Message by Larry Thacker Jr. from January 16, “The Wedding Feast”
We continue our study with the next parable that Matthew records in chapter 22, verses 2-14. It’s not clear whether this is part of the same discussion at the temple that we studied in the previous episode, but it does follow the same themes.
In this story, a king prepares a wedding feast, but the invited guests refuse to come. Some of them even beat and kill the messengers. In response, the king burns their city, and fills his hall with anyone he can drag in. There’s a similar parable in Luke 14, but it is given at a different time and place. Some of the same themes are present, but the stories have significant differences, so we will stick to this one.
The ending always puzzled me. What is the significance of the man who is discovered among the guests without proper attire for the occasion? He is thrown out, and Jesus uses references associated with Hell to describe his fate. I was not surprised to learn that there are competing interpretations of this passage. I may not answer all the questions, but I will lay out some truth that can be found here.
