Mat 21:2 Go into the village across from you, and right away you will find an tethered ass and a colt with her: untie [them], and bring [them] to me.
Mat 21:3 And if any [man] say anything to you, you should say, The Lord has need of them; and right away, he will send them.

There are two lessons here: 1. What you need is always at hand. You just have to look for it. 2. People will give you what you need if you ask from a perspective of having a shared belief.

"Ass" is from onos, which the common beast of burden. Like the English term, it carries a certain sense of derision in Greek.

Mat 20:32 What do you want me to do for you?

This is the concluding statement in a chapter that focuses on what God does for us. It began with the analogy of the land owner who paid the same wage to everyone, regardless of how long they had worked. Christ then addressed how his apostles would be rewarded in heaven. It then ends with Christ asking this question of two blind men who were begging for help as he passed while the rest of the crowd tried to silence them.

The central message has been that God alone is in a position to decide what we deserve. God is free to be generous. We cannot do anything to repay him for his gifts. We are all blind, asking for sight. We all think we know what is "fair," but we are simply not in a position to judge our own reward. All Christ can say is that those who give the most (and take the least) will get the most.

What is Christ describing as the universal rule here? Under the universal rule, those who give the most, get the most. The best servant becomes the best rewarded. This was a revolutionary way to see the world in Christ's time when the powerful simply took from others. However, Christ was teaching something else. The first rule is that we are all free to agree what is fair. The second rule is that people should be able to spend their money as they please as long as they honor their agreements. The final rule is that those who make the biggest contribution will get the biggest rewards.

Mat 20:26 But it shall not be so among you: but whosoever will be great among you, let him be your minister;
Mat 20:27 And whosoever will be chief among you, let him be your servant:
Mat 20:28 Even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.

As is so often the case, there is a play on words here in the original Greek that is lost in the English. First, there is a hierarchy here. To be "great" under Christ's new rule, you must be a servant. To be among "the foremost," you must be a slave.

Christ doesn't put himself among the first by calling himself a slave, but he does call himself a servant. However, he is unique: his life is given as payment to free the slaves.

So, we are subject to earthly power, but Christ continually emphasizes that earthly power is temporary. The nature of our slavery is bigger than earthly governments. Governments that treat their people as slaves are symptomatic of people being slaves to their physical and other temporary needs. Christ's rule frees us spiritually from those constraints. A change in spirit leads inevitably to a change in the mental, physical, and emotion constraints of the world we live in.

"Great" is from megas (great), which means "big," "full grown," "great," "might" and "strong."

"Minister" is from the noun diakonos, which means "servant," "messenger," and "attendant." This is the source for our word "deacon." As a verb, it is from diakoneô, which "to act as a servant," "to minister," and "to perform services."

"Chief" is from prôtos. In place, this means "the foremost." Of time, it means "the initial." In order, it means "the first." In math, it means the prime numbers. Of rank or degree, it means "the highest" or "the best." This was the word used to mean "the first" in the parable of the landowner hiring workers.

"Servant" is from doulos, which is really a "slave," a "born bondsman," or "one made a slave."

"Ransom" is from lutron, which means "the price paid for ransom," and "the price paid for slave."

Mat 20:25 You know that the princes of the Gentiles exercise dominion over them, and they that are great exercise authority upon them.

This continues Christ's explanation of how authority in his kingdom is different than earthly authority. Christ always talks about "gentiles," when referring to the secular government, that is, Roman rule. This is different than "society," which he refers to as the Jewish population and its leaders. Christ draws a distinction between physical power of the state and the power of social pressure. Both are forces that we must resist but we deal with them in different ways.

Here, Christ defines what the power of the state is based on: physical coercion. The state has physical control over its subjects. But Christ recognizes that this power is separate from the emotion power of relationships, such as, in the negative sense, social pressure. It is also separate from mental power, what we are free to think, and spiritual power, what we choose to believe.

"Princes" is from archôn, which means "ruler," "commander," and "chief magistrate."

"Dominion" is from katakurieuô, which means "to gain or exercise complete dominion." This carries the sense of ownership and control.

"Exercise authority" is from katexousiazô, which means "to have power," "to exercise power," and "to be the master of a body."

Mat 20:23 You shall drink indeed of my cup, and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with: but to sit on my right hand, and on my left, is not mine to give, but [it shall be given to them] for whom it is prepared of my Father.

Christ's predictions can be applied to us all. In this case, Christ, in predicting the suffering of his apostles (all of who died by persecution) but he is also talking about the loss we all suffer, including the loss of our own lives. Christ was, in a very real sense, the universal man, living a life we can all related on the basis of our shared emotions and inescapable fact of human suffering. The central fact of Christ's unjust death is just a perfect foreshadowing of our own, individual deaths (and rebirths).

We all do drink of his cup and suffer taking the plunge, whether we choose to or not. How unlike someone like Mohammed, who was not only a man, but one who had privileges of power and sex that most of us do not even aspire to, much less related to. Mohammed too died, but his death was an act of vengeance (poisoning by a woman whose family Mohammed killed) so unlike most of our deaths.

One of the reason that I cannot quite buy into the complete diefication of Christ is because he makes statements like this, where he clearly separates himself, his will, and his power from that of the Father.

"It is prepared" is from hetoimazô, which means "to make ready," and "to prepare." It has the sense of specifically being preparing for a journey or a reception.

Mat 20:21 What do you want?
Mat 20:22 You do not know what you ask. Are you able to drink of the cup from which I shall drink, and to be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized?

Christ is saying two important things about the human condition here.

First, he is saying that we do not sufficiently analyze our desires. As human, we fail to imagine the implications of getting what we think we want. For Christ, spirit, mind, body, and emotional relationships are all connected. Spiritual rewards require physical, mental, and emotional sacrifices.

Next, he is saying that to get these rewards, we must take risks. We take the term "baptize" for granted today, but the idea of religious baptism originate with John the Baptist. When Christ used the term, it had implications of "taking the plunge" and "getting in over your head." In other words, you must be willing to take a risk. God doesn't give guarantees.


"Do you want" is from thelo , which means "to be resolved to a purpose" and "to desire."

"Know" is from eido, which means "to see," "to examine," and "to know." It is more seeing in the mind's eye.

"Are able" is from dunamai which means "to have power by virtue of your own capabilities," "to be able," and "to be strong enough."

"Drink" is from pinô, which means "to drink."

"Baptize" is from baptizô, which means "to dip," "to plunge," "to be drenched," "to be drowned," and "getting in deep water."

"Baptism" is from baptisma, which is only in the New Testament and means "baptism."

Mat 20:18 Behold, we go up to Jerusalem; and the Son of man shall be betrayed unto the chief priests and unto the scribes, and they shall condemn him to death,
Mat 20:19 And shall deliver him to the Gentiles to mock, and to scourge, and to crucify [him]: and the third day he shall rise again.

The premise of this study is that all of Christ's words were relevant both in the context of his life and as a message to us today. The question is: what is Christ saying to us in this prophesy of his coming death?

One possible interpretation is that whenever Christ is turned over to the head priests and scribes (the academincs and the writers), he is going to be criticized to death. In other words, even in our time, when Christ is given over to religious leaders and academics, they will make judgments against him. In other words, Christ only is accepted by individuals, outside of institutions and outside of history. Those with a stake in institutions, even religious institutions, must make decisions that go against Christ.

However, it is not these institutions that kill Christ. For that, he must be turned over to the state. The "gentiles" of Christ's time referred to the state power of Rome, but we can assume that it is any group of non-believers. In our time, it is, of course, the secular state.

So there is a progress here. The institution of religion, in conjunction with the media, makes judgments that are against Christ. This leads, inevitably, to the state or government of non-believers to try to kill Christ. There is a very modern message here. What is really interesting is that this formula words for all eras since Christ, no matter who the religious leaders, the academics, or the state leaders are.

Of course, in the end, Christ always arises again. The term used not only means to rise up himself, but to rouse other people to action. This says it all. Christ cannot die, but nor can he live in institutions. He lives only in the hearts of people that he changes.


"Betrayed" and "deliver" are from paradidômi (paradidomi), which means "to give over to another," "to transmit," "to hand down," "to grant," "to teach," and "to bestow."

"Condemn" is from katakrino, which means "judge against."

"Gentiles" is from ethnos, which means "tribe" or "nation," but implies a foriegn group.

"Rise again" is from anistêmi, which means "to make stand up," "to raise," "to wake up," "to build up," "to restore," "to rouse to action," "to stir up," and "to make people rise."

Mat 20:16 So the last shall be first, and the first last: for many be called, but few chosen.

Alternative: So the worst shall become the best, and the best the worst: for many are welcomed, but few are selected.

Christ says something similar in Matt:19:30, which expresses the idea of how our position turns around in life. This phrase has an addition about who is "called" and who is "chosen," but those terms confuse the idea a little.

This verse is often applied judgment in the afterlife (your judgement doesn't depend on whether you find God early or late life), but neither context has anything to do with the afterlife. The first usage was in a chapter that dealt with the distraction of physical and financial success from spiritual perfection. This time the context is what is fair, the nature of debts, and the nature of generousity.

What do these two contexts have in common?

First, both describe situations reverse themselves over time. In this case, those who found work early in the day considered themselves lucky, but when wages were given, it was the last hired that turned out to be lucky.

Last, both situations illistrate that we don't make the rules. God makes the rules. The rules that determine who is lucky and who is not are not for us to decide. If there is a balance, we are not in any position to understand it.


"Called" is from klêtos, which means "invited," "welcomed," "called out," and "summoned."

"Chosen" is from eklektos, which means "picked out," "selected," "choice," and "pure," like we might describe an elite as "the select."

Mat 20:14 Take yours and go your way: I will give to this last, even as to you.
Mat 20:15 Is it not lawful for me to do what I want with mine own? Is your eye evil because I am good?

Christ here sets out the principles of private property. First, you are entitled to the compensation for your efforts, but only to what you have agreed to. Second, you are entitled to do with your property whatever you want. Just like other people cannot say what is "fair" for you, other people cannot say what you should do with what you have earned.

This idea is very profound. It says that there is not simple standard for economic value. Every person is free to say what their effort is worth. Every person is free to say what they find valuable.

How other people see us is NOT the measure for what is fair or good. Everyone has their own perspective.

(Note: The phrase, "Is your eye evil" sounds odd because of the standard mistranslation of poneros. which though always translated as "evil" means "burdened" or "worthless." A better translation might be "Is your eye burdened" or "Is your eye worthless." "Good" is also from the standard term, agatha.)

Mat 20:13 But he answered one of them, and said, Friend, I do you no wrong: didn't your agree with me for a penny?

Here, Christ sets out the principle that defines a free economy: that the relationships between people should be determined by their agreements. Those agreements define right and wrong in our business relationships. It is right to honor our agreements. It is wrong to fail to honor our agreements. If you agree to something freely, you cannot afterward claim that getting what you agreed to is unfair.

In other words, between people, there is not absolute standard for what is fair other than what people agree to. Note that Christ does not suggest that the payment is fair because of social standards. The "penny" described here was really the "denarios," which was the silver coin considered equal to a standard day's wage for a farm laborer. The standard of that price is not what makes it fair. The agreement is what makes it fair.


"Do wrong" is from adikeô, which means "wrong doing," "a wrong," "harm" and "injury."

"Agree" is from sumphôneô, which means "to sound together." It means "to make an agreement or bargain" and it is a is a metaphor for harmonizing.

Mat 20:11 And when they had received [it], they murmured against the goodman of the house,
Mat 20:12 Saying, These last have wrought [but] one hour, and your have made them equal to us, who have borne the burden and heat of the day.

Here, Christ expresses the standard complaint of humanity: that life isn't fair. Some suffer and bear more burdens in life, but God doesn't not necessarily reward them for their suffering or their efforts.

Notice that Christ specifically raises the issue of equality, or, as we might say it, fairness. From our limited (which is to say, self-centered and human) point of view, reward ought to be proportional to effort. In real life, we know that it isn't. Those who don't believe in God often point to this as a "defect" in the universe and therefore proof that God does not exist. The reasoning is, "If God exists, why isn't life more fair? Why aren't the rewards we received equal to the amount time we put in, the amount of effort we make, or the amount we suffer?"

Christ, unlike some Christian apologists, doesn't dismiss this question or relegate the balancing of the scales to the afterlife. Instead, his view puts everything in terms of our debt to God. Those who talk about what God owes us are seriously confused in terms of "fairness" are seriously confused. How can we repay God for even our first breath of life or our first taste of food?



"Murmur" is from gonguzô, which means "to mutter," "to murmur," and "to grumble."

"Goodman of the house" is from oikodespotês , which is literally the "master of the house." Its root is "from oikia, which means "building," "house," "family," and "household." It is often translated as "householder."

"Wrought" and "made" are both from poieô, which has two general meanings of "make" and "do." In the sense of "make" it means "to produce," "to bring into existence," "to bring about," and "to cause." In the sense of "to do," it means "to act" and "to be effective."

"Equal" is from isos, which means "equal" in size, strength, number, or rights. It is also used to mean an "equal share" or "equally distributed."

"Born" is from bastazô, which means "to lift up," "to raise," "to bear," "to carry," "to endure," and "to carry off."

"Burden" is from baros, which means "weight," "heaviness," "burden," and, in a positive sense, "abudance."

"Heat" is from kausôn, which means "burning heat" and "summer heat."

Mat 20:8 So when even was come, the lord of the vineyard saith unto his steward, Call the labourers, and give them [their] hire, beginning from the last unto the first.
Mat 20:9 And when they came that [were hired] about the eleventh hour, they received every man a penny.
Mat 20:10 But when the first came, they supposed that they should have received more; and they likewise received every man a penny.

Notice what the the Lord of the vineyard is doing. He tells his steward to intentionally start paying the last hired, making those who were hired first wait. He knew that this would intentionally create expectations on the part of those who were hired first.

From this, Christ is saying that life is designed to intentionally create expectations of one kind of fairness while it delivers another kind of fairness.

Notice what is relevant here is what those who were hired first were thinking to themselves. From their point of view, if those who worked only one hour were paid a certain about, they, who had worked the whole day, deserved more. However, this is a private, mental exercise. They naturally wanted more. Everyone wants more. From their own perspective, they thought they deserved more, not because of anything that they had done, but because the Lord of the vineyard was more generous with others.

Notice how this story touches the three realms of the material world: the work that was done, the thoughts that people have, and the relationship between people.

This story is also important because it touches on the nature of debt. Christ's entire message revolved around debt, specifically what we owe God and what what we think God owes us. This idea starts with the Lord's Prayer, where we ask not for fogiveness of "trespasses," but for the forgiveness of our "debts."



"Supposed" is from nomizô, which primarily means "to use by custom" or "to be accustomed to." Secondarily, it means "to own," "to acknowledge," "to hold in honor," and "to believe." It is usually translated as "think" in the Gospels, but it in the sense of having specific expectations.