Expositor's Bible Commentary Commentary Matthew 20:2

"And when he had agreed with the laborers for a shilling a day, he sent them into his vineyard." — Matthew 20:2 (ASV)

The normal working day was ten hours or so, not counting breaks. The landowner in the parable finds his first set of workers at about 6 A. M. and agrees to pay each one a denarius—the normal wage for a foot soldier or day laborer.