The Parable of the Wedding Feast

Who will be faithful? Who will do God’s will? Who has the authority to proclaim God’s will? The parables (Matt 21:28-22:14) that Jesus tells to the elites in the Temple concern these questions. These parables confront the elites with their failings and questions their authority. Tensions escalate between Jesus and the authorities during what we now call Holy Week.

These parables are not a condemnation of all Jews. These are not parables about Christianity “replacing” Judaism. This needs to be stated repeatedly. This parable is not talking about evangelism or the fate of non believers. This parable is for the Jerusalem elites. It concerns their actions. These parables are prophetic speech directed to and focused on a particular group of people who Jesus was talking to. Prophets do not predict the future as much as they tell the truth about the reality of their times.

The Parable of the Wedding Feast uses a familiar social event. In addition, the image of the wedding feast historically was used as an image of God’s relationship with Israel. As with many parables, this one has a shocking twist, designed to get the hearers’ attention and make them (and us) think.

We don’t want to meticulously allegorize this parable. The king in this parable sometimes seems to be and act like God and also sometimes the king seems to be and act like the Roman emperor or any other ruler. Parts of the parable don’t accurately represent an actual wedding feast. Reactions to circumstances are exaggerated. Nevertheless the overall message is clear.

The king invites people to the wedding of his son. We can assume that only elite people will be invited to a royal wedding. Surprisingly they don’t attend. When they are invited again they “make light” of the invitation and some of them kill the king’s slaves. They dishonor the king and the king’s authority. This is shocking but it gets worse. The enraged king destroys the city. And after that, he invites anyone who can be found to the wedding. He sends his slaves to gather the good and the bad and bring them to the wedding.

This parable, similar to the parable of the vineyard, accuses the Temple elites of not doing God’s will, of rejecting God’s purposes. If the wedding feast is a metaphor for God’s relationship with Israel, the elites have refused to participate appropriately in that relationship. Scholars think that the destruction of the city by the king in the parable refers to the Roman Empire’s destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple in 70 CE. This interprets the fall of Jerusalem as God’s judgement carried out by Rome, similar to other instances in the Bible where a foreign nation was an unwitting agent in God’s actions.

There are a couple of interesting items to notice in this parable. The elites, as in the previous parable, get more than one change to do better and carry out God’s purposes. After they don’t change their ways, they are replaced. In this parable they are replaced by regular people, both good and bad. The invitation to the wedding banquet is expanded, opened to all regardless of who they were. This is amazing news for the disciples in a society that was rigidly concerned with social status and honor.

But the parable isn’t over just yet. The king sees someone not properly attired for the occasion, which was a serious matter. This improperly dressed person is thrown out. This person has also not honored the authority and stature of the king. They have not behaved appropriately. Here is a word of warning to the disciples. As disciples they should not feel satisfied or complacent. Being a disciple is more than just showing up. Proper actions and behavior matters.

These three parables (Matt 21:28-22:14) make some similar points. Discerning and doing God’s will matters tremendously. It’s insufficient to say “yes” and then not act or to accept the banquet invitation and not participate appropriately or to not give to God what belongs to God. The Temple elites actions will have devastating real world consequences.

What do we do with these parables today? Parts of the Christian tradition have spiritualize these parables making them about who gets into heaven after death. Some have used these parables to wrongly claim Christian superiority over Judaism.

It seems to me helpful to keep the parable’s focus on the elites, on those who have power and authority. We need to remember that the political and religious norms of the first century CE are different from ours. There was no separation of government and religion. This isn’t a call for a Christian nation. It is a call for leaders and those with power to act with and for restorative justice and effective concern for the marginalized.

In our much less rigidly hierarchical society there are all kinds of power and authority we should think about at a variety of levels and circumstances. Certainly national and regional level church and governmental folks. As well as national level business and non profit “elites”. There are plenty of people with significant levels of power and authority in smaller places, local governments, local churches, schools, businesses, nonprofits to name a few.

I wonder where do I have some power and authority, and am I using it for God’s purposes? Where do you have some power and authority and are you using it for God’s purposes? How can we influence those with power and authority? How do we together work for God’s purposes of justice and equity and the well being of all?