World English Bible · Under Rome
Matthew 20
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"For of is like a man who was the master of a household, who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his . When he had agreed with the laborers for a a day, he sent them into his . He went out about the third hour, and saw others standing idle in the marketplace. He said to them, 'You also go into the , and whatever is right I will give you.' So they went their way. Again he went out about the sixth and the ninth hour, and did likewise. About the eleventh hour he went out and found others standing idle. He said to them, 'Why do you stand here all day idle?' "They said to him, 'Because no one has hired us.' "He said to them, 'You also go into the , and you will receive whatever is right.' "When evening had come, of the said to his manager, 'Call the laborers and pay them their wages, beginning from the last to the first.' "When those who were hired at about the eleventh hour came, they each received a . 10When the first came, they supposed that they would receive more; and they likewise each received a . When they received it, they murmured against the master of the household, saying, 'These last have spent one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the day and the scorching heat!' "But he answered one of them, 'Friend, I am doing you no wrong. Didn't you agree with me for a ? Take that which is yours, and go your way. It is my to give to this last as much as to you. Isn't it lawful for me to do what I want to with what I own? Or is your eye evil, because I am good?' So the last will be first, and the first last. For many are called, but few are chosen." As was going up to , he took the twelve aside, and on he said to them, "Behold, we are going up to , and will be to the and , and they will condemn him to , and will hand him over to the to mock, to scourge, and to ; and the third day he will be up." Then the mother of the sons of came to him with her sons, kneeling and asking a certain thing of him. He said to her, "What do you want?" She said to him, "Command that these, my two sons, may sit, one on your and one on your left hand, in your Kingdom." But answered, "You don't know what you are asking. Are you able to drink that I am about to drink, and be with the that I am with?" They said to him, "We are able." He said to them, "You will indeed drink , and be with the that I am with; but to sit on my and on my left hand is not mine to give, but it is for whom it has been prepared by ." When the ten heard it, they were indignant with the two brothers. But summoned them, and said, "You know that the of the nations it over them, and their great ones exercise over them. It shall not be so among you; but whoever to become great among you shall be . Whoever to be first among you shall be your , even as came not to be , but to , and to give his life as a for many." As they went out from , a great multitude followed him. Behold, two blind men sitting by the road, when they heard that was passing by, cried out, ", have mercy on us, you !" rebuked them, telling them that they should be quiet, but they cried out even more, ", have mercy on us, you !" stood still and called them, and asked, "What do you want me to do for you?" They told him, ", that our eyes may be opened." , being , touched their eyes; and immediately their eyes received their sight, and they followed him.
A public domain modern English translation, free to read and share. Notes and cards are EKLI’s own.
The world at this moment · Under Rome, 63 BC to AD 100 ›
Judea as a client kingdom and then a province. Roads, garrisons, taxes, crucifixion, and a common Greek language that let a message travel the empire faster than any before it.
- Rome
- The republic tears itself apart in civil war and comes out as an empire under Augustus. What follows is two centuries of relative peace across the whole Mediterranean, enforced by legions and paid for by taxes, with safe roads and safe sea lanes. Every one of Paul's journeys depends on that.
- Judea
- Governed first through Herod the Great, a client king of enormous ability and enormous brutality who rebuilds the temple into one of the wonders of the ancient world, then directly by Roman prefects. Crucifixion is the standard penalty for sedition and is used often and publicly.
- The wider world
- Greek is spoken from Spain to Syria, which means a letter written in Corinth can be read in Rome without translation. Jewish communities already exist in most major cities, which is where the first Christian preaching lands. Mystery religions, imperial cult, and philosophy all compete in the same marketplace.
- Further afield
- The Han dynasty rules China and trades silk westward along routes that touch the Roman world at second hand. In Britain the Roman conquest begins within a decade of the crucifixion.