The Workers in the Vineyard

One

One of Jesus’ parables that’s sometimes difficult for us to deal with is the parable of the workers in the vineyard, found in Matthew, chapter 20.

To refresh your memory, here’s how it goes: The owner of a vineyard goes out first thing in the morning to hire some laborers to work for the day. Then he goes out again mid-morning, then again at noon, and then finally in the afternoon. Each time, he picks up another batch of people to work in his vineyard. Then, in the evening, he pays all his workers, and he begins by paying the people who had been working the least amount of time. And, to everyone’s surprise, he gives them a full day’s wage. Then he pays everyone else, including the folks who had been working all day. But he pays everyone the same, a full day’s wage. Understandably, the all-day workers protest that this isn’t fair. They worked longer. They feel like they should be paid more than the guys who just showed up. But the vineyard owner says, “Look, I’m giving you a totally just wage. Why do you care if I’m being generous to these other men?”

That’s the parable. So, what does it mean?

Two

There are many ways we can make this parable easier to understand.

For one thing, it is true that the parable is about how Jesus is going to offer equal salvation and equal status in God’s family not only to the Jews, who have been serving God for a long time, but also to the Gentiles, who are the Johnny-Come-Lately’s to the true faith.

We can also point out that this parable doesn’t imply that everyone in heaven will get the same amount of reward or glory. The guy who converts on his deathbed after a lifetime of atrocities is not going to get the same status in Heaven as Mary, Mother of God. That’s why Jesus also gives us the parable of the talents, where different servants of the King are rewarded with different amounts of money in the end.

But we also have to deal with the fact that in this parable, Jesus is condemning an attitude where we think it’s “unfair” that other people receive more from God than we do.

Three

Reimagining the Story: The First Brother

Let’s imagine this parable from a very different perspective so that we can see how the earlier workers should have responded to the generosity of the vineyard owner to those workers who came later.

Imagine you and your brother are war-torn refugees, living with your parents, your wives, and your kids, in a single house. You and your brother were once professionals, but in this new country are day laborers, and the whole household depends on what the two of you bring home in wages every day. Every day, the two of you go to different places and hope some farmer will pick you up for a day’s work. This morning, you go to stand around at a gas station, and your brother goes to wait at a strip mall parking lot. Sometimes you wait all day, and nobody picks you up. But today, fortunately, somebody comes with a truck at the crack of dawn and offers you work in a vineyard.

This is great! You’ll get a full day’s wage to bring home. If only your brother can get work too, the family will be in good shape.

Four

The Arrival of the Second Brother

All day, as you work in the vineyard, you see new truckloads of workers arriving. You keep an eye out for your brother, hoping he’ll make it too, but each time you’re disappointed because he’s not with the new groups.

Finally, in the late afternoon, a little before quitting time, the last truckload arrives. And look! There he is! Your brother finally made it!

You’re so happy. This is great! You’ll get a full day’s wage, and he’ll get a least a couple hours’ pay, and when you pool that money, it can keep your family going for a while. 

Then finally, the whistle blows. You wave to your brother, and the two of you get in line for your pay. He’s with the recent arrivals, and you’re with the all-day folks.

And then, when you see your brother get his pay, you can’t believe your good fortune.

Five

Love, not “Fairness”

Look! The vineyard owner has paid your brother a full day’s wage! God bless him! This is great! The two of you will be able to bring home a combined two days’ wages! This is great news for your family, it’s great news for you.

Some other people are complaining that the new guys are getting paid too much. You want to punch those guys in the face. What difference does it make to them how much your brother gets paid? And it’s a huge help for your family.

So, you go up and personally thank the vineyard owner not only for giving you a fair day’s pay but for being so generous to your brother.

See, this is love. Love doesn’t focus on what’s fair. It sees the other’s good as your own good. It knows that your brother’s pay is a good thing for your family and you rejoice in it!

This is the opposite of envy. It is a celebration of any good that happens to my neighbor, however generous. Because my neighbor is my brother and what is good for him is good for me.

Please God, give us this attitude towards every other person. Help us celebrate your generosity towards each and every one of your children. Help us love them as we love ourselves, and rejoice in something good that happens to them, knowing that what is good for them is good for us.