The Penny Parable – (Matthew 19:30 — 20:16)
The Lesson
The first important item to notice about this parable is that Jesus interprets its intent by sandwiching it in between 19:30 and 20:16, both of which state that the first will be last, and the last will be first. Thus the lesson is clearly about the possibility that if we improperly think ourselves privileged now, and that that gives us some special immunities, we will find ourselves at the end of the line later.
The Context
Before the parable is offered to us by our Master, we find a very telling incident in Chapter 19. In 19:16, Jesus is approached by the rich young ruler. There can be little question that this incident occurred. But it is likely that it also constitutes an allegory. Just as the “rich man” in the Luke 16 parable represented Israel, it is likely that the young rich man here represents the sincere of that nation. But sincerity is not the whole test. The young man was quite willing to keep the Law, but he was not willing to give up the Law. When Jesus admonishes him to “sell his possessions,” the request is too much for him. Yet, it was this very thing that Jesus requested of a faithful remnant from Israel. They were to sell their status as natural Israelites and keepers of the Law, and rather, to spread the true Gospel to “the poor” — those who hunger and thirst after righteousness. But the rich man “went away grieved.” He valued his imagined superior status to be greater than the offer Jesus was making. Hence, he who was first in position (Israel), ultimately becomes last. Jesus acknowledges that giving up status is extremely difficult, but that is imperative before someone can “enter the Kingdom of God.”
The disciples were troubled; but Peter acknowledges that they had “left everything and followed” Jesus. Jesus assures that this will put them in first place, sitting “upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel” — those represented by the rich man who, indeed, loses the real riches! Jesus thus concludes that “many who are first will be last and the last, first.” He then illustrates this with the parable that follows.
After the parable, Jesus demonstrates how his coming crucifixion will make it APPEAR that he is “last,” but that “He will be raised up.” That is, he will come in FIRST!
Even the little episode which next appears deals with the same concepts. The mother of James and John wants her sons in first place in the Kingdom. Jesus says that it will all depend on their faithful cup-drinking and that his Father will make the determinations.
It cannot be overlooked that Jesus takes James and John aside and repeats the “first-and-last” lesson. He does it in different words; but is that not exactly the meaning of 20:2 and 27? “Whoever wishes to become great among you shall be your servant, and whoever wishes to be first among you shall be your slave (= last).”
Seeing this wonderful contextual placement of the Penny Parable, it is considerably easier to give it a successful interpretation.
What Kind of Parable Is This?
Is this parable HISTORIC? No. If it represented the Jewish Age, there was no way the earlier Jews could be around to grumble about the latter Jews. And there seems no way of successfully applying it historically to the Jewish Harvest. It should not be overlooked contextually, however, that at least in part, there is a connection with the thought that the rich young ruler is losing first place to the socially last- place disciples. But the parable also is inseparably connected to the end of the Gospel Age when those disciples will sit on thrones. The fact that the parable is about “the Kingdom of Heaven” most positively excludes its being about the Jewish Age.
Is this parable PROPHETIC? Again, this seems not possible. If it were prophetic of the whole Gospel Age, the same objection applies as it does to the Jewish Age. If it were prophetic of the Gospel Harvest, which at this writing is 140 years old, the same impossibilities apply. We know of a certainty that the grumbling has to be in the flesh, not on the other side of the veil! NEVERTHELESS, we think the parable will hint within itself of a PARTIAL Gospel Harvest prophetic connection.
The parable unquestionably is PRIMARILY a LESSON or CHARACTER parable. As noted, Jesus says it is to teach that some of “the favored” will find themselves less favored, and some of “the least” will find themselves thrust into a most favored condition. This parable is a lesson as to how this will become apparent.
Five Dispensational Applications
We know the basic character lesson of the parable. Thus, we can apply its character concepts to at least five different situations.
(1) The JEWISH AGE was “first” in time. But SPIRITUAL ISRAEL (the “last” in time) will be first in the honors when the Abrahamic promise is fulfilled.
(2) At the FIRST ADVENT, the “first” would be the doctors and adherents of the Law. The “last” would be the publicans, sinners, fishermen, etc.
(3) During the GOSPEL AGE, the “first” would be the “ordained” clerics of “orthodoxy.” The “last” would be the questioners, the preachers of reform, and the sincere disciples whose simple lives and services and requests for information were rudely pushed aside.
(4) At the GOSPEL HARVEST, the “first” would be the proponents of traditional Christianity. The “last” would be the “untrained” Bible students of the Harvest whose doctrinal positions appear heretical to the “faithful” bound in their denominations.
(5) Among HARVEST SAINTS, the “first” would be the hyper-authoritarian elders and the Great Multitude of happy and satisfied The “last” would be the faithful, persistent, and humble Bride class.
Definition
The meaning of the penny (or denarius) is important to any interpretation. It seemingly cannot be the reward.
Everyone receives the same penny. Besides, the reward is not paid on this side of the veil and could not, therefore, be subject to grumbling. The “penny” is paid on this side of the veil and causes grumbling.
The penny is specifically offered at the beginning of the day (20:2). It is specified as the in-common payment to ALL when the day is done (20:9). All of the shorter-period workers (20:3-7) are offered “whatever is right.” “Whatever is right” turns out to be THE SAME PAY for the same commitment to enter the vineyard. They end up being paid for commitment — not for the day. Thus, the penny represents FULL INCLUSION. Every consecrated person is offered and receives the same STATUS. All are considered equals. There is not a “first” or a “last” among us. There is ONE LORD, and the rest of us are brethren sharing the same honors.
Apparently, in the parable, this BOTHERS some of us. We begin to think that our length of service, our abilities to work in one way or another, our mental capabilities, our prominence, or ANY OTHER “difference” actually gives us privileges above others. WOE to us if we so think! This constitutes THE WARNING MESSAGE of this parable.
The penny is simply our Lord’s saying, “I have given you all the same great privilege of service.”
A Hint of Prophetic Intent
There is an easily-missed numerical key in the parable.
First, it is important for us to realize an element of timekeeping. An hour begins 60 minutes before the time for which it is named. Hence, if we begin a day at midnight (12:00 a.m.), the FIRST HOUR of the day runs FROM midnight until 1:00 a.m. Thus the “first hour” ends at 1:00 A.M., but began at midnight. In the parable, the vineyard master goes out at the opening of the day, and then he goes out at the 3rd, 6th, 9th, and 11th hours. (Obviously, the parable does not begin at midnight, but our illustration of timekeeping is easier that way.) So, he did not go out at 3, 6, 9, and 11. He went out at 2, 5, 8, and 10, which constituted the BEGINNINGS of the 3rd, 6th, 9th, and 11th hours.
It should strike us that it is not 3, 6, 9, and 12 — a nicely balanced sequence with 3 hours between each hiring. For some reason — an important one — he goes out to hire at the 11th hour, not the 12th.
Why didn’t the master of the vineyard go out at the 12th hour? We believe that Jesus was interjecting a prophetic element into the parable. THIS DAY doesn’t have twelve work hours! It is an eleven-hour work day. The “night” was coming early. It was probably late in the year when daylight didn’t last twelve hours. They all were “paid” (they had all received all of their vineyard labors finished) when the twelfth hour BEGAN.
In the parable, it says (20:8), “And when evening had come.” It was not at the end of twelve hours. It was at the end of eleven hours. How do we know? We know it because the last group went in at the eleventh hour (which began when ten hours had expired), and they “worked only one hour” (20:12). Hence they were paid, and evening (apparently the darkness of night) began as the twelfth hour began. It is altogether possible that Jesus is showing that the Harvest work concludes in the hour which John 9:4 calls “the night wherein no man can work.” In other words, the Church is complete and the final hour of the day (which deals mostly with the Great Multitude and the FALSE VINE) remains.
In John 11:9 and 10 we have a related passage which is somewhat intriguing in itself. It reads, “Are there not twelve hours in the day? If anyone walks in the day, he does not stumble, because he sees the light of this world. But if anyone walks in the night, he stumbles, because the light is not in him.”
In this passage Jesus says “the light of this world” is what constitutes daylight — normally twelve hours. But Jesus points out elsewhere that HE and HIS CHURCH are “the light of the world.” Thus, in the parable, the implication is strong that the Church is gone as the twelfth hour begins. And in John 11:10, he implies that that is when the stumbling begins. Thus we don’t want our walk “in the night.”
It seems, then, that the hours of this parable were not stated in order to divide the age or the Harvest into specific time slots, but rather to impress upon us two things:
- The length of our earthly service is immaterial.
- There is a prophetic element present dealing with the John 9:4 prophecy.
The Parable Outlined
The parable divides well into five groupings of verses: VERSES 1-9 show that Jesus has some who work longer than others, but work is NOT the standard.
VERSES 10-12 show the ugly head of pride or jealousy which will pop up among the spirit-begotten at any time.
VERSES 13-15 show that God’s dealings are just. Those who don’t concur “go their way.” VERSE 15 (last sentence) shows that God’s GOOD is viewed as EVIL by those who value works over faith.
VERSE 16 summarizes the lesson: It is IN THIS WAY their loss will occur.
A Few Details
Verse 1 — The parable is expressly about “the Kingdom of Heaven” — the embryo lives of new creatures.
Verse 2 — The Master offers the very best benefits: “You will get FULL INCLUSION of benefits for your work in the vineyard.” The “day” represents the work of the Gospel Age.
Verses 3-5 — On the “Chart of the Ages,” Plane N represents the status of those consecrated only to righteousness (the “marketplace” of the parable). This marketplace represents the standing of those who receive the invitations to come up higher. The “call” goes out periodically — or regularly — as the age progresses.
They all are promised “whatsoever is right.” It is not right to give varying benefits to employees who do the same work just because they are hired at different times, “What is right” is that each and all are offered the same honor for their willingness to participate.
VERSE 6 — When the 11th hour begins, there would normally be two work hours left in the day. There are not in this day. Work will end and payment will be made when the 12th hour begins. The 12th hour will be “the night wherein no man can work” (John 9:4).
VERSE 7 — It seems that at a certain time (1881 — the end of the “general call”) a special invitation goes out.
VERSE 8 — “Evening” seems to imply the onset of darkness — making 12th-hour work prohibitive. So payments are concluded at this time.
Payment is given to the last group first. This appears to be a logistical element of the parable designed for practical lesson teaching. If the longest workers were paid first, they would be off to spend their earning before they could witness the payment to the shorter- period workers. Additionally, the longer-period workers have their jealousy stirred by seeing payment go first to the “part-time” workers.
VERSES 9-12 — Here we have the clue as to what can place us last when we could have been first: We imagine that our “superiority” — whether it is based on term of service, quality of service, esteem, experience, etc. — entitles us to something extra over those whose services seem inferior in our eyes.
VERSES 13 & 14 — It is interesting to note that the Master allows the grumblers to reason with each other on their problem — thus giving them the opportunity to grow and profit from their errors. He does this by telling “ONE OF THEM” what the problem is. This forces the (apparently) Great Multitude of them to reason together. This is all implied in the telling only “one of them.” Even among the Great Multitude, individual isolation is bad. There must be learned a group reliance, even as the Church must respect and function as “the Body” of Christ.
These are told to “go your way.” It sounds much like the fate of the scapegoat in Leviticus 16.
The Master reiterates his fairness: “I wish to give to this last man the same as to you.” In other words, the “last man” was every bit as much granted FULL INCLUSION, full opportunity, full benefits, or full honor as was given to all of them who had been called.
VERSE 15 — The implication here seemingly is that those who value works over faith are guilty of not comprehending the generosity of God. We are not under Law (works), but under Grace (which justifies to ALL equally by FAITH).
VERSE 16 — It is “THUS” that the last shall be first, and the first last. The “thus” seems to refer to the failure of valuing faith over personal merits or efforts.
Conclusion
This is a wonderful, if difficult, parable. Many have struggled with its interpretation over the years. Context plays a great part in allowing us to comprehend its lessons.
But subtleties about numbers also contribute greatly in allowing us to see its connection to an important prophecy at the end of the Gospel Harvest.
It is our prayer that its primary lesson will not be lost to any of us. Especially during Laodicea, we are subject to the test of thinking we are rich when we actually are “wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked” (Revelation 3:17). This comes in part from HAVING the truth but failing to APPLY its most important features — such as valuing to the utmost each and every member of the Body.
Summary
Because of the intricacies of this parable and the general confusion of saints regarding its meaning, it is probably wise to end with an interpretive summary.
- This parable is not about a penny. It is not even about payment. Focusing on the penny or its payment will OBSCURE the meaning of the parable.
- This is a LESSON The lesson is about attitudes in those who receive the penny — the honor or privilege of service.
- This parable is not about TIME. The parable is a story about events which occur during ONE NORMAL WORKDAY — i.e., sunup to sundown. Trying to force a TIME ELEMENT into the lesson OBSCURES the parable.
- The Lord DID hide a time element in the parable for the sake of those who live during the Laodicean (or Harvest) period of the Church. This little prophetic element is for our special blessing and should be greatly valued. BUT it is not a part of the lesson of this
- The true lesson of this parable (19:30 and 20:16) is that our attitudes about our own importance in the Lord’s service, our thinking that works are important, and our judgment of how the Lord deals with other saints, are the three things that will determine our standing FIRST or LAST in His