Then
he said to his disciples, “The harvest indeed is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Pray therefore that the Lord of the harvest will send out laborers into his harvest.”
Matthew 9:37-38
Matthew 9 [34.] But the Pharisees said, “By the prince of the demons, he casts out demons.”
Matthew 9 [35.] Jesus went about all the cities and the villages, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the Good News of the Kingdom, and healing every disease and every sickness among the people. But when he saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion for them, because they were harassed and scattered, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest indeed is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Pray therefore that the Lord of the harvest will send out laborers into his harvest.”
Matthew 10 [1.] He called to himself his twelve disciples, and gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal every disease and every sickness. Now the names of the twelve apostles are these. The first, Simon, who is called Peter; Andrew, his brother; James the son of Zebedee; John, his brother; Philip; Bartholomew; Thomas; Matthew the tax collector; James the son of Alphaeus; Lebbaeus, who was also called Thaddaeus; Simon the Canaanite; and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed him.
Meaning:
Jesus had travelled through all the cities and villages of Galilee, teaching, preaching and healing. When he saw the crowds, “he was moved with compassion for them, because they were harassed and scattered, like sheep without a shepherd” (Matthew 9:36). His compassion now turns into a call to his disciples. He changes the picture from sheep to a harvest field, and from feeling to prayer. These words lead straight into the next chapter, where Jesus sends out the twelve (Matthew 10:1-4).
- “The harvest indeed is plentiful”
Harvest was the busiest and most joyful season in the farming life of Israel. In the prophets it is also a picture of the time when God gathers his people and judges the nations. Jesus says the harvest is already here and it is large. The crowds who followed him, hungry for help and for the word of God, were like ripe fields ready to be gathered. In Samaria Jesus told his disciples the same thing: “lift up your eyes, and look at the fields, that they are white for harvest already” (John 4:35).
- “but the laborers are few”
The problem was not a lack of people ready to hear but a lack of workers to bring the message. The religious leaders of Israel should have been shepherds and harvesters, but many of them were more concerned with their own status than with the needs of the people. Ezekiel had condemned the shepherds who fed themselves instead of the flock, so that the sheep were scattered (Ezekiel 34:5-6). Jesus saw a great need and only a small number of faithful workers.
- “Pray therefore”
Jesus’ first answer to the need is not a strategy but prayer. Before he sends the disciples, he asks them to pray. The harvest belongs to God, and only he can raise up workers whose hearts are moved as Jesus’ heart was moved. Prayer also changes those who pray. The disciples who prayed for workers soon found themselves sent out as the answer to their own prayers.
- “the Lord of the harvest”
God is the owner of the field. The work is his, the workers are his and the results are his. Paul later wrote, “I planted. Apollos watered. But God gave the increase” (1 Corinthians 3:6). Workers are servants, not owners, and they are accountable to him.
- “send out laborers into his harvest”
The word translated “send out” is a strong word, sometimes used of driving out or thrusting out. God must push workers into the field. Jesus gave the same instruction when he sent out the seventy: “Pray therefore to the Lord of the harvest, that he may send out laborers into his harvest” (Luke 10:2). The message must be carried by people who are sent: “How will they hear without a preacher? And how will they preach unless they are sent?” (Romans 10:14-15).
The Significance of Matthew 9:37-38
- Seeing people as Jesus sees them
Jesus looked at crowds and saw a harvest, not a problem. Believers are called to look at the people around them with the same compassion and hope, seeing them as people God wants to gather.
- Prayer comes first
Every work of God begins with prayer. Churches and believers today can pray regularly for workers: pastors, missionaries, teachers and ordinary believers who share their faith.
- Being willing to go
Those who pray for workers must be ready to become workers. Isaiah heard the Lord ask, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” and answered, “Here I am. Send me!” (Isaiah 6:8).
Cross-References:
Luke 10:2: "The harvest is indeed plentiful, but the laborers are few." The same words to the seventy.
John 4:35: "lift up your eyes, and look at the fields, that they are white for harvest already." The harvest is ready now.
Romans 10:15: "And how will they preach unless they are sent?" Why workers must be sent.
Matthew 9:36: "like sheep without a shepherd." The compassion that led to Jesus’ call to pray.
Conclusion: Moved with compassion for the crowds, Jesus told his disciples that the harvest is plentiful but the laborers are few. His answer to the need was prayer: ask the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest. The harvest belongs to God, and he sends the workers. Those who pray this prayer should be ready to be sent themselves.
PIB Scriptures are derived from the World English Bible