This blog follows the daily bible readings of the Catholic Church

Reading 1, Ezekiel 34:1-11

1 The word of the Lord was addressed to me as follows,

2 ‘Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel; prophesy and say to them, “Shepherds, the Lord says this: Disaster is in store for the shepherds of Israel who feed themselves! Are not shepherds meant to feed a flock?

3 Yet you have fed on milk, you have dressed yourselves in wool, you have sacrificed the fattest sheep, but failed to feed the flock.

4 You have failed to make weak sheep strong, or to care for the sick ones, or bandage the injured ones. You have failed to bring back strays or look for the lost. On the contrary, you have ruled them cruelly and harshly.

5 For lack of a shepherd they have been scattered, to become the prey of all the wild animals; they have been scattered.

6 My flock is astray on every mountain and on every high hill; my flock has been scattered all over the world; no one bothers about them and no one looks for them.

7 “Very well, shepherds, hear the word of the Lord:

8 As I live, I swear it — declares the Lord Yahweh — since my flock has been pillaged and for lack of a shepherd is now the prey of every wild animal, since my shepherds have ceased to bother about my flock, since my shepherds feed themselves rather than my flock,9 very well, shepherds, hear the word of the Lord:

10 The Lord says this: Look, I am against the shepherds. I shall take my flock out of their charge and henceforth not allow them to feed my flock. And the shepherds will stop feeding themselves, because I shall rescue my sheep from their mouths to stop them from being food for them.

11 “For the Lord says this: Look, I myself shall take care of my flock and look after it.”

For Israel, shepherd means king. This is a political prophecy exposing the typical behaviour of rulers who feather their own nests (why do we always use animal metaphors?) at the people’s expense; and fail to administer justice. We can surely identify with this critique, even if we are lucky enough to live in decent democracies. Rulers will become exploiters if not prevented.

But what about the Lord’s promise to look after his people in person?  That is a promise which Ezekiel might have allocated to the “age to come.” Christian interpreters have seen fulfilment in Jesus-the royal son of God tending the flock on earth-some arguing that the church must pioneer a new politics of God’s rule through Jesus. Calvin saw it like this, but not everyone admires the results. Liberation theologians in South America saw it this way, but they were (unjustly) condemned by the last Pope.

For the present time it is best, that while Christian people recognise no king but Jesus, they remember that his coronation is by way of the cross.

Gospel, Matthew 20:1-16

1 ‘Now the kingdom of Heaven is like a landowner going out at daybreak to hire workers for his vineyard. 2 He made an agreement with the workers for one denarius a day and sent them to his vineyard.3 Going out at about the third hour he saw others standing idle in the market place 4 and said to them, “You go to my vineyard too and I will give you a fair wage.”  So they went. At about the sixth hour and again at about the ninth hour, he went out and did the same. 6 Then at about the eleventh hour he went out and found more men standing around, and he said to them, “Why have you been standing here idle all day?”

7 “Because no one has hired us,” they answered. He said to them, “You go into my vineyard too.”

8 In the evening, the owner of the vineyard said to his bailiff, “Call the workers and pay them their wages, starting with the last arrivals and ending with the first.”

9 So those who were hired at about the eleventh hour came forward and received one denarius each. 10 When the first came, they expected to get more, but they too received one denarius each. 11 They took it, but grumbled at the landowner saying,

12 “The men who came last have done only one hour, and you have treated them the same as us, though we have done a heavy day’s work in all the heat.” 13 He answered one of them and said, “My friend, I am not being unjust to you; did we not agree on one denarius? 14 Take your earnings and go. I choose to pay the lastcomer as much as I pay you. 15 Have I no right to do what I like with my own? Why should you be envious because I am generous?”

16 Thus the last will be first, and the first, last.’

A denarius was a living wage for a day’s work in Jesus’ time, so all the workers, regardless of when they started, need and receive a day’s wages. Yes, but who will turn up at daybreak tomorrow? Not only that, but will anyone want to start at daybreak on the neighbouring estates, if they can get a denarius for starting at 4pm on this one? This is not a realistic pay policy, for although it takes into account the needs of the workers, it does not provide an incentive to work for any length of time.

Better voices maybe, but no better story

It’s a teasing parable about the generosity of God. If the kingdom is offered now, through Jesus, what about those who toiled for God’s justice throughout history? If “sinners” are to receive salvation, what about all the decent people who didn’t go wrong?

It’s a similar question to that of the elder son of the parable of the prodigal. There it is answered in terms of the Father’s joy in the recovery of the lost son; here the owner’s sovereign generosity is simply asserted.

The version of salvation history in Hebrews 11 may help our understanding, “These all died in faith but did not receive the promises, God having provided some better thing for us, that they without us should not be made perfect.”

Yes, but the offensiveness of God’s way still rankles, except with those who were last and are now first.