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Verses 1-16:"For the kingdom of the heavens is like a man, who is a householder, who went out early in the morning to hire workmen for his vineyard. And having agreed with the workmen for a denarius a 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 they went. And again he went out about the sixth and the ninth hour and did likewise. And about the eleventh hour he went out and found others standing, and said to them, Why have you been standing here all the day idle? They said to him, Because no one has hired us. He said to them, You also go into the vineyard. And when evening fell, the master of the vineyard said to his steward, Call the workmen and pay them their wages, beginning from the last ones to the first. And when those hired about the eleventh hour came, they received each a denarius. And when the first ones came, they supposed that they would receive more. And they themselves also received each a denarius. And when they received it, they murmured against the householder, saying, These last ones worked one hour, and you have made them equal to us who bore the burden of the day and the scorching heat. But he answered one of them and said, Friend, I am doing nothing unrighteous to you. Did you not agree with me for a denarius? Take what is yours and go. I want to give to this last one even as I have given to you. Is it not lawful for me to do what I wish with what is mine? Or is your eye evil because I am good? Thus shall the last be first and the first last."
This parable and the parable at the end of chapter eighteen are the most difficult ones to expound. We cannot expound them in detail but can only find out from them the teachings. First we have "a man, who is a householder" (similar to the king in chapter eighteen). The part that has to do with man cannot be explained; only the part that has to do with God can be explained. For example, the hiring of workers is mentioned. But God never hires any worker. Moreover, what does the denarius a day refer to? Then there is the murmuring — who as God's worker dares to murmur before Him? Therefore, concerning this kind of parable, only the principles can be applied and not the details.
Verse 30 of chapter nineteen should be included as the first verse of this chapter. (Notice that the division of the chapters and verses in the Bible was made not according to the leading of the Spirit.) Verse 30 is similar to verse 16 of this chapter. The Lord needed to deal with two things in answering Peter's question: (1) to express agreement by saying that one who has forsaken all for the Lord will receive a reward, and (2) to deal with Peter's wrong attitude — his self-righteousness, his commercial mentality, and his working for reward and not out of love for the Lord. Verses 28-29 of chapter nineteen deal with the first matter, while 19:30—20:16 deal with Peter's attitude. God has the final authority and is not restricted by the law. That is why in this parable the emphasis is on the sovereign authority of God and the fact that reward is according to His grace. Some have suggested that this parable refers to salvation. This is wrong, because salvation was accomplished by the Lord and is not gained through work. The householder here is God. In the early-morning shift, the first shift, God set the wages. In the second shift (the third hour), "whatever is right I will give you"; no agreement was made. The same is true for both the third shift (the sixth hour) and the fourth shift (the ninth hour). With the fifth shift (the eleventh hour), the reward was not even mentioned. The crucial point here is that the law does not come in. "Early in the morning" refers to one's youth. "A day" refers to a person's whole life. The ones hired in the eleventh hour had been standing idle since early morning because they were not called until then. For example, there are people who began to work for God when they were thirty years old, and there are some who began when they were forty years old. Verse 8 mentions that while giving the wages in the evening, they were given first to the laborers hired in the eleventh hour. If it had been the other way around, the ones working from the earliest hour would have received their wages first and would not have seen the reward of the later ones and would not have murmured against the householder. If that were the case, the Lord would not have been able to bring out the teaching of this parable. During the time of the reward, there will still be grace. If a man deserves a dime and only eight cents is given, that is unrighteous. Only grace can give the same reward to those who do not work as long as others. This is God's sovereignty. (This means that the Lord was saying, "Peter, you should not be self-boasting and self-righteous. In everything you have tried to be one step ahead of others. Yet my reward — the throne — did not shortchange you. God has the right to give to the latecomers, who sacrifice less, the same reward as He gives to you.")
Through this the Lord destroyed Peter's concept of legality and commerce. Peter had altogether forgotten God's grace and God's right. God cannot exercise His right to do unrighteous things; yet He can exercise His right to bestow grace. Those who emphasize reward too much will forget the Lord's love. That is why, after the Lord's resurrection, He asked Peter three times, "Do you love Me?" After that He said "Feed My sheep," which means to labor (John 21:15-18). There is a slight difference between the conclusions in Matthew 19:30 and 20:16. The "many" in 19:30 is more broad; it refers to Christians in general, probably including us and Peter. "The last" in verse 16 refers specifically to the eleventh hour laborers in the parable. The laborers were murmuring and had forgotten the things mentioned in Romans 9:14-15, 20. The eleventh hour laborers who received a denarius surely had thankful hearts. Hence, the Lord's teaching is to remind us that we are those who begin working at the eleventh hour. One must forget what he has forsaken for the Lord. In this way he will receive his denarius with satisfaction and thanksgiving. Otherwise, he will only remember his own sacrifices; he will not be satisfied with a denarius and will be stumbled. This is only a teaching; it does not mean that God is actually an employer, or that the laborers actually receive a reward. With the actual reward there is a difference between ten cities and five cities, and such a reward is given only in the millennium.
Verses 17-19:"And as Jesus was going up to Jerusalem, He took the twelve disciples aside privately, and on the way He said to them, Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be delivered to the chief priests and scribes. And they will condemn Him to death, and deliver Him to the Gentiles to mock and to scourge and to crucify Him, and on the third day He will be raised." This is the third time the Lord foretold His own death. This shows that His death was not a martyr's death. Martyrdom occurs as an incidental matter, but the Lord knew how and when He was to die. There are two parts to the Lord's word: (1) The chief priests and the scribes were the religious part. The Lord was judged and condemned first by the Jews. (2) The Gentiles were the political part. Later He was executed by the Gentiles. These were all eventually fulfilled. First He was condemned by the Jews, and next He was delivered to Pilate. In the council the Jews accused Him of blasphemy. Before Pilate they accused Him of rebellion. The Jews were the directors and the instigators, and the Gentiles were the executors and the administrators.
Verse 20:"Then the mother of the sons of Zebedee came to Him with her sons, worshipping and asking something of Him." The mother of the sons of Zebedee had only heard of such things as the reward and the throne. After hearing of these things, her heart was very much drawn. But she had also heard of the cross and the difficult requirement of self-denial. So she came to the Lord herself to discuss this matter. Her thought was that for her two sons to merely sit on one of the twelve thrones was not sufficient; they had to be the thrones of the greatest honor. The same thought is present among Christians today who think that they must be the greatest Christians. To them, merely to preach is not sufficient; they must lead revival meetings. She thought that since the Lord had once borrowed a boat, a net, and food from her, she could now ask something from the Lord and would not be rejected.
Verse 21:"And He said to her, What do you want? She said to Him, Say that these two sons of mine will sit, one on Your right and one on Your left, in Your kingdom." The Lord asked, "What do you want?" After petitioning the Lord she still could not make the Lord understand what she wanted. She wanted one son to sit on His right hand and the other to sit on His left hand. She thought that if her sons received glory, she herself also would be honored. This is to bring the natural man into the kingdom. She thought that things in the kingdom of the heavens are the same as they are in the flesh.
Verses 22-23:"But Jesus answered and said to them, You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup which I am about to drink? They said to Him, We are able. He said to them, My cup you shall indeed drink, but to sit on My right and on My left, this is not Mine to give, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared by My Father." She thought that she knew what she was asking, but the Lord said, "You do not know what you are asking." They all said with one voice that they were able. They did not realize what they were saying. While the Lord was suffering, Peter escaped. To drink the cup means to submit to the Father's will. The baptism refers to the death of the cross (here there is no mention of baptism). The cup was in the garden of Gethsemane, while the baptism was on the cross (Luke 12:50). The cup signifies sacrifice and submission to God; baptism signifies death. The Gospel of Mark presents the Lord as the Servant; thus, it mentions baptism (an act of being put to death). The Gospel of Matthew presents the Lord as the King; hence, there is no mention of baptism, but only of the cup, which signifies the heart of submission. The position in the kingdom is not gained through relatives or prayer. "This is not Mine to give." This means that it cannot be given based on the Lord's likes and dislikes. The position in the kingdom is not gained at will; it is preassigned and is given to those who fulfill the requirements. Hence, any man who thinks that the saved ones can receive the kingdom is a son of Zebedee.
Verse 25:"But Jesus called them to Him and said, You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and the great exercise authority over them." Verse 24 mentions ten disciples. The disciples were divided into two parties, one group of two and one group of ten. The ten thought that the two were too fleshly, unspiritual, proud, and discontent, not satisfied with what the Lord had given them, and were too selfish, caring only for themselves and not for their fellow disciples. Thus, the ten thought that they were indignant for righteousness's sake. Actually, they themselves also had selfish motives and pride; otherwise, they would not have quarreled. The two parties were the same, differing only in their words and intention. The ten disciples were sorry only that they did not have such a mother to speak up for them. "Jesus called them to Him." The Lord knew them; hence, He called them and spoke concerning three matters: (1) The church cannot be like the Gentiles, having rulers and great ones, because "you are all brothers" (Matt. 23:8). Therefore, to have the pope, the bishop, the pastor, and the priests is unscriptural and is against the Lord's command. Even if the title is not used and yet the fact exists, it is still not permitted. To rule and instruct others spiritually is permitted, but to rule over others positionally is absolutely forbidden. In the Bible the overseers, the shepherds, the elders, the teachers, etc. are all spiritual. Today in the church a very fleshy pastor can rule over a most spiritual carpenter. Men desire to be an elder or a deacon only because they want to increase their own power in the church. We ought to serve the Lord faithfully and strive to please Him. However, if a person tries to gain a higher position over others in the kingdom through his service, it is a sin.
Verses 26-27:"It shall not be so among you; but whoever wants to become great among you shall be your servant, and whoever wants to be first among you shall be your slave." (2) A servant is one who is sent yet still has freedom. (3) "Slave" is a stronger word. "To be first" is to be the best within a group of people. Hence, those who want to be great must be a servant (less severe), while those who want to be the first must be a slave (more severe). The position in the kingdom is exactly opposite to today's situation. We want to be great and to be the first in this age, but the Lord wants us to receive the reward in the coming age. Man wants a reward but is unwilling to pay the price. To be great spiritually is to be humble and to suffer spiritually. We are able to be humble before God, yet it seems that we are unable to be humble before man.
Verse 28:"Just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve and to give His life as a ransom for many." "The Son of Man" came. He descended from the highest position to the lowest position. He humbled Himself and took upon Himself the form of a slave, specifically to serve man; and not only did He serve man, but He became the Savior of man. (Today's YMCA probably has forgotten this verse in the Bible.)
Verse 29:"And as they were going out from Jericho, a great crowd followed Him." Jericho was a cursed place, but when the Lord came, it began to receive blessings.
Verse 30:"And behold, two blind men sitting by the road, hearing that Jesus was passing by, cried out, saying, Have mercy on us, Lord, Son of David!" "Two blind men." The other Gospels mention only one. Actually, there were two. Matthew particularly recorded this because Matthew is a testimony of the Lord being David's descendant (One who is the King). Two is the number of testimony.
The two blind men's testimony attested to God's will: although the Lord was rejected, He still was the King. This incidence in Jericho was the prelude to His entrance into Jerusalem in chapter twenty-one (as the book of Jude is the prelude to Revelation).
Verse 31:"And the crowd rebuked them so that they would be silent, but they cried out the more, saying, Have mercy on us, Lord, Son of David!" God's intention was to make them speak louder. To rebuke means to forbid; the crowd forbade them from testifying, yet God caused them to cry out even louder.
Verse 32:"And Jesus, standing still, called them and said, What do you want Me to do for you?" The Lord did not know the purpose of their prayer. That is why our prayers need to have a purpose. The reason our prayers uttered in times of crisis often receive an answer is that we ask with a purpose.
Verse 33:"They said to Him, Lord, that our eyes may be opened." Here the purpose of the prayer was given.
Verse 34:"And Jesus, moved with compassion, touched their eyes, and immediately they received their sight and followed Him." Many people, after their eyes are healed, immediately go sightseeing. After men receive blessings, they seek pleasure. However, these two men followed Him.
