Matthew 20:1-34

Summary

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Catholic Bible Study: Matthew 20:1-34

Podcast: Catholic Bible Study
Host: Tim Gray (A), with Dr. Michael Barber (B), Augustine Institute
Episode Date: December 5, 2025

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Overview:

This episode features Dr. Tim Gray and Dr. Michael Barber diving deeply into Matthew 20, exploring its structure, Old Testament roots, and profound theological implications. The discussion focuses on the parable of the laborers in the vineyard, Jesus’ third passion prediction, the request of the sons of Zebedee, and the healing of two blind men—all while reflecting on issues of grace, reward, discipleship, atonement, and the Old Testament background to Jesus’ mission.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

The Parable of the Laborers in the Vineyard (Matthew 20:1-16)

• Context & Setup [00:00-02:00]
  • Dr. Gray notes that Pope John Paul II notably reflected on this parable during a 1985 synod, emphasizing the laity’s role in church renewal.

    “This is the Lord asking us, why are you idle? ...Don't be idle, but be busy. There’s much work to be done right now in renewing the church.” – A [01:21]

• Parable Structuring & Theological Nuance [02:00-06:46]
  • Dr. Barber explains the parable follows the disciples' commitment (leaving all to follow Christ) and reassures that even latecomers receive God's reward, thus showing hope for the “rich young man”.
  • The owner pays all workers the same, regardless of when they started, highlighting God’s generosity and grace, yet emphasizing that everyone, even the last, labors.

    “God can take the little work that we do and multiply its value. ...He isn’t a miser. He wants us to be saved more than we want to be saved.” – B [06:46]

  • The parable balances grace and works: reward is unearned but still tied to real participation.

    “The story doesn’t devalue the role of works in salvation. …God can take the little work that we do and multiply it and multiply its value.” – B [06:54]

• Practical Application [08:10-08:57]
  • No one is too old or too late to start serving Christ; God’s generosity encompasses all.

    “If it’s the sunset time of the day, you can still contribute to the kingdom.” – A [08:48]

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Jesus’ Third Passion Prediction & the Mother of the Sons of Zebedee (Matthew 20:17-28)

• Narrative Transition [09:12-10:46]
  • Jesus begins the journey toward Jerusalem and foretells his suffering and crucifixion, preparing the disciples for the coming events.
  • The mother of James and John (the “sons of Zebedee”) requests they sit at Jesus’ right and left in his kingdom—a reference to positions of honor.
• Interpretation of the “Thrones” [10:46-13:40]
  • Dr. Barber clarifies that in Matthew, the request for thrones is not about the end times but about Jesus’ “kingdom” inaugurated at the Crucifixion (cf. Matthew 27; the two thieves at Jesus’ right and left).

    “…the only other place where we read about people being at Jesus' right and at his left …is at Calvary.” – B [13:46]

• Jesus’ Response: True Leadership & the Suffering Servant [15:04-16:21]
  • Jesus reshapes the idea of greatness: not lording over others, but being a servant.

    “Whoever would be great among you must be your servant… even as the Son of Man came not to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” – B [15:15]

  • “Ransom for many” signals Jesus’ mission as atonement; this shifts the focus from earthly glory to sacrificial love.
• Old Testament Roots—Isaiah’s Suffering Servant [16:21-18:23]
  • The phrase “ransom for many” echoes Isaiah’s fourth servant song (Isaiah 53).
  • Jesus’ sacrifice is compared to both the Passover lamb and the scapegoat (bearing others’ sins), and “many” is a technical term for the community of the saved.

    “…the suffering servant is said by his sacrifice to offer himself as a ransom or as a sacrifice for many. ...He bore the sin of many and makes intercession for the transgressors.” – B [18:23]

• The ‘Many’ vs. ‘All’ Debate (New Mass Translation) [18:23-21:20]
  • Discussion of why the liturgical formula uses “for many” (not “for all”), emphasizing Jesus’ words and the biblical context:

    “He dies for all of us, obviously, but not all of us will respond to, to that invitation to be saved. And so they thought many was appropriate there.” – B [20:39]

  • “Many” also points to the idea of corporate, ecclesial salvation—a community formed in Christ, not just isolated individuals.

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Daniel’s “Son of Man” and the Path of Suffering [22:25-27:53]

• Jesus as Son of Man
  • Dr. Barber connects Jesus’ self-designation (“Son of Man”) to Daniel 7, highlighting that the messianic leader and the people are both called to suffer before entering glory.

    “The Son of Man in Daniel 7 is a figure who ushers in the eschatological kingdom… the son of man represents the saints who are persecuted and who suffer greatly.” – B [22:47]

  • The disciples seek thrones without embracing suffering, misunderstanding the messianic mission.
• Typology: King, Suffering Servant, and the People [27:44-29:12]
  • Dr. Gray summarizes: Isaiah foreshadows a suffering, anointed king; Daniel interprets that the saints (God’s people) and the Messiah share suffering.

    “Daniel showing that the saints are going to share the same fate as the Messiah.” – A [27:44]

  • Suffering is the birth pang of God’s kingdom—the cross comes before the crown.

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Final Episode Highlights: The Healing of Two Blind Men & Transition to Passion [29:12-end]

• Faith, Messianic Titles, and What Comes Next
  • The chapter ends with two blind men calling Jesus “Son of David”—reinforcing Jesus’ royal/Messianic identity.

    “There’s the royal theme again that we talked about before.” – A [29:51]

  • Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem and the events of the Passion loom ahead, further unfolding these themes.

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Memorable Quotes & Timestamps

• John Paul II on the Parable’s Urgency:

  “This is the Lord asking us, why are you idle? …Don't be idle, but be busy. There’s much work to be done right now in renewing the church.” — Tim Gray [01:21]

• God’s Generosity & Mercy:

  “God can take the little work that we do and multiply its value. ...He isn’t a miser.” — Dr. Michael Barber [06:46]

• Grace & Works Both Matter:

  “If you really want to make the story about how works don't matter, then the owner should have found somebody who didn't do any work. ...But he doesn't do that.” — B [06:52]

• It’s Never Too Late to Serve:

  “If it’s the sunset time of the day, you can still contribute to the kingdom.” — A [08:48]

• Christ’s Sacrifice & Old Testament Fulfillment:

  “Even as the Son of Man came not to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” — B [15:15]

• Who Are “the Many”?

  “We are saved because part of being saved is being incorporated into the community that God wants to form.” — B [22:25]

• Two Paths—Glory Through the Cross:

  “We want the resurrection, but we don't want the cross. I think it's a lesson for all of us.” — B [26:32]

• Reading Strategy:

  “Go back and read Daniel 7 and Daniel chapter 9. Go back and read Isaiah 53, 54 and then read Matthew 20 and it'll make more sense and it'll connect…” — A [29:12]

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Important Segment Timestamps

• The Parable and Its Context: 00:27-08:57
• Passion Prediction & Mother of Zebedee’s Request: 09:12-15:04
• Atonement, Isaiah, and ‘Ransom for Many’: 15:55-22:25
• Daniel and the Son of Man Explored: 22:25-27:44
• Episode Conclusion and Reading Recommendations: 29:12-end

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Tone & Style

Casual, accessible, yet deeply theological and scripturally grounded. Both speakers show enthusiasm for biblical connections and call listeners to deeper discipleship and understanding.

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For listeners:
This episode offers a rich, accessible journey through Matthew 20, encouraging both devotion and deeper study. The hosts suggest reading relevant passages from Isaiah and Daniel alongside Matthew to fully perceive Jesus’ fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy and the generous, challenging call to labor in God’s kingdom—no matter when you start.

Transcript

[A]

Welcome to form. Now, I'm Tim Gray, president of the Augustine Institute, and Joining me is Dr. Michael Barber, a professor of scripture here at the August Institute. We're going to talk about the Gospel of Matthew, chapter 20. We're going to continue our ongoing Bible study on the Gospel of Matthew. And so you're welcome to pick up a Bible and join us for this study. We're using the esvce, the English Standard Version, Catholic Edition, which the Augustine Institute publishes. And so you can get that at Catholic.

And also, I want to mention, just a thanks to everybody who supports us in the Mission Circle this month of December, we have a special donor couple that are going to match two for one. Anybody who donates and joins our Mission Circle, our monthly giving society, which could be as little as $10 or more a month. Your gift will be doubled for this month. And so that would be a great blessing to us. You can make it a Christmas gift to the Augustine student, to our Lord, and. And we'd be greatly appreciative of that. Well, I want to dive into the Word of God, Michael. And chapter 20 is the parable that Jesus tells about the laborers in the vineyard. And, you know, this actually was a parable that John Paul II enjoyed. And he used this quite a bit for, especially in 1985 in the Extraordinary Synod on Vatican II. And he used this parable to talk about how the laity needs to be engaged and the laity needs to teach the faith and to spread the faith. And so one of the lines here is, you've got this person who owns this pretty large vineyard. He's hiring different workers at different times. And when he sees people in the town who are idle and not working, he says, why are you idle and not working? And John Paul says, this is the Lord asking us, why are you idle? When it comes to the work of the Father's vineyard, the Father's kingdom, don't be idle, but be busy. There's much work to be done, and there's much work to be done right now in renewing the church. And so there's not room for anybody to be idle, is there, Michael?

[B]

Amen to that. Yeah. And in fact, it's sort of interesting to sort of contextualize the parable, right? It comes right after we have the scene of Jesus essentially commending the disciples, right? Because they have left everything. They've left lands and wives and children. And so, so Jesus tells them they will sit on 12 thrones and they will judge the 12 tribes of Israel, and they've essentially done what is necessary to become perfect. They're doing with the rich young man.

[A]

Enormous reward, by the way, a hundredfold return on investment and all this incredible authority be on the 12 thrones of Israel.

[B]

That's right. And so we've just had Jesus commend the disciples for what they've done. And they've done quite a bit. They've done quite a lot. So it's interesting that now we have Jesus turn now to tell a story that would seem to address maybe the sense that, well, everybody else has failed and so because we're better than everyone else, we're going to sit on 12 thrones. You know, we should really pat ourselves on the back. And now Jesus tells the story or.

[A]

People could feel like, well, they were there early on.

[B]

Oh, this is so true. Yes.

[A]

And they were there early on with Jesus. And so. But I'm a Johnny come lately, so what, what reward will I get? And this kind of answers that, right.

[B]

In fact, the story right before Jesus commenced the disciples is what the rich young man who says, well, what do I have to do? And clearly he hasn't done enough. Right. And so it would seem that.

He may be excluded from the kingdom. And yet the parable, as many people pointed out, gives us hope for the rich young man that he may come back at the 11th hour. Right. So there's a lot to be said about it. One thing that's interesting in the parable, I guess we should maybe.

[A]

Yeah. You want to talk about a couple key passages?

[B]

Yeah. Let's just explain what happens. So as you said, the owner of the vineyard goes out and he hires people at different hours of the day. It's interesting, the first group he sees, they're standing idle like you said, and he says, come and I will give you what is a day's wage. A day's wage, right. And he makes an agreement. I will give you a day's wage for a day's work of work. And then he goes out again and he finds people a few hours later who don't have work. And he says, I'll give you what is just. I'll give you what is just very interesting. Then he goes out again the 11th hour and he says basically the same thing, I'll give you what is just. And then at the end of the day, he finds people who are still standing around without work. And so he hires them at basically the last hour of the day. They work for basically an hour, probably not even a full hour, which is.

[A]

Not fair because I mean I know Israel, it's hot. And so the last hour of the day, sunset, it's a lot cooler. So these are the guys that this is my time to come into work. Not in the hot, the heat of the day, sweating by their brow.

[B]

That's right. And so then at the end he says, well, the owner says, call all the laborers so that we can give them their payment. And the Greek word there that's used for payment is mistos. It's the word that's translated everywhere else. And Matthew, reward, right? So let's give them their payment for what they've done. And so then people come at the end of the day, get the same amount as the people who were hired at the beginning of the day. And the people who were hired at the beginning of the day who'd been working all day long are.

[A]

What's really striking is the master says, I'm going to pay the people who came last first.

[B]

That's right, he does.

[A]

So that's because that he, you know, you wouldn't get the problem of the people who started earlier in the day getting paid the same as the people who came at the end of the day if they didn't know. Right. If he would have paid them first, they would have taken their pay and gone off. But he does this intentionally.

[B]

Yes, he does. Yes. And of course the people complain.

We'Ve been working all day in the scorching heat. And Jesus says, friend, I am doing you no wrong. Did you not agree with me for a denarius, take what belongs to you and go. I choose to give to this last worker as I give to you. Am I not allowed to do what I choose with what belongs to me? Or do you begrudge my generosity? And that's really the key lesson there is God's generosity, his gratuity, his grace, Right? And so some people have looked at this parable and say, ah, see, the Catholic idea that you're saved by works is completely wrong. One evangelical scholar in his commentary in this passage says, this story clearly shows us it's all by grace. Well, okay, wait a minute. They still worked throughout the day.

[A]

Right.

[B]

If you really want to make the story about how works don't matter, then the owner should have gone through the.

[A]

Found somebody who didn't do any work. Exactly.

[B]

Right. But he doesn't do that. Right. So the story doesn't devalue the role of works in salvation. But what it does show is that God can take the little work that we do and multiply it and multiply its value. And you see this in the Book of Sirach, for example, where it talks about how if you give alms, God will reward you sevenfold. Right. So God isn't a miser. Right. He wants us to be saved more than we want to be saved. And so I think in context, there's hope for the rich young man who walked away. I think that's a key idea. And the disciples who have the 12 who have followed Jesus from the beginning, who are going to sit on 12 thrones, are also not to begrudge God's generosity if he so chooses, to show mercy to someone who has lived a profligate life and only come to conversion at the end of their life. This lesson is really for them. If you read it in context, Jesus is talking to the disciples. These are the ones who are going to have the authority in the community to bind and loose. And Jesus wants to. Peter remembered the lesson he taught him. You have to forgive 70 times 7. As the leader of the church, the church's mission is ultimately about salvation, reconciliation, and forgiveness.

[A]

I think that's so important. And I think that just to conclude this parable with John Paul's idea that, you know, the Father has a large vineyard and there is enormous amount of work to be done. And there's people who've been laboring most of their lives, but there is plenty of work. And oftentimes people think, well, you know, Michael, I'm retired. I wish I would have known this about my faith when I was younger. I would have done different things. But also, the part of the story is it's never too late to start to work for Christ and to labor in his vineyard.

[B]

Right.

[A]

Doesn't matter what age you are or where you are in the day.

[B]

That's right.

[A]

If it's the sunset time of the day, you can still contribute to the kingdom. And it's worth that because God will be very generous to whatever we do.

[B]

That's right. And you could convert on your deathbed and find perfection in God's grace. Right. It's not about how many hours or how many years you've been a Christian. It's ultimately about how much we're going to cooperate with God's grace in our life.

[A]

Now, the next two stories belong together. The first one is going to be verses 17 through 19. And Jesus is going to predict, because they're on the cusp of arriving to Jerusalem. And so Jesus is going to predict what's going to happen to him, that he's going to suffer and ultimately be crucified when he gets to Jerusalem. So he's letting his disciples know that, and that kind of cues up the next story, which is a mother's request. Do you want to just go to that story now?

[B]

Here we go. We're in Matthew 28:20. We read. Then the mother of the sons of Zebedee came to him with her sons, and kneeling before him, she asked him for something. And he said to her, what do you want? And she said to him, say that these two sons of mine are to sit one at your right hand and one at your left in your kingdom. Now, the request makes sense in light of the fact that just a few verses earlier, right, at the end of Matthew 19, Jesus tells the 12 they're going to sit on 12 thrones. Right? So what's going on here? Jesus is now going up to Jerusalem. That's what happens in verse 17. We have a shift in the narrative. Jesus is now going up to the city, and the disciples are ready for something big to happen once Jesus gets there.

[A]

Exactly. And we know from chapter 16, they know that he is the Messiah, which means king, and he's going to Jerusalem, which is the capital. So what do they expect to happen in Jerusalem? They expect Jesus to begin his reign. And so they figured, oh, there's going to be a new regime and we can get the new cabinet positions in this new.

[B]

That's right.

[A]

This new administration.

[B]

That's right. Now, it is interesting, in Mark's Gospel, we don't read about the mother of the sons of Zebedee making this request. It's just the request of James and John. But if you read the story, especially in Greek and Matthew, it's clear that the request is coming from James and John. Because in the next verse, Jesus answered, you do not know. And in the Greek, the word for you is humais. It's you plural. Right. So Jesus is looking right past the mother. Nice.

[A]

She was set up.

[B]

Yeah, exactly. Right. Hey, mom, could you ask Jesus for this for us? Because he'll give it to you, but if we ask, it'll look weird, Right? So they're clearly present. Right. They're behind their mother as she's going up and making this request. And Jesus says, you do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I am to drink? And they said, we are able. And he said to them, you will drink my cup, but to sit at my right hand and at my left is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared by My Father. Now, what is going on here? Can't Jesus give the seats of the kingdom to whoever he chooses? He's God after all. Right? So some people would look at this and say, oh, well, Jesus is denying his full authority as God or something like that. That's not what's going on here. We gotta understand the imagery within the context of the larger gospel. All right, so when James and John ask for the seats at the right and the left of Jesus when he comes into his kingdom, they're not talking about, as Matthew will show us, what's going to happen on the last day when Jesus comes in. Glory. A lot of people have seen Michelangelo's painting of the Last Judgment, other famous paintings, portrayals of the Last Judgment. And of course, we've got the Blessed Virgin Mary at Jesus right and John the Baptist on Jesus left. And people say, well, clearly this is what. No, you got to read it within the context of the Gospel of Matthew and in the context of the Gospel of Matthew, there's only one other place where we read about people being at Jesus right and at his left. And that is.

[A]

And that's why Jesus says, you do not know what you're asking.

[B]

That's right, because the only other place we read about that is actually in the Gospel of Matthew, chapter 17. And in Matthew 17, we read once again about the mother of the sons of Zebedee. So the only other place the mother of the sons of Zebedee makes an appearance is in Matthew 27, where we read there were also many women looking on from a distance, among whom were Mary Magdalene, Mary, the mother of James and Joseph, and the mother of the sons of Zebedee. And what does she see? She sees that Jesus is crucified between two thieves, one at his right and one at his left. The only other time Matthew uses that language, one at his right, one is left, is at Calvary.

[A]

I just want to emphasize you first mentioned Matthew 17, but you meant Matthew 27.

[B]

Oh, yes, I did.

[A]

Just so that people don't get lost.

[B]

Matthew 27, the two key passages, Matthew 20, Matthew 27. All right, so the key idea is that Jesus comes into his kingdom on the cross. Now, that's really important for us to remember because I think a lot of people imagine that the coming of the kingdom is simply speaking Jesus second coming, when he's going to take names and he's going to mete out judgment on those who have opposed him. Well, that's not simply the case. Jesus kingship is going to be revealed at Calvary. And we're going to see that demonstrated in many ironic ways in the Passion narrative. We'll come back to that later when we get to Matthew 27. But note, what Jesus does is he links his coming in the kingdom with drinking a cup.

So drinking the cup is linked with his with coming into his kingdom. We're going to come back to this in the Passion narrative. So maybe we'll just make this a kind of teaser for now and play that out later. And we read then when the ten, the other twelve disciples. Right. Twelve apostles heard it, they were indignant at the two brothers. What do you think you're doing? Trying to, you know, call dinner on the best.

[A]

Yes.

[B]

And you're going to rule over us. Exactly. And Jesus called to them and said, you know that the rulers of the Gentiles, now, it's an interesting expression in the Greek Lord it over them, and the great ones exercise authority over them. It shall not be so among you, but whoever would be great among you must be your servant. And who would ever be first among you must be your slave. Even as the Son of Man came not to be served, but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many. So Jesus doesn't come to simply reign. He doesn't seem to. He doesn't come to rule over others, but to give his life, and he gives his life as a ransom. We have more of that economic imagery we've been chasing throughout the Gospel of Matthew, that language of.

Lutron, of ransom. It's also used in context of atonement. And so many people have recognized here atonement theology. Jesus is giving his life as a sacrifice. The high priest would offer a sacrifice of atonement in the temple on the day of atonement and on other days. So Jesus is making himself a sacrifice of atonement. There's a lot more to say here, but what stands out to you here?

[A]

Well, Michael, one of the things that I think a lot of people think of is the servant songs of Isaiah as being really important backdrop. And of course, Christians make a lot of that. But then scholars kind of minimize that, and for some good reason, there wasn't always explicit citations. But this is one of those texts that clearly alludes to the fourth servant song of Isaiah, that suffering servant song. I don't know if you want to. Is it worth just.

[B]

Sure. I think that's a great idea. Let's talk about that. So in Isaiah 53, we have the image of a righteous One, as he's called, who suffers. And his suffering is Described as a sacrifice that's offered on behalf of others, especially found in 5310. But.

I'll let you. Did you have a particular.

[A]

And of course, it begins in 53 with who has believed what we have heard, you know, and to whom has the Lord been? To whom the arm of the Lord has been revealed. For he grew up before us like a young plant. But then as you go a little bit further.

You start to see this suffering servant is going to be offered up like a lamb. And his sacrifice gets described in cultic terms.

[B]

Different ones too, right?

[A]

Yeah. Yeah.

[B]

So we get a lot of different images from Jewish sacrificial rites. One, we have the image of a lamb that slid the slaughter, but we also have the image of a scapegoat. The scapegoat was an animal that they put the sins on, and then they sent the goat out into the wilderness to take the impurities. And sin is a kind of impurity out away from the people. And then we know that by Jesus Day, they would throw it off a cliff because you don't want the scapegoat coming back into the city, bringing all the impurities in. After Yom Kippur. Actually, there are some really interesting echoes of the scapegoat later on in the Passion narrative. But then we also have the lamb that's offered, and we have the image of.

Him offering a sacrifice for others, which, interesting is the word that's used, is many. Over and over again. The suffering servant is said by his sacrifice to offer himself as a ransom or as a sacrifice for many. Out of the anguish of his soul. We read, he shall see and be satisfied by his knowledge. Shall the righteous one, my servant, make many to be accounted righteous, and he will bear their iniquities. That language of bearing. The saw in Hebrew is the word it's used for the scapegoat, for example. Therefore I will divide him a portion with the many, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong, because he poured out his soul to death and was remembered with the transgressors. Yet he bore the sin of many and makes intercession for the transgressors. Like the high priest who makes intercession for. For sin. Well, that language of many and someone suffering for others is what we see in isaiah in Matthew 20:28, where Jesus says, even as the Son of man came not to be served, but to serve Jesus is the servant and to give his life as a ransom. Atonement language, cultic atonement rights there for many very important Language. In fact, you might remember this, Tim, around 2011, there was a new translation of the Mass and there was a big debate over the words of institution. Because what many people wanted to have a say in English is when Jesus says his words over the cup at the Last Supper, this is my blood which is poured out for all. All is what a lot of people wanted. And Pope Benedict, interestingly enough, intervened and said no. It was a rare case of a papal intervention. He came in, he said, no, it has to be for many. And the reason for that is, first, that's the language Jesus uses. Right. Secondly, because many gives us two ideas on the one, that Jesus dies for others. He dies for all of us, obviously, but not all of us will respond to, to that invitation to be saved. And so they thought many was appropriate there.

[A]

Yeah. And then you can see that Jesus uses the word many. And as we will see in the, in the Passover Supper. Right. In the Lord's Supper, he uses that term. And so it's consistent with Jesus own words. But Jesus is using a word that we see, as you highlighted here, Michael in Isaiah 53 is used repeatedly in the Old Testament. And so he's evoking this context of the sacrifice of the suffering servant. And so that's really important to see those connections. And so when you hear many, sometimes you're like, well, why not everybody?

[B]

That's right.

[A]

Well, because not everybody is going to avail themselves of Christ's sacrifice, tragically. So there'd be some who won't be saved.

[B]

Right.

[A]

And that many should evoke the context of this Old Testament prophecy that Jesus is evoking.

[B]

Absolutely. And polloi many, not just here, not just in Isaiah, but in Daniel and other passages. Many becomes the term for the group of those who are saved. Right. The many is like the righteous who live in the age to come. Right. The many has almost ecclesial flavor when you read it in light of the New Testament. Right. So we're not just saved individually. It's not just that Jesus wants to save. Michael Barber and I, me and Jesus have a personal relationship that has no bearing on my relationship with other people. No. I'm saved as part of the many. Right. And this is why the church is such an important part of the message of the Gospel. Right. It's not like an add on. Right. It's like, well, we're saved by Jesus. Oh yeah, we have to talk about the sacraments and the church and all that. No, we are saved because part of being saved is being incorporated into the community that God wants to form.

[A]

Now, Jesus is a teacher and he knows where they're heading. They're on the cusp of coming to Jerusalem.

[B]

That's right.

[A]

And so as they're approaching Jerusalem, he's teaching them about what's going to happen at the Last Supper and what's going to happen the next day in his Passion.

[B]

That's right.

[A]

So how is this supposed to help the disciples understand the meaning of what's going to happen at Calvary?

[B]

Well, first we want to understand that at Calvary it doesn't look like a sacrifice. Jesus isn't wearing the High Priest's vestments. No one who shows up on Good Friday is going to look at the cross and say, aha, there's the High priest offering the sacrifice of the New Covenant. No, it's going to look like a crucifixion. Right. So what makes the crucifixion a sacrifice is what happens at the Last Supper. And Jesus is anticipating what he's going to do at the Last Supper. Here also, people would look at the cross and think, well, this is defeat. But what Jesus does is very interesting. Certainly Isaiah's suffering servant imagery is part of the backdrop here. I do think it's funny. People will only focus on the suffering servant dimension of this and ignore the title Jesus actually uses in context, Son of Man, which is actually part of the Passion prediction. Right before this whole episode, Jesus announces he's going up to Jerusalem to die. And the disciples don't get it. Right after he announces going up to Jerusalem to die, the disciples come and say, we want the best thrones, we're going to get the best thrones. Right? Which ones are the best ones? That's for us. Right? Come on. Right. And so they clearly don't understand what's going on. That makes sense because the Son of man in Daniel 7 is a figure who ushers in the eschatological kingdom. Right? And so we've already talked about this. In Daniel 7, the son of man represents the saints who are persecuted and who suffer greatly. And so it's Only reading Daniel 7 now in the light of the revelation in Christ that we fully understand what's going on there. But actually what's interesting is Son of Man in Daniel and Matthew 2018, right before this whole pericope sets in motion a series of of parallels with Daniel 7. So the idea that the Son of Man will be delivered over, handed over, that's the same word that's used in Daniel 7 for the saints who will be handed over Right. And then later on, when Jesus explains you're going to. They ask about the kingdom. Jesus talking about the kingdom. The kingdom is a major theme in Daniel 7. And then the request to sit with Jesus, that makes sense, because in Daniel 7, we read about the Son of Man coming. But right after thrones have been set up, so the apostles, they heard Jesus say, oh, Son of man. Oh, yeah, Son of man. There's going to be thrones. I'm going to have the thrones. They're not paying attention to the suffering part of that, so they go right to the throne imagery. And then you have the language of suffering. And we see that, of course, the saints suffer. In Daniel 7, we also read about Jesus as the rulers of the Gentiles. Literally in the Greek, it's the great of the Gentiles. And that's the same term that's used in Daniel 7 to describe the great beasts that represent the Gentile authorities that come. And in the word that I said was strange, they lord it over. That's the exact term that's used in Daniel 7 for the authority of the beasts that reign. Right. So all of this relates to Daniel 7. What most people ignored, though, is throughout Daniel, the righteous are described in language of the suffering servant. Biblical scholars like John Collins have shown that throughout Daniel, you have imagery of the suffering servant applied to the saints. But the apostles don't remember that part of the story. They only remember they're going to be thrones and they want to jump right past the suffering to the thrones. What Jesus is doing in his teaching is highlighting the fact that as the Son of Man represents the people, he is going to suffer. And if you want to be part of the righteous that the Son of Man comes to represent, you also have to take up your cross. You also have to drink the cup, and you have to enter into that mystery of suffering. We want the resurrection, but we don't want the cross. I think it's a lesson for all of us.

[A]

So, Michael, if I hear. Just to summarize what you're saying, you're talking about how there's two key Old Testament passages here that Jesus is alluding to, interpret what's going to happen to him in Jerusalem. One is Isaiah, the other is Daniel. And of course, Daniel comes much later than Isaiah. So Daniel the prophet is aware of Isaiah's prophecies. And so Isaiah foretells that there will be this righteous, anointed servant of the Lord who will be a suffering servant, and he will suffer and he will be like the scapegoat. He will be like the lamb of the Passover. He will be like the sin offering. And so he uses multiple different sacrifices of the Jewish temple to show that the sacrifice in the new Exodus just be an animal, it'll be a person, and it will be the anointed servant of the Lord, who is basically, we know, the anointed servants, the king Messiah. And the king represents the people. And Daniel therefore interprets this relationship between the king and the people as a symbionic relationship. And so Daniel showing that the saints are going to share the same fate as the Messiah.

[B]

That's right.

[A]

And that they will be handed over to the fourth beast in Daniel 7.

[B]

That's right.

[A]

They will suffer. And that will be about that will the way in which God's kingdom has given birth.

[B]

That's right. In fact, later on in Daniel 9, we have a vision of an anointed one. And he's going to suffer and there's going to be a period of great tribulation. And the language is he will make a covenant with many. So there we have the idea that this anointed one is going to make a covenant with many. The same language that's used in the suffering servant pass, the same language that's used here. And Christ makes that covenant with us in the Last Supper in the upper room.

[A]

It's so exciting. Well, we're going to get to that place. We're slowly moving our way through the Gospel of Matthew. But what I want people to understand is that, you know, these are incredible foreshadowings of where we're going to go, where Jesus is going to go. And he's teaching this right now in chapter 20, in ways that it's easy to miss. He gives a passion prediction. He has this intercession, you know, by the mother of the sons of Zebedee. But there's a deeper meaning behind these. And that deeper meaning is echoing and reaching back into Israel's story and prophecy of Israel's scripture about a suffering servant and about a suffering people and how that suffering will end up becoming a sacrifice that will be acceptable to God, that will atone for many, many sins, and that will redeem and bring about the redemption of Israel and all of us.

[B]

And.

[A]

And this is what Jesus is hearkening us to. He's subtly but carefully and intentionally alluding to the fact that he's the son of man, who is the suffering servant of Isaiah and the suffering servant and the people that Daniel refers to. And so those are important things. So go back and read Daniel 7 and Daniel chapter 9. Go back and read Isaiah 53, 54 and then read Matthew 20 and it'll make more sense and it'll connect and I think that'll be important. And you know, my takeaway. And of course, right after this, Jesus heals two blind men who they cry out, you know, son of David, have pity on us. There's the royal theme again that we talked about before.

[B]

Yep.

[A]

And so they're asking for the son of David to have pity on them. And now after that we're going to be Jesus entry into Jerusalem. So next time we're going to pick up in chapter 21 with Jesus triumphal entry into Jerusalem that will lead to his passion and death and all the meaning behind that. So a lot to look forward to and we're grateful that you can join us on this Bible study and we'll be ready with you next week for chapter 21 of the Gospel of Matthew. God bless you.