In Matthew 20:1-16, we find an interesting parable that many find confusing and problematic. This selection is the story of the landowner who paid his field workers the same salary when they worked in his vineyard, regardless of how much time they put in. But from a metaphysical understanding, the story is rich with practical applications for spiritual growth.



There are a few unusual things I want to point out before I go from the literal to the metaphysical. The literal perspective leaves us a little inorganic when we discover the landowner's treatment of the laborers and his feeling about them.

Verse 1: Come unto me all of you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. That's what the Christ promised us if we follow His teachings. To labor is to rest -- rest in the knowledge that all of our hard work pays spiritual dividends when we seek to know the Christ of us.

Verse 2: the usual daily wage - The denarius was the typical wage. Today's equivalent is 25 cents.

Verse 3: He went out about 9 o'clock. Generally work began at 6 a.m., so 9 a. m. would have been the third hour. He went out a second time at noon and again at three and finally at five; 12 noon is the sixth hour, 3 is the ninth hour, and 5 is the eleventh hour (the commonly held belief is that the 11th hour means the last minute, with time running out, etc.)

Verse 7: He hires the 'eleventh hour group' and says nothing about their salary. He simply tells them to "go and work in my vineyard."

Verse 8: All of the workers were paid at the completion of the day. This would have been in accordance with Leviticus 19:13b, 'Do not hold back the wages of a hired man overnight.' The landowner paid the last workers first and then gave wages to those who worked first. So those who worked all day actually got to watch how much those were paid who put in less hours than they did.

Verses 10-11: Those who were hired first thought they would earn more, but they received the same wage as those who came on at the end of the day. If this story is taken literally, you can see the problem here. The laborers who worked all day didn't receive any more pay than the ones who only worked one hour (from 5 to 6 p.m.). It just doesn't seem right, does it? Some scholars believe that those hired later were more experienced and deserved to be paid the same. Others reason that those hired later performed different work of a higher nature which justified their pay. No matter how you look at it, the literal interpretation is unfair and upsetting.

Verse 15: When those who worked all day objected to the inequity in treatment, the landowner simply said, 'Am I not allowed to do what I choose with what belongs to me?' The landowner explains that he has paid the first group according to his fairness and justice (v.17) and the laborers coming in later according to his goodness and generosity (v.15). And then in verse 16 says, as a way of explanation, "So the last will be first, and the first will be last."

The intriguing thing about this is if we look back at Matthew 19:30 (which is the end of the conversation Jesus has with His disciples about the rich young ruler) Jesus says, "but many who are first will be last, and the last will be first." In Matthew 20:16 He uses the same tact but switches the clauses, "So the last will be first, and the first will be last."

Taking this passage literally, it appears that Jesus is being a bit cavalier as He tells the story, and that He endorses the landowner's inequitable treatment of the workers. But let's take a different approach at a more spiritual meaning of the parable!

It should come as no surprise that, metaphysically, this complete story takes place in our consciousness. Without being too laborious - pardon the pun, let's discover what this story means at a higher level of interpretation.

20:1 - For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard. The original wording says the, "kingdom of heaven is like this." There's no comparison of the kingdom to an anthropomorphic being. The metaphysical interpretation of the main characters and concepts follows:

The kingdom of God is the Absoluteness, Is-ness, and Beingness of God. The 'kingdom of heaven,' on the other hand, relates to our conscious awareness of our innate divinity.

The vineyard represents the domain of structured truth principles of which we are invited to partake, so we can enjoy the fruits of enhancing our spiritual understanding.

The laborers refer to our thoughts, intentions, and beliefs.

The landowner is our Christ Consciousness.

The 'usual daily wage' represents the blessings we receive when we pay attention to divine guidance. The income is the same for everyone. It comes in the form of divine ideas, inner peace, radiant health, confidence, and so on!

Because this parable describes how Divine Order operates, here is the significance of the last is first, first is last -- and three tips for your spiritual growth:

1. Practice Patience and Nonjudgmentalness. If we're patient and trusting, even when outer appearances seem to say different, we will receive the "usual wage" (the manifested good we desire). The 11th hour indicates the point at which we let God and let go.

2. Practice the Presence. This whole vineyard story illustrates how Divine Order works! It is a three step process: Mind, Idea, and Expression. When we 'practice the Presence,' we recognize our oneness with our Christ Self at every level of our being. If we 'practice the Presence,' Divine Ideas will come. In the ideation process, it is a well-known fact that the usable ideas usually come last. So the first ideas we have become the catalysts which bring us the "Aha's" we need to bring our good into reality.

3. Practice Perseverance. Spirit encourages us to stick with it instead of becoming lukewarm in our Truth walk, which is represented by those laborers who were idle at noon. Jesus is simply clarifying for us to follow the invitation of our Christ Consciousness to harvest our divine ideas in accordance with Divine Order, no matter when our ideas show up (morning, noon, or night); then we canrest in the assurance that we have the wherewithal to manifest anything we desire.