Matthew 21:28
Go and work today
What do you think? A man had two sons. He went to the first and said: son, go and work in the vineyard today.
Easy to miss
Jesus is answering religious leaders who have just questioned his authority (Matthew 21:23).
In one minute: If you only read this much
What happens
In the Temple, Jesus tells the chief priests and elders a parable. A father asks two sons to work in his vineyard. The first says no but later goes. The second says yes but does not go. Tax collectors and prostitutes, Jesus says, are entering God’s kingdom ahead of them.
Why this Sunday
After the feast of the Transfiguration, the Church comes back down the mountain to ordinary obedience. This parable is about doing, not saying.
Take with you
God cares less about our first answer than about what we do next.
Readings for the First Sunday after Transfiguration: Eight passages across four services
ഈ ഞായറാഴ്ചയുടെ വായനകൾ
Evening prayer സന്ധ്യാപ്രാർത്ഥന1 readings
- GospelസുവിശേഷംMark 4:21–34മർക്കൊസ് 4:21–34
A lamp on a stand; the seed that grows by itself; the mustard seed.
Morning prayer പ്രഭാതപ്രാർത്ഥന1 readings
- GospelസുവിശേഷംMatthew 13:44–52മത്തായി 13:44–52
Treasure hidden in a field, the pearl of great price, the net.
Before Qurbana കുർബാനയ്ക്കു മുമ്പ്3 readings
- Old TestamentപഴയനിയമംDeuteronomy 25:13–16ആവർത്തനം 25:13–16
Do not keep two different weights, one large and one small.
- Old TestamentപഴയനിയമംPsalm 27സങ്കീർത്തനങ്ങൾ 27
The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear?
- Old TestamentപഴയനിയമംEzekiel 7:1–4യെഹെസ്കേൽ 7:1–4
The end has come; I will judge you by your ways.
Holy Qurbana വിശുദ്ധ കുർബാന3 readings
- General EpistleപൊതുലേഖനംJames 4:7–5:6യാക്കോബ് 4:7–5:6
Draw near to God and he will draw near to you; you do not know what tomorrow brings.
- Pauline Epistleപൗലോസിന്റെ ലേഖനംPhilippians 4:8–20ഫിലിപ്പിയർ 4:8–20
Think about whatever is true and lovely; I have learned to be content.
- Gospel of the dayസുവിശേഷംMatthew 21:28–32മത്തായി 21:28–32
Two sons: one says no and goes, the other says yes and does not. This is the Gospel of the day.
Open in five scenes
The thread through all eight
Deuteronomy demands honest weights and measures, and the psalm says the Lord is my light. Ezekiel warns that the end has come for those who will not change. James tells us to submit to God, and Philippians to think on whatever is true and good.
Source
References follow the official lectionary of the Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church. Your parish may read them in a different order.
Matthew 21:28–32 explained: Matthew 21:28–32 in five scenes
Pick a scene to see what happens in it and what is easy to miss.
Go and work todayMatthew 21:28I will notMatthew 21:29I go, sirMatthew 21:30Which one did the father’s will?Matthew 21:31You did not change your mindsMatthew 21:32
Matthew 21:29
I will not
The son answered: I will not. But later he changed his mind and went.
Easy to miss
The word for “changed his mind” is the same Matthew uses for Judas’ regret (27:3). Here it leads somewhere good.
Matthew 21:30
I go, sir
The father went to the second son and said the same. He answered: I go, sir. But he did not go.
Easy to miss
The second son is polite and calls his father “sir”. Good manners are not the same as obedience.
Matthew 21:31
Which one did the father’s will?
Which of the two did his father’s will? The first, they say. Jesus answers: tax collectors and prostitutes are going into the kingdom of God ahead of you.
Easy to miss
The leaders give the right answer and condemn themselves with it.
Matthew 21:32
You did not change your minds
John came showing the way of righteousness, and you did not believe him, but tax collectors and prostitutes did. Even after seeing that, you did not change your minds.
Easy to miss
The real failure is not the first “no”. It is refusing to change your mind after seeing God at work in others.
The verse to keep
“ഈ രണ്ടുപേരിൽ ആർ ആകുന്നു അപ്പന്റെ ഇഷ്ടം ചെയ്തതു? ഒന്നാമത്തവൻ എന്നു അവർ പറഞ്ഞു. യേശു അവരോടു പറഞ്ഞതു: ചുങ്കക്കാരും വേശ്യമാരും നിങ്ങൾക്കു മുമ്പായി ദൈവരാജ്യത്തിൽ കടക്കുന്നു എന്നു സത്യമായിട്ടു ഞാൻ നിങ്ങളോടു പറയുന്നു.”Which of the two did the will of his father?” They said to him, “The first.” Jesus said to them, “Most certainly I tell you that the tax collectors and the prostitutes are entering into God’s Kingdom before you.
Who is in the story, and what their names mean
The fatherഅപ്പൻ
Owner of a vineyard who asks both sons to work.
“—”
The chief priests and eldersമഹാപുരോഹിതന്മാരും മൂപ്പന്മാരും
Temple leaders who have challenged Jesus’ authority.
“—”
Three phrases worth knowing
- Vineyard
- A common Old Testament picture of God’s people (Isaiah 5:1–7).
- Tax collectors
- Jews who collected taxes for Rome, often dishonestly. They were seen as traitors.
- Koodara Perunnal
- The Malankara name for the feast of the Transfiguration on 6 August, after the tents (koodaram) Peter offered to build (Matthew 17:4).
Reflection: Yes and no
ഉവ്വും ഇല്ലയും
Most of us are more like the second son than we would like to admit. We say yes easily. Yes, I will pray more. Yes, I will visit. Yes, I will help with that. The yes is sincere when we say it, and then life gets busy, and we never go.
The first son is not a model either. He was rude to his father. But he thought again and went. Jesus says that is what counts. The tax collectors and prostitutes had said no to God for years. When John the Baptist came, they changed their minds. The respectable people said all the right things and changed nothing.
This parable is good news for anyone who has said no to God. It is never too late to change your mind and go. And it is a gentle warning for those of us who are good at saying yes. God is not looking for polite answers. He is looking for workers in the vineyard today.