Charles Ellicott Commentary Matthew 20:6

"And about the eleventh [hour] he went out, and found others standing; and he saith unto them, Why stand ye here all the day idle?" — Matthew 20:6 (ASV)

About the eleventh hour — The working day, which did not commonly extend beyond twelve hours (John 11:9), was all but over, and yet there was still work to be done in the vineyard, all the more urgent because of the lateness of the hour. The laborers who had been first hired were not enough. Is there not an implied suggestion that they were not laboring as zealously as they might have done? They were working on their contract for the day’s wages.

Those who were called last of all had the joy of feeling that their day was not lost. That joy, and their faith in the justice of their employer, gave a fresh energy to their toil.