Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)

¹⁰ When God saw by their deeds that they had turned from their evil way, he relented and did not bring on them the punishment he had threatened.

4 But this was very displeasing to Yonah, and he became angry. ² He prayed to Adonai, “Now, Adonai, didn’t I say this would happen, when I was still in my own country? That’s why I tried to get away to Tarshish ahead of time! I knew you were a God who is merciful and compassionate, slow to anger and rich in grace, and that you relent from inflicting punishment. ³ Therefore, Adonai, please, just take my life away from me; it’s better for me to be dead than alive!” ⁴ Adonai asked, “Is it right for you to be so angry?”

⁵ Yonah left the city and found a place east of the city, where he made himself a shelter and sat down under it, in its shade, to see what would happen to the city. ⁶ Adonai, God, prepared a castor-bean plant and made it grow up over Yonah to shade his head and relieve his discomfort. So Yonah was delighted with the castor-bean plant. ⁷ But at dawn the next day God prepared a worm, which attacked the castor-bean plant, so that it dried up. ⁸ Then, when the sun rose, God prepared a scorching east wind; and the sun beat down on Yonah’s head so hard that he grew faint and begged that he could die, saying, “I would be better off dead than alive.”

⁹ God asked Yonah, “Is it right for you to be so angry about the castor-bean plant?” He answered, “Yes, it’s right for me to be so angry that I could die!” ¹⁰ Adonai said, “You’re concerned over the castor-bean plant, which cost you no effort; you didn’t make it grow; it came up in a night and perished in a night. ¹¹ So shouldn’t I be concerned about the great city of Ninveh, in which there are more than 120,000 people who don’t know their right hand from their left — not to mention all the animals?”

²¹ For to me, life is the Messiah, and death is gain. ²² But if by living on in the body I can do fruitful work, then I don’t know which to choose. ²³ I am caught in a dilemma: my desire is to go off and be with the Messiah — that is better by far — ²⁴ but because of you, the greater need is to stay on in the body. ²⁵ Yes, I am convinced of this; so I know I will stay on with you in order to help you progress in the faith and have joy in it. ²⁶ Then, through my being with you again, you will have even greater reason for boasting about the Messiah Yeshua.

²⁷ Only conduct your lives in a way worthy of the Good News of the Messiah; so that whether I come and see you or I hear about you from a distance, you stand firm, united in spirit, fighting with one accord for the faith of the Good News, ²⁸ not frightened by anything the opposition does. This will be for them an indication that they are headed for destruction and you for deliverance. And this is from God; ²⁹ because for the Messiah’s sake it has been granted to you not only to trust in him but also to suffer on his behalf, ³⁰ to fight the same battles you once saw me fight and now hear that I am still fighting.

20 “The Kingdom of Heaven is like a farmer who went out at daybreak to hire workers for his vineyard. ² After agreeing with the workers on a wage of one denarius, [the standard daily wage,] he sent them off to his vineyard. ³ Then, on going out at about nine in the morning, he saw more men standing around in the market-square doing nothing, ⁴ and said to them, ‘You go to the vineyard too — I’ll pay you a fair wage.’ So they went. ⁵ At noon, and again around three in the afternoon, he did the same thing. ⁶ About an hour before sundown, he went out, found still others standing around, and asked them, ‘Why have you been standing here all day, doing nothing?” ⁷ They said to him, ‘Because no one hired us.’ ‘You too,’ he told them, ‘go to the vineyard.’

⁸ “When evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, ‘Call the workers and pay them their wages, starting with the last ones hired and ending with the first.’ ⁹ The workers who came an hour before sunset each received a denarius, ¹⁰ so the workers who came first expected they would get more, but each of them also received just a denarius. ¹¹ On receiving their wages, they began grumbling to the farmer, ¹² ‘These latecomers have worked only one hour, while we have borne the brunt of the day’s work in the hot sun, yet you have put them on an equal footing with us!’ ¹³ But he answered one of them, ‘Look, friend, I’m not being unfair with you. Didn’t you agree to work today for a denarius? ¹⁴ Now take your pay and go! I choose to give the last worker as much as I’m giving you. ¹⁵ Haven’t I the right to do what I want with what belongs to me? Or do you begrudge my generosity?’ ¹⁶ Thus the last ones will be first and the first last.”