is written by Phil Ware and is available in book form. He was not taken by surprise; He knew it from the beginning Man's implacable hatred is brought about most manifestly in the ways and spirit of His rejectors. It is not here a question of life (as in the seed at first), but a system of christian doctrine; not life germinating and bearing fruit, but mere dogma natural mind which is exposed to it. They measured Jesus by their own impotence. The servants are clearly divided into two classes. i. Pauline Epistles Verse Matthew 20:16. "And He entered into a ship, and passed over, and came into His own city." They were greatly displeased: The other ten disciples mistakenly thought that a unique honor had just been bestowed on James and John. Thus many are called by the preaching of the Gospel, but few are found who use their advantages in such a way as to become extensively useful in the Church-and many in the Church militant behave so ill as never to be admitted into the Church triumphant. And so they were actually thinking evil, because of His good. Whether you love to hike, bike, paddle or simply chase waterfalls, we have an Adventure Challenge for you! but what a heart was His! It means quite simply this. Matthew 20 | ESV Bible | YouVersion They that come from the east and west, and so come in late, that are picked up out of the highways and the hedges, shall sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, at the same feast, Matthew 7:11; Matthew 7:11. We shall find something of these mysteries later on in this gospel; but here it is simply a Jewish testimony of Jehovah-Messiah in His unwearied love, through His twelve heralds, and in spite of rising unbelief, maintaining to the end what His grace had in view for Israel. What Does It Mean That There Is No One Holy Like God? Let us set them down. What is mine, is mine to do with as I please." And as they departed from Jericho ( Matthew 20:29 ). Those who recognize the grace they have received by being included in God's Kingdom . (Matthew 20:17-19) Jesus again reveals the fate waiting for Him at Jerusalem. They had the desperation appropriate for those who know that today is the day of salvation. Matthew 20:16 ESV - So the last will be first, | Biblia It was the custom in Palestine for a Rabbi to teach as he walked along the road; and no doubt those around Jesus could not hear what Jesus was saying for this clamorous uproar. If there were, so to speak, a justification of circumcision by faith, undoubtedly there was also the justification of uncircumcision through their faith. There is no note of the time when he came, but simply the fact that he did come. (Matthew 20:3-7) Through the day, the landowner continues to hire workers. Under grace, we cant come to God complaining, Dont I deserve better than this; because God will reply, Does this mean that you really want Me to give you what you deserve?. Is it not lawful for me to do what I wish with my own things? Henceforth, too, He forbids the disciples to proclaim Him as the Messiah. Matthew 20:16 in all English translations, NIV, Story of Jesus: Experience the Life of Jesus as One Seamless Story, NIV, The Story: The Bible as One Continuing Story of God and His People, NIV, Beautiful Word Bible Journal, Revelation, Paperback, Comfort Print, NIV, Cultural Backgrounds Study Bible, Red Letter Edition: Bringing to Life the Ancient World of Scripture, NIV, The Woman's Study Bible, Full-Color, Red Letter: Receiving God's Truth for Balance, Hope, and Transformation, NIV, The Story, Hardcover, Comfort Print: The Bible as One Continuing Story of God and His People. 1 For the kingdom of heaven is like unto a man that is an householder, which went out early in the morning to hire labourers into his vineyard. "And, behold, certain of the scribes said within themselves, This man blasphemeth." Those hired later correspond to other people who became Jesus disciples later in His ministry. Jesus thought about how He would fulfill the will of His Father in the future. For many are called, but few chosen.". Proud member See Matthew 19:27-29. To the end the events are put together, just as in Matthew 8:1-34, without regard to the point of time when they occurred. These workers hired at the very beginning of the working day agreed to work for a denarius a day, the common daily wage for a workingman. The devil, by his temptations, is hiring labourers into his field, to feed swine. The grape harvest ripened towards the end of September, and then close on its heels the rains came. . Ingratitude is the ugliest of all sins. No doubt they had heard of the wondrous power of Jesus; and no doubt they wondered if that power might ever be exercised for them. What we have, is not our own, and therefore it is not lawful for us to do what we will with it; but what God has, is his own; and this will justify him, First, In all the disposals of his providence; when God takes from us that which was dear to us, and which we could ill spare, we must silence our discontents with this; May he not do what he will with his own? They were beggars; but it was not money they asked for, it was nothing less than sight. The old people and work then closed in principle, and a new work of God in the kingdom of heaven was disclosed. James was the first martyr among the apostles, and John was the only apostle to not die through martyrdom though not from a lack of trying. The Gospels 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." 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. Now these last have worked but one hour, and that too in the cool of the day; and yet thou hast made them equal with us. I injure no one, and have a right to do what I will with my own. Thus explained, this parable has no reference to the call of the Gentiles, nor to the call of aged sinners, nor to the call of sinners out of the church at all. The parable teaches one truth, and but one; and where Jesus has explained it, we have no right to add to it, and say that it teaches anything else. Yet man, in face of all, is so deceived of the enemy, that he prefers to be left with the demons rather than enjoy the presence of the Deliverer. Before he goes to Church let him visit the hospital. c. But to sit on My right hand and on My left is not Mine to give: Jesus here showed remarkable submission to His Father. Life had been imparted to, the sleeping maid of Zion the blind men call on Him as the Son of David, and not in vain. In short, he had a question because he was a man. "Lord," they said, "what we want is that our eyes should be opened." Notice the flow of the narrative as the . He comes to do not his own will, but the will of him that sent him, and so he correctly says of rank in his kingdom, It is not mine to give. Then inside the house we have not only the Lord explaining the parable, the history from first to last of the tares and wheat, the mingling of evil with the good which grace had sown, but more than that, we have the kingdom viewed according to divine thoughts and purposes. The devil was tricked by God. Being in the right state of mind to do the Lords work is a gift of grace. Here is the account with the labourers. And then he repeats this again. Is not your eye evil, because I am good? When Paul, that faithful labourer, departs, he is with Christ presently. And I believe that we can believe and trust Jesus Christ for physical healing, as well as spiritual healing. So the last shall be first, and the first last. Judgment will have early cut them off. Paul was as one born out of due time, yet came not behind the chiefest of the apostles, and outdid those that were in Christ before him. They next proceeded to the creation of subaltern officers, whom the tribunes chose from among the soldiers of the greatest reputation. The landowner reminded them that he had paid them the amount they had agreed to, and if he paid others the same amount, that was his concern. A new tribe presented other four soldiers, and the second legion chose first. The Lord, however, in the same chapter, shows that it was not a question alone of what was to be done, or to be suffered, or is to be by-and-by, but what He was, and is, and never can but be. It shows us his kindness. Origen said it was the devil; Gregory of Nyssa objected that this put the devil on the same level as God, and allowed the devil to dictate terms to God. If we turn toMark 1:1-45; Mark 1:1-45, the proof of what I have said will appear as to the leper. Therefore it was not a mere simple fact that He banished sickness or infirmity, but He carried them in His spirit before God. The crowd commanded them to stop their shouting; they were making a nuisance of themselves. The bodily presence of the Messiah was not needed. The ignorance is wholly on our side: all they say or omit was owing to the far-reaching and gracious wisdom of Him who inspired them. Before dinner starts, hide your nerf guns, then start the soundtrack to Mr. & Mrs. Smith. (Matthew 20:24-28) The disciples reaction; Jesus sets forth true greatness. It is not only the fact that God slighted matters of prescriptive ordinance because of the ruined state of Israel, who rejected His true anointed King, but there was this principle also, that certainly God was not going to bind Himself not to do good where abject need was. And so with the other conversation: "Lord, suffer me first to go and bury my father;" it was after the glory of Christ had been witnessed on the holy mount, when man's selfishness of heart showed itself in contrast to the grace of God. This parable may sound to us as if it described a purely imaginary situation, but that is far from being the case. It was a grave step this, and in view of His rejection now. So the last shall be first, and the first last. Adventure Challenge 47 - Matthew 20.16 - YouTube Oh, for grace so to bow and bless God, even when our little travail seems in vain! Matthew 20:1-16 In-Context - Bible Study Tools how is it that ye have no faith? Envy is unlikeness to God, who is good, and doeth good, and delighteth in doing good; nay, it is an opposition and contradiction to God; it is a dislike of his proceedings, and a displeasure at what he does, and is pleased with. a. a. Some of the people of our own day who fancy that their sweet and pious attitude in some way entitles them to God's favor should take note of this. It is easy to sympathize with these who had worked all day. Apply to the Son of David; lose not a moment; he is passing by, and thou art passing into eternity, and probably wilt never have a more favourable opportunity than the present. Matthew 20:16 - Verse-by-Verse Bible Commentary - StudyLight.org 'God is love,' he shouted. And when they had received it, they murmured against the goodman of the house, saying, These last have wrought but one hour, and you've made them equal unto us, which have borne the burden of the heat of the day. Nor is this all. It is not a thing that can be settled by a mere assertion. Heartlight Provides Positive Resources for Daily Christian Living. Now he started out at about six o'clock in the morning, and hired these men who were standing in the marketplace to go out and work in his vineyard. Here is the Christian revolution; here is the complete reversal of all the world's standards. In the kingdom so much the less sparing is the retribution of those who despise or abuse grace. Matthew 20:16 Commentaries: "So the last shall be first, and the first He realizes he offers nothing special to the Master, and the skills he has are but gifts from the Master. As the apostles were the first-fruits of the whole church, they appeared to possess some superiority; and Christ did not deny that they would sit as judges to govern the twelve tribes of Israel. Whereas, on the contrary, there are other kinds of order that call for more profound thought and enlarged views, if we may speak now after the manner of men; and, indeed, I deny not that these the Holy Ghost employed in His own wisdom, though it is hardly needful to say He could, if He pleased, demonstrate His superiority to any means or qualifications whatsoever. All this is what happens when men take the poetry of love and try to turn it into man-made theories. In spite of their lack of merit, the good householder required them to pick it up, thus giving it to them in spite of their forfeiture. Three things the master of the house urges, in answer to this ill-natured surmise. Are you able to drink the cup that I am about to drink, and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with? They said to Him, We are able. So He said to them, You will indeed drink My cup, and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with; but to sit on My right hand and on My left is not Mine to give, but it is for those for whom it is prepared by My Father.. Here is the agreement made with the labourers (Matthew 20:1-7; Matthew 20:1-7); and here it will be asked, as usual. With God, as nothing is impossible, so no one, small or great, is despised: all is seen and put in its just place; and grace, which rebukes creature pride, can afford to deal divinely with the smallest as with the greatest. But it is expressly the pattern after which He was to deal, and will deal, with Israel. In our gospel we have not seen the apostles called and ordained. The people whose hearts are yielded to him will be recognized as his children no matter their rank or riches by worldly standards. The discontent arose not because of any injustice in the landowner, but because of jealousy in the all-day workers (Matthew 20:9-15). In heaven, every vessel will be full, brimful, though every vessel is not alike large and capacious. Nicodemus may be born again when he is old, and the old man may be put off, which is corrupt. They drew up by tribes, and lots were drawn to determine in what order every tribe should present its soldiers. Any worker was welcome, even if he could give only an hour to the work. get to know the Bible better! PREVIOUS Matthew 20:15 NEXT Matthew 20:17. Nevertheless, the Lord did not withhold the infinite boon, though He knew too well their thoughts; He spoke the word of forgiveness, though He read their evil heart that counted it blasphemy. Matthew 20 Commentary - John Gill's Exposition of the Bible 15 Is it not lawful for me to do what I will with mine own? To convince the murmurer that he did no wrong, he refers him to the bargain: "Didst not thou agree with me for a penny? But I am convinced that there are others who will receive either as great or even greater honor than will Billy Graham who you have never heard of. All of this takes the simple picture Jesus gave too far. Note, There is a great proneness in us to think that we have too little, and other too much, of the tokens of God's favour; and that we do too much, and others too little, in the work of God. Email / username or password was incorrect! The same indifference to the mere sequence of events is found occasionally in other parts of the gospel; but I have purposely dwelt upon this chapter 8, because here we have it throughout, and at the same time with evidence exceedingly simple and convincing. Israel must give full testimony in the bright day of His coming. "Dear Beloved,
The apostle Paul is known as a great missionary. He said unto them, Go also into the vineyard; and whatsoever is right, that is what you shall receive. After the creation of consuls, they every year named twenty-four military tribunes, part of whom must have served five years at least, and the rest eleven. So the last shall be first, and the first last. This was the very blessing that aroused, above all, the hatred of the scribes. This is the more to be noticed, inasmuch as the gospel of Matthew has been in general adopted as the standard of time, save by those who have rather inclined to Luke as supplying the desideratum. Now we see Jesus leaving Jericho, a great multitude of people thronging around Him, and these two blind men hearing the multitude passing by, and observing all of the bustle and activities saying, "what's going on, what's happening?" If it was His rejection, these scornful men were themselves rejected in the very act. When they had divided among them the command of the four legions to be formed, the consuls summoned to the capitol, or Campus Martius, all the citizens who, by their age, were obliged to bear arms. Not only shall the Judge of all the earth do right, but what will not He do who gives all good? By submitting your email address, you understand that you will receive email communications from Bible Gateway, a division of The Zondervan Corporation, 3900 Sparks Drive SE, Grand Rapids, MI 49546 USA, including commercial communications and messages from partners of Bible Gateway. That they had reason to fear, lest they themselves should be found hypocrites at last; for many are called but few chosen. When the account was taken; when the evening was come, then, as usual, the day-labourers were called and paid. But they in turn will deliver Him to the Gentiles, who will first of all mock Him. And you guessed it already its a quote from the bible \"so the last shall be first \u0026 the first last\"which of course made me think of a competition type challenge !!! He does not now compare the Jews to the Gentiles, (as in another passages) nor the reprobate, who swerve from the faith, to the elect who persevere; and therefore the sentence which is introduced by some interpreters, many are called, but few are chosen, does not apply to that point. His assessment is quite simply--how many people has he helped? Wisdom Literature We have, first, the sower sowing the word. These words of Jesus gave rise to an old and complicated theological question: to whom did Jesus pay the ransom? For less than $5/mo. For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard. This is one of the most revealing passages in the New Testament. (iv) Here, also, is the infinite compassion of God.