If God was there, what else could He, would He do? He tells him that those he envied should fare as well as he did; "I will give unto this last, even as unto thee; I am resolved I will." vii. It is tragic that we have gotten so far away from the concepts that Jesus taught. b. And who knows, but what they may have put her up to it, because when Jesus asked the question, they're ready to respond. Copyright 2023, Bible Study Tools. How are we to account for a selection so marked, an elimination of time so complete? it was not for the whole the Physician was needed. But when the first came, they supposed that they would receive more; and they likewise received each a denarius. And as they departed from Jericho ( Matthew 20:29 ). When the legions were thus completed, the citizens who had been called, but not chosen, returned to their respective employments, and served their country in other capacities. Notice the flow of the narrative as the . So our goal as disciples is to value things now as God does. why not sorrow and shame that they should have so little understood their Master's mind? This is applied to the Jews (Matthew 22:14; Matthew 22:14); it was so then, it is too true still; many are called with a common call, that are not chosen with a saving choice. So when evening had come, the owner of the vineyard said to his steward, Call the laborers and give them their wages, beginning with the last to the first. And when those came who were hired about the eleventh hour, they each received a denarius. Every opportunity to serve is a gift of His grace. Even so the last shall be first, and the first shall be last.". Remember, God doesn't look at us the way this world does. The evil spirits asked leave to pass into the herd of swine, which thus typify the final condition of the defiled, apostate mass of Israel; their presumptuous and impenitent unbelief reduces them to that deep degradation not merely the unclean, but the unclean filled with the power of Satan, and carried down to swift destruction. He was going to build His Church "upon this rock" Himself, the Son of God. This parable may sound to us as if it described a purely imaginary situation, but that is far from being the case. 97. But what a mercy that those who appear now to be rejected may be called in another muster, enrolled, serve in the field, or work in the vineyard? Here is the agreement made with the labourers (Matthew 20:1-7; Matthew 20:1-7); and here it will be asked, as usual. What Does It Mean That There Is No One Holy Like God? Who but God could command not only the waves, but the fish of the sea? 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. Had Peter confessed who the Son of man really is? On this the Lord takes another step, when one said to Him, "Behold, thy mother and thy brethren stand without, desiring to speak with thee." Suffering from the disloyalty of friends. They looked for a conqueror; they received one broken on a cross. The earnestness of these men was marvelous; they were desperate to be healed, and ignored the crowd that tried to quiet them (they cried out all the more). Verse Matthew 20:16. Successful service to God is the gift of His grace. Then Jesus going up to Jerusalem took the twelve disciples apart in the way, and he said unto them, [now He is on the way, there is probably great multitudes, but He takes the twelve apart] He said, Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem; and the Son of man shall be betrayed unto the chief priests and unto the scribes, and they shall condemn him to death, and shall deliver him to the Gentiles to mock, and to scourge, and to crucify him and the third day he shall rise again ( Matthew 20:17-19 ). I say not how fax he had realized this profound truth; I say not that he could have defined his thoughts; but he knew and declared His command of all as truly God. Thirdly, The gospel call is given to those that stand idle in the market-place. Thus, and after the tenderest sort, there is that which evidences the Messiah on earth present to heal His people who appeal to Him; and the Jew, above all counting upon His bodily presence demanding it, I may say, according to the warrant of prophecy, finds in Jesus not merely the man, but the God of Israel. His assessment is quite simply--how many people has he helped? So He is telling the disciples this was going to happen. But that they might not be carried away by ambition or vain confidence in themselves, it was necessary also to remind them that others, who would long afterwards be called, would be partakers of the same glory, because God is not limited to any person, but calls freely whomsoever He pleases, and bestows on those who are called whatever rewards He thinks fit. The disciples should expect to be rewarded; but they should not be surprised if, when rewards are distributed, God will reward others in unexpected ways. The parable of the workers in the vineyard 20:1-16. Observe, They did not come for their pay till they were called; we must with patience wait God's time for our rest and recompence; go by our master's clock. It is an evil eye, which is displeased at the good of others, and desires their hurt. The Blue Letter Bible ministry and the BLB Institute hold to the historical, Individual instructors or editors may still require the use of URLs. It is a question, then, of internal evidence, what that particular order is which God has employed in each different gospel. We read in the book of Acts that Herod stretched forth his hands against the church and had James beheaded. They did not know that Jesus could have made the same promise of suffering to come to any of them (if they really wanted it!). If, among this number who are called into the kingdom, I choose to raise some to stations of distinguished usefulness, and to confer on them special talents and higher rewards, I injure no other one. The picture is that the landowner had an inexhaustible supply of work for those who wanted to work. 22 But Jesus answered by saying to . 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. Wisdom Literature Jesus said that those who would share his triumph must drink his cup. The second is, "So the last shall be first, and the first last; for many are called, but few are chosen." It should also encourage us in reference to the hardships and difficulties of our work, that it is but for a day; the approaching shadow, which the servant earnestly desireth, will bring with it both rest, and the reward of our work,Job 7:2. "Upon this rock," says He, "I will build my Church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it." Clarke's Commentary. They may not be as long in the vineyard as others; their race may be sooner run; but I have chosen to honor them in this manner, and I have a right to do it. See Matthew 19:27-29. "According to your faith be it done unto you.". iv. The New King James Version (NKJV) organises this chapter as follows: . The Adventure Challenge In Bed Examples Again he went out about the sixth hour and the ninth hour, [noon and three in the afternoon], he did likewise. This parable does not teach that God will reward all His disciples equally. Salem Media Group. Poetical Books Jesus, nevertheless, owned all that could be owned in him. Succa, fol. They're on the way to Jerusalem; they've come down the Jordan Valley. They drew up by tribes, and lots were drawn to determine in what order every tribe should present its soldiers. GenesisExodusLeviticusNumbersDeuteronomyJoshuaJudgesRuth1 Samuel2 Samuel1 Kings2 Kings1 Chronicles2 ChroniclesEzraNehemiahEstherJobPsalmsProverbsEcclesiastesSong of SongsIsaiahJeremiahLamentationsEzekielDanielHoseaJoelAmosObadiahJonahMicahNahumHabakkukZephaniahHaggaiZechariahMalachiMatthewMarkLukeJohnActsRomans1 Corinthians2 CorinthiansGalatiansEphesiansPhilippiansColossians1 Thessalonians2 Thessalonians1 Timothy2 TimothyTitusPhilemonHebrewsJames1 Peter2 Peter1 John2 John3 JohnJudeRevelation, Select an Ending Point The call to serve God is the gift of His grace. Usually they hated and despised them, and hoped for nothing but their destruction. You may unsubscribe from Bible Gateways emails at any time. His wounds are those which he receives in the house of his friend. (Spurgeon). It says simply, "And, behold, there came a leper and worshipped him, saying, Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean." Henceforth, too, He forbids the disciples to proclaim Him as the Messiah. "That by His stripes you may be healed." He also strongly claimed his right to do what he wanted with what was his. The idea was you were to confess the crimes that you had committed against Rome, and as you confessed your crimes, the man who was administering that scourging would go easier and easier on you. That was all over for the moment through Israel's blind sin; He was going to suffer, not yet reign, at Jerusalem. In immediate juxtaposition to this stands the Gentile centurion, who seeks healing for his servant. It is more particularly sin, viewed as guilt, and consequently as that which absolutely breaks and destroys all power in the soul towards both God and man. In the eighth chapter of Matthew as it tells of them bringing all of their sick and those who were diseased to Jesus, and He healed them, every one, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet saying, "He in His own body bore our sufferings." But it would be unusual for a wealthy "landowner" to locate his own . THE FALSE AND THE TRUE AMBITION ( Matthew 20:20-28 ), 20:20-28 At that time the mother of Zebedee's sons came to him with her sons, kneeling before him, and asking something from him. They measured Jesus by their own impotence. They are beautiful people. And then they would take a leather whip, with little bits of lead and glass, embedded in it. In verse 13 our Lord "goeth up into a mountain, and calleth unto him whom he would: and they came unto him. The true disciple is motivated by love not lust. It was made after a series of announcements by Jesus that ahead of him lay an inescapable Cross; it was made at a moment when the air was heavy with the atmosphere of tragedy and the sense of foreboding. Matthew 20:16 NIV - "So the last will be first, and the - Bible Gateway It was necessary to complete the picture. A wider interpretation is, of course, possible, and has been often applied, in which the first-called labourers answer to the Jews, and those who came afterwards to converts in the successive stages of the conversion of the Gentiles. (Matthew 20:16) The parable applied: the principle of Gods reward. After this our Lord sees great multitudes following Him, and gives commandment to go to the other side. and who are my brethren?" Jerusalem's proud, traditional hypocrisy is exposed, and grace fully blesses the tried Gentile. "Thank the Lord, my rock, who trained my hands to fight and my fingers to do battle, my merciful one, my fortress, my stronghold, and my savior, my". 6 And about the eleventh hour he went out, and found others standing idle, and saith unto them, Why stand ye here all the day idle? And they went. This parable is not a perfect illustration of Gods grace, because the principle of working and deserving is involved. Slaves and servants were regarded as being at least to some extent attached to the family; they were within the group; their fortunes would vary with the fortunes of the family, but they would never be in any imminent danger of starvation in normal times. The devil was tricked by God. How often the heart shows itself, not merely by what we ask, but by the uncalled-for feelings we display against other people and their faults! The unparalleled grace of the Saviour must form and fashion the saints henceforth. It is not a question of bringing in law to govern the kingdom or guide the Church. He has His rejection before His eyes, as well as the presumptuous unbelief of this sordid, and self-confident, would-be follower. And then Pilot delivered Him unto them to be scourged. Then a beggar asked for his shirt and got it. 'These last,' they said, 'have only worked for one hour, and you have made them equal to us, who have home the burden and the hot wind of the day.' They gave Him full honor with this title. Where did they come from? The evil eye was an idiom used to refer to jealousy (cf. "Who is my mother? "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." Mark gives them in the end of his second and the beginning of his third chapters. It is evident that the bodily presence of the Messiah is the very essence of the former scene, as it ought to be in dealing with the leper, who is a kind of type of what Israel should have been in seeking cleansing at His hands.