Matthew 20:21
And he said unto her, What wilt thou? She saith unto him, Grant that these my two sons may sit, the one on thy right hand, and the other on the left, in thy kingdom. And he said unto her, What wilt thou? She saith unto him, Grant that these my two sons may sit, the one on thy right hand, and the other on the left, in thy kingdom.
Through their mother, James and John asked that they might sit one on His right hand and the other on His left in His kingdom, seeking the highest places of honor beside Him. They still expected a temporal kingdom in which He would soon reign as Israel's King on David's throne and give His followers worldly honor, despite His plain and repeated instruction that He would be betrayed, suffer, be crucified and rise again. At root the request was ambition for rank and honor, pride and self-seeking to be first and higher than another. He answered that they did not know what they asked, and asked whether they could drink His cup and share His baptism of suffering and sacrifice, which they confidently claimed they could; they would indeed share it, but before Him lay a cross instead of a throne, with His glory to come through humiliation and death to save souls. The places at His right and left are not His to give but are prepared by the Father, for position is gained not by favoritism or mere asking but by character and self-conquest through grace, and greatness in His kingdom is the reverse of this world's, for whoever would be great must be a humble minister and servant to others as He came not to be ministered unto but to minister and give His life a ransom for many.
Request and Its Setting
The request came as the Passover drew near, when Jesus was turning toward Jerusalem toward the place of sacrifice in the peace of perfect oneness with the Father's will, pressing on with eager steps while the disciples followed behind amazed and afraid. Through their mother, James and John asked Him to grant that they might sit, the one on His right hand and the other on His left, in His kingdom, seeking the highest places of honor beside Him. That petition for the most honored places beside Him reflected their expectation that the kingdom would soon be established.
The mother made the request out of a mother's love joined with ambition for her sons, and she encouraged them to make it with her. The request itself reflected their desire to be especially close to Jesus and their love for Him. At the same time they held a mistaken confidence that its honors could be secured simply by asking.
At root the request was ambition for rank and honor, coveting, pride, self-aggrandizement, self-exaltation and self-seeking to be equal with or higher than another, including the ambition of the sons of Zebedee to be first. It was unworthy ambition that must be renounced by those who would serve God, exalting self and putting others down. Yet their faults did not prevent them from remaining with Jesus and learning from Him.
They still clung to a temporal kingdom in which Christ would soon be established as Israel's King on David's throne and His followers would receive worldly honor. They shared the Jewish teachers' expectation of the Messiah as a conquering prince to sit on David's throne and gather the nations under His rule, applying to His first advent Scriptures of His coming in the clouds with power and great glory that belong to His second advent, while ignoring that the promises to Israel were conditioned on entire obedience and loyalty to God's will and Word. They still hoped for a Messiah who would take throne and kingly power according to human desires.
They made this request despite His plain and repeated instruction that He would be betrayed, rejected, suffer, be crucified, die and rise again, which they had not understood or allowed to change their spirit. Their desire to be first kept appearing whenever circumstances were favorable because His instruction had not effectually subdued their spirit. Had they understood what He had said about His death, their hearts would have been too deeply moved to make this request.
The request for closeness and for the highest places stirred indignation, jealousy and contention among the other disciples and threatened to divide them. Judas also coveted the place nearest Jesus, showing that the contest for position continued even as he was preparing to betray Him, and he first started the contention over the request. When Christ humbled Himself to wash the disciples' feet Judas concluded He could not be Israel's King, his hopes of worldly honor were crushed, he decided there was nothing to be gained by following Christ, refused to repent and confess his sins, felt deceived, disowned Christ and, possessed by a demon, resolved to betray his Lord, completing a bargain already begun.
Christ's Answer on Greatness
Jesus answered that they did not know what they were asking, and He asked whether they were able to drink His cup and be baptized with His baptism of trial and suffering, of self-denial and humiliation and sacrifice for others, which they confidently declared they could in order to gain the highest honor. He declared that they would indeed drink His cup and share His baptism, yet before Him lay a cross instead of a throne and two criminals as companions at His right and left. His glory would come through His humiliation and suffering and death by which souls are saved, with James destined to swift death by the sword and John to follow his Master longest in labor and reproach and persecution.
The places at His right and left are not His to give but are prepared by the Father, for position in God's kingdom is not gained through favoritism or earning or arbitrary bestowal but is the result of character and self-conquest through grace, with crown and throne as tokens of a condition attained. The honor and glory of His kingdom is the reverse of the honor and glory of this world: whoever would be great must be a humble minister to others, and whoever would be chief must be a servant. Even so the Son of man came not to be ministered unto but to minister and to give His life a ransom for many, living in poverty and casting off worldly rule and honor, and His life is the example to follow in humble, self-giving service rather than authority over others. Sharing His glory requires first bearing His yoke and daily learning His meekness and lowliness, for merely asking does not make one ready. Before the crown comes the cross, and those who seek eternal life must take His yoke, bear His burdens, and run the race and fight the battle of faith.
Nearness to Christ belongs to him who overcomes as Christ overcame and who has drunk most deeply of His spirit of self-sacrificing love that gives all and lives and labors and sacrifices even unto death for the saving of humanity. Those who deny themselves and give others preference are nearest Him, while lowly, self-sacrificing disciples are honored for true merit, not because they seek honor or recognize their own worth, by walking as He walked and living for others' good rather than shaping life around one's own interests. His words carry a deeper truth understood only later when the Holy Spirit enlightened them: they warn against assuming that God favors a people simply because of its privileges. He did not come to exalt the Jews as a nation or merely to free them from political bondage, for Gentiles whom the Jews excluded can share in God's kingdom, while those who fail to value their opportunities and the truth entrusted to them will be cast out.
Their ambition and faults did not prevent them from remaining with Jesus and learning from Him, and as John beheld Christ's humility and accepted His influence he was transformed in character. The episode warns Christians against striving over who is greatest, for they belong to one body and should not contend or divide over rank but are to work together with Christ to restore God's moral image in people. Their shared work includes seeking salvation for themselves and serving their families and others, with greatness shown in faithful, useful service rather than status or mere possession of talents. The desire for worldly honor in Christ's kingdom is contrary to following His steps and is an offense and error not to be followed, so no faithful person should follow the pope or any holy man except where he has followed Christ, and church leaders must leave temporal dominion and worldly pomp to secular power.