Wages or a Gift of Grace? – the Workers in the Vineyard (Mt 20:1-16)

[Stephan Choe]

July 28, 2026

Key verses 8-10: “When evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, ‘Call the workers and pay them their wages, beginning with the last ones hired and going on to the first.’ 9The workers who were hired about five in the afternoon came and each received a denarius. 10So when those came who were hired first, they expected to receive more. But each one of them also received a denarius.”

In this parable, a vineyard owner hires workers at various times of the day: some at sunrise (6 a.m.), others at noon, and still others at 3 p.m. or even 5 p.m. At the end of the day (6 p.m.), he pays every worker the same wage for a full day’s work.

Grace signifies the opposite of merit; merit implies that each person receives in proportion to what they have accomplished. The vineyard owner, however, is gracious and gives the full day's wage even to workers who worked only briefly.

Through this parable, Jesus explains that we receive child-ship of God, eternal life, and the Kingdom of Heaven not through merit, but through the grace of God.

If we wish to lead a blessed life of faith, we must rightly understand God’s grace and accept it with gratitude. In this way, we can fully enjoy God's grace and be gracious toward others.

May God help us to gratefully accept His grace—the forgiveness of sins, eternal life, and the Kingdom of Heaven.

1. The Parable of the Workers in the Vineyard

In Palestine, grapes ripen towards the end of September. For the Jewish people, one day begins at sunrise—the starting point of their reckoning of time. Accordingly, the third Jewish hour corresponded to 9:00 a.m. by our reckoning, the sixth hour to 12:00 noon, the ninth hour to 3:00 p.m., and the twelfth hour to the time of sunset. In those days, a day laborer typically worked from sunrise to sunset.

The standard daily wage at the time was one denarius. This was equivalent to the Greek drachma.

In those days, almost everyone lived from hand to mouth. A single denarius was barely enough to cover a family's daily needs. If a man could not find work for a day, his family would go hungry the next.

The marketplace served essentially as a labor market. Early in the morning, day laborers would gather there with their tools, hoping to find an employer.

Let us now consider the parable Jesus told.

Some day laborers rise early in the morning and go to the marketplace. They are eager to find work. Indeed, an employer appears as soon as the sun rises. He discusses the wages with them, and both sides quickly agree on one denarius per person. The workers are satisfied, for they have found work. In high spirits, they go to the vineyard and begin to work.

At nine o'clock in the morning, the employer returns to the marketplace. There, he finds people standing around idly. He says to them, "You too go into the vineyard and work; I will pay you a fair wage." Naturally, they gladly accept the offer and set to work.

At noon, the employer returns to the marketplace and sends some unemployed people to work. He does the same at 3 p.m.

And at five o'clock in the afternoon, he returns to the market square. He sees some people standing around idly. He asks them, "Why are you standing here doing nothing?" They answer him, "No one is giving us work!" Then he says, "You too go and work in my vineyard!"

As evening fell, the vineyard owner instructed his steward to pay the workers their wages—starting with those who had been hired later. Those who had worked from 5 p.m. onwards each received one denarius. Likewise, everyone who had started at 3 p.m. received a denarius, and so on.

Those who had worked since six in the morning also received a denarius. Then these workers began to grumble against the vineyard owner, saying, “The people who worked only one hour are getting the same wage as us, even though we bore the burden of the day and the heat” (12).

The vineyard owner replied, “Friend, I am doing you no wrong. Did you not agree with me on a denarius? Take your pay and go! But I want to give this last man just as much as you. Am I not allowed to do what I want with my money? Or do you look at me with envy because I am generous?”

Finally, Jesus says to his disciples—and also to us, “So the last will be first, and the first will be last.”

2. The Lesson of the Parable

People all over the world will side with the workers who had been working since six in the morning. Yet what does Jesus teach us through his parable?

The first point regarding the Kingdom of God is this: God knows our needs and provides for us.

In those days, every family needed a denarius daily for bread. The vineyard owner was kind and cared for people's needs; that is why he hired unemployed men even at 5 p.m. and gave them—just like everyone else—a denarius.

This employer is a symbol of God. God knows all our needs and cares for us solicitously. We should trust in His goodness and care. That is why Jesus says to us, “Do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will wear! So do not worry and do not ask, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ The Gentiles strive after all these things. Yet your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.” (Mt 6:25a, 31–32).

We are therefore to trust in God’s goodness and His care. He knows our needs precisely. He knows that we need both physical bread and eternal life. He cares for us lovingly. That is why He sent Jesus Christ to give us eternal life. When we trust in God’s care, we can experience deep peace of heart, thank God, and be a blessing to others.

The second point regarding the Kingdom of God is this: God grants us work for His Kingdom.

In this parable, the vineyard owner assigns work in his vineyard to everyone and pays them all the same wage at the end of the day. The one who has been working since sunrise grumbles against the vineyard owner. He fails to recognize that working in the vineyard is a blessing; instead, he views it merely as a burdensome chore.

The vineyard owner represents God. The workers represent Christians—or, in a broader sense, people in general. And the work in the vineyard can symbolize service to the Kingdom of God. Thus, this parable teaches us that working for the Kingdom of God is a blessing for us. For those who work for God over a long period, it is an even greater blessing.

Some people come to faith in their youth and work for the Kingdom of God throughout their lives. Others, however, come to faith later in life and serve God for a comparatively shorter time. Yet all believers receive eternal life and enter the Kingdom of Heaven.

Those who have served God since their youth should thank Him for it. It is truly a great blessing to be able to serve God over a long period of time. Whoever recognizes it as a great blessing to live and work for God—and thanks Him for it—is truly happy.

The third point regarding the Kingdom of God is this: God gives hope to the hopeless.

The parable resonates with us particularly because the vineyard owner hires workers as late as 3 p.m. and 5 p.m. and pays them a full day's wage.

We can easily imagine how dejected these people felt as they waited for work in the marketplace. They had repeatedly tried to find employment—but without success. When they finally arrived there at 3 or 5 p.m., they knew all too well that there was hardly any prospect of finding work. Yet without work, their families would have no money to buy bread the next day. Necessity had driven them to seek work; they were deeply discouraged.

But then, a compassionate vineyard owner came and gave them work. What a stroke of luck! He brought new light into their lives. That is exactly what Jesus is for us.

In reality, no one has any hope of eternal life, for God’s Word states in Romans 3:20 that no human being can be considered righteous before God—or enter the Kingdom of Heaven—based on their own deeds.

Yet God gives us hope, for through Jesus Christ, He has thrown wide the gate to the Kingdom of Heaven. All who are without hope can find new hope through Jesus Christ; no one need remain without hope.

There are many people who—like those day laborers—are still looking for work in the marketplace at 3 p.m., 5 p.m., or even shortly before 6 p.m. They have all but given up hope. Yet our God is like a gracious employer: through Christ, He grants us new hope. We should accept this hope with gratitude.

The fourth point regarding the Kingdom of God is as follows: God grants all believers child-ship, eternal life, and His Kingdom of Heaven.

In this parable, the vineyard owner gave all the workers the same amount of money, even though they had been hired at different times. Thus, this money was not a wage for work performed, but a gift from him.

People come to faith in Jesus Christ at different times. Some have believed since their youth and actively serve God, like Renate or David. Esther and I came to faith when we were about twenty years old. Others find faith later on. Still others come to faith only shortly before their death—like the hardened criminal on the cross.

Yet, regardless of this, God grants the same gift to all: child-ship, eternal life, and the Kingdom of Heaven.

We should accept these gifts with gratitude. Those who came to faith early should give thanks that they are permitted to labor in grace for a longer time. Those who came to faith later should thank God for His mercy.

The fifth point regarding the Kingdom of God is: God is gracious.

Those who had worked from sunrise to sunset believed that everyone should receive payment commensurate with the time they had worked. Yet the vineyard owner gave a denarius even to the worker who had labored for only one hour, because he needed it for his family. Our God is not bound by legalistic rules but is gracious. That is why He sacrificed His Son for our sins to wipe away our sin. God now forgives all who confess their sins and believe in Jesus Christ, and He warmly welcomes them into the Kingdom of Heaven.

Chapter 23 of the Gospel of Luke tells of a man who hung on the cross beside Jesus. He had committed a serious crime and had consequently been sentenced to death and nailed to the cross. Now he was dying. He no longer had any opportunity to enter the Kingdom of Heaven through a good deed. Yet he believed in Jesus as the Son of God and in His grace. He said to Jesus: "Jesus, remember me when You come into Your kingdom!"

How did Jesus answer the repentant, believing criminal? Jesus said to him, "Truly, I say to you: Today you will be with Me in Paradise!" (Luke 23:43). What a miracle! Without having performed a single good deed, the serious criminal was permitted to enter the Kingdom of Heaven! What grace!

This brazen criminal was like a worker who appears before the vineyard owner on payday just before 6 p.m. and receives his full day's wage.

If we were asked, “What characteristic distinguishes Christianity from other world religions?” we could answer without hesitation: “Grace.” Of course, there are other hallmarks of the Christian faith—such as justice, love, mercy, and so on. Yet the Christian faith places a special emphasis on grace, for it is through God’s grace that we are saved from sin and the power of death. Because Jesus died in our place for our sin, God forgives us and freely grants us eternal life and the Kingdom of Heaven. Grace is thus the defining characteristic of God regarding our salvation. We are saved by His grace, not by our good deeds. As Ephesians 2:8 states:

“For by grace you have been saved through faith—and this is not of yourselves; it is God’s gift to you—not because of works, so that no one can boast.”

Because of your sin and mine, God ought to condemn us both to hell. Yet God is merciful. He offers His grace to everyone. Since we have repented and believe in Jesus Christ, He grants us forgiveness. He absolves us of all sin, redeems us from condemnation, and warmly welcomes us as His children. Oh, how wonderful! Grace is truly the core message of the Bible. We should gratefully accept this grace and remain ever thankful to God. Naturally, we too should show grace to others.

Our Answer

We may be 14, 25, 30, 50, or 60 years old. We can compare our age to a time of day—9 a.m., noon, 3 p.m. Someone might be standing in the marketplace at 5 p.m., or even five minutes before six, looking for work.

That is precisely when God makes us an offer: to work for Him and receive the full day’s wage. He offers eternal life and the Kingdom of Heaven to everyone.

We might be 15, 25, 30, 50, or 60 years old. We can compare our age to the time of day—9 a.m., noon, 3 p.m., and so on. Someone might be standing in the marketplace at 5 p.m.—or even just five minutes before 6 p.m.—looking for work.

God makes us an offer: to work for Him and receive the full day’s wage. He offers eternal life and the Kingdom of Heaven to everyone.

How should we respond to His offer of grace? Should we say “no” simply because it is already 9 a.m., noon, 3 p.m., or 5 p.m.?

Everyone should reflect on God’s grace and give Him the right answer.

In doing so, we should remember the criminal on the cross who came to Jesus shortly before 6 p.m. and—without having done anything to earn it—gratefully accepted salvation and the Kingdom of Heaven.

What answer will you give God regarding His offer of grace? May God help you make the right decision.