NOTES for Mat 20:1-16

The Gospel contains many "financial" parables that speak about a reward in heaven, about acquiring the Kingdom of God like a field containing treasure, and about capital that must be multiplied. Today's parable reveals another side of "heavenly accounting": those who have labored for God all their lives will receive the same reward as the idlers who barely managed to jump onto the departing train. The paradox of this approach may perhaps cool the ardor of some "seekers of the Kingdom" who are ready to labor for a reward. In fact, however, this parable simply transfers the notion of value or reward from the result to the process. The result, the final outcome, may be the same for everyone: "God all in all" (1 Cor 15:28), especially since it cannot be earned but can only be received as a gift. The special reward of those who are ready to labor is that they are already working together with God while others are still waiting for an invitation.