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¹ "For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire workers for his vineyard. ² After agreeing with the workers for one denarius[fn] a day, he sent them into his vineyard. ³ When he went out about nine o'clock,[fn] he saw others standing in the marketplace without work. ⁴ He said to them, 'You go into the vineyard, too, and I will pay you whatever is right.' ⁵ So off they went. He went out again about noon[fn] and about three o'clock[fn] and did the same thing. ⁶ About five o'clock[fn] he went out and found some others standing around. He said to them, 'Why are you standing here all day long without work?' ⁷ They told him, 'Because no one has hired us.' He said to them, 'You go into the vineyard as well.' ⁸ "When evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his manager, 'Call the workers and give them their wages, beginning with the last and ending with[fn] the first.' ⁹ Those who were hired at five o'clock[fn] came, and each received a denarius. ¹⁰ When the first came, they thought they would receive more, but each received a denarius as well. ¹¹ When they received it, they began to complain to the landowner, ¹² saying, 'These last fellows worked only one hour, yet you have made them equal to us who have endured the burden of the day and the scorching heat!' ¹³ But he said to one of them, 'Friend, I'm not treating you unfairly. You did agree with me for a denarius, didn't you? ¹⁴ Take what is yours and go. I want to give this last man as much as I gave you.[fn] ¹⁵ I am allowed to do what I want with my own money,[fn] am I not? Or is your eye evil[fn] because I am good?'[xr] ¹⁶ In the same way, the last will be first, and the first will be last. For many are called, but few are chosen."[fn][xr]

¹⁷ When Jesus was going up to Jerusalem, he took the twelve disciples[fn] aside and said to them on the way,[xr] ¹⁸ "See, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be handed over to the high priests and scribes, and they will condemn him to death.[xr] ¹⁹ Then they will hand him over to the Gentiles to be mocked, whipped, and crucified, but on the third day he will be raised."[xr]

²⁰ Then the mother of Zebedee's sons came to Jesus[fn] with her sons. She bowed down in front of him to ask him for a favor.[xr] ²¹ He asked her, "What do you want?" She said to him, "Promise[fn] that these two sons of mine will sit, one at your right and one at your left, in your kingdom."[xr] ²² Jesus replied, "You don't realize what you're asking. Can you drink from the cup that I'm going to drink from?"[fn] They told him, "We can."[xr] ²³ He said to them, "You will indeed drink from my cup. But it's not up to me to grant you a seat at my right hand or at my left. These positions have already been prepared for others by my Father."[xr] ²⁴ When the ten heard this, they became furious with the two brothers.[xr] ²⁵ But Jesus called the disciples[fn] and said, "You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them and their superiors act like tyrants over them. ²⁶ That's not the way it should be among you. Instead, whoever wants to be great among you must be your servant,[xr] ²⁷ and whoever wants to be first among you must be your slave.[xr] ²⁸ That's the way it is with the Son of Man. He did not come to be served, but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many people."[xr]

²⁹ As they were leaving Jericho, a large crowd followed Jesus.[fn][xr] ³⁰ When two blind men who were sitting by the roadside heard that Jesus was passing by, they shouted, "Have mercy on us, Lord,[fn] Son of David!"[xr] ³¹ The crowd sternly told them to be silent, but they shouted even louder, "Have mercy on us, Lord, Son of David!" ³² Jesus stopped and called them, saying, "What do you want me to do for you?" ³³ They told him, "Lord, let our eyes be opened!" ³⁴ Then Jesus, deeply moved with compassion, touched their eyes and at once they could see again. So they followed him.