The Rich Young Man and the Boundary of Distributive Justice: An Economics Reading of Matthew 20:1–16
This article proposes a novel way of resolving many of the challenges posed by traditional interpretations of the Matthean parable of the Laborers in the Vineyard (20:1–16) through a lens of economics. It argues that most interpretational challenges go away if we interpret the parable, not eschatolo...
| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Interlibrary Loan: | Interlibrary Loan for the Fachinformationsdienste (Specialized Information Services in Germany) |
| Published: |
2020
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| In: |
Biblical theology bulletin
Year: 2020, Volume: 50, Issue: 4, Pages: 207-215 |
| Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains: | B
Matthew
/ Bible. Matthäusevangelium 20,1-16a
/ Wealth
/ Justice
/ Economy
/ Egalitarianism
|
| IxTheo Classification: | HC New Testament |
| Further subjects: | B
Matthean parables
B the rich young man in Matthew B distributive justice in the Bible B economics reading of the Bible B parable of the Laborers in the Vineyard |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
| Summary: | This article proposes a novel way of resolving many of the challenges posed by traditional interpretations of the Matthean parable of the Laborers in the Vineyard (20:1–16) through a lens of economics. It argues that most interpretational challenges go away if we interpret the parable, not eschatologically or allegorically, but as a gloss on Jesus’s injunction to the rich young man to sell his possessions and give the money to the poor (Matt 19:21). The article then offers an interpretation of the equal wage paid to all laborers that requires neither eschatology nor radical communalism by considering a set of conditions that must be satisfied by the boundary of distributive justice. |
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| ISSN: | 1945-7596 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: Biblical theology bulletin
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1177/0146107920958999 |
