Matthew 20:1-16
““For the Kingdom of Heaven is like a man who was a householder, who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard. When he had agreed with the laborers for a denarius a day, he sent them into his vineyard. He went out about the third hour, and saw others standing idle in the marketplace. He said to them, ‘You also go into the vineyard, and whatever is reasonable I will give you.’ So they went their way. Again he went out about the sixth and the ninth hour, and did likewise. About the eleventh hour he went out and found others standing idle. He said to them, ‘Why do you stand here all day idle?’ They said to him, ‘Because no one has hired us.’ He said to them, ‘You also go into the vineyard, and you will receive whatever is reasonable.’ When evening had come, the lord of the vineyard said to his steward, ‘Call the laborers and pay them their wages, beginning from the last to the first.’ When those who were hired at about the eleventh hour came, they each received a denarius. When the first came, they supposed that they would receive more; and they likewise each received a denarius. When they received it, they grumbled against the householder, saying, ‘These last have worked one hour, and you have made them equal to us, who have borne the burden of the day and the scorching heat!’ But he answered one of them, ‘Friend, I am doing you no wrong. Didn’t you agree with me for a denarius? Take that which is yours, and go your way. It is my desire to give to this last just as much as to you. Isn’t it lawful for me to do what I want with my own money? Or is your eye evil, because I am good?’ So the last will be first, and the first last. For many are called, but few chosen.””
This parable is found in the Gospel of Matthew, one of the earliest accounts of Jesus's life and teachings, likely written in the late first century CE for a predominantly Jewish-Christian audience. Jesus tells this story about a vineyard owner and his workers to illustrate principles of the 'Kingdom of Heaven' in a way that challenged common assumptions about fairness and reward.
What does this passage reveal about our own expectations regarding fairness and deservingness in labor and reward?