Parable of the Wedding Feast

Here is the passage.

Mat 22:1 Jesus spoke to them again in parables, saying: 2 “The kingdom of heaven is like a king who prepared a wedding banquet for his son. 3 He sent his servants to those who had been invited to the banquet to tell them to come, but they refused to come.

4 “Then he sent some more servants and said, ‘Tell those who have been invited that I have prepared my dinner: My oxen and fattened cattle have been butchered, and everything is ready. Come to the wedding banquet.’

5 “But they paid no attention and went off—one to his field, another to his business. 6 The rest seized his servants, mistreated them and killed them. 7 The king was enraged. He sent his army and destroyed those murderers and burned their city.

8 “Then he said to his servants, ‘The wedding banquet is ready, but those I invited did not deserve to come. 9 So go to the street corners and invite to the banquet anyone you find.’ 10 So the servants went out into the streets and gathered all the people they could find, the bad as well as the good, and the wedding hall was filled with guests.

It appears to be a text rationalising the preaching of the gospels to gentiles. The wedding banquet is analogous to the kingdom of God, and those invited represents the Jews. But the Jews gave various excuses and did not come, so instead everyone else is invited.

It is often said the Matthew is the gospel written for the Jews, and Luke for the gentiles. I do not believe that, and this passage very much undermines the claim that Matthew is for the Jews.

The same story appears in Luke:

Luke 14:15 When one of those at the table with him heard this, he said to Jesus, “Blessed is the one who will eat at the feast in the kingdom of God.”

16 Jesus replied: “A certain man was preparing a great banquet and invited many guests. 17 At the time of the banquet he sent his servant to tell those who had been invited, ‘Come, for everything is now ready.’

18 “But they all alike began to make excuses. The first said, ‘I have just bought a field, and I must go and see it. Please excuse me.’

19 “Another said, ‘I have just bought five yoke of oxen, and I’m on my way to try them out. Please excuse me.’

20 “Still another said, ‘I just got married, so I can’t come.’

21 “The servant came back and reported this to his master. Then the owner of the house became angry and ordered his servant, ‘Go out quickly into the streets and alleys of the town and bring in the poor, the crippled, the blind and the lame.’

22 “‘Sir,’ the servant said, ‘what you ordered has been done, but there is still room.’

23 “Then the master told his servant, ‘Go out to the roads and country lanes and compel them to come in, so that my house will be full. 24 I tell you, not one of those who were invited will get a taste of my banquet.’”

And also the Gospel of Thomas 

Thomas 64: Jesus said, "A person was receiving guests. When he had prepared the dinner, he sent his slave to invite the guests.

The slave went to the first and said to that one, 'My master invites you.' That one said, 'Some merchants owe me money; they are coming to me tonight. I have to go and give them instructions. Please excuse me from dinner.'

The slave went to another and said to that one, 'My master has invited you.' That one said to the slave, 'I have bought a house, and I have been called away for a day. I shall have no time.'

The slave went to another and said to that one, 'My master invites you.' That one said to the slave, 'My friend is to be married, and I am to arrange the banquet. I shall not be able to come. Please excuse me from dinner.'

The slave went to another and said to that one, 'My master invites you.' That one said to the slave, 'I have bought an estate, and I am going to collect the rent. I shall not be able to come. Please excuse me.'

The slave returned and said to his master, 'Those whom you invited to dinner have asked to be excused.' The master said to his slave, 'Go out on the streets and bring back whomever you find to have dinner.'

Buyers and merchants [will] not enter the places of my Father."

In my view, this was made up long after Jesus was dead. Jesus preached to the Jews, his disciples were Jews. The idea that he said a parable about how gentiles, not Jews, would receive the kingdom of God is nonsense.

The story does not seem to be in Mark, so it could have been made up later than that, but that it is in both Matthew and Luke suggest some other common source, and that may well be older than Mark.

This verse in Matthew sounds like a reference to the destruction of Jerusalem ca. AD 70, but its absence in the other versions only dates Matthew to after that date.

Mat 22:7 The king was enraged. He sent his army and destroyed those murderers and burned their city.

The passage in Matthew continues:

Mat 22:11 “But when the king came in to see the guests, he noticed a man there who was not wearing wedding clothes. 12 He asked, ‘How did you get in here without wedding clothes, friend?’ The man was speechless.

13 “Then the king told the attendants, ‘Tie him hand and foot, and throw him outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’

14 “For many are invited, but few are chosen.”

In the context of the parable, this makes no sense. All the guests were rounded up off the streets, so how could any of them be wearing wedding clothes? No wonder the man was speechless!

And the cruel king that has the guy not just thrown out, but tied up first! What conclusion are we to draw about God? That he will invite you to come as you are to his kingdom, but when you do just that, if you are not one of his chosen, he will toss you into hell!

What a great and loving god he is.