Matthew 22:1-14

Matthew 22

The Parable of the Wedding Banquet

¹ Jesus spoke to them again in parables. He said, ² “The kingdom of heaven is like a certain king who prepared a wedding banquet for his son. ³ He sent out his servants to summon those who were invited to the wedding banquet, but they did not want to come.

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

⁵ “But those who were invited paid no attention and went off, one to his own farm, another to his business. ⁶ The rest seized the king’s servants, mistreated them, and killed them. ⁷ As a result, the king was very angry. He sent his army and killed those murderers and burned their town.

⁸ “Then he said to his servants, ‘The wedding banquet is ready, but those who were invited were not worthy. ⁹ So go to the main crossroads and invite as many as you find to the wedding banquet.’ ¹⁰ Those servants went out to the roads and gathered together everyone they found, both good and bad, and the wedding hall was filled with guests. ¹¹ But when the king came in to see the guests, he saw a man there who was not wearing wedding clothes. ¹² He said to him, ‘Friend, how did you get in here without wearing wedding clothes?’ The man was speechless. ¹³ Then the king told the servants, ‘Tie him hand and foot and throw him into the outer darkness where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ ¹⁴ For many are called, but few are chosen.”