In the previous blog, we saw that those originally invited did not heed the king’s call. Some paid no attention to it, while others mistreated and killed his servants. Eventually, judgment followed, and their city was set on fire. This foretold the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD.
But the parable does not end there. After all, the wedding is ready, and God’s purpose moves forward. When those originally invited refuse to come, the servants are sent out to invite others.
Not worthy
Matthew 22 (based on ISA)
8 Then he said to his servants: “The wedding is indeed ready, but those invited were not worthy.”
Once again, those previously mentioned “invited ones” are referred to here. It still concerns Israel, the people originally invited to the wedding. But now the king states that they were not worthy.
This does not mean they first had to become worthy through their good works. The preceding verses reveal why they were unworthy: they did not want to come. They paid no heed to the call, and some even persecuted and killed the servants sent to them.
We find similar wording in Acts 13. When Paul and Barnabas encounter opposition from the Jews in Antioch in Pisidia, they say:
Acts 13 (based on ISA)
46 (…) It was necessary for the word of God to be spoken to you first. Since you thrust it away from you and judge yourselves unworthy of aeonian life, behold, we turn to the nations.
We see the same sequence there as well. The word had to be spoken to Israel first. But when they thrust it away, the message goes to the nations.
the crossroads
9 Go then to the crossroads, and call whomever you find there to the wedding.
The invited guests did not want to come, but the wedding is going ahead. Therefore, the slaves receive a new assignment. They must go to the crossroads and call whomever they find there. The invitation thus becomes much broader. At first, those who had already been invited were called. Now the instruction is simply: whomever you find.
We find a similar parable in Luke 14. There, too, a meal is prepared, and the invited guests refuse to come. Eventually, the master says to his slave:
Luke 14 (based on ISA)
23 (…) Go out to the roads and hedges and compel them to come in, so that my house may be filled.
The house must be filled. The refusal of the original invitees does not prevent the meal from taking place.
to all nations
We could see the going out to the roads as a reference to the present time, in which the gospel is being made known among the nations. However, when we read the parable in its chronological context, it points primarily to the time immediately preceding the wedding feast.
After all, the wedding feast speaks of the future Kingdom and the new covenant. And precisely before the coming of that Kingdom, a message concerning that Kingdom will once again be proclaimed throughout the entire world. Regarding this, Jesus says in His discourse on the Mount of Olives:
Matthew 24 (based on ISA)
14 And this gospel of the Kingdom will be proclaimed in the whole inhabited world, as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.
The end spoken of here is the end of the aeon (age). That was also what the disciples had asked about: “What is the sign of Your coming and of the consummation of the aeon?” (Matt. 24:3). Before that aeon ends and the Kingdom is revealed, the gospel of the Kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the entire inhabited world.
The call then goes out not merely to the land of Israel, but to all nations. This fits perfectly with the image of the slaves who are sent to the roads and must invite as many people as possible to the wedding feast.
the 144,000
In Revelation 7 and 14, we find the 144,000, who will fulfill a special task during that time. They are sealed from the twelve tribes of Israel and will be sent out as messengers. They proclaim the gospel of the Kingdom among the nations. Their message is primarily all about Israel. The Israelites scattered among the nations will be called upon to turn to their Messiah and return to the land. Yet Matthew 24:14 explicitly states that the gospel of the Kingdom will serve as a testimony to all nations. The message, therefore, has a much wider scope.
We see this reflected in the parable as well. The servants are not instructed to look for only specific people along the roads. They are to call:
“…as many as you find.”
bad and good
Matthew 22 (based on ISA)
10 And those servants went out onto the roads and gathered all whom they found, both bad and good. And the wedding hall was filled with those reclining at the table.
The king’s instruction had been to invite as many as they could find to the wedding (:9). The servants carry this out. They make no distinction in doing so: they gather “both bad and good.”
This aligns with what we saw earlier. The call goes out to all nations and is not limited to those originally invited to the wedding. Whoever is found on the roads is invited.
the hall was filled
The king’s objective is achieved:
“And the wedding hall was filled…”
This is a significant detail in the parable. The original invitees refused to come, yet the hall does not remain empty because of this. The king has others invited, and ultimately, the hall is filled. We find the same idea in Luke 14: “so that my house may be filled” (Luke 14:23). This also lays the groundwork for the remarkable statement with which Jesus concludes this parable:
“For many are called, but few are chosen” (:14).
These words are often interpreted to mean that, while many are called, ultimately only a few attend the wedding. But that can hardly be the intended meaning. Jesus has just emphatically stated that the wedding hall was filled. Thus, it was not a small number of the invited who entered, but a great many.
We shall see who those “few chosen” are at the end of this series. First, the king enters to inspect the guests. And among all those reclining at the table, he spots one man who is not wearing a wedding garment.