The Word Made Fresh
1Jesus continued to teach using parables. He said, 2“The kingdom of heaven is like a king who planned a wedding celebration for his son. 3He sent servants to summon those who had been invited, but they wouldn’t come. 4So he sent other servants.
“He said, ‘Tell the ones who received the invitation that the dinner has been prepared, the oxen and fat calves have been slaughtered and everything is ready. Come to the party!’
5“But they shrugged off the invitation and went their ways, one to his farm and another to his business. 5Others captured his servants and beat them and killed some of them. 7The king was outraged. He sent soldiers who put the murderers to death and set fire to their city. 8Then he told his servants, ‘The wedding feast is ready, but those who were invited proved to be undeserving. 9Go into the streets and invite everyone you see to the wedding banquet.’ 10The servants did as he said. They invited good and bad alike until the wedding hall was filled with guests.
11“But when the king arrived to greet the guests, he saw a man who wasn’t dressed properly, 12and said to him ‘Friend, how were you allowed in here without the proper attire.’ The man was speechless. 13The king told the attendants, ‘Tie him up hands and feet and throw him out into the darkness where people weep and grind their teeth.’ 14Many are called, but few are chosen.”
15After this the Pharisees began to gather and plan how to entrap him in what he said. 16They sent some of their followers to Jesus, along with some of the Herodians. They said, “Teacher, we know you are sincere about teaching God’s truth, and you don’t play favorites with people because you’re not partial to anyone. 17Tell us what you think about taxes; is it lawful to pay taxes to the emperor?”
18Jesus was quite aware of their plot, however, and said, “Why are you hypocrites trying to test me? 19Show me the coin that’s used to pay the tax.” They brought him a denarius. 20He asked them, “Whose likeness and title is this?”
21“The emperor’s,” they replied.
Jesus said, “Then give the emperor what belongs to the emperor, and give God the things that belong to God.” 22On hearing this, they were amazed and left him alone.
23That same day some Sadducees, who don’t believe in the resurrection, came to him, and asked, 24“Teacher, Moses taught that if a man dies without children his brother should marry his widow and raise children on his behalf. 25Now, there were seven brothers in one of our families. The eldest married, but died childless. His brother married his widow, 26but the same thing happened to him, and then to the third brother and so forth down to the seventh. 27The woman herself passed away after all of them. 28So, when the resurrection comes, whose wife will she be, since she married all seven of them?”
29Jesus answered, “Your story is wrong because you don’t know the scriptures nor the power of God. 30In the resurrection they will not marry, nor will they be given in marriage because they will be like the heavenly angels. 31And, about the resurrection, aren’t you familiar with what God said: 32‘I am the God of Abraham and Isaac and Jacob.’ God, you see, is not the God of the dead but of the living!” 33When the crowd heard this they were surprised at his teachings.
34But when the Pharisees heard how he had silenced the Sadducees, they met together. 35One of them, who was an attorney, tested Jesus with this question: 36“Teacher, which of the commandments is the most important?”
37Jesus replied, “‘You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and soul and mind.’ 38This is the first commandment, and the most important. 39The second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ 40The whole law and the teachings of the prophets hang on these two commandments.”
41The Pharisees had gathered, and Jesus asked them, 42“What do you think of the Christ? Whose son is he?”
“The son of David,” they replied.
43“Why, then,” he said, “does David, who was inspired by the Spirit, call him Lord. For David said, 44‘The Lord told my Lord to sit at my right hand and I will gather your enemies beneath your feet.’? 45If David refers to him as his Lord, how can he be his son?”
46None of them could give him an answer, and from then on they didn’t dare question him.
Commentary
1-14: The parable of the wedding feast is also told for the benefit of the chief priests as well as to the Pharisees. Like the two stories before it, this one ends with a statement of judgment; but in this parable the judgment is two-tiered — first against those who were called, then against one of those who came. Here is an allegorical interpretation: The banquet is the kingdom of heaven. The first people called to it are the Jews, and the “servants” who are sent to invite them are the Old Testament prophets. They refuse to come, that is, the Jews refused to listen to the prophets. So, in verse 4, other servants are sent (there is an emphasis on the fact that these are not the same servants from verse 3). These servants represent the disciples and followers of Jesus. They are treated by the Jews much worse even than the prophets had been treated. The burning of the city in verse 7 could be an allusion to the destruction of Jerusalem following a rebellion against Rome in 64 A.D.
Notice that in verse 8 it seems to be the same group of servants as in verse 4; that is, Christian disciples. This time they are sent to the Gentiles, who respond to the invitation and come to the banquet, which now represents the church. The attendee improperly dressed is perhaps a reference to the early church practice of having new converts don new robes to symbolize their new birth.
15-22: Now the Pharisees come to challenge Jesus. His response about paying taxes to Caesar is ingenious, and they withdraw.
23-33: It’s the Sadducees’ turn. They think they have a question designed to prove the silliness of the idea of the resurrection. Jesus replies that in the resurrection there is no marriage. The reasoning probably is that since the resurrected will live forever there will be no need for procreation and therefore the formality of marriage is not needed. This line of argument catches them off guard, and Jesus parries with a question of his own, a clever tactic on his part. Since God refers to those who died centuries before in the present tense, resurrection must therefore certainly be part of God’s plan.
34-40: The Pharisees return in force with a more subtle approach. This time Jesus is asked an honest question, although there is surely some subversive element to it that can’t be seen on the surface. Jesus responds as a good rabbi would have responded.
41-46: Before the Pharisees can press any kind of an argument, though, Jesus tests them. “Whose son is the Messiah” is a seemingly innocent enough question, since every Jew surely knew the Messiah was expected to come from David’s line. The quote in verse 44 is from Psalm 110:1, one of the “psalms of David.” “The LORD (God) says to my Lord (the Messiah), sit at…” If that was written by David, and the Messiah is to be a son of David, how can David refer to him as “my Lord?” They are undone by the logic, and stop asking him questions to test him.
Takeaway
Jesus is such a remarkable person that even today people have a hard time understanding his birth, death, and resurrection. We Christians insist that his birth, death, and resurrection are historically proven events. Of course, in some instances, when among some of those who question the reality of Jesus, it may be more fruitful not to argue, but simply to pray for them secretly to our Father in Heaven.