Questions about the Wedding Parable of Matthew 22

[Richard Amiel McGough]

The Wedding Parable of Matthew 22:

Matthew 22:1 And Jesus answered and spoke to them again by parables and said: 2 "The kingdom of heaven is like a certain king who arranged a marriage for his son, 3 "and sent out his servants to call those who were invited to the wedding; and they were not willing to come. 4 "Again, he sent out other servants, saying, 'Tell those who are invited, "See, I have prepared my dinner; my oxen and fatted cattle are killed, and all things are ready. Come to the wedding." ' 5 "But they made light of it and went their ways, one to his own farm, another to his business. 6 "And the rest seized his servants, treated them spitefully, and killed them. 7 "But when the king heard about it, he was furious. And he sent out his armies, destroyed those murderers, and burned up their city. 8 "Then he said to his servants, 'The wedding is ready, but those who were invited were not worthy. 9 'Therefore go into the highways, and as many as you find, invite to the wedding.' 10 "So those servants went out into the highways and gathered together all whom they found, both bad and good. And the wedding hall was filled with guests. 11 ¶ "But when the king came in to see the guests, he saw a man there who did not have on a wedding garment. 12 "So he said to him, 'Friend, how did you come in here without a wedding garment?' And he was speechless. 13 "Then the king said to the servants, 'Bind him hand and foot, take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.' 14 "For many are called, but few are chosen."

Questions:

1. Who is the King?
2. Who is the Son?
3. Who are the servants?
4. Who are the guests that rejected the invitation?
5. Who are the guests brought in from the street?
6. Who is the guest without a garment?
7. Who is the bride, and why is she not mentioned?

The first two questions are rather obvious - God the Father and Jesus. The rest of the answers don't seem so obvious ... especially the seventh.

And remember, this parable was told long before the Gospel went out to the Gentiles, so it seems anachronistic to suggest that any of the players in the story refer to them. None of the folks Christ was speaking to would have thought any of them were Gentiles.

[throwback]

Questions:

Who is the King?
Who is the Son?
Who are the servants?
Who are the guests that rejected the invitation?
Who are the guests brought in from the street?
Who is the guest without a garment?
Who is the bride, and why is she not mentioned?

The servants would appears to be the apostles and prophets sent to tell the people God's message.
The invited guests seem to be those Jewish leaders and there fathers that Jesus spoke of in the following chapter in verses 29 thru 36.
The guest brought from the streets are likely a reference to the same group of outsiders (tax collectors and whores) spoken of in chapter 21 verses 31 and 32. In addition verse 9 seems to indicate that this group was inclusive of the lost of Israel as well as people of the nations.
As far as the guest without a garment, GUESS would be someone who wishes to make it into the Kingdom without properly acknowledging the Son, but that is just a guess I cannot prove or back up with much evidence.
As far as the bride is concerned, though she is not mentioned, can't we reasonably conclude that exist because in order for there to be a wedding feast there must be both a bride and a bridegroom?

Here's a question I have: When is/was the wedding banquet? This is an area where I may lean with the futurists...........

[CWH]

The Wedding Parable of Matthew 22:

Matthew 22:1 And Jesus answered and spoke to them again by parables and said: 2 "The kingdom of heaven is like a certain king who arranged a marriage for his son, 3 "and sent out his servants to call those who were invited to the wedding; and they were not willing to come. 4 "Again, he sent out other servants, saying, 'Tell those who are invited, "See, I have prepared my dinner; my oxen and fatted cattle are killed, and all things are ready. Come to the wedding." ' 5 "But they made light of it and went their ways, one to his own farm, another to his business. 6 "And the rest seized his servants, treated them spitefully, and killed them. 7 "But when the king heard about it, he was furious. And he sent out his armies, destroyed those murderers, and burned up their city. 8 "Then he said to his servants, 'The wedding is ready, but those who were invited were not worthy. 9 'Therefore go into the highways, and as many as you find, invite to the wedding.' 10 "So those servants went out into the highways and gathered together all whom they found, both bad and good. And the wedding hall was filled with guests. 11 ¶ "But when the king came in to see the guests, he saw a man there who did not have on a wedding garment. 12 "So he said to him, 'Friend, how did you come in here without a wedding garment?' And he was speechless. 13 "Then the king said to the servants, 'Bind him hand and foot, take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.' 14 "For many are called, but few are chosen."

Questions:

1. Who is the King?
2. Who is the Son?
3. Who are the servants?
4. Who are the guests that rejected the invitation?
5. Who are the guests brought in from the street?
6. Who is the guest without a garment?
7. Who is the bride, and why is she not mentioned?

The first two questions are rather obvious - God the Father and Jesus. The rest of the answers don't seem so obvious ... especially the seventh.

And remember, this parable was told long before the Gospel went out to the Gentiles, so it seems anachronistic to suggest that any of the players in the story refer to them. None of the folks Christ was speaking to would have thought any of them were Gentiles.

The parable is not difficult to interpret from the Futurist's point of view. The context is about many are called but few are chosen to enter into the kingdom of God. It goes like this:

2 "The kingdom of heaven is like a certain king who arranged a marriage for his son, 3 "and sent out his servants to call those who were invited to the wedding; and they were not willing to come.
The kingdom of God is like an arranged marriage in heaven in which God will get His angels and His people to seek people (the Jews) to come into the kingdom of heaven but they were not willing to come.

4 "Again, he sent out other servants, saying, 'Tell those who are invited, "See, I have prepared my dinner; my oxen and fatted cattle are killed, and all things are ready. Come to the wedding."
God also sent his people, priests, apostles, missionaries to encourage those (Jews) who are eligible for the kingdom of God by letting them know that everything has been well prepared to accept them into the kingdom of heaven.

5 "But they made light of it and went their ways, one to his own farm, another to his business. 6 "And the rest seized his servants, treated them spitefully, and killed them.
But those who were eligible for the kingdom of heaven (the Jews) were ignorant or were more interested with their own daily life on earth and even persecuted and killed the apostles, priests and missionaries.

7 "But when the king heard about it, he was furious. And he sent out his armies, destroyed those murderers, and burned up their city.
But God was angry that they killed His people, apostles, priests and missionaries who were sent to invite them into the kingdom of heaven and He sent his angels to punish them in revenge.

8 "Then he said to his servants, 'The wedding is ready, but those who were invited were not worthy. 9 'Therefore go into the highways, and as many as you find, invite to the wedding.'
God said that since those eligible are not worthy for the kingdom of heaven then invite all including the Gentiles into the kingdom of heaven

10 "So those servants went out into the highways and gathered together all whom they found, both bad and good. And the wedding hall was filled with guests.
So God's people and angels gather all both good and bad(repented) into into a hall in heaven until it was full.

11 "But when the king came in to see the guests, he saw a man there who did not have on a wedding garment. 12 "So he said to him, 'Friend, how did you come in here without a wedding garment?' And he was speechless.
When God was doing His judgement, He saw a group of Christians who manage to get into the heaven hall but however were not pure and did not do His will. These Christians who claimed to love God were stunt to see God questioning them.

13 "Then the king said to the servants, 'Bind him hand and foot, take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.' 14 "For many are called, but few are chosen."
These false Christians who confess to love God were thrown into punishment.

This is related to Matthew 7:

13 “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. 14 But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.........
21 “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22 Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ 23 Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’


May God lead us through the narrow gate, Amen .

[Richard Amiel McGough]

The parable is not difficult to interpret from the Futurist's point of view. The context is about many are called but few are chosen to enter into the kingdom of God. It goes like this:

2 "The kingdom of heaven is like a certain king who arranged a marriage for his son, 3 "and sent out his servants to call those who were invited to the wedding; and they were not willing to come.
The kingdom of God is like an arranged marriage in heaven in which God will get His angels and His people to seek people (the Jews) to come into the kingdom of heaven but they were not willing to come.

4 "Again, he sent out other servants, saying, 'Tell those who are invited, "See, I have prepared my dinner; my oxen and fatted cattle are killed, and all things are ready. Come to the wedding."
God also sent his people, priests, apostles, missionaries to encourage those (Jews) who are eligible for the kingdom of God by letting them know that everything has been well prepared to accept them into the kingdom of heaven.

5 "But they made light of it and went their ways, one to his own farm, another to his business. 6 "And the rest seized his servants, treated them spitefully, and killed them.
But those who were eligible for the kingdom of heaven (the Jews) were ignorant or were more interested with their own daily life on earth and even persecuted and killed the apostles, priests and missionaries.

7 "But when the king heard about it, he was furious. And he sent out his armies, destroyed those murderers, and burned up their city.
But God was angry that they killed His people, apostles, priests and missionaries who were sent to invite them into the kingdom of heaven and He sent his angels to punish them in revenge.

8 "Then he said to his servants, 'The wedding is ready, but those who were invited were not worthy. 9 'Therefore go into the highways, and as many as you find, invite to the wedding.'
God said that since those eligible are not worthy for the kingdom of heaven then invite all including the Gentiles into the kingdom of heaven

10 "So those servants went out into the highways and gathered together all whom they found, both bad and good. And the wedding hall was filled with guests.
So God's people and angels gather all both good and bad(repented) into into a hall in heaven until it was full.

11 "But when the king came in to see the guests, he saw a man there who did not have on a wedding garment. 12 "So he said to him, 'Friend, how did you come in here without a wedding garment?' And he was speechless.
When God was doing His judgement, He saw a group of Christians who manage to get into the heaven hall but however were not pure and did not do His will. These Christians who claimed to love God were stunt to see God questioning them.

13 "Then the king said to the servants, 'Bind him hand and foot, take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.' 14 "For many are called, but few are chosen."
These false Christians who confess to love God were thrown into punishment.

This is related to Matthew 7:

13 'Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. 14 But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.........
21 'Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22 Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ 23 Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’


May God lead us through the narrow gate, Amen .

What about these verses:

Matt 22:5 "But they made light of it and went their ways, one to his own farm, another to his business. 6 "And the rest seized his servants, treated them spitefully, and killed them. 7 "But when the king heard about it, he was furious. And he sent out his armies [Romans led by Titus], destroyed those murderers, and burned up their city [Fulfilled in 70 AD].

Seems to fit pretty well with the Preterist understanding.

[Brother Les]

The Wedding Parable of Matthew 22:

Matthew 22:1 And Jesus answered and spoke to them again by parables and said: 2 "The kingdom of heaven is like a certain king who arranged a marriage for his son, 3 "and sent out his servants to call those who were invited to the wedding; and they were not willing to come. 4 "Again, he sent out other servants, saying, 'Tell those who are invited, "See, I have prepared my dinner; my oxen and fatted cattle are killed, and all things are ready. Come to the wedding." ' 5 "But they made light of it and went their ways, one to his own farm, another to his business. 6 "And the rest seized his servants, treated them spitefully, and killed them. 7 "But when the king heard about it, he was furious. And he sent out his armies, destroyed those murderers, and burned up their city. 8 "Then he said to his servants, 'The wedding is ready, but those who were invited were not worthy. 9 'Therefore go into the highways, and as many as you find, invite to the wedding.' 10 "So those servants went out into the highways and gathered together all whom they found, both bad and good. And the wedding hall was filled with guests. 11 ¶ "But when the king came in to see the guests, he saw a man there who did not have on a wedding garment. 12 "So he said to him, 'Friend, how did you come in here without a wedding garment?' And he was speechless. 13 "Then the king said to the servants, 'Bind him hand and foot, take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.' 14 "For many are called, but few are chosen."

Questions:

1. Who is the King?
2. Who is the Son?
3. Who are the servants?
4. Who are the guests that rejected the invitation?
5. Who are the guests brought in from the street?
6. Who is the guest without a garment?
7. Who is the bride, and why is she not mentioned?

The first two questions are rather obvious - God the Father and Jesus. The rest of the answers don't seem so obvious ... especially the seventh.

And remember, this parable was told long before the Gospel went out to the Gentiles, so it seems anachronistic to suggest that any of the players in the story refer to them. None of the folks Christ was speaking to would have thought any of them were Gentiles.

Who is the King? Father God of the Trinity
Who is the Son? Jesus/Messiah of the Trinity
Who are the servants? OT Prophets and John the Baptist
Who are the guests that rejected the invitation? Carnal Leadership and their unElect followers of Ephraim and Judah
Who are the guests brought in from the street? Elect of Ephraim and followers of the Jewish, 'The Way'
Who is the guest without a garment? the text says 'good and bad' came, but it seems that only one guest is cast out. ie. the High Priest of the OC.Who is the bride, and why is she not mentioned? The Bride are those that came to the wedding, though good and bad, they were dressing in the blood of the lamb. This is the Election of Ephraim (bad?) and of Judah (good?)

All of the Covenantal Promises were given to Israel and all of the Parables are About Israel, no exception as far as I can tell.

[CWH]

What about these verses:

Matt 22:5 "But they made light of it and went their ways, one to his own farm, another to his business. 6 "And the rest seized his servants, treated them spitefully, and killed them. 7 "But when the king heard about it, he was furious. And he sent out his armies [Romans led by Titus], destroyed those murderers, and burned up their city [Fulfilled in 70 AD].

Seems to fit pretty well with the Preterist understanding.

It's absurd to even think that God's armies destroy His own people and burn up His own city. Were the Romans who destroyed Jerusalem God's armies? And the king is not Titus but God. And where in the Bible did it says AD 70?

"[B]But when the king heard about it, he was furious. And he sent out his armies [Romans led by Titus], destroyed those murderers, and burned up their city [Fulfilled in 70 AD]

Who is the King? Father God of the Trinity
Who is the Son? Jesus/Messiah of the Trinity
Who are the servants? God's people who serves God such as apostles, priests, missionaries.
Who are the guests that rejected the invitation? The unbelieving Jews.
Who is the guest without a garment? The Christians who did not do the will of the Father in heaven They are called friend because they were Christians but who did not wear the garment of covenant with God (wedding garment = pure covenant)
Who is the bride, and why is she not mentioned? Not mentioned because the event has yet to come. The bride are those who managed to make it into the kingdom of heaven.

Matthew 25:1 “At that time the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. 2 Five of them were foolish and five were wise. 3 The foolish ones took their lamps but did not take any oil with them. 4 The wise ones, however, took oil in jars along with their lamps. 5 The bridegroom was a long time in coming, and they all became drowsy and fell asleep.



Be thou my Wisdom and thou my True Word, Amen.

[Brother Les]

Ram
Matt 22:5 "But they made light of it and went their ways, one to his own farm, another to his business. 6 "And the rest seized his servants, treated them spitefully, and killed them. 7 "But when the king heard about it, he was furious. And he sent out his armies [Romans led by Titus], destroyed those murderers, and burned up their city [Fulfilled in 70 AD].

Seems to fit pretty well with the Preterist understanding.

It's absurd to even think that God's armies destroy His own people and burn up His own city. Were the Romans who destroyed Jerusalem God's armies? And the king is not Titus but God. And where in the Bible did it says AD 70?

Ram
"[B]But when the king heard about it, he was furious. And he sent out his armies [Romans led by Titus], destroyed those murderers, and burned up their city [Fulfilled in 70 AD]

Who is the King? Father God of the Trinity
Who is the Son? Jesus/Messiah of the Trinity
Who are the servants? God's people who serves God such as apostles, priests, missionaries.
Who are the guests that rejected the invitation? The unbelieving Jews.
Who is the guest without a garment? The Christians who did not do the will of the Father in heaven They are called friend because they were Christians but who did not wear the garment of covenant with God (wedding garment = pure covenant)
Who is the bride, and why is she not mentioned? Not mentioned because the event has yet to come. The bride are those who managed to make it into the kingdom of heaven.

Matthew 25:1 “At that time the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. 2 Five of them were foolish and five were wise. 3 The foolish ones took their lamps but did not take any oil with them. 4 The wise ones, however, took oil in jars along with their lamps. 5 The bridegroom was a long time in coming, and they all became drowsy and fell asleep.



Be thou my Wisdom and thou my True Word, Amen.

You seem to have two conflicting answers. You said,

It's absurd to even think that God's armies destroy His own people and burn up His own city. Were the Romans who destroyed Jerusalem God's armies? And the king is not Titus but God. And where in the Bible did it says AD 70?

You infer that God will not destroy his own people and burn up His city..... God in the pasted had destroyed Samaria/Ephraim and had sifted them to the nations for their rebellion. They were all of 'Israelites' (Gods People) and yet He destroyed them. Like wise with Jerusalem and the unbelieving Jews, they rejected the invitation and were destroyed for their rebellion. The Jerusalem from below was no longer Gods 'city'for it is as Sodom and Eypt and Babylon (out of Babylon can the Rabbinical Babylonian Talmand that went against Gods Laws and became mans laws), it is the Jerusalem from above that is Gods city. Why would you even think to elude that Titus may be thought of as 'the king'? Titus was the 'son' of a king, Vespasian, in the flesh and did his bidding. But it also seems that Titus did the will of God in destroying Gods adversaries in the people, the place and the temple that persecuted The Sect of The Way, ie Christians.

[Richard Amiel McGough]

What about these verses:

Matt 22:5 "But they made light of it and went their ways, one to his own farm, another to his business. 6 "And the rest seized his servants, treated them spitefully, and killed them. 7 "But when the king heard about it, he was furious. And he sent out his armies [Romans led by Titus], destroyed those murderers, and burned up their city [Fulfilled in 70 AD].

Seems to fit pretty well with the Preterist understanding.

It's absurd to even think that God's armies destroy His own people and burn up His own city. Were the Romans who destroyed Jerusalem God's armies? And the king is not Titus but God. And where in the Bible did it says AD 70?

Actually, the true absurdity is your ignorance of the Bible. God used the Assyrians to destroy the ten northern tribes, and then used the Babylonians to destroy his city Jerusalem and his own Temple in 586 BC.

And your question "Where in the Bible does it say 70 AD?" is painfully moronic. The dating system based upon "AD" did not exist at the time the Bible was written. I can't believe anyone could ask such an absurd question, let alone repeat it after being corrected. What is going on? Do you delight in appearing stupid? Is that your purpose in life?

[Bob May]

The Wedding Parable of Matthew 22:

Matthew 22:1 And Jesus answered and spoke to them again by parables and said: 2 "The kingdom of heaven is like a certain king who arranged a marriage for his son, 3 "and sent out his servants to call those who were invited to the wedding; and they were not willing to come. 4 "Again, he sent out other servants, saying, 'Tell those who are invited, "See, I have prepared my dinner; my oxen and fatted cattle are killed, and all things are ready. Come to the wedding." ' 5 "But they made light of it and went their ways, one to his own farm, another to his business. 6 "And the rest seized his servants, treated them spitefully, and killed them. 7 "But when the king heard about it, he was furious. And he sent out his armies, destroyed those murderers, and burned up their city. 8 "Then he said to his servants, 'The wedding is ready, but those who were invited were not worthy. 9 'Therefore go into the highways, and as many as you find, invite to the wedding.' 10 "So those servants went out into the highways and gathered together all whom they found, both bad and good. And the wedding hall was filled with guests. 11 ¶ "But when the king came in to see the guests, he saw a man there who did not have on a wedding garment. 12 "So he said to him, 'Friend, how did you come in here without a wedding garment?' And he was speechless. 13 "Then the king said to the servants, 'Bind him hand and foot, take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.' 14 "For many are called, but few are chosen."

Questions:

1. Who is the King?
2. Who is the Son?
3. Who are the servants?
4. Who are the guests that rejected the invitation?
5. Who are the guests brought in from the street?
6. Who is the guest without a garment?
7. Who is the bride, and why is she not mentioned?

1. The Father in heaven.
2. The Son, Jesus Christ.
3. The prophets and the apostles and disciples and anyone that brings the good news of salvation by Grace.
4. Those who will not hear the message of grace.
5. Those who accept the message of grace. They are both bad and good because they understand that it is not by their own righteousness that they are accepted but by God's which is a free gift.
6. The guest without a garment has not put on Christ. But this person has attained by his own efforts and spiritual practices an awareness of altered states, other realities not apparent to "normal senses."
When asked how he got there "He was Speechless." That is the answer to how he got there. Practicing "stopping the internal dialog" and meditation, etc.
This will make a person aware of other "realities" but without a guide (Jesus and his doctrine) it will become a very chaotic state of mind where messages cannot be trusted, where reaffirmations are constant and there is no "filter" or doctrine that leads through the chaotic mess. Weeping and gnashing of teeth is the result of being in this "outer darkness."
7. We are the bride. We are not mentioned because we are the readers (or hearers) of this parable. The marriage supper has been occuring since the Gospel was first preached and so we as members of the body of Christ have not been fully washed as yet. We have not even all been born as yet, so we have not fully arrived as yet.
We are guests until we come to the full realisation of Christ in us the hope of Glory.

The first two questions are rather obvious - God the Father and Jesus. The rest of the answers don't seem so obvious ... especially the seventh.

And remember, this parable was told long before the Gospel went out to the Gentiles, so it seems anachronistic to suggest that any of the players in the story refer to them. None of the folks Christ was speaking to would have thought any of them were Gentiles.

It doesn't matter whether they thought that the parable was speaking about Gentiles or not. Or whether or not they understood the parable completely. In fact, I have been reading the same parables for years and still get more and different understanding from them all of the time.
But God and Jesus knew the Gospel would go out and that you and I and everyone since Jesus first spoke it that everyone would read it would do so. It was written for us.

There is truth in applying this parable to both first century Jews and religious leaders and to us since those days. The city being destroyed is the doctrine or "filter" through which our view of reality is dictated to our minds. We cannot think past this doctrine. That was the first century Jews and it is us also. The old city must be destroyed. The New City is built by God. Our Doctrine must be that of Christ to make it to becoming the bride fully clothed as we should be clothed, in Christ.
The restoration of all things happens because of and not until we bring all thoughts into submission to Christ.
That is the doctrine of Jesus as shown in the parable of the sower. He plants the seeds, we are the ground and then we see something has grown,..we knoweth not how.
With the doctrine of Christ as our filter of Reality, we become the bride of Christ. And it all "comes down out of heaven" exactly like when Peter realized who Jesus was.
Flesh and blood does not reveal this city to us, but the Father in heaven. He supplies the feast.

[Mike]

The only reasonable way to decide this is by vote. I'll go first:

1. Who is the King? Me
2. Who is the Son? Me
3. Who are the servants? Ex-girlfriends
4. Who are the guests that rejected the invitation? Ex-girlfriends
5. Who are the guests brought in from the street? strippers
6. Who is the guest without a garment? ex-girlfriend/stripper
7. Who is the bride? Jennifer Love Hewitt

Ok, here's a serious answer. I think the King and the Son are both the Messiah. The servants are everybody. The guests that reject the invitation are the messiah's friends and family-members (rejected at home). The guests brought in from the street are everybody else. I think the bride is mankind in general. When the people accept the Messiah it is like Jesus marrying the entire human race. I think...