Expositor's Bible Commentary Commentary Matthew 9:37

"Then saith he unto his disciples, The harvest indeed is plenteous, but the laborers are few." — Matthew 9:37 (ASV)

The metaphor changes from sheep farming to harvest (v.37), as Jesus seeks to awaken similar compassion in his disciples. Later on the harvest is the end of the age (13:49) and the judgment it brings—a common symbol (cf. Isaiah 17:11; Joel 3:13). It is possible to see this verse as a warning to Israel that judgment time is near.

Jesus is speaking here to “his disciples,” which many take to refer to the Twelve. More likely, this phrase designates a larger group exhorted to “ask” that the Lord of the harvest will thrust laborers into his “harvest field.” By contrast the Twelve are immediately commissioned as workers (10:1–4). This interpretation best fits 10:1: Jesus “called his twelve disciples to him.”