so among you, but whoever wishes to prove himself great among you must be your servant; and whoever wishes to occupy the foremost place will be your slave, just as the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many.". We are dependent, therefore, for determining this case, on the fact that Mark does habitually adhere to the chain of events. He calls him friend, for in reasoning with others we should use soft words and hard arguments; if our inferiors are peevish and provoking, yet we should not thereby be put into a passion, but speak calmly to them. He does not come to be served, but to serve. Matthew 20:16 - Commentary, explanation and study verse by verse Men little weigh what their words will sound and prove in the day of judgment. Copyright 1996 - 2023 All rights reserved. But I do believe that in this parable, He is teaching that a person at the end of the road can turn, in the eleventh hour and come to God, and receive a share of the kingdom, equal share, as far as eternal life is concerned.Another thing that it teaches, I believe, is that we all will be rewarded for our faithfulness in our service to God. He will never be less than fair, but reserves the right to be more than fair as pleases Him. e. And to give His life a ransom for many: The death of Jesus the giving of His life purchased the freedom of His people. These blind men received their sight from Jesus, and then they gave to him their grateful loyalty. Evidently it is the change of dispensation that is in question and at hand, the cutting off of the fleshly seed for their unbelief, and the bringing in of numerous believers in the name of the Lord from among the Gentiles. Hence, he waits to present their rejection of the Messiah, as morally complete as possible in his statement of it, though necessarily not complete in outward accomplishment. The "calling" of which the New Testament almost invariably speaks is what divines call effectual calling, carrying with it a supernatural operation on the will to secure its consent. The world will respect, and admire, and sometimes fear, the man of power; but it will love the man of love. The indignation of the ten doubtless sprang less from humility than jealousy plus fear that they might lose out. (Carson). The highest creature must go away into nothing, if he must go away with that only which is his own: but if we understand it of that which is ours by gift, the free gift of God, it teaches us to be content with such things as we have. Out of the market-place, where, till they are hired into God's service, they stand idle (Matthew 20:3; Matthew 20:3), all the day idle (Matthew 20:6; Matthew 20:6). . "Verily, I say unto you, That a rich man shall hardly enter into the kingdom of heaven." (i) It is in one sense a warning to the disciples. From God they will both receive the same welcome, for both Jesus Christ is waiting, and for neither, in the divine sense, has life ended too soon or too late. For whosoever shall do the will of my Father which is in heaven, the same is my brother, and sister, and mother." This, of course, is not the moment to unfold it. 20Then the mother of Zebedees sons(K) came to Jesus with her sons and, kneeling down,(L) asked a favor of him. ii. But when the first came, they supposed that they should have received more; and they likewise received every man a penny." They in turn will give me to the Gentiles, the Romans. So now we have, in the healing of Peter's mother-in-law, another fact containing a principle of great value, that His grace towards the Gentile does not in the least degree blunt His heart to the claims of relationship after the flesh. we have in Peter what man is, even after all this. [2.] There is room also for the most thorough self-abnegation. b. General Epistles 1. And, 2. The apostles were then sent thus, no doubt, forerunners of those whom the Lord will raise up for the latter day. (i) These two blind men were waiting, and when their chance came they seized it with both hands. The world counts them great. Saul saw that David prospered, and he eyed him,1 Samuel 18:9; 1 Samuel 18:15. Even if Jesus had not specifically told them, their movement south from Galilee at about the time of the Passover feast made it easy to figure out that Jesus and the disciples would be in Jerusalem for Passover. They put upon Him a scarlet robe, and they begin to say unto Him, "Hail king of the Jews," and they mocked Him. Spurgeon applied this to us spiritually: Why is any one of us remaining idle towards God? How are we to account for a selection so marked, an elimination of time so complete? See Matthew 19:27-29. for many be called, but few chosenThis is another of our Lord's terse and pregnant sayings, more than once uttered in different connections. When did this take place, if we enquire into it merely as a matter of historical fact? It might be well enough for a Pharisee; it might be worthy of a legal formalist, but it would never do for God; and the Lord Jesus was come here not to accommodate Himself to their thoughts, but, above all, to do God's will of holy love in an evil, wretched world. So, when more is added, He says, "All things are delivered unto me of my Father: and no man knoweth the Son, but the Father; neither knoweth any man the Father, save the Son, and he to whomsoever the Son will reveal him. Then the pitiable condition of the disciples at the foot of the hill, where Satan reigned in fallen ruined man, is tested by the fact, that notwithstanding all the glory of Jesus, Son of God and Son of man, the disciples rendered it evident that they knew not how to bring His grace into action for others; yet was it precisely their place and proper function here below. It is not only the fact that God slighted matters of prescriptive ordinance because of the ruined state of Israel, who rejected His true anointed King, but there was this principle also, that certainly God was not going to bind Himself not to do good where abject need was. Sign up now for the latest news and deals from Bible Gateway! & Sanhedrim, fol. The priest, in chap. Matthew 13:19-22), we find first of all the utter worthlessness of the flesh's readiness to follow Jesus. Matthew 20:1-16 is a true-to-life parable. The dispensational aim here leads to a more manifest disregard of the bare circumstance of time than in any other specimen of these gospels. Matthew 20:16 (KJV) - Forerunner Commentary Matthew 20:16 in all English translations, NIV, Story of Jesus: Experience the Life of Jesus as One Seamless Story, NIV, The Story: The Bible as One Continuing Story of God and His People, NIV, Beautiful Word Bible Journal, Revelation, Paperback, Comfort Print, NIV, Cultural Backgrounds Study Bible, Red Letter Edition: Bringing to Life the Ancient World of Scripture, NIV, The Woman's Study Bible, Full-Color, Red Letter: Receiving God's Truth for Balance, Hope, and Transformation, NIV, The Story, Hardcover, Comfort Print: The Bible as One Continuing Story of God and His People. What special mercy and tenderness, not only in the end, but also in the way the Lord deals with Israel! GenesisExodusLeviticusNumbersDeuteronomyJoshuaJudgesRuth1 Samuel2 Samuel1 Kings2 Kings1 Chronicles2 ChroniclesEzraNehemiahEstherJobPsalmsProverbsEcclesiastesSong of SongsIsaiahJeremiahLamentationsEzekielDanielHoseaJoelAmosObadiahJonahMicahNahumHabakkukZephaniahHaggaiZechariahMalachiMatthewMarkLukeJohnActsRomans1 Corinthians2 CorinthiansGalatiansEphesiansPhilippiansColossians1 Thessalonians2 Thessalonians1 Timothy2 TimothyTitusPhilemonHebrewsJames1 Peter2 Peter1 John2 John3 JohnJudeRevelation, Select an Ending Point Holy Bible, New International Version, NIV Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. Used by permission. My last word to Gods children is this: what does it matter, after all, whether we are first or whether we are last? Matthew 20:16 Commentaries: "So the last shall be first, and the first Zion may say of the Lord who laboured in vain, whom the nation abhorred, "The Lord hath forsaken me, and my Lord hath forgotten me." And immediately their eyes received sight, and they followed Him. He was to be betrayed into the hands of the chief priests and Scribes; there we see the suffering of the heart broken by the disloyalty of friends. Poetical Books I will obey to the end.. In some cases the last called will be among the first in rank of blessing. He could and did form His instruments according to His own sovereign will. I'll be turned over to the chief priests. But they in turn will deliver Him to the Gentiles, who will first of all mock Him. Who but God could heal? They confess their faith, and He touches their eyes. "Suffer me first," he says, "to go and bury my father." Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright 1996, 2004, 2007, 2013, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. He is the Lord of the harvest. "I am certain that there is much about the scourging about Jesus that we do not fully understand. Accordingly, here we have a witness of it, and a witness so much the sweeter, because the present total rejection that was filling the heart of the leaders surely testified to the Lord's heart of that which was at hand. So the last shall be first, and the first last. The mother of Zebedees sons came to Him: This mother of James and John (Matthew 4:21) came with a request that would make a mother proud and the sons very happy. In what sense did Jesus, our Lord, take their infirmities, and bear their sicknesses? He had no reason to envy his fellow servant, or to grudge at him; or to be angry that he came into the vineyard no sooner; for he was not sooner called; he had no reason to be angry that the master had given him wages for the whole day, when he had idled away the greatest part of it; for Is thine eye evil, because I am good? All rights reserved worldwide. I do not pretend to say this was the only purpose served; far be it from me to think of restraining the Spirit of God within the narrow bounds of our vision. In the reception of the little children this is plain; it is not so generally seen in what follows. For many are called, but few chosen.". The age of serving in the army was from seventeen to forty-five, and the manner in which they were chosen was the following: -. Mark says that Jesus was walking ahead by himself, and that the disciples were amazed and afraid ( Mark 10:32-34). Then follows the rise of what was great in its littleness till it became little in its greatness in the earth; and the development and spread of doctrine, till the measured space assigned to it is brought under its assimilating influence. Note, All that by patient continuance in well-doing, seek for glory, honour, and immortality, shall undoubtedly obtain eternal life (Romans 2:7), not as wages for the value of their work, but as the gift of God. He makes some more useful than others, without regard to the time which they serve, and he will reward them accordingly. The question was not who or what came in the way; whoever appealed to Him, there He was for them. First, Some are effectually called, and begin to work in the vineyard when they are very young; are sent in early in the morning, whose tender years are seasoned with grace, and the remembrance of their Creator. Think of when this request was made. Some think this parable speaks of the way that people come to God at different stages of their life. Poetical Books The Gentiles, who are newly called in, have as much of the privileges of the kingdom of the Messiah as the Jews have, who have so long been labouring in the vineyard of the Old-Testament church, under the yoke of the ceremonial law, in expectation of that kingdom. . He was quite clear that there was a bitter cup to be drunk and did not hesitate to say so. but what a heart was His! They should think of them in terms of grace, any reward being an act of Gods grace. At the beginning of Matthew 10:1-42 He Himself sends forth themselves as labourers. Then comes the boast of Peter, though for others as well as himself. Thus many that are last shall be first. And He came and took her by the hand, and lifted her up, and immediately the fever left her, and she ministered unto them." And she said unto him, Grant that these my two boys may sit, the one your right hand, and the other on your left, in your kingdom ( Matthew 20:20-21 ). Jesus instructs His little band that discipleship is never designed as a quid pro quo formula of compensation. Didst not thou agree to take God's word for it? They will condemn Him to death: Jesus confidently predicted that the religious leaders would do this; yet this was not something He could plan. It is often more agonizing to contemplate the painful future than it is to actually live it. This parable may sound to us as if it described a purely imaginary situation, but that is far from being the case. THE CHRISTIAN REVOLUTION ( Matthew 20:20-28 continued). So the last shall be first - This is the moral or scope of the parable. A mere Jew would have been defiled. When God settles all the accounts, then things are going to be valued by his standards and not the world's standards. 2. And when he had agreed with the labourers for a penny a day, he sent them into his vineyard . Though God is a debtor to none, yet he is graciously pleased to make himself a debtor by his own promise, for the benefit of which, through Christ, believers agree with him, and he will stand to his part of the agreement. A Roman coin was once found with the picture of an ox on it; the ox was facing two things an altar and a plough; and the inscription read: Ready for either. (Barclay), ii. What shall be their wages? In Matthew it is their mother. Is there unrighteousness with God? "Can a woman forget her sucking child? No doubt they had heard of the wondrous power of Jesus; and no doubt they wondered if that power might ever be exercised for them. "No man putteth a piece of new cloth unto an old garment; for that which is put in to fill it up taketh from the garment, and the rent is made worse." About the third hour, [nine o'clock in the morning], he saw others standing idle in the market place, and he said unto them; Go into the vineyard, and whatsoever is right I will give you. He takes accordingly the title of the "Son of man" for the first time in this gospel. . Well, then, to whom was the ransom paid?" Verse Matthew 20:16. But, from first to last, what a trial of spirit, and what triumph! Seeking the Gospel in Malachi, the Last Book of the Old Testament. Your partnership makes all we do possible. Now what is Jesus seeking to teach by this parable of sending forth the laborers into the vineyard? [3.] i. And everybody will always try to discourage you, but persist, for there is a whole new life. Then the mother of Zebedees sons came to Him with her sons, kneeling down and asking something from Him. Luke-Acts This is one of the most revealing passages in the New Testament. Workers in the vineyard (Matthew 20:1-16). It is simply designed to teach that in the church, among the multitudes who will be saved, Christ makes a difference. Through this parable Jesus assured Peter and the disciples that they will be rewarded but the principle of many who are first will be last and the last first (Matthew 19:30) meant that God may not reward as man expects even as the parable illustrated. Yet He confidently said it would happen. This place seems to refer to the ancient Roman custom of recruiting their armies. I Will Build My Church (16:13-20) The . Please see Blue Letter Bible's Privacy Policy for cookie usage details. And if thou hast what thou didst agree for, thou hast no reason to cry out of wrong; thou shalt have what we agreed for." 14 Take that thine is, and go thy way: I will give unto this last, even as unto thee. Matthew gives no such details, but call and mission are together here. He said to them, 'Go you also into the vineyard, and I will pay you whatever is right.' Only tradition will not do this work, nor will human thoughts or feelings. The hours in the parable were the normal Jewish hours. The request of James and John not unnaturally annoyed the other disciples. The system of grace is foreign to us: God deals with us according to who He is, not according to who we are. The last shall be first, and the first last. (Matthew 20:22-23) Jesus answers James and John: when you ask for a place of special status, do you know what you ask for? Now a penny was a denarius and it was just a day's wage, the average day's wage. They said to him, 'Because no one has hired us.' Three things the master of the house urges, in answer to this ill-natured surmise.