The kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out at dawn to hire laborers for his vineyard. 2 After agreeing with them for the usual daily wage, he sent them into his vineyard. 3 Going out about nine o’clock, he saw others standing idle in the marketplace, 4 and he said to them, ‘You too go into my vineyard, and I will give you what is just.’ 5 So they went off. [And] he went out again around noon, and around three o’clock, and did likewise. 6 Going out about five o’clock, he found others standing around, and said to them, ‘Why do you stand here idle all day?’ 7 They answered, ‘Because no one has hired us.’ He said to them, ‘You too go into my vineyard.’ 8 When it was evening the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, ‘Summon the laborers and give them their pay, beginning with the last and ending with the first.’ 9 When those who had started about five o’clock came, each received the usual daily wage. 10 So when the first came, they thought that they would receive more, but each of them also got the usual wage. 11 And on receiving it they grumbled against the landowner, 12 saying, ‘These last ones worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us, who bore the day’s burden and the heat.’ 13 He said to one of them in reply, ‘My friend, I am not cheating you. Did you not agree with me for the usual daily wage? 14 Take what is yours and go. What if I wish to give this last one the same as you? 15 [Or] am I not free to do as I wish with my own money? Are you envious because I am generous?’ 16 Thus, the last will be first, and the first will be last.”
This parable is about God’s generosity which he showers upon all. It begins with a comparison between the kingdom of heaven and a landowner, symbolizing God. The vineyard is a biblical metaphor for the Church (Is. 5:1-7), and the landowner’s action of going out at dawn, when the Jewish workday begins, suggests God’s initiative in calling people to His service.
The landowner makes an agreement with the workers, promising them a denarius, which was the standard wage for a day’s labor at the time. This represents the just reward offered to those who serve God. The denarius also symbolizes eternal life offered to those who labor in the service of the kingdom. At various intervals throughout the day, the landowner finds more workers willing to serve and promises to give them “what is just.” The landowner’s repeated recruitment of laborers shows God’s persistence and that the kingdom is open to everyone at all times. The final group hired at the eleventh hour (5 PM) represents those who responded to God’s call late in life and still received an invitation to join in the work.
Evening represents the end of the workday and, allegorically, the end of life or time, when God's judgment and rewards are dispensed. The foreman was instructed to pay the last-hired workers first and all workers, regardless of their time worked, received equal pay. This symbolized the gratuitous nature of God's grace. Whether early or late, God's gift of salvation is not based on human merit or the duration of one's service but on His generosity. The workers hired first expected more than the others, reflecting the human tendency to measure God's justice by earthly standards. Their grumbling symbolizes the attitude of those who feel entitled to more due to their longer service or stricter observance of the law, much like the Pharisees and others in Jesus' time who viewed themselves as more deserving of God's favor. Their disappointment reveals the challenge of accepting divine generosity that transcends human conceptions of fairness.
The landowner's defense of his actions highlights that no injustice has been done—the first-hired workers receive exactly what was agreed upon. His response underlines God's sovereignty in dispensing grace according to His will. The question "Are you envious because I am generous?" exposes the workers' envy and challenges the human tendency to begrudge others the blessings of God’s mercy. Expectations are sometimes reversed in the kingdom of heaven. Those considered least, including latecomers or sinners, may be first in God’s eyes due to His mercy, while those who rely on their own perceived righteousness may find themselves last. Entrance into the kingdom depends on God's grace, not human merit.
Almighty God, you offer us the generous gift of Your grace out of love, not because of our merit. Help us to trust in Your justice and rejoice in the blessings You bestow on others. Free our hearts from envy and pride, that we may humbly serve in Your vineyard, grateful for the gift of eternal life You promise to all who respond to Your call. This we pray through Christ our Lord. Amen!
References
- McSorley, Joseph. An Outline History of the Church by Centuries (From St. Peter to Pius XII). 2nd ed., B. Herder Book Co., 1944.
- Orchard, Bernard, et al. A Catholic Commentary on Holy Scripture. Feb. 1953.
- Chiu, José Enrique Aguilar, et al. The Paulist Biblical Commentary. Paulist Press, 2018.
- Faculty of the University of Navarre. The Navarre Bible: New Testament Expanded Edition. Four Courts / Scepter, 2008.
- Brown, Raymond Edward, et al. The New Jerome Biblical Commentary. Prentice Hall, 1990.
- Charpentier, Etienne. How to Read the Old Testament. Translated by John Bowden, 1981.
- Komonchak, Joseph, et al., editors. The New Dictionary of Theology.
- McKenzie, John. Dictionary of the Bible. Collier Books, 1965.
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