Matthew 21:31 Meaning and Explanation
“Whether of them twain did the will of his father? They say unto him, The first. Jesus saith unto them, Verily I say unto you, That the publicans and the harlots go into the kingdom of God before you.”
King James Version (KJV)
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Read Full Chapter →The question is simple enough for Jesus' listeners to answer immediately: which son did the father's will? Yet their answer turns the parable toward their own response to John the Baptist. The verse matters because it measures our response to God by the path we actually take after hearing him.
Jesus exposes the difference between religious words and obedience. Those openly known as sinners could enter God's kingdom before leaders who refused God's call, because they responded in repentance and faith.
The Context of Matthew 21:31
Jesus is teaching in the temple after the chief priests and elders challenge his authority. He has asked them whether John's baptism came from heaven or from men, and they decline to answer. Jesus then tells of two sons asked to work in their father's vineyard. The first refuses, then repents and goes; the second respectfully promises to go, then does not. In verse 31 the leaders identify the obedient son themselves. Jesus applies their judgment in verse 31, and verse 32 explains it through their refusal to believe John's righteous ministry.
What Does Matthew 21:31 Mean?
Jesus asks, "Whether of them twain did the will of his father?" The issue is not which son spoke more politely. The first son began with a blunt refusal, yet "afterward he repented, and went." His later action showed a changed response to his father's command. The leaders answer, "The first," accepting that judgment without hesitation. Jesus then speaks with solemn directness: "Verily I say unto you." The publicans and harlots named here were people widely regarded as morally compromised. Jesus does not call their sin good. He identifies their response to God's summons as more obedient than the response of hearers whose public standing and religious speech had not led them to believe and turn.
The word "before" gives the warning its precise force. Jesus says that these repentant people go into the kingdom before his opponents; he is confronting a present refusal, not granting leaders immunity from repentance or declaring a final sentence on every individual. Verse 32 shows why: John came in the way of righteousness, and many whom society had dismissed believed him. The leaders had also seen that response, yet did not repent so as to believe. The parable continues the chapter's concern with fruit. The fig tree had leaves but no fruit, and Jesus now exposes the danger of an answer that sounds ready while leaving the father's work undone.
Jesus' words accord with his own welcome of those who came to him in need. In this chapter, blind and lame people come to him in the temple and he heals them, while some religious leaders are angered by what they see and hear. His kingdom receives people who answer God's call with real turning, however troubled their earlier path has been. The verse also prepares for the vineyard parable that follows, where those entrusted with a vineyard are judged by the fruit they render. Christ does not merely reveal hypocrisy from a distance. He calls people into the Father's will and makes repentance a living return to that call.
Bible Verses Related to Matthew 21:31
“And all the people that heard him, and the publicans, justified God, being baptized with the baptism of John. But the Pharisees and lawyers rejected the counsel of God against themselves, being not baptized of him.”
- Luke 7:29-30
“But what think ye? A certain man had two sons; and he came to the first, and said, Son, go work to day in my vineyard. He answered and said, I will not: but afterward he repented, and went. And he came to the second, and said likewise. And he answered and said, I go, sir: and went not. Whether of them twain did the will of his father? They say unto him, The first. Jesus saith unto them, Verily I say unto you, That the publicans and the harlots go into the kingdom of God before you. For John came unto you in the way of righteousness, and ye believed him not: but the publicans and the harlots believed him: and ye, when ye had seen it, repented not afterward, that ye might believe him.”
- Matthew 21:28-32
“But if the wicked will turn from all his sins that he hath committed, and keep all my statutes, and do that which is lawful and right, he shall surely live, he shall not die. All his transgressions that he hath committed, they shall not be mentioned unto him: in his righteousness that he hath done he shall live. Have I any pleasure at all that the wicked should die? saith the Lord GOD: and not that he should return from his ways, and live?”
- Ezekiel 18:21-23
“What doth it profit, my brethren, though a man say he hath faith, and have not works? can faith save him? If a brother or sister be naked, and destitute of daily food, And one of you say unto them, Depart in peace, be ye warmed and filled; notwithstanding ye give them not those things which are needful to the body; what doth it profit? Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone.”
- James 2:14-17
Where Matthew 21:31 Echoes in Scripture
Luke 7:29-30 closely echoes this scene. It records that publicans who heard Jesus justified God after being baptized with John's baptism, while Pharisees and lawyers rejected God's counsel for themselves by refusing John's baptism. That passage helps explain Matthew 21:31: the contrast concerns their response to God's messenger and counsel, not a claim that former sins carried no weight.
How to Apply Matthew 21:31 Today
This verse invites honest attention to the gap that can grow between our stated intentions and our actual response to God. A delayed beginning, a past refusal, or a damaged reputation need not end the matter. The first son shows that repentance can lead into real obedience. We can name a particular command or responsibility we have avoided, ask God for a willing heart, and take one truthful step toward it. It also teaches us to leave room for God's work in people whose histories make others doubtful. The Father sees repentance bearing fruit, not merely the appearances by which people are ranked.
Reflection & Prayer
Where might our words of readiness need to become a concrete act of obedience? We might pray: "Father, turn our hearts from empty promises. Give us grace to repent, to believe your call, and to do the work you set before us."