Matthew 22:8

Since the previous servants, Moses and those with him, and the prophets, did not persuade them, He sends out other servants, the apostles, and they call the Gentiles who do not walk in the true way but are divided, some here, some there, separated into …

But he who sees that those invited despise him will not allow his son's wedding to remain empty. He sends to others, because even if the word of God labors among some, nevertheless at some point it will find a place where it may rest. Hence it is added: "Then he said to his servants: The wedding indeed is prepared, but those who were invited were not worthy."

(ubi sup.) But when He sees that His invitation is spurned at, He will not have His Son's marriage-feast empty; the word of God will find where it may stay itself.

There follows the calling of the gentiles, and the examination is presented. And he does three things. First, the command is presented; secondly, the execution; thirdly, the effect. The second is at and his servants going forth, etc.; the third at and the wedding was …

), The wedding is ready, the covenant of grace ready to be sealed, a church ready to be founded; but they which were bidden, that is, the Jews, to whom pertained the covenant and the promises, by which they were of old invited to the feast of fat things, they were not worthy, they were utterly unworthy, and, by their contempt of Christ, had forfeited all the privileges they were invited to.

quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — leading-punctuation+unbalanced-parens

Then saith he to his servants,....

Were not worthy - Because they made light of it, and would not come; preferring earthly things to heavenly blessings. Among the Mohammedans, refusal to come to a marriage feast, when invited, is considered a breach of the law of God. Hedayah, vol. iv. p. 91. Any one that shall be invited to a dinner, and does not accept the invitation, disobeys God, and his messenger: and any one who comes uninvited, you may say is a thief, and returns a plunderer. - Mischat ul Mesabih. It was probably considered in this light among all the oriental nations.

The wedding is ready, but they which were bidden were not worthy--for how should those be deemed worthy to sit down at His table who had affronted Him by their treatment of His gracious invitation?

IN the previous verses of this striking parable, we see that the Great King had been ungraciously treated by his subjects, and had in his wrath swept the rebels away. But there was the feast still waiting for guests and the time had arrived to celebrate the nuptials of his son. The terror of the royal power had been proven, but it still remained to display the splendor of the imperial hospitality. Therefore, while yet the clash of arms is in our ears, we hear the voice of royal clemency!

The parable related in these verses is one of very wide signification. In its first application it unquestionably points to the Jews. But we may not confine it to them. It contains heart-searching lessons for all among whom the Gospel is preached: it is a spiritual picture which speaks to us this day, if we have an ear to hear. The remark of a learned divine is wise and true: “Parables are like many-sided precious stones, cut so as to cast luster in more than one direction.”

The parable related in these verses is one of very wide signification. In its first application it unquestionably points to the Jews. But we may not confine it to them. It contains heart-searching lessons for all among whom the Gospel is preached: it is a spiritual picture which speaks to us this day, if we have an ear to hear. The remark of a learned divine is wise and true: “Parables are like many-sided precious stones, cut so as to cast luster in more than one direction.” Let us observe in the first place that the salvation of the Gospel is compared to a marriage feast. The Lord Jesus tells us that a certain king “made a marriage for his son.” There is in the Gospel a complete provision for all the wants of man’s soul: there is a supply of everything that can be required to relieve spiritual hunger and spiritual thirst. Pardon, peace with God, lively hope in this world, glory in the world to come are set before us in rich abundance. It is “a feast of fat things.” All this provision is owing to the love of the Son of God, Jesus Christ our Lord. He offers to take us into union with himself, to restore us to the family of God as dear children, to clothe us with his own righteousness, to give us a place in his kingdom, and to present us faultless before his Father’s throne at the last day. The Gospel, in short, is an offer of food to the hungry, of joy to the mourner, of a home to the outcast, of a loving friend to the lost. It is glad tidings. God offers, through his dear Son, to be at one with sinful man. Let us not forget this. “Herein is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins” ( 1 John 4:10 ). Let us observe in the second place, that the invitations of the Gospel are wide, full, broad and unlimited.

IN the previous verses of this striking parable, we see that the Great King had been ungraciously treated by his subjects, and had in his wrath swept the rebels away. But there was the feast still waiting for guests and the time had arrived to celebrate the nuptials of his son. The terror of the royal power had been proven, but it still remained to display the splendor of the imperial hospitality. Therefore, while yet the clash of arms is in our ears, we hear the voice of royal clemency! The din of war and the tramp of warriors have not caused the wedding or its feast to be forgotten, neither has wrath obliterated mercy! We read that "he sent forth his armies, and slew those murderers, and burned up their city," but in the next line we find the record, "then said he to his servants, go you into the highways, and as many as you shall find, invite to the marriage." In wrath he remembers mercy. On the heels of his men at arms he dispatches the ambassadors of peace. His power went forth to destroy his enemies, but it also went with his messengers to gather the needy from the streets. Judgment is the Lord's strange work, but He delights in mercy! Once He smites, but not till He has thrice invited the rebels come to Him. And when at last He overthrows the incorrigible, He takes occasion from it to extend His bounty to many others. Truly, God is Love! In the present portion of the parable, we are allowed to behold the king engaged with his servants in— I. A CONTEMPLATION OF THE REFUSAL given to his bounty. The royal host appears, as it were, to be in consultation with his servants. What a conception! The Eternal Father considers the position of affairs occasioned by the infamous conduct of those who rejected the Gospel of His Son! It is clearly no small matter to Him. The Glory of the Only-Begotten lies near His heart.