The Parable of the Workers in the Vineyard Is About the Landowner -- a fresh look at Matthew 20:1-16
- mww
- 1 day ago
- 14 min read
Don't covet God's blessings in someone else's life.
Bible Study Ideas and Commentary for Matthew 20:1-16
Because we tend to study parables as if they were allegories, we tend to miss Jesus' point. In this parable, Jesus was not giving a lesson about salvation being equal -- He was warning Peter not to elevate himself. God will choose how He graciously gives blessings to people, and God does not have to explain Himself. We should not covet God's blessings.
So the last will be first, and the first last. (20:16)
Getting Started: Things to Think About
Your Time in the Gig Economy or as a Seasonal Worker
An article I read shared these statistics:
More than 90% of US workers would consider freelancing or independent contracting work.
The average hourly rate for a freelance worker in North America is currently $48 in 2026.
The total income generated by freelancing in 2026 sits at $1.5 trillion.
57% of contracting workers work more than 40 hours per week.
There are 83 million Americans working freelance in 2026.
It's really not important how accurate these statistics are. I'm using them to suggest that someone in your group (or their immediate family) probably participates in what is called the "gig economy" -- working from one gig to the next. Ask your group about any experience as a "gig worker". Do they like it? What's good? What's bad?
In this week's passage, we are introduced to the First Century Gig Economy -- what we would probably think of as "seasonal work". If we can kinda understand the mindset of a gig worker, we should be able to better appreciate the attitudes in Jesus' parable.
And this is also the kind of topic that helps your group get to know each other a bit better.
No Good Help? Or No Good Jobs?
I forced my daughter (who is graduating from college this year) to listen to a podcast episode with me called "The Job Market Is Brutal for Young People". One of the things he said that amused me to no end was something like this:
"A college graduate listening to experts talk about the job market today is like a patient lying on a cot while the doctors stand around yelling at each other about how incompetent they are and ignorant of what's happening in medicine."
In other words, nobody can agree on what's happening in the job market. So don't expect your group to have a smooth discussion about this (if you choose to use this topic).
I'm writing in a rural county, so the massive debates about the downstream effects of AI on the workplace are still a bit upstream from us, but we have plenty of other concerns about the job market.
I know employers who say they can't find good help.
I know job seekers who say they can't find a good job.
The latest jobs report showed that unemployment has dropped to 4.3% (which sounds good). But "underemployment" is at 8%, and the youth unemployment rate is 8.5%.
All of that to say -- the odds are good that someone in your group has either recently looked for a new job or recently tried to find someone to fill a position in their workplace. What is that experience like today? (I think it would be good to hear it from both perspectives -- employer and employee.)
This topic is just another approach to understanding Jesus' parable and also getting to know your fellow group members.
(I'm also assuming that you are leading your group to be empathetic, encouraging, and good listeners in topics like this.)
This Week's Big Idea: The Cycle of Envy
I'm going to use a current example to make a point that you should already understand and believe. If you understand the damaging effects of envy, you can skip ahead.
Envy is "resentful awareness of another's advantage and the desire to possess the same advantage". It's often used interchangeably with "jealousy", but jealousy more properly refers to suspicion of losing what is already yours.
My daughter and I watch a lot of K-pop together; she has her favorite "idols" (that's what they're really called), as does every fan of K-pop. We've learned enough about the process to become "idols" to know that it's horrible for most young people who start down that road (the experiences have similarities to youth in America hoping to be a pro athlete). And I'm not surprised to hear stories about young people in South Korea getting plastic surgery to enhance their chances of being picked by a music company. But then I stumbled across this video:
I'm not suggesting you need to watch the video; I just want you to know where I'm getting these numbers. And again, the statistics are not as important as the story they suggest.
According to this video, 1 in 5 South Korean women have had plastic surgery, and among female college students, that number is 1 in 2. (!!!) One big reason? K-pop! K-pop idols are impossibly beautiful, and that's because they've had help. But companies in South Korea have elevated them to a kind of standard that all Koreans should aspire to. A second big reason? Snapchat! Snapchat filters (or any image sharing platform) have made it easy for young people to "experiment" with their appearance, and in a culture where plastic surgery is commonplace, they just take their desired appearance to a doctor's office.
And finally, he establishes the two reinforcing loops caused by plastic surgery. One of them I knew: maintenance. These procedures don't last forever, so you are forced to repeat them or lose the effects.
But the other one, I had not thought about: genetics. Plastic surgery can greatly change your appearance. But your kids inherit your "old appearance". So, if you want your kids to look like you, they also have to have plastic surgery. This effect only becomes evident when you have an entire generation to observe, and it's pretty terrifying.
All of that to say that envy can be incredibly destructive, which you should already know.
What does that have to do with today's passage? Last week, Peter complained to Jesus, “See, we have left everything and followed you. So what will there be for us?” To which Jesus replied, "But many who are first will be last, and the last first."
In other words, be careful what you envy. (Do you want your reward now or in heaven?)
This week's parable explains that in more detail. It concludes,
13 “He replied to one of them, ‘Friend, I’m doing you no wrong. Didn’t you agree with me on a denarius? 14 Take what’s yours and go. I want to give this last man the same as I gave you. 15 Don’t I have the right to do what I want with what is mine? Are you jealous because I’m generous?’ 16 “So the last will be first, and the first last.”
One worker's envy of the landowner's generosity threatened to make him despise what the landowner rightly gave him! That is the threat of envy.
A great example of this is the Parable of the Prodigal Son and the older brother:
Luke 15:28 “Then he [the older brother] became angry and didn’t want to go in. So his father came out and pleaded with him. 29 But he replied to his father, ‘Look, I have been slaving many years for you, and I have never disobeyed your orders, yet you never gave me a goat so that I could celebrate with my friends. 30 But when this son of yours came, who has devoured your assets with prostitutes, you slaughtered the fattened calf for him.’
31 “‘Son,’ he said to him, ‘you are always with me, and everything I have is yours. 32 But we had to celebrate and rejoice, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’”
The older brother's envy of his father's generosity toward his brother threatened to ruin his relationship with his father.
In the example above about South Korea, envy of another's appearance has created culture-wide consequences. But what does envy look like among Christians?
In the New Testament, Paul talked about preachers who were envious of his effectiveness as a communicator of the gospel (Phil 1). He also talked about church members who were envious of another's more "flashy" spiritual gift (1 Cor 12).
I would venture that current "envies" are just reiterations of those. Churches can be envious of another church's property, or budget, or baptism rates, or members, or preachers, etc. Individual Christians can be envious of another Christian's knowledge of the Bible, or popularity, or influence, or personal wealth, etc. What other envies do churches and Christians have?
Why is that envy wrong?
This week's parable will help us answer that question.
Where We Are in Matthew
To make a long story short, understanding that Matthew 20 follows Matthew 19 is shockingly helpful. We studied the end of Matthew 19 last week. A rich young man wanted to follow Jesus, but he was unwilling to give up his wealth to do so. Peter then did the same thing in reverse, saying that "We have given up everything to follow You; what's in it for us?"
Jesus starts by saying that there's nothing the disciples have given up that they won't receive back many times over. But then He says this:
30 But many who are first will be last, and the last first.
And then He tells this week's parable.
In other words, we need to read this week's parable with the rich young man and Peter's concern in mind.
About the Parable of the Workers in the Vineyard
I'll cover this now so we can read the parable for what it is, not what it isn't. Most importantly, this is not an allegory. There is no one-to-one correspondence with anything in real life.
Ways that people have misinterpreted this parable:
Jesus is not suggesting that the workers who were hired at the end of the day did just as much work as the earlier workers. That would imply that the landowner's attitude toward the workers is influenced by their production. (The extreme conclusion would be that salvation is earned by work.)
Jesus is not suggesting that the late-arriving workers had the same willingness as the earlier workers. That would imply that the landowner's attitude depends on personality or desire. (The extreme conclusion would be that salvation is dependent on feelings.)
Jesus is not suggesting that the Gentiles are the late workers and the Jews are the early workers.
Jesus is not suggesting that lifelong converts are jealous of deathbed converts.
Jesus is not suggesting that "all men are equal before God or that all kingdom work is equal".
Jesus is not suggesting that this is an important grape harvest on the day before the Sabbath, and the landowner is desperate for the work to be done in time, so he pays a premium for the late labor. (The extreme conclusion would be that God needs our help to get things done.)
Those are all very interesting theories, but there's nothing in the text or the context to suggest that Jesus had any such things in mind.
Rather, this is a parable. Jesus is telling a story -- not about the workers but about the landowner. Norman Huffman has this great conclusion:
Jesus deliberately and cleverly led the listeners along by degrees until they understood that if God's generosity was to be represented by a man, such a man would be different from any man ever encountered.
Well said.
Part 1: The Workers in the Vineyard (Matthew 20:1-7)
“For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire workers for his vineyard. 2 After agreeing with the workers on one denarius, he sent them into his vineyard for the day. 3 When he went out about nine in the morning, he saw others standing in the marketplace doing nothing. 4 He said to them, ‘You also go into my vineyard, and I’ll give you whatever is right.’ So off they went. 5 About noon and about three, he went out again and did the same thing. 6 Then about five he went and found others standing around and said to them, ‘Why have you been standing here all day doing nothing?’ 7 “‘Because no one hired us,’ they said to him. “‘You also go into my vineyard,’ he told them.
From what I've been told, this is a typical scene in a first century town. During any harvest season, a landowner would need more help than usual to bring in the harvest. "Seasonal workers" would know where to go to get hired. (I've heard that Greenway Street was once that location in Thomson.) Jesus uses familiar images and scenarios to teach timeless truths.
"The kingdom of heaven is like" clarifies that this is a parable. Specifically, Jesus uses it to explain his last statement:
19:30 But many who are first will be last, and the last first.
Here are some basic things to know:
Pay: one denarius = a normal day's wage
Schedule: the workday was about 10 hours plus breaks
"early in the morning" = 6am
"the third hour" = 9am
"the sixth hour" = noon
"the ninth hour" = 3pm
"the eleventh hour" = 5pm
Why the landowner kept going back and finding/hiring more workers is not said. The landowner tells each of these hirees that he will pay them what's fair. This is not explicitly stated with the last groups, but that's clearly what they expected. This implies that the landowner had a good reputation.
[This makes me think of that quirky Kevin Kline film "Dave" with the line, "Everybody works on Wednesday." Fun memory.]
The point is that these workers clearly worked different lengths of time. Hold off on making judgments or applications until you read the next verses.
Part 2: The End of the Day (Matthew 20:8-12)
8 When evening came, the owner of the vineyard told his foreman, ‘Call the workers and give them their pay, starting with the last and ending with the first.’ 9 “When those who were hired about five came, they each received one denarius. 10 So when the first ones came, they assumed they would get more, but they also received a denarius each. 11 When they received it, they began to complain to the landowner: 12 ‘These last men put in one hour, and you made them equal to us who bore the burden of the day’s work and the burning heat.’
I don't particularly care for how Lifeway chose to break this down. Once again, we really don't want to draw conclusions until we read the rest of the parable.
"When evening came" is taken by some to represent judgment. In the parable, the end of the workday is simply the end of the workday; it's a necessary plot driver.
Starting with the latest workers sets up the tension that all of us should see coming. Because the landowner is so generous with the men who only worked one hour, the men who worked all day simply expected that the landowner would be even more generous with them.
Jesus creates three groups:
The eleventh-hour workers who didn't ask for anything and received a denarius -- payment for a full day's work.
The early-morning workers who expected that they would get more than the eleventh-hour workers and complained when they did not.
Everybody in between. We aren't told anything about them. My personal take is that they were probably just happy to get paid for a full day even though they too only put in partial days. They maybe felt a little jealousy and a little sympathy, but they were basically thankful and ready to go home.
I have found myself (my attitude) reflecting all three groups at different times. How about you? Do you find yourself in one of those groups more often than the others?
Now it's time to ask the dangerous question: do you think the early-morning workers had a point?
My guess is that a lot of Jesus' hearers probably felt that way. The disciples certainly did. Don't forget that Peter just said this:
19:27 Then Peter responded to him, “See, we have left everything and followed you. So what will there be for us?”
And yes, the point of the parable is that this kind of envy is wrong. And it's very important that we understand why it's wrong. But before you start to unpack why this is the wrong attitude and approach, let's let Jesus explain it for us.
Part 3: God's Grace (Matthew 20:13-16)
13 “He replied to one of them, ‘Friend, I’m doing you no wrong. Didn’t you agree with me on a denarius? 14 Take what’s yours and go. I want to give this last man the same as I gave you. 15 Don’t I have the right to do what I want with what is mine? Are you jealous because I’m generous?’ 16 “So the last will be first, and the first last.”
Do you see?
Do you see how devastating this super-clean logic is?
David Lambert just preached a lesson on "Do not steal". For my FBC folks, do you remember his point? How does that apply here?
Even in the world of the parable, the logic holds. This landowner didn't have to hire anybody. He could have imported workers from lands afar. But he went into town and hired men who were standing around hoping to get hired. They agreed on a wage, and the landowner paid them that wage.
It's not the landowner's doing that they perceived his generosity with the later workers as disrespectful to them. That's entirely on them.
Our tendency to treat parables as allegories means that we might assume
"the workday" = our life
"a denarius" = salvation
"the evening" = judgment
And we might then come away from this parable believing that the point is that salvation is salvation for all, regardless of who you are or what you've done. And that's true, but that's not the point at all. This parable is not an allegory.
This parable is not primarily about the workers. This parable is about the landowner. Understanding that will help us see Jesus' point a lot clearer.
To understand this parable, we have to realize that "the denarius" does not represent salvation, per se -- it represents all of God's blessings (of which salvation is one for those who trust in Jesus). This includes health, family, spiritual gifts, natural abilities, and so on.
Here are two lines from Carson's commentary:
God's gifts are distributed not because they are earned but because He is gracious.
In the kingdom of God, the principles of merit and ability may be set aside so that grace can prevail.
This might sound harsh, but I want to get to the point: if you think you deserve whatever blessings you have in your life, you're sorely mistaken and not very self-aware. Everything, including the air we breathe and the blood in our body, is a gift of God that we have not earned. And none of us is so good as to have earned anything but death and condemnation.
But that's not where God leaves it. God has chosen -- purely by His own goodness and mercy -- to bless us with countless blessings in this beautiful world and priceless life.
For anyone (in our case, us) to be jealous of God's good gifts to other people is to so misunderstand who God is that I would question whether we have a real relationship with Him.
But now let's get to the point.
19:30 But many who are first will be last, and the last first.
20:16 “So the last will be first, and the first last.”
Similar, yet different.
Remember that in chapter 19, Jesus is responding to Peter's fear that they won't receive similar blessings to that rich young man. "Don't worry Peter; many who are first (like that rich man) will be last."
But He adds that "the last will be first", which is how He introduces and closes this parable of the workers in the vineyard (which should really be called "The Parable of the Landowner"). This becomes a warning to Peter: "But those who think they have earned My blessings will discover that I don't work that way."
If you've ever heard (or thought) "God is lucky to have me" -- that's the attitude that Jesus wants to squelch with this parable. Rather, just be humbly awed at the incredible gifts God has given you; don't covet more.
[Note: salvation is an infinite gift. Anything else pales in comparison. Remember that.]
Don't be envious of another person's blessings. Instead, be thankful that God is so generous with all of us and choose to be generous with your blessings with others.
And if your group needs to help one another see what you have to share with your church family and community, that's a good use of time.
About the Parable of the Talents
We will cover the Parable of the Talents (Matthew 25) in a few weeks, and it's important to note that the parables are all taken together. Again, they're parables, not allegories. In that parable, Jesus establishes that God indeed expects His people to "work" with the talents and blessings He has given them, and He will indeed reward them for that work. The point is that we aren't doing the work for the reward; this week's parable tells us that we should be grateful with any blessings we have received.
We are approaching the end of Jesus' earthly ministry. The timing of this parable suggests that Jesus knew that envy and jealousy and rivalry would be a challenge to the early church (and He was right). The solution to that and every problem is not to try to remove the speck from your brother's eye but the plank from your own eye. Get right with God and let your relationship with one another flow out of that. Truly appreciate your own salvation and don't worry about what God has or hasn't given to your neighbor.
Matthew's Gospel is filled with incredibly practical passages.