Parable of the Wedding Banquet

Only Matthew saved this parable. Perhaps he felt it was primarily directed to Israel, which was his primary audience.

Following the implication is fairly easy. Those initially invited to the marriage banquet were the Jewish people, who generally responded to God’s invitation with indifference. God—the king—then expands his invitation to any who will come—the non-Jews. The result is judgment on those who were indifferent to God’s invitation. That has application to individuals and nations.

Jesus ended the story with what seems strange until we look a bit deeper. Everyone was invited but you had to be properly dressed. At a shallow level, improper dress would be disrespectful. A deeper message is that to enter into the eternal marriage banquet given by God, we have to be in Christ. Without that inclusion in him, we can’t attend. God invites all, but only those in Christ are chosen.