The Bible for beginners for 18 May 2022

King James Version (en)

King James Version (en)

Matthew, Chapter 22, verses 1-14

¹ The parable of the marriage of the king's son, ⁹ The vocation of the Gentiles, ¹² The punishment of him that wanted the wedding garment

¹And Jesus answered and spake unto them again by parables, and said,

²The kingdom of heaven is like unto a certain king, which made a marriage for his son,

³And sent forth his servants to call them that were bidden to the wedding: and they would not come.

⁴Again, he sent forth other servants, saying, Tell them which are bidden, Behold, I have prepared my dinner: my oxen and my fatlings are killed, and all things are ready: come unto the marriage.

⁵But they made light of it, and went their ways, one to his farm, another to his merchandise:

⁶And the remnant took his servants, and entreated them spitefully, and slew them.

⁷But when the king heard thereof, he was wroth: and he sent forth his armies, and destroyed those murderers, and burned up their city.

⁸Then saith he to his servants, The wedding is ready, but they which were bidden were not worthy.

⁹Go ye therefore into the highways, and as many as ye shall find, bid to the marriage.

¹⁰So those servants went out into the highways, and gathered together all as many as they found, both bad and good: and the wedding was furnished with guests.

¹¹And when the king came in to see the guests, he saw there a man which had not on a wedding garment:

¹²And he saith unto him, Friend, how camest thou in hither not having a wedding garment? And he was speechless.

¹³Then said the king to the servants, Bind him hand and foot, and take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

¹⁴For many are called, but few are chosen.

Read more:Matthew, Chapter 22

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22

22:1 Jesus answering, spake - That is, spake with reference to what had just past.

22:2 A king, who made a marriage feast for his son - So did God, when he brought his first - begotten into the world.

22:3 Them that were invited - Namely, the Jews.

22:4 Fatlings - Fatted beasts and fowls.

22:5 One to his farm, another to his merchandise - One must mind what he has; another, gain what he wants. How many perish by misusing lawful things!

22:7 The king sending forth his troops - The Roman armies employed of God for that purpose. Destroyed those murderers - Primarily the Jews.

22:8 Go into the highways - The word properly signifies, the by - ways, or turnings of the road.

22:10 They gathered all - By preaching every where.

22:11 The guest - The members of the visible Church.

22:12 A wedding garment - The righteousness of Christ, first imputed, then implanted. It may easily be observed, this has no relation to the Lord's Supper, but to God's proceeding at the last day.

22:14 Many are called; few chosen - Many hear; few believe. Yea, many are members of the visible, but few of the invisible Church. Mat 20:16.

NOTES

We see two possible responses from those invited. The case of those who assaulted the servants carrying the invitations seems clear: they themselves, and in a disgraceful manner, rejected the opportunity to attend the feast. But if we think about it, the peaceful people who...

A believer usually faces a difficult and important question: why do some people, like himself, see the meaning of their life in faith and in God, already now trying to live in His Kingdom, while others...

Today's reading offers us another of Jesus' parables about the Kingdom: the parable of the wedding feast. To understand its meaning...

Today's reading offers us another of Jesus' parables about the Kingdom: the parable of the wedding feast. To understand its meaning, it is important to remember that the relationship between God and the people of God had often been compared to marriage since the preaching of the prophet Hosea. And in the context of the prophet Jeremiah's teaching about the renewal of the union-covenant between God and the people of God on the day of the Messiah's coming, the wedding feast becomes a symbol of the messianic Kingdom.

Jesus' parable explains what keeps the invited guests from coming to this feast. On the one hand, they are hindered by attachment to everything earthly, to everything that makes them forget the Kingdom (vv. 3-9). Here, clearly, the situation in view is the one that had developed among the people of God even before the exile, when messianic preaching first sounded in Israel. In those days messianism was indeed thoroughly permeated with politics, and many understood the Kingdom in completely earthly terms, as an independent and powerful Jewish state that would be founded by the Messiah sent by God. But even after the Babylonian exile, already in the Gospel era, popular religious life still assumed precisely this view of the Kingdom. It is no surprise that this messianism was doomed to defeat, for no such earthly kingdom existed in God's design. Meanwhile, the rejection of the prophets was often connected precisely with the fact that they said about the Kingdom something other than what the majority expected from them. It is no surprise that those who expected an earthly kingdom ultimately come to ruin: they reject the true Kingdom for the sake of their own idea. But problems also arise for those who eagerly hurry to the wedding feast. It is no accident that the parable mentions a man who entered the banquet hall without wedding clothes (vv. 11-14). At first glance, this seems a strange complaint, considering what kind of people had gathered for the feast (vv. 9-10). But in those days the host sent festive clothing to the invited guests, so all they had to do was put it on. In such a situation, neglecting the clothing that had been sent meant disrespect for the host, a claim that the guest's own clothing was no worse, and perhaps even better, than what the steward of the feast had sent.

It is no accident that the parable of the wedding feast continues Jesus' conversation with the chief priests and elders about "the baptism of John": many Pharisees were held back precisely because they did not think they needed any cleansing, being sure that they were already fit for the Kingdom. But it turns out that merely accepting the Kingdom is not enough; true humility is also needed, an acknowledgment of one's own unreadiness for life in it. Only then can one put on the clothing given by the King.

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