The receiving of the denarius occurred, not at Jesus’ death, but at Pentecost 33 C.E., when Christ, the “man in charge,” poured out holy spirit on his disciples. These disciples of Jesus were like “the last,” or the 11th-hour, workers.

The denarius did not represent the gift of the holy spirit itself. The denarius was something for the disciples to use here on earth. It was something that meant their livelihood, their everlasting life. It was the privilege of being a spiritual Israelite, anointed to preach about God’s Kingdom.

But it is, in fact, these very ones whom the clergy despised who received the denarius​—the honor of serving as anointed ambassadors of God’s heavenly Kingdom.