Matthew 20:12

Mace New Testament

these last have work'd but an hour, and you put them upon the level with us, who have born the whole fatigue and heat of the day.

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
‘These last men put in one hour, and you made them equal to us who bore the burden of the day’s work and the burning heat.’

King James Version (1611)
Saying, These last haue wrought but one houre, and thou hast made them equall vnto vs, which haue borne the burden, and heat of the day.

King James Version
Saying, These last have wrought but one hour, and thou hast made them equal unto us, which have borne the burden and heat of the day.

English Standard Version
saying, ‘These last worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the day and the scorching heat.'

New American Standard Bible
saying, 'These who were hired last worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the day's work and the scorching heat.'

New Century Version
They said, ‘Those people were hired last and worked only one hour. But you paid them the same as you paid us who worked hard all day in the hot sun.'

Amplified Bible
saying, 'These men who came last worked [only] one hour, and yet you have made them equal [in wages] to us who have carried [most of] the burden and [worked in] the scorching heat of the day.'

Geneva Bible (1587)
Saying, These last haue wrought but one houre, and thou hast made them equall vnto vs, which haue borne the burden & heate of the day.

New American Standard Bible (1995)
saying, 'These last men have worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden and the scorching heat of the day.'

Legacy Standard Bible
saying, ‘These last men have worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the day and the scorching heat.'

Berean Standard Bible
'These men who were hired last worked only one hour,' they said, 'and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden and the scorching heat of the day.'

Contemporary English Version
They said, "The ones who were hired last worked for only one hour. But you paid them the same that you did us. And we worked in the hot sun all day long!"

Complete Jewish Bible
‘These latecomers have worked only one hour, while we have borne the brunt of the day's work in the hot sun, yet you have put them on an equal footing with us!'

Darby Translation
saying, These last have worked one hour, and thou hast made them equal to us, who have borne the burden of the day and the heat.

Easy-to-Read Version
They said, ‘Those people were hired last and worked only one hour. But you paid them the same as us. And we worked hard all day in the hot sun.'

George Lamsa Translation
Saying, These last ones have worked only one hour, and you have made them equal with us who have borne the weight of the day and its heat.

Good News Translation
‘These men who were hired last worked only one hour,' they said, ‘while we put up with a whole day's work in the hot sun—yet you paid them the same as you paid us!'

Lexham English Bible
saying, ‘These last people worked one hour and you made them equal to us who have endured the burden of the day and the burning heat!'

Literal Translation
saying, These last have performed one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden and the heat of the day.

American Standard Version
saying, These last have spent but one hour, and thou hast made them equal unto us, who have borne the burden of the day and the scorching heat.

Bible in Basic English
Saying, These last have done only one hour's work, and you have made them equal to us, who have undergone the hard work of the day and the burning heat.

Hebrew Names Version
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!'

International Standard Version
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!'

Etheridge Translation
and said, These last have wrought one hour, and thou hast made them equal with us, who have borne the burden of the day and its heat.

Murdock Translation
and said: These last have labored but one hour, and thou hast made them equal with us who have borne the burden of the day and the heat of it.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
Saying: These laste haue wrought but one houre, & thou hast made them equall vnto vs, whiche haue borne the burthen and heate of the day.

English Revised Version
saying, These last have spent but one hour, and thou hast made them equal unto us, which have borne the burden of the day and the scorching heat.

World English Bible
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!'

Wesley's New Testament (1755)
These last have wrought one hour, and thou hast made them equal to us, who have borne the burden and heat of the day.

Weymouth's New Testament
"`These who came last have done only one hour's work, and you have put them on a level with us who have worked the whole day and have borne the scorching heat.'

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
These laste wrouyten oon our, and thou hast maad hem euen to vs, that han born the charge of the dai, and heete?

Update Bible Version
saying, These last have spent [but] one hour, and you have made them equal to us, who have borne the burden of the day and the scorching heat.

Webster's Bible Translation
Saying, These last have wrought [but] one hour, and thou hast made them equal to us, who have borne the burden and heat of the day.

New English Translation
saying, ‘These last fellows worked one hour, and you have made them equal to us who bore the hardship and burning heat of the day.'

New King James Version
saying, "These last men have worked only one hour, and you made them equal to us who have borne the burden and the heat of the day.'

New Living Translation
‘Those people worked only one hour, and yet you've paid them just as much as you paid us who worked all day in the scorching heat.'

New Life Bible
They said, ‘The last workmen hired have only worked one hour. You have given to them the same as to us. We have worked hard through the heat of the day.'

New Revised Standard
saying, ‘These last worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the day and the scorching heat.'

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
These last, one hour, wrought, and thou hast made them, equal unto us, who have borne the burden of the day, and the scorching heat.

Douay-Rheims Bible
Saying: These last have worked but one hour. and thou hast made them equal to us, that have borne the burden of the day and the heats.

Revised Standard Version
saying, 'These last worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the day and the scorching heat.'

Tyndale New Testament (1525)
saying: These laste have wrought but one houre and thou hast made them equall vnto vs which have born ye burthe and heet of the daye.

Young's Literal Translation
that These, the last, wrought one hour, and thou didst make them equal to us, who were bearing the burden of the day -- and the heat.

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
and sayde: These last haue wrought but one houre, and thou hast made the equall vnto us, which haue borne the burthen and heate of the daye.

Simplified Cowboy Version
'These cowboys came up and only worked for an hour and barely broke one bead of sweat. You've paid them the same amount as us who've worked all day long in the heat, the sun, and the dirt!'

Contextual Overview

¹ For the kingdom of the Messiah is like a family, the master whereof went out early in the morning to hire labourers for his vineyard. ² having agreed with them for a penny a day, he sent them to his vineyard. ³ he went out about the third hour, and saw others standing idle in the market-place, and said to them, ⁴ go ye likewise to my vineyard, and I will give you what is reasonable: accordingly they went thither. ⁵ about the sixth and ninth hour he went out again, and gave the like directions. ⁶ at last, about the eleventh hour he went out, and found others standing idle, and said to them, why do you stand idling thus all day long? ⁷ they answer'd him, because we are not hired; go work then. said he, in my vineyard, and I will give you what's reasonable. ⁸ so when even was come, the master of the vineyard said to his steward, call the labourers, and give them their hire, beginning from the last to the first. ⁹ they then that were hired about the eleventh hour, came and received every man his penny. ¹⁰ last of all they came who were hired first, expecting to have received more, but they had only a penny a man,

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

wrought but one hour: or, continued one hour only

equal: Luke 14:10, Luke 14:11, Romans 3:22-24, Romans 3:30, Ephesians 3:6

borne: Isaiah 58:2, Isaiah 58:3, Zechariah 7:3-5, Malachi 1:13, Malachi 3:14, Luke 15:29, Luke 15:30, Luke 18:11, Luke 18:12, Romans 3:27, Romans 9:30-32, Romans 10:1-3, Romans 11:5, Romans 11:6, 1 Corinthians 4:11, 2 Corinthians 11:23-28

Reciprocal: Numbers 23:4 - I have prepared Job 34:33 - whether thou refuse Matthew 25:24 - I knew

Cross-References

1 Thessalonians 5:22
if it has the least appearance of evil, reject it.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Saying, these last have wrought but one hour,.... Thinking it hard, that they should have the same reward for the service of one hour, others had for the service of many. This is grudged by the Jews x;

""Bath Kol", a voice from heaven, went out and said, "Ketiah bar Shallum", is prepared for the life of the world to come; Rabbi wept, and said, there is that obtains his world (or the world to come for himself) בשעה אחת, "in one hour"; and there is that obtains it in many years.''

The same observation is also made by the same person, on account of R. Eleazar ben Durdia y. So in the parable of the Jews above mentioned, which is the broken remains of a common proverb among them like z this; it is observed, that there being one labourer among those that were hired, who did his work better than all the rest, and who was taken notice of by the king; that when

"at even the labourers came to take their wages, this labourer also came to take his; and the king gave him his wages equal with them, (or, as in another place, a perfect one,) the labourers began to press him with difficulty, (or as elsewhere a מתרעמין, "they murmured",) and said, Oh! our Lord, the king, "we have laboured all the day"; but this man has not laboured but two or three hours in the day, and he takes his wages, even as ours, or a perfect reward.''

And so it follows here,

and thou hast made them equal to us, who have borne the burden and heat of the day; of all the Jewish rites and ceremonies, which were burdensome and intolerable. The ceremonial law was a burden to the Jewish people; the multitude of sacrifices enjoined them, and the frequent repetition of them, together with the great number of other ordinances and institutions, produced a weariness in them; especially in the carnal part of them, who saw not the things typified by them, the use and end of them, and so did not enjoy spiritual pleasure in them, Malachi 1:13. It was a yoke, and a yoke of bondage to them, which brought on them a spirit of bondage, through the fear of death, which was the penalty annexed to it; and it was an insupportable one, which neither they, nor their forefathers, were able to bear, because it made them debtors to keep the whole law: and this was made still more burdensome, by the traditions of the elders, which were added to it, and which the Scribes and Pharisees obliged to the observance of; to which they themselves still added, and bound heavy burdens, and grievous to be borne, and laid them on men's shoulders. The law was a fiery law, and the dispensation of it was a hot and scorching one; it was uncomfortable working under the flashes of a mount, that burned with fire: the law worked wrath, and possessed the minds of men with a fearful looking for of judgment, and fiery indignation. This may also be applied to such Christians, who are called to more severe service or sufferings for Christ, than others are; who are almost pressed down without measure, and endure fiery trials, are scorched, and made black, with the sun of persecution beating upon them; as the saints under the ten persecutions of the Roman emperors, and as the confessors and martyrs in the times of papal power and cruelty; and who, it might be thought, will have a greater degree of glory and happiness hereafter; and so some have been of opinion, that these are they that shall live and reign with Christ a thousand years,

Revelation 20:4 But it rather seems, that others will be made equal with them, who have not endured what they have done; for all the dead in Christ, all that have part in the first resurrection, when Christ comes, as all the saints will then rise, will share in that glory; even the innumerable company, chosen, redeemed, and called, out of every nation, tongue, and people, and will be admitted to the same honour and happiness, Revelation 7:9 And this character will also agree with many other servants of Christ, who are called to harder and more laborious service than others are, and labour more abundantly in the Lord's vineyard than others do, and are longer employed in it; as for instance, the Apostle Paul; and yet the same crown of righteousness that is laid up for him, and given to him, will be given to all that love the appearance of Christ, though they have not laboured for his name's sake, as he has done.

x T. Bab. Avoda Zara, fol. 10. 2. y Ib. fol. 17. 1. z Shirhashirim Rabba, fol 21. 4. Midrash Kohelet, fol. 72. 4. a T. Hieros. Beracot, fol. 5. 3.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

The burden and heat of the day - The burden means the heavy labor, the severe toil. We have continued at that toil in the heat of the day. The others had worked only a little while, and that in the cool of the evening, and when it was fax more pleasant and much less fatiguing.