Matthew 20
1599 Geneva Bible
20 1 Laborers hired into the vineyard. 15 The evil eye. 17 He foretelleth his passion. 20 Zebedee’s sons. 22 The cup. 28 Christ is our minister. 30 Two blind men.
1 For the kingdom of heaven is like unto a certain [a]householder, which went out at the dawning of the day to hire laborers into his vineyard.
2 And he [b]agreed with the laborers for a penny a day, and sent them into his vineyard.
3 And he went out about the third hour, and saw others standing idle in the marketplace,
4 And said unto them, Go ye also into my vineyard, and whatsoever is right, I will give you: and they went their way.
5 Again he went out about the sixth and ninth hour, and did likewise.
6 And he went about the [c]eleventh hour, and found others standing idle, and said unto them, Why stand ye here all the day idle?
7 They said unto him, Because no man hath hired us. He said to them, Go ye also into my vineyard, and whatsoever is right, that shall ye receive.
8 ¶ And when even was come, the master of the vineyard said unto his steward, Call the laborers, and give them their hire, beginning at the last, till thou come to the first.
9 And they which were hired about the eleventh hour, came and received every man a penny.
10 Now when the first came, they supposed that they should receive more, but they likewise received every man a penny.
11 And when they had received it, they murmured against the master of the house,
12 Saying, These last have wrought but one hour, and thou hast made them equal unto us, which have borne the burden and heat of the day.
13 And he answered one of them, saying, Friend, I do thee no wrong: didst thou not agree with me for a penny?
14 Take that which is thine own, and go thy way: I will give unto this last, as much as to thee.
15 Is it not lawful for me to do as I will with mine own? Is thine eye [d]evil, because I am good?
16 (A) So the last shall be first, and the first last: for many are called, but few chosen.
17 (B)[e]And Jesus went up to Jerusalem, and took the twelve disciples apart in the way, and said unto them,
18 [f]Behold, we go up to Jerusalem, and the Son of man shall be delivered unto the chief Priests, and unto the Scribes, and they shall condemn him to death,
19 [g]And (C)shall deliver him to the Gentiles, to mock, and to scourge, and to crucify him, but the third day he shall rise again.
20 (D)[h]Then came to him the mother of Zebedee’s children with her sons, worshipping him, and desiring a certain thing of him.
21 And he said unto her, What wouldest thou? She said to him, Grant that these my two sons may sit, the one at thy right hand, and the other at thy left hand in thy kingdom.
22 And Jesus answered, and said, Ye know not what ye ask. Are ye able to [i]drink of the cup that I shall drink of, and to be baptized with the [j]baptism that I shall be baptized with? they said to him, We are able.
23 And he said unto them, Ye shall drink indeed of my cup, and shall be baptized with the baptism, that I am baptized with, but to sit at my right hand, and at my left hand, is [k]not mine to give: but it shall be given to them for whom it is prepared of my Father.
24 (E)And when the other ten heard this, they disdained at the two brethren.
25 Therefore Jesus called them unto him, and said, Ye know that the lords of the Gentiles have [l]domination over them, and they that are great, exercise authority over them.
26 But it shall not be so among you: but whosoever will be great among you, let him be your servant.
27 And whosoever will be chief among you, let him be your servant.
28 (F)Even as the Son of man came not to be served, but to serve, and to give his life for the ransom of many.
29 ¶ (G)[m]And as they departed from Jericho, a great multitude followed him.
30 And behold, two blind men, sitting by the way side, when they heard that Jesus passed by, cried, saying, O Lord, the Son of David, have mercy on us.
31 And the multitude rebuked them, because they should hold their peace: but they cried the more, saying, O Lord, the Son of David, have mercy on us.
32 Then Jesus stood still, and [n]called them, and said, What will ye that I should do to you?
33 They said to him, Lord, that our eyes may be opened.
34 And Jesus moved with compassion, touched their eyes, and immediately their eyes received sight, and they followed him.
Footnotes
- Matthew 20:1 God is bound to no man, and therefore he calleth whomsoever and whensoever he listeth. This only every man ought to take heed of, and hereupon bestow his whole endeavor, that he go forward and come to the mark without all stopping or staggering, and not curiously to examine other men’s doings, or the judgments of God.
- Matthew 20:2 Word for word, fell in time: it is a kind of speech taken from song.
- Matthew 20:6 The last hour: for the day was twelve hours long, and the first hour began at the Sun rising.
- Matthew 20:15 Naught, that is, to say, dost thou envy at my goodness towards them? for the Hebrews by an evil eye, meant envy, because such dispositions appear chiefly in the eyes, as above in Matt. 6:23. It is set to answer the word, single, and is taken there for corrupt: for whereas he said there before, verse 22, If thine eye be single, he addeth in verse 23, but if thine eye be wicked, or corrupt, the word being the same in that place, as it is here.
- Matthew 20:17 Christ goeth to the cross necessarily, but yet willingly.
- Matthew 20:18 They that least ought, are the greatest persecutors of Christ.
- Matthew 20:19 The ignomy of the cross, is the sure way to the glory of everlasting life.
- Matthew 20:20 The manner of the heavenly kingdom is quite contrary to the earthly kingdom.
- Matthew 20:22 This is spoken by a figure, taking the cup, for that which is contained in the cup. And again the Hebrews understand by this word, Cup, sometime the manner of punishment which is rendered to sin, as Ps. 11:6, or the joy that is given to the faithful, as Ps. 23:5, and sometime a lot or condition, as Ps. 16:5.
- Matthew 20:22 This is applied to afflictions, as David commonly useth.
- Matthew 20:23 The almightiness of Christ his divinity is not shut out by this, but it showeth the debasing of himself by taking man’s nature upon him.
- Matthew 20:25 Somewhat sharply and roughly.
- Matthew 20:29 Christ by healing these blind men with an only touch, showeth that he is the only light of the world.
- Matthew 20:32 Himself, not by other men’s means.
Matthew 20
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
Chapter 20
The Workers in the Vineyard.[a] 1 “The kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out at dawn to hire laborers for his vineyard. 2 After agreeing with them for the usual daily wage, he sent them into his vineyard. 3 Going out about nine o’clock, he saw others standing idle in the marketplace, 4 [b]and he said to them, ‘You too go into my vineyard, and I will give you what is just.’ 5 So they went off. [And] he went out again around noon, and around three o’clock, and did likewise. 6 Going out about five o’clock, he found others standing around, and said to them, ‘Why do you stand here idle all day?’ 7 They answered, ‘Because no one has hired us.’ He said to them, ‘You too go into my vineyard.’ 8 [c](A)When it was evening the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, ‘Summon the laborers and give them their pay, beginning with the last and ending with the first.’ 9 When those who had started about five o’clock came, each received the usual daily wage. 10 So when the first came, they thought that they would receive more, but each of them also got the usual wage. 11 And on receiving it they grumbled against the landowner, 12 saying, ‘These last ones worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us, who bore the day’s burden and the heat.’ 13 He said to one of them in reply, ‘My friend, I am not cheating you.[d] Did you not agree with me for the usual daily wage? 14 [e]Take what is yours and go. What if I wish to give this last one the same as you? 15 [Or] am I not free to do as I wish with my own money? Are you envious because I am generous?’ 16 [f]Thus, the last will be first, and the first will be last.”
The Third Prediction of the Passion.[g] 17 (B)As Jesus was going up to Jerusalem, he took the twelve [disciples] aside by themselves, and said to them on the way, 18 “Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be handed over to the chief priests and the scribes, and they will condemn him to death, 19 and hand him over to the Gentiles to be mocked and scourged and crucified, and he will be raised on the third day.”
The Request of James and John.[h] 20 (C)Then the mother[i] of the sons of Zebedee approached him with her sons and did him homage, wishing to ask him for something. 21 He said to her, “What do you wish?” She answered him, “Command that these two sons of mine sit, one at your right and the other at your left, in your kingdom.” 22 Jesus said in reply, “You do not know what you are asking.[j] Can you drink the cup that I am going to drink?” They said to him, “We can.” 23 He replied, “My cup you will indeed drink, but to sit at my right and at my left [, this] is not mine to give but is for those for whom it has been prepared by my Father.” 24 (D)When the ten heard this, they became indignant at the two brothers. 25 But Jesus summoned them and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and the great ones make their authority over them felt. 26 But it shall not be so among you. Rather, whoever wishes to be great among you shall be your servant; 27 (E)whoever wishes to be first among you shall be your slave. 28 (F)Just so, the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom[k] for many.”
The Healing of Two Blind Men.[l] 29 (G)As they left Jericho, a great crowd followed him. 30 (H)Two blind men were sitting by the roadside, and when they heard that Jesus was passing by, they cried out, “[Lord,][m] Son of David, have pity on us!” 31 The crowd warned them to be silent, but they called out all the more, “Lord, Son of David, have pity on us!” 32 Jesus stopped and called them and said, “What do you want me to do for you?” 33 They answered him, “Lord, let our eyes be opened.” 34 Moved with pity, Jesus touched their eyes. Immediately they received their sight, and followed him.
Footnotes
- 20:1–16 This parable is peculiar to Matthew. It is difficult to know whether the evangelist composed it or received it as part of his traditional material and, if the latter is the case, what its original reference was. In its present context its close association with Mt 19:30 suggests that its teaching is the equality of all the disciples in the reward of inheriting eternal life.
- 20:4 What is just: although the wage is not stipulated as in the case of those first hired, it will be fair.
- 20:8 Beginning with the last…the first: this element of the parable has no other purpose than to show how the first knew what the last were given (Mt 20:12).
- 20:13 I am not cheating you: literally, “I am not treating you unjustly.”
- 20:14–15 The owner’s conduct involves no violation of justice (Mt 20:4, 13), and that all the workers receive the same wage is due only to his generosity to the latest arrivals; the resentment of the first comes from envy.
- 20:16 See note on Mt 19:30.
- 20:17–19 Cf. Mk 10:32–34. This is the third and the most detailed of the passion predictions (Mt 16:21–23; 17:22–23). It speaks of Jesus’ being handed over to the Gentiles (Mt 27:2), his being mocked (Mt 27:27–30), scourged (Mt 27:26), and crucified (Mt 27:31, 35). In all but the last of these points Matthew agrees with his Marcan source, but whereas Mark speaks of Jesus’ being killed (Mk 10:34), Matthew has the specific to be…crucified.
- 20:20–28 Cf. Mk 10:35–45. The request of the sons of Zebedee, made through their mother, for the highest places of honor in the kingdom, and the indignation of the other ten disciples at this request, show that neither the two brothers nor the others have understood that what makes for greatness in the kingdom is not lordly power but humble service. Jesus gives the example, and his ministry of service will reach its highest point when he gives his life for the deliverance of the human race from sin.
- 20:20–21 The reason for Matthew’s making the mother the petitioner (cf. Mk 10:35) is not clear. Possibly he intends an allusion to Bathsheba’s seeking the kingdom for Solomon; see 1 Kgs 1:11–21. Your kingdom: see note on Mt 16:28.
- 20:22 You do not know what you are asking: the Greek verbs are plural and, with the rest of the verse, indicate that the answer is addressed not to the woman but to her sons. Drink the cup: see note on Mk 10:38–40. Matthew omits the Marcan “or be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized” (Mk 10:38).
- 20:28 Ransom: this noun, which occurs in the New Testament only here and in the Marcan parallel (Mk 10:45), does not necessarily express the idea of liberation by payment of some price. The cognate verb is used frequently in the LXX of God’s liberating Israel from Egypt or from Babylonia after the Exile; see Ex 6:6; 15:13; Ps 77:16 (76 LXX); Is 43:1; 44:22. The liberation brought by Jesus’ death will be for many; cf. Is 53:12. Many does not mean that some are excluded, but is a Semitism designating the collectivity who benefit from the service of the one, and is equivalent to “all.” While there are few verbal contacts between this saying and the fourth Servant Song (Is 52:13–53:12), the ideas of that passage are reflected here.
- 20:29–34 The cure of the blind men is probably symbolic of what will happen to the disciples, now blind to the meaning of Jesus’ passion and to the necessity of their sharing his suffering. As the men are given sight, so, after the resurrection, will the disciples come to see that to which they are now blind. Matthew has abbreviated his Marcan source (Mk 10:46–52) and has made Mark’s one man two. Such doubling is characteristic of this gospel; see Mt 8:28–34 (// Mk 5:1–20) and the note on Mt 9:27–31.
- 20:30 [Lord,]: some important textual witnesses omit this, but that may be because copyists assimilated this verse to Mt 9:27. Son of David: see note on Mt 9:27.
Geneva Bible, 1599 Edition. Published by Tolle Lege Press. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, without written permission from the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations in articles, reviews, and broadcasts.
Scripture texts, prefaces, introductions, footnotes and cross references used in this work are taken from the New American Bible, revised edition © 2010, 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc., Washington, DC All Rights Reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.