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Matthew 20

Jesus overturns claims to rank through the vineyard owner’s generosity and his own service, culminating in his death for many.

Jesus tells a parable about vineyard workers hired at different hours who all receive the same wage. The first workers protest, and the owner defends his generosity. On the road to Jerusalem, Jesus tells the twelve that he will be condemned, crucified, and raised. The mother of Zebedee’s sons then asks for places of honor for them, prompting Jesus to teach about service and his coming death. Outside Jericho, he stops to heal two blind men who call for mercy.

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1“For the Kingdom of Heaven is like a man who was the master of a household, who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard.
2When he had agreed with the laborers for a denarius a day, he sent them into his vineyard.
3He went out about the third hour, and saw others standing idle in the marketplace.
4He said to them, ‘You also go into the vineyard, and whatever is right I will give you.’ So they went their way.
5Again he went out about the sixth and the ninth hour, and did likewise.
6About the eleventh hour he went out and found others standing idle. He said to them, ‘Why do you stand here all day idle?’
7“They said to him, ‘Because no one has hired us.’ “He said to them, ‘You also go into the vineyard, and you will receive whatever is right.’
8“When evening had come, the lord of the vineyard said to his manager, ‘Call the laborers and pay them their wages, beginning from the last to the first.’
9“When those who were hired at about the eleventh hour came, they each received a denarius.
11When they received it, they murmured against the master of the household,
12saying, ‘These last have spent one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the day and the scorching heat!’
13“But he answered one of them, ‘Friend, I am doing you no wrong. Didn’t you agree with me for a denarius?
14Take that which is yours, and go your way. It is my desire to give to this last just as much as to you.
15Isn’t it lawful for me to do what I want to with what I own? Or is your eye evil, because I am good?’
16So the last will be first, and the first last. For many are called, but few are chosen.”
17As Jesus was going up to Jerusalem, he took the twelve disciples aside, and on the way he said to them,
18“Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be delivered to the chief priests and scribes, and they will condemn him to death,
19and will hand him over to the Gentiles to mock, to scourge, and to crucify; and the third day he will be raised up.”
20Then the mother of the sons of Zebedee came to him with her sons, kneeling and asking a certain thing of him.
21He said to her, “What do you want?” She said to him, “Command that these, my two sons, may sit, one on your right hand and one on your left hand, in your Kingdom.”
22But Jesus answered, “You don’t know what you are asking. 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.”
23He 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 hand is not mine to give, but it is for whom it has been prepared by my Father.”
24When the ten heard it, they were indignant with the two brothers.
25But Jesus summoned them, and said, “You know that the rulers of the nations lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them.
26It shall not be so among you; but whoever desires to become great among you shall be your servant.
27Whoever desires to be first among you shall be your bondservant,
28even as the Son of Man came not to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
29As they went out from Jericho, a great multitude followed him.
30Behold, two blind men sitting by the road, when they heard that Jesus was passing by, cried out, “Lord, have mercy on us, you son of David!”
31The multitude rebuked them, telling them that they should be quiet, but they cried out even more, “Lord, have mercy on us, you son of David!”
32Jesus stood still and called them, and asked, “What do you want me to do for you?”
34Jesus, being moved with compassion, touched their eyes; and immediately their eyes received their sight, and they followed him.
World English BibleRead in NIV in Psalmlog →Highlighted verses are the most connected.
Key verses
Matthew 20:28Jesus grounds his teaching about greatness in his own mission to serve and give his life for many.
Matthew 20:15The owner’s question exposes resentment toward generosity while affirming his right to give from what belongs to him.
Matthew 20:16This reversal closes the vineyard parable and prepares for Jesus’ challenge to the disciples’ desire for rank.
Where this chapter reaches

Mark and Luke share Jesus’ prediction of his suffering and resurrection, along with accounts of healing near Jericho; Mark also shares the request for places of honor. Isaiah and 1 Peter connect through the theme of a servant whose suffering and death bring rescue to others.

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Notice

After reading the whole chapter

What seems fair to you in the vineyard story, and how does the owner’s answer challenge that?

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How does Jesus’ response to the two blind men help you understand his teaching about greatness?

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Questions people ask about Matthew 20

Why do all the workers receive the same pay in Matthew 20?

The owner pays the first workers the denarius they agreed to receive, then chooses to give the same amount to those hired later. Their complaint concerns the others being made equal to them. Jesus uses the owner’s generosity to challenge claims to precedence in the Kingdom of Heaven.

What does the cup mean in Matthew 20?

The cup refers to the suffering Jesus is about to undergo. He has just described his condemnation, mocking, scourging, and crucifixion. When the brothers claim they can drink it, Jesus says they will share his suffering. Their future places of honor remain subject to the Father’s preparation.

What does ransom for many mean in Matthew 20:28?

A ransom is a price paid to secure someone’s release. Jesus describes his own life as that price, linking his coming death with the rescue of many. The statement explains the depth of his service. This verse does not identify a recipient of the payment or explain every aspect of the image.

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Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY). Scripture from the World English Bible (public domain). Arc diagram after Chris Harrison and Christoph Römhild (2007).