Matthew 20

For the kingdom of heaven is like unto a man that is an householder, which went out early in the morning to hire labourers into his vineyard.

1Jesus said, "God's kingdom is like a man who owned land. Early one morning he went out to hire workers for his grape field."

2And when he had agreed with the labourers for a penny a day, he sent them into his vineyard.

2He agreed to pay each worker one penny for the day. Then he sent them out to work.

NoteA "penny" here is a Roman coin called a denarius. It was one full day's pay for a worker.

3And he went out about the third hour, and saw others standing idle in the marketplace,

3About nine in the morning he went out again. He saw other men standing in the market with nothing to do.

NotePeople then counted hours from sunrise. The third hour is about nine in the morning, the sixth hour is noon, the ninth hour is three in the afternoon, and the eleventh hour is about five.

4And said unto them; Go ye also into the vineyard, and whatsoever is right I will give you. And they went their way.

4He said, "You go work in my grape field too. I will pay you what is fair." So they went.

5Again he went out about the sixth and ninth hour, and did likewise.

5About noon he went out again. He did the same thing at three in the afternoon.

6And about the eleventh hour he went out, and found others standing idle, and saith unto them, Why stand ye here all the day idle?

6About five in the afternoon he went out again. He found more men standing there. He asked, "Why have you stood here all day with nothing to do?"

7They say unto him, Because no man hath hired us. He saith unto them, Go ye also into the vineyard; and whatsoever is right, that shall ye receive.

7They said, "No one has hired us." He said, "You go work in my grape field too. You will get what is fair."

8So 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.

8When evening came, the owner spoke to the man in charge of his workers. He said, "Call the workers and pay them. Start with the ones hired last."

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

9The men hired at five in the afternoon came first. Each one was given a whole penny.

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

10The men hired early thought they would get more. But each of them was given one penny too.

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

11When they had their pay in hand, they complained about the owner of the land.

12Saying, 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.

12They said, "These last men worked only one hour. You paid them the same as us. We worked hard all day in the hot sun."

13But he answered one of them, and said, Friend, I do thee no wrong: didst not thou agree with me for a penny?

13The owner answered one of them. He said, "Friend, I am not being unfair to you. Did you not agree to work for one penny?"

14Take that thine is, and go thy way: I will give unto this last, even as unto thee.

14"Take your pay and go home. I want to give this last man the same as I gave you."

15Is it not lawful for me to do what I will with mine own? Is thine eye evil, because I am good?

15"The money is mine. Am I not allowed to do what I want with it? Are you jealous because I am kind?"

16So the last shall be first, and the first last: for many be called, but few chosen.

16"So the last ones will be first, and the first ones will be last. Many people are invited, but few are chosen."

17And Jesus going up to Jerusalem took the twelve disciples apart in the way, and said unto them,

17Jesus was going up to Jerusalem. He took his twelve close followers away from the crowd. On the road he said to them:

18Behold, we go up to Jerusalem; and the Son of man shall be betrayed unto the chief priests and unto the scribes, and they shall condemn him to death,

18"Listen. We are going up to Jerusalem. The Son of Man, the name Jesus used for himself, will be handed over. He will be given to the leading priests and the teachers of God's law. They will say he must die."

19And shall deliver him to the Gentiles to mock, and to scourge, and to crucify him: and the third day he shall rise again.

19"They will hand him over to people who are not Jews. Those people will make fun of him and whip him. They will nail him to a cross. On the third day he will rise and be alive again."

20Then came to him the mother of Zebedee’s children with her sons, worshipping him, and desiring a certain thing of him.

20Then the mother of Zebedee's sons came to Jesus with her two sons. She knelt down and asked him for something.

21And he said unto her, What wilt thou? She saith unto him, Grant that these my two sons may sit, the one on thy right hand, and the other on the left, in thy kingdom.

21He said, "What do you want?" She said, "When you are king, let my two sons sit beside you. Let one sit at your right side and one at your left."

22But Jesus answered and said, Ye know not what ye ask. Are ye able to drink of the cup that I shall drink of, and to be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with? They say unto him, We are able.

22Jesus said, "You do not know what you are asking. Can you drink the cup that I must drink? Can you go through what I must go through?" They said, "We can."

Note"Drink the cup" was a common way of saying "go through something very hard." Jesus is talking about the suffering ahead of him.

23And he saith unto them, Ye shall drink indeed of my cup, and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with: but to sit on my right hand, and on my left, is not mine to give, but it shall be given to them for whom it is prepared of my Father.

23He said, "Yes, you will drink my cup. You will go through what I go through. But I do not choose who sits at my right and my left. Those places belong to the ones my Father has made them ready for."

24And when the ten heard it, they were moved with indignation against the two brethren.

24The other ten followers heard about this. They were angry with the two brothers.

25But Jesus called them unto him, and said, Ye know that the princes of the Gentiles exercise dominion over them, and they that are great exercise authority upon them.

25Jesus called them all over to him. He said, "You know how rulers of other nations act. They boss their people around. Their important men order everyone about."

26But it shall not be so among you: but whosoever will be great among you, let him be your minister;

26"You must not be like that. Whoever wants to be great among you must serve the rest of you."

27And whosoever will be chief among you, let him be your servant:

27"And whoever wants to be first among you must serve everyone, like a slave."

28Even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.

28"The Son of Man did just that. He did not come to be waited on. He came to serve others. He came to give his life as the price that sets many people free."

29And as they departed from Jericho, a great multitude followed him.

29Jesus and his followers were leaving the town of Jericho. A big crowd went along with him.

30And, behold, two blind men sitting by the way side, when they heard that Jesus passed by, cried out, saying, Have mercy on us, O Lord, thou son of David.

30Two blind men were sitting beside the road. They heard that Jesus was going by. They shouted, "Lord, Son of David, please be kind to us!"

NoteDavid was a famous king of Israel long before. Calling Jesus "Son of David" meant he came from that king's family.

31And the multitude rebuked them, because they should hold their peace: but they cried the more, saying, Have mercy on us, O Lord, thou son of David.

31The crowd told them to be quiet. But they shouted even louder, "Lord, Son of David, please be kind to us!"

32And Jesus stood still, and called them, and said, What will ye that I shall do unto you?

32Jesus stopped walking. He called the two men over. He asked, "What do you want me to do for you?"

33They say unto him, Lord, that our eyes may be opened.

33They said, "Lord, we want our eyes opened so we can see."

34So Jesus had compassion on them, and touched their eyes: and immediately their eyes received sight, and they followed him.

34Jesus felt sorry for them and touched their eyes. Right away they could see. Then they followed him.