Matthew 20:8

Mat 20:8. When even was come — Then, as usual, the day-labourers are called and paid. Faithful labourers shall receive a portion of their reward when they die. It is deferred till then, that they may exercise patience in waiting for it; but no longer. As soon as Paul, that faithful labourer, departs, he is with Christ. The general time of reckoning, indeed, and the full payment, will be after the resurrection, in the evening of the world. Then every one will receive according to the deeds done in the body. When time ends, and with it the world, then the state of retribution commenceth. Then it will be said, Call the labourers, and give them their hire. Observe, reader, ministers call them into the vineyard to do their work; death calls out of it to receive their penny: and to those to whom the call into the vineyard is effectual, the call out of it will be joyful. Observe again, they did not come for their pay till they were called: we must with patience wait God’s time for our rest and recompense.

Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

20:8 Payment followed the day’s work (Deut 24:14-15).

Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Mat 20:8. Ὀψίας δὲ γενομένης, but when even was come) A prophetic allusion is made to the Last Judgment. The evening of each individual’s life resembles the evening of the world.—ἀπὸ τῶν ἐσχάτων ἕως τῶν πρώτων, from the last unto the first) They were all divided into these two classes; for all are reckoned amongst the first, who came before the eleventh hour; see Mat 20:9-10.

Bengel's Gnomon of the New Testament — English translation (T&T Clark, Edinburgh, 1860) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Mat_20:8. Ὀψίας δὲ γεν.] i.e. at the close of the twelfth hour (six oclock in the evening).

τῷ ἐπιτρόπῳ αὐτοῦ] the chief of the servants (οἰκονόμος), to whom was entrusted the management of the household, Luk_8:3.

τὸν μισθόν] the wages in question. The οἰκονόμος had instructions from his master to give the same amount of wages to all, although all had not wrought the same number of hours.

ἕως τῶν πρώτων] is connected with ἀπόδος αὐτ. τ. μισθ., without anything requiring to be understood (and continuing, and such like), as is evident from those passages in which the terminus ad quem is placed first; for example, Plat. Legg. vi. p. 771 C: πάσας τὰς διανομὰς ἔχει μέχρι τῶν δώδεκα ἀπὸ μιᾶς ἀρξάμενος. Comp. Luk_23:5; Act_1:21; Joh_8:9.

Meyer — Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament — English translation by Peter Christie, edited by Frederick Crombie (T&T Clark, 1880) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Mat 20:8-12 . The evening settlement .

Mat 20:8 . ἀρξάμενος : a pregnant word, including not only the commencement of the process of paying but its progress. There is an ellipsis, καὶ ἐλθὼν being understood before ἔως (Kypke). Grotius thinks this does not really mean beginning with the last comers, but without regard to order of coming in, so that no one should be overlooked. He fails to see that the idiosyncrasy of the master is a leading point, indeed the key to the meaning of the parable. This beginning with the last is an eccentricity from an ordinary everyday-life point of view. The master chooses to do so: to begin with those who have no claims.

The Expositor's Greek Testament, edited by W. Robertson Nicoll (1897–1910) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

So when even was come--that is, the reckoning time between masters and laborers (see Deu 24:15); pointing to the day of final account.

the lord of the vineyard saith unto his steward--answering to Christ Himself, represented "as a Son over His own house" (Heb 3:6; see Mat 11:27; Joh 3:35; Joh 5:27).

Call the labourers and give them their hire, beginning from the last unto the first--Remarkable direction this--last hired, first paid.

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Verse 8. When the even was come] Six o'clock, the time they ceased from labour, and the workmen came to receive their wages.

Steward] επιτρωπος. A manager of the household concerns under the master. The rabbinical writers use the very same word, in Hebrew letters, for the same office, אפיטרופוס epitropos. See Kypke.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

(8) When even was come.—It was one of the humane rules of the Mosaic law that the day-labourer was to be paid by the day, and not made to wait for his wages (Deu_24:15). This law the householder keeps, and his doing so is a feature in his character.

Beginning from the last unto the first.—The order is not without its significance. It was a practical illustration of the words which had introduced the parable, that the last should be the first.

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And when they came that were hired about the eleventh hour,.... Who were the last that were hired; and signify either such, as are called in their last days, in old age; or Gentile sinners; or the last of God's elect, that will be called by grace, in the end of the world:

they received every man a penny: the same they first agreed for, that were hired early into the vineyard; and all, and every man alike, not one more and another less. So the same church privileges and immunities are common to all believers, Jews or Gentiles, sooner or later called; and equal title give to the same eternal life and happiness, which will be enjoyed alike, by one saint as another: they are all loved with the same everlasting love by God; they are chosen alike by him in his Son, at the same time, in the same way and manner, and to the same grace and glory; they are interested in the same covenant, in all the promises and blessings of it; they are bought with the same price of a Redeemer's blood, are justified by the same righteousness, and are called in one hope of their calling; they are equally the sons of God, and their glory and happiness are always expressed by the same thing, as a kingdom, a crown, and inheritance, &c. They are all equally heirs of the same kingdom and glory, and are born again to the same incorruptible inheritance, of which they will all be partakers; they will all be called to inherit the same kingdom, they will sit on the same throne of glory, and wear the same crown of righteousness, and enjoy the same uninterrupted communion with Father, Son, and Spirit. Now, indeed, they have not the same measures of grace; some have more, others less; but in heaven, it will be alike, complete and perfect in all; and even now, they have the same grace for nature and kind, only it is not in all in the same exercise; now the saints are distinguished by the several stations and places in which they are; though they are members of the same body, they have not the same office, and have gifts differing from one another; but in the other state, all such offices and gifts will cease, and all will be upon an equal foot; be where Christ is, and behold his glory, and will stand in no need of each other's instruction and help. Now the capacities of man are different, according to the different temperament of their bodies, their different education, opportunities, advantages, and stations in life, but in the other world, where this difference will be no more, every vessel of mercy being prepared for glory, will be equally capable of receiving it: and though there will be degrees of punishment in hell, proportionate to the sins of men, which the justice of God requires, yet it follows not, that there will be degrees in glory; since that is not proportioned to the works of men, but springs from the grace of God, and yet in a way of justice too, through the blood, righteousness, and sacrifice of Christ: and since the saints have an equal interest in these things, it seems that upon the foot of justice, they should equally enjoy all that happiness which these entitle them to.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

8 So when even was come, the lord of the vineyard saith unto his steward, Call the labourers, and give them their hire, beginning from the last unto the first.

Ver. 8. Saith unto his steward] That is, to his Son Christ, whom he hath made judge of all, to give unto every man according to his works. This he will do with demonstration of his singular both justice (so that none shall receive less than was promised him) and mercy (so that all shall receive more than they deserved). For although their penny be here called their hire, and elsewhere their reward, yea, their wages, yet all is of grace.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

When even was come - That is, when the twelfth hour had come; the day was ended, and the time of payment was come.

The steward - A steward is one who transacts business in the place of another. He was one who had the administration of affairs in the absence of the householder, who provided for the family, and who was entrusted with the payment of laborers and servants. He was commonly the most trusty and faithful of the servants, raised to that station as a reward for his fidelity.

Beginning from the last unto the first - It was immaterial where he began to pay, provided he dealt justly by them. In the parable this order is mentioned to give opportunity for the remarks which follow. Had those first hired been first paid, they would have departed satisfied, and the point of the parable would have been lost.

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

When even was come. According to Mosaic Law, (Deu_24:15) a hired labourer was to be paid his wages at sunset, i.e. at the twelfth hour. Steward. The lord himself is said to have hired the labourers, but he commits the payment of them to his steward, as his representative, to whom such matters of detail were entrusted. From the last. Those last hired were first to receive their hire (ton), that which it had been agreed to pay them, in one case "a penny," in the others "that which was just." Why the last are rewarded first is one of the difficulties of the parable. To say that this is done because in their one hour"s work they did more than all the rest, is a solution which is supported by nothing in the story itself. It should, in the primary interpretation, rather be conceived as depending on the lord"s good pleasure.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

In the evening - Of life; or of the world.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

The settlement at evening:

v. 8. So when even was come, the lord of the vineyard saith unto his steward, Call the laborers, and give them their hire, beginning from the last unto the first.

v. 9. And when they came that were hired about the eleventh hour, they received every man a penny.

v. 10. But when the first came, they supposed that they should have received more; and they likewise received every man a penny.

v. 11. And when they had received it, they murmured against the goodman of the house,

v. 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.

Six o’clock came, and the master gave the foreman, or steward, one of whose duties was the paying of the laborers, the command to call the workmen and pay them their wages. The order of payment is significant: He should begin with those that came and worked but one hour; commencing with the last one he should continue down the line to the first ones. Each one should receive the full amount of his hire, the amount which the householder had indicated to the steward. A very important point: According to common usage, the length of the employment decided the amount of the wages; the day-laborer that worked only a few hours received less than he that worked all day. But when those of about the eleventh hour came, they received each one his denarius , just as though he had worked a full day. Evidently there was here a case of a free gift or present, whether the other workmen wanted to consider the master as extravagant and foolish or not. But they, seeing this liberality, drew a wrong conclusion. When the first ones came, they that had been hired by regular contract in the morning, they eagerly expected a greater amount than the others had gotten. To their great chagrin, only the money named in the contract of the morning was forthcoming: Also they received each one his denarius. Now they accepted the money, but they immediately began and continued to voice their dissatisfaction. They murmured against the manager or ruler of the estate. Their complaint is excellently put, they express their contempt for the laborers of the eleventh hour. These last, they say, put in only one hour, they have spent that much time without really accomplishing anything worth speaking of, and equal thou hast made them to us, to us that have been obliged to bear the burden of the day’s work, and the scorching heat of noonday into the bargain. What was one hour of late afternoon in comparison with that? And yet their pay is the same?

The application of this part of the parable to the work of the kingdom of Christ is not difficult. It teaches us both to avoid envy and to yield honors to those whom the Lord honors. "Whosoever has the gifts of Jesus and knows that we are all equal in Christ, he tends to his work gladly, though he here on earth, for this short time, be in a humbler position and station than some other one. For there it shall be arranged so that in the external life there is a dissimilarity, that one has much, the other little; that one is master, the other servant. That does not bother a Christian, but he says: In God’s name, here on earth it shall not be otherwise; though I have a more difficult station than the master or the mistress of the house; though I be not so powerful as a prince, king, or emperor; yet will I not murmur about it, but gladly and willingly remain in my station, until God deals differently with me and also makes me a master or mistress. In the meantime, I comfort myself with this fact that I know neither emperor nor king has another Christ nor more of Christ than I. " And so far as the giving of equal rewards of grace to all believers, to all members of the kingdom, is concerned, there shall be no pointing to a greater amount of good works before God, as though they were able to merit anything in His sight. "All work-saints must necessarily have such pride that know nothing of the grace of God and believe to be their own what they are able to do and what they perform, and that the Lord shall not judge according to His goodness, but according to the weight and ponderousness of their works. But whosoever has realized what grace means, he is not surprised, if God gives the same reward for the small and for the great works."

Paul E. Kretzmann, Popular Commentary of the Bible (1921–1924) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Here observe, 1. That the time of God’s full rewarding of his labourers, is the evening of their days; that is, when their work is done. When the evening was come, the lord of the vineyard called his labourers, and gave them their hire; not but that they have part of their reward in hand, but it is chiefly laid up in hope.

Observe, 2. That though God makes no difference in his servants wages for the time of their work, yet he will make a difference for the degrees of their service. Undoubtedly, they that have done most work, shall receive most wages. He that soweth bountifully, shall reap bountifully: God will reward every man according to his works; that is, not only according to the nature and quality, but the measure and degree, of his work. All shall have equity, but all shall not have equal bounty.

Observe, 3. That all inequality in the distribution of rewards, doth not make God an unjust accepter of persons; he may dispense both grace and glory, in what measure and degree he pleases, without the least shadow of unrighteousness. Is it not lawful for me to do what I will with mine own?

Observe, 4. That when we have done much service for God, by labouring longer than others in his vineyard, it is our duty to have a low esteem both of our services and of ourselves, for the first shall be last, and the last first: that is, they that are first and highest in their own esteem, shall be the last and least in God’s account.

William Burkitt's Expository Notes on the New Testament (1700–1703) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

8. Saith unto his steward. The steward, to whom the duty of paying the laborers is assigned, probably represents Christ.

B. W. Johnson's The People's New Testament with Notes (1889–1891) — public domain. Electronic text from the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (CCEL) ThML edition.

Connecting Statement:

Jesus continues telling a parable. (See: Parables)

beginning from the last to the first

You can make clear the understood information. AT: "beginning with the workers who started working last, then the workers who started working earlier, and finally the workers who started working first" or "first paying the workers I hired last, then paying the workers I hired earlier in the day, and finally paying the workers I hired first"

who had been hired

This can be stated in active form. AT: "whom the landowner hired" (See: Active or Passive)

one denarius

This was the daily wage at that time. AT: "one day's wages" (See: Biblical Money)

translationWords

manager

hour

unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.

8. τῷ ἐπιτρόπῳ. ‘To his steward,’ as in Luk 8:3, Ἰωάννα γυνὴ Χουζᾶ ἐπιτρόπου Ἡρώδου. In the only other passage where the word occurs in the N.T., Gal 4:2, ἐπίτροποι, ‘guardians’ of a minor’s person, are distinguished from οἰκόνομοι, stewards of his property. The word was Hebraized and used in both these senses by Rabbinical writers (Schöttgen ad loc. cit.).

Cambridge Greek Testament for Schools and Colleges (Cambridge University Press, 1896; 21 vols, various authors incl. Carr, Maclear, Plummer, Farrar, Lumby, Moule, M. R. James, Simcox) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

8.] By the Mosaic law (Deu 24:15) the wages of an hired servant were to be paid him before night. This was at the twelfth hour, or sunset: see ver. 12. I do not think the ἐπίτροπος must be pressed as having a spiritual meaning. If it has, it represents Christ (see Heb 3:6, and ch. 11:27).

ἀρξάμενος is not merely expletive, but definite, as in Luk 23:5.

Henry Alford, The Greek Testament (1849–1861) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

8. And when it was evening, the master of the vineyard saith to his bailiff, Summon the labourers, and pay to them the wage, beginning from the last unto the first.]—ὲπίτροπος] has passed into Jewish usage; see Dalman, Wörterbuch.

(L)

International Critical Commentary — older volumes (1896–1929), various authors — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.