Matthew 20:12

‘These men who were hired last worked only one hour,’ they said, ‘and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden and the scorching heat of the day.’

Berean Standard Bible

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Study note

Setting — The early-hired laborers speak to the landowner immediately after receiving their pay, complaining that latecomers received equal wages despite working only one hour. This exchange occurs mid-parable, directly following their receipt of the denarius and preceding the owner’s reply.

The words — The Greek ἔσχατοι (eschatoi) means “last,” marking the chronological order of hiring, while ἐποίησαν (epoiēsan) translates as “worked,” stressing the brief duration of the latecomers’ labor. These terms ground the complaint in measurable time and effort rather than abstract merit.

The thread — The text notes a remnant chosen by grace in Romans 11:5 and Paul’s claim of harder labor in 2 Corinthians 11:23, while Luke 12:55 records the south wind bringing scorching heat. These passages track the same tension between earned effort and unmerited distribution.

Why it lands — The verse demands a reader confront the difference between proportional fairness and sovereign generosity. It asks whether you will measure value by hours logged or accept the giver’s right to distribute as he chooses.

Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.

The Greek words

King James Version

Saying, 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.

Cross-references

Romans 11:5 In the same way, at the present time there is a remnant chosen by grace.
2 Corinthians 11:23 Are they servants of Christ? (I am speaking as if I were out of my mind.) I am so much more: in harder labor, in more imprisonments, in worse beatings, in frequent danger of death.
Luke 12:55 And when the south wind blows, you say, ‘It will be hot,’ and it is.
Luke 14:10 But when you are invited, go and sit in the last place, so that your host will come and tell you, ‘Friend, move up to a better place.’ Then you will be honored in front of everyone at the table with you.
Luke 18:11 The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed, ‘God, I thank You that I am not like other men—swindlers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector.
1 Corinthians 4:11 To this very hour we are hungry and thirsty, we are poorly clothed, we are brutally treated, we are homeless.
Isaiah 58:2 For day after day they seek Me and delight to know My ways, like a nation that does what is right and does not forsake the justice of their God. They ask Me for righteous judgments; they delight in the nearness of God.”
Jonah 4:8 As the sun was rising, God appointed a scorching east wind, and the sun beat down on Jonah’s head so that he grew faint and wished to die, saying, “It is better for me to die than to live.”
Zechariah 7:3 by asking the priests of the house of the LORD of Hosts, as well as the prophets, “Should I weep and fast in the fifth month, as I have done these many years?”
Malachi 1:13 You also say: ‘Oh, what a nuisance!’ And you turn up your nose at it,” says the LORD of Hosts. “You bring offerings that are stolen, lame, or sick! Should I accept these from your hands?” asks the LORD.