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Matthew
22:1-14
This parable is a little more complicated than other parables because Jesus
goes into specific details that develop a scenario rather than using a simple
illustration to teach a general spiritual principle. The very nature of this
parable requires that the “details” play a much larger part than in most other
parables.
And yet, it still has a general focus that stands out even with a minimal
concentration on the details.
Mat. 22:1-7 is
a parable of Israel's failure to accept Jesus as the Messiah as per Mat.
21:33-43.
Verse 2
The king gives a wedding feast for his son.
The King represents God the Father.
The son represents the Messiah.
The wedding feast represents participation in the plan of God as His
representatives on the earth.
The wedding feast has no correlation to the bride of the Lamb, but is simply
the illustration used to communicate that the believer can have a place of
function and blessing in association with the King and with the Messiah.
Verse 3
The king sent out his servants to call those who had been invited.
The ones invited refers to the family and friends of the son – the people of
Israel
– but with emphasis on Israel
as a national UNIT, rather than as individuals. The nation of Israel; the ones
invited are the ones who would naturally be expected to join in the feast.
They would enter into a wonderful blessing by associating with the son in the
feast.
The servants represent the messengers of God,
sent periodically throughout history to invite God’s chosen people (Israel)
to identify with the Messiah through acceptance of the Messianic promise and
to share His blessing through spiritual relationship with Him.
But these who were invited were unwilling to identify with the Messiah.
They were unwilling to accept Jesus as the promised One.
Verse 4
The king, always patient and longsuffering, sent again to those who had been
invited saying that everything is ready for the feast.
As the history of the Jewish people continued, God continued to reach out to
them and invite them into blessing through identification with the Messianic
promise.
Verse 5
But they, having prospered, were even more inclined now to reject the
invitation and go on about their own affairs; their homes and businesses.
They were more interested in preserving their man made traditions than to
focus on the truths of divine love and justice (Mat. 15:3).
Verse 6
Other servants were sent and these were mistreated and killed.
The prophet-messengers of God were continually and faithfully sent to the
nation of Israel,
and yet they continued to reject them and have them tortured and killed just
like Jesus relates at Matthew 21:33-39 and Matthew 23:29-35. For concerning
John, “John came to you in the way of righteousness and you did not believe
him, (21:32).
And concerning the Son Himself, “And they took him and threw him out of the
vineyard and killed him,” (21:39).
Verse 7
With this final demonstration of hatred toward the king and rejection of any
affinity with him or his son, the king sent his armies to destroy them.
AD 30, Abib the 15th, marks the final demonstration of the nation’s rejection
of God and the Messiah.
Just as John writes,
“He came unto His own but His own did not receive Him, (John 1:11).
And Peter proclaims,
“This One, provided by the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God, you
nailed to a cross by the hands of lawless men and put Him to death, (Acts
2:23).
Accordingly, God used the legions of Rome
to destroy the city and the temple, leaving them desolate, just as Jesus
announced to them many years before it actually happened, as recorded at Mat.
23:37-38.
“O Jerusalem,
Jerusalem,
who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I
wanted to gather your children together, the way a hen gathers her chicks
under her wings, and you were unwilling.
“Behold, your house is being left to you desolate!
Verse 8
The nation of Israel,
as a UNIT, was found unworthy of the Father’s plans for them; of the blessing
that would come through identification with the Messiah.
Thus, “the
kingdom
of God”
would be taken away from them (Mat. 21:43). That is, the privilege and
responsibility to know and represent divine truth to the world. Paul describes
this as the branches of Israel “as a nation” being removed from the olive tree
(the kingdom of God). The olive tree at Romans 11:17-24 is NOT the nation of
Israel, but the “place” and “function” of being God’s priestly representatives
to the world.
Verse 9
Since the preparations have all been made and the original guests have
rejected the invitation, God extends that invitation to all the Gentiles.
“go to all the throughways of the roads, and invite as many as you find.”
And He removes from that “physical” nation of Israel the spiritual
responsibility of representing Divine truth to others and gives that
responsibility to another group, whom He identifies as
”a nation producing the fruit of it,” (Mat. 21:43).
This “new” nation will be comprised of both Jew and Gentile, and yet they will
lose ALL identification with their former associations. The Jews who join with
the new nation will become one IN CHRIST with Gentiles and God will use that
ONE NEW BODY as His priestly representatives to carry His word through the
world (Eph. 2:11-22).
So that now, In Christ, there is neither Jew nor Gentile, bond nor free, male
or female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus,” (Gal. 3:28).
Verse 10
The invitation is extended to all mankind “both evil and good.”
For Jesus “gave Himself as a ransom for all,” (1 Tim. 2:6) and becomes the
“propitiation for the sins of the whole world,” (1 John 2:2); “the savior of
all men,” (1 Tim. 4:10).
Verse 11-13
But the whole human race is not automatically saved just because Jesus died
for them all. They must meet the qualifications laid down by the Father. They
must wear the right clothing. They must accept by faith the gift that is
offered to them.
Anyone attempting to “reach” God on any other terms will be rejected.
John 1:13,
“not out from blood (hereditary), nor out from the will of the flesh
(self-determinism), nor out from the will of man (organized religion), but out
from God (His policy, His terms).”
“For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this (salvation) not out
from yourselves, it (salvation) is the gift of God;
not out from works, lest anyone should boast,” (Eph. 2:8-9).
Verse 13
This is clearly a salvation issue, for the one who is rejected is cast into
the outer darkness where there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. This
terminology is only used of those who do not escape their appointment with
judgment (Heb. 9:27)
and the destiny of Satan which is the lake of fire (Mat. 25:41).
This image simply
communicates the transition from physical suffering to spiritual suffering;
the extreme sorrow, anger and frustration that the person will experience in
this place of judgment.
The phrase, "weeping and
gnashing of teeth," only occurs 7 times in the Bible and always in connection
with the final disposition of the wicked when he has been cast into the
gehenna of fire (Matthew 8:12; 13:42; 13:50; 22:13; 24:51; 25:30; Luke 13:28).
See Topic: gnashing of teeth and outer darkness
Verse
14
For
many are called (klātos) but few are chosen
(eklektos).
This adjective klātos
is used to describe those who have received an invitation to the wedding
feast, "many are klātos."
The wedding feast represents the kingdom of God during the church age.
It is set up in contrast to "few are chosen," which is the adjective
eklektos. The contrast is to show that although many are invited, not all
are qualified to enter into the kingdom; even though they may try. To be
qualified you need to have on the right clothing; you need to be clothed
with God's righteousness.
Only those who trust in Christ are clothed with God's righteousness
All
are invited. All are DRAWN by God. He reaches out to all mankind.
But
only those who trust in Christ of their own free will, will be accepted
(chosen); forgiven their sins, and given eternal life with God.
See
Topic: DRAWING
There
is no significance to the wedding feast as having anything to do with the
Lamb’s bride in Revelation. This is simply the illustration that Jesus chose
to teach the spiritual principle that “function” in God’s kingdom would be
taken away from those for whom it was “previously” designed (Israel) and given
to those who previously had no part in that “specialized” function (the
Gentiles).
This was taught in the Old Testament at Deut.
32:21; Isaiah 28:9-13; 65:1, 13-16.
Mat. 22:8-14
is a parable for entrance into the kingdom of God during the time that the
disciples proclaim the gospel, as representatives of the "nation producing
the fruits of the kingdom of God" (Mat. 21:43) - the church age.
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