Sally A. Brown, Professor Emerita, Princeton Theological Seminary
Matthew scholars generally agree that Matthew presents Jesus in the mode of “apocalyptic prophet.” In the tradition of Amos, Isaiah, and his cousin John the Baptist, Jesus announces the approach of God’s day of reckoning, taking to task religious leaders. He calls for a return to the nation’s core identity, in which the law functions first and foremost to provide justice and mercy for the vulnerable, not as a ladder to climb in pursuit of status and power. Mt expands material from Mk and Lk, particularly emphasizing the eschatological judgment sure to fall on the obdurate.
There are significant parallels between today’s reading (Mt 22:1-14, the parable of the wedding feast) and Luke’s parable of the great banquet (Lk 14:18-19). In both Mt and Lk, the original invitees refuse to attend the feast. In both, the host is angered; in both the household servants are sent into the streets and byways to fill the empty seats. Yet other details differ significantly. First, the banquet in Mt is the wedding feast of the king’s son, not simply “a great dinner.” In Luke, the host is angry when invitees proffer elaborate excuses for their absence, but then simply finds worthier guests—specifically “the poor, the crippled, the blind, and the lame.” In Mt, however, the guests not only spurn the feast, but murder the servants sent to summon them. The enraged king responds in kind, killing the murderers and incinerating their city. In Mt, the servants don’t seek those on the margins, but rather invite “both good and bad,” phrasing already familiar to us from another apocalyptic parable, the parable of the fishnet (Mt 13:47-50). In Mt, the parable is aimed squarely at Jesus’ critics.
Mt’s version an additional, disturbing scene (vv 11-14). The king spots an attendee who wears no wedding robe. In an honor/shame culture, this might suggest smug flippancy, or even deliberate intent to dishonor the king. Confronted, the offender is speechless. He is “bound hand and foot” and consigned to “the outer darkness where there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” In apocalyptic literature, this phrase signifies the suffering awaiting those who oppose God’s ways.
Attention to context may help us come to grips with the strong tone of this parable. At this point, Jesus has delivered parable after parable, seeking to elicit repentance and reform, especially among the nation’s leaders and teachers. It is the last of Jesus’ public parables; the remaining two are addressed only to his disciples. It is a final effort to evoke self-examination, reform, and the renewal of the nation. Jesus will say of these opponents, “you tithe mint, dill, and cumin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law, justice and mercy and faith” (23:23). But they are stone-faced. The parable is bracketed by statements announcing their intent to arrest him (21:46, 22:15).
Preachers need not harangue their listeners or threaten them with violence for spiritual sluggishness, but sermons on this parable will need to convey the message that the coming of God’s reign is not to be taken lightly. How might God be asking us to realign our priorities with God’s own? What preoccupations divert us from investing time and energy in actions that align with God’s reign? How might God be sending us, in our own time, to bring in both “the good and the bad” to experience God’s feast of justice and mercy? Isaiah envisions God’s reign as a “feast for all peoples” (Is 25:6). Let us have the courage to cross social boundaries, caring for and gathering anyone and everyone who hungers for bread and justice, healing and mercy. All are invited to the king’s table!
