Mt 22:1-14
1Jesus spoke to [the chief priests and the Pharisees] in parables, saying, 2“The kingdom of heaven may be likened to a king who gave a wedding feast for his son. 3He dispatched his servants to summon the invited guests to the feast, but they refused to come. 4A second time he sent other servants, saying, ‘Tell those invited: “Behold, I have prepared my banquet, my calves and fattened cattle are killed, and everything is ready; come to the feast.” ’ 5Some ignored the invitation and went away, one to his farm, another to his business. 6The rest laid hold of his servants, mistreated them, and killed them.
7The king was enraged and sent his troops, destroyed those murderers, and burned their city. 8Then he said to his servants, ‘The feast is ready, but those who were invited were not worthy to come. 9Go out, therefore, into the main roads and invite to the feast whomever you find.’ 10The servants went out into the streets and gathered all they found, bad and good alike, and the hall was filled with guests. 11But when the king came in to meet the guests he saw a man there not dressed in a wedding garment. 12He said to him, ‘My friend, how is it that you came in here without a wedding garment?’ But he was reduced to silence. 13Then the king said to his attendants, ‘Bind his hands and feet, and cast him into the darkness outside, where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth.’ 14Many are invited, but few are chosen.”
The King Was Enraged: In the Middle East, the cultural values of honor and shame reign supreme. Jesus presents God as a king deserving of the highest honor from his subjects. The king shows himself to be overly generous in bestowing honor to others. In those times the few who get invited to the royal wedding feast are considered the most honorable in society. To turn down a royal invitation is a grave insult, and the king is justified in punishing those who have put him to shame. When the holy city Jerusalem was destroyed by the Romans, not a few blamed it to the Jews’ refusal of Jesus.
The former outsiders who are invited next honor the king by accepting his invitation. But among their ranks are those who fail to dress up properly, meaning, they fail to do good deeds. This is just as bad as turning down God’s invitation in the first place! Accepting God’s offer of salvation in Christ opens to us the honorable life that gives glory to God. But salvation has its own demands. A Christian who does not live up to the demands of an honorable life is just as bad as the one who fails to accept the offer of salvation.