MATTHEW—NOTE ON MATTHEW 20:1 THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN IS LIKE. See note on 13:24. VINEYARD. Israel was often referred to as the “vine” or “vineyard” of God (e.g., Isaiah 5:1; Jeremiah 2:21; Hosea 10:1). “Vineyard” here represents the activity of the kingdom in this world. ⇐... [ Continue Reading ]
MATTHEW—NOTE ON MATTHEW 20:2 DENARIUS. A typical day’s wage for a laborer. THIRD HOUR. 9:00 A.M. The workday was typically divided into four three-hour parts, running from approximately 6:00 A.M. to 6:00 P.M. ELEVENTH HOUR. 5:00 P.M., near the end of the workday. These workers are desperate enough t... [ Continue Reading ]
MATTHEW—NOTE ON MATTHEW 20:16 SO THE LAST WILL BE FIRST, AND THE FIRST LAST. Jesus is not denying degrees of reward in heaven (see note on 1 Cor. 3:14–15). He affirms that God’s generosity is more abundant than anyone would expect. Jesus is probably also warning his early followers that they should... [ Continue Reading ]
MATTHEW—NOTE ON MATTHEW 20:17 THE SON OF MAN WILL BE DELIVERED OVER. This is the third of four predictions of Jesus’ arrest and crucifixion. See note on 16:21; see also Matthew 17:22 and Matthew 26:2. ⇐ ⇔ ⇒ var images = document.getElementsByTagName... [ Continue Reading ]
MATTHEW—NOTE ON MATTHEW 20:20 Salome (see Matthew 27:56; Mark 15:40; Mark 16:1) was the MOTHER OF THE SONS OF ZEBEDEE. She was also probably the sister of Mary, Jesus’ mother (see John 19:25). If so, James and John were Jesus’ cousins. WITH HER SONS. Mark 10:35 focuses on the sons themselves and rep... [ Continue Reading ]
MATTHEW—NOTE ON MATTHEW 20:21 THAT THESE TWO SONS OF MINE ARE TO SIT. Salome’s petition was likely inspired by Jesus’ remarks in Matthew 19:28, where he had announced the Twelve’s rulership with him in his future kingdom. RIGHT HAND. A place of honor (1 Kings 2:19; Psalms 16:11; Psalms 110:1).... [ Continue Reading ]
MATTHEW—NOTE ON MATTHEW 20:22 YOU. The plural pronoun indicates that Jesus addressed the mother and the brothers directly. The CUP in Scripture is symbolic of what God has determined will happen (compare Psalms 16:5; Isaiah 51:17). Here it refers to Jesus’ future suffering (Matthew 26:39). ⇐... [ Continue Reading ]
MATTHEW—NOTE ON MATTHEW 20:23 YOU WILL DRINK MY CUP. James was the first apostle martyred (Acts 12:2). John suffered persecution and exile (Revelation 1:9). ⇐ ⇔ ⇒ var images = document.getElementsByTagName("img"); for (var i=0, len=images.length, img; i [ Continue Reading ]
MATTHEW—NOTE ON MATTHEW 20:24 INDIGNANT. They were probably upset by the brothers’ attempt to use their family relationship to gain an unfair advantage in getting what the other disciples also wanted. ⇐ ⇔ ⇒ var images = document.getElementsByTagName("img"); for (var i=0, len=images.length, img; i [ Continue Reading ]
MATTHEW—NOTE ON MATTHEW 20:28 SON OF MAN. See note on 8:20. CAME NOT TO BE SERVED BUT TO SERVE. Jesus will give his life as a RANSOM (that is, the price of release, often referring to the money paid to release slaves) FOR MANY. “For,” as used here, means “in place of.” It signifies the substitution... [ Continue Reading ]
MATTHEW—NOTE ON MATTHEW 20:29 JERICHO. Not the ancient OT city (Joshua 5:1), but the new Jericho, about a mile (1.6 km) to the south of the older city. Matthew says the healing of the blind men took place AS THEY WENT OUT of Jericho (and Mark 10:46 agrees), but Luke 18:35 says it was “as he drew nea... [ Continue Reading ]
MATTHEW—NOTE ON MATTHEW 20:30 TWO BLIND MEN. Mark 10:46 and Luke 18:35 mention only one blind man, and Mark gives his name (“Bartimaeus”). This does not mean that Matthew’s report of two blind men is inaccurate, only that Mark and Luke focused on one of them. SON OF DAVID. See note on Matt. 9:27. ⇐... [ Continue Reading ]