Matthew 22:1-14
This parable is the third in a set that immediately follow on the triumphal entry of Jesus to Jerusalem on what we now call Palm Sunday. The first parable is about a man with two sons, one who goes out in to the fields after saying he won’t, and the other who doesn’t, after saying he will. The second parable is about a man who owns a vineyard who sends his son to deal with the tenants, and who has his son killed by the tenants. Foreshadowing, much?
The we get to this parable. The king has prepared a wedding banquet, yet those who are invited don’t seem to want to come, or mistreat the kings messengers. So the king wages war against the murderers, and then sends his slaves out into the streets to invite more people to the wedding. Even then, the king finds someone not ready for the feast, and has that person thrown out.
Why does Jesus tell this parable right after getting to Jerusalem on the last week of his life? What’s the message when tied with the other two? What is the message to modern day disciples?
