Christ Speaks

Jesus tells a parable about “The Great Banquet” in which he talks about being worthy and those having authority.

Then the scribes and the chief priests looked for a way to get their hands on him that very hour, because they knew he had told this parable against them, but they feared the people. (Luke 20:1-19)

Once more Jesus spoke to them in parables: 

The kingdom of heaven is like a king who gave a wedding banquet for his son. He sent his servants to summon those invited to the banquet, but they didn’t want to come. Again, he sent out other servants and said, ‘Tell those who are invited: See, I’ve prepared my dinner; my oxen and fattened cattle have been slaughtered, and everything is ready. Come to the wedding banquet.’ 

But they paid no attention and went away, one to his own farm, another to his business, while the rest seized his servants, mistreated them, and killed them. The king was enraged, and he sent out his troops, killed those murderers, and burned down their city. 

Then he told his servants, ‘The banquet is ready, but those who were invited were not worthy. Go then to where the roads exit the city and invite everyone you find to the banquet.’ So those servants went out on the roads and gathered everyone they found, both evil and good. The wedding banquet was filled with guests. When the king came in to see the guests, he saw a man there who was not dressed in wedding clothes. So he said to him, ‘Friend, how did you get in here without wedding clothes?’ The man was speechless. 

Then the king told the attendants, ‘Tie him up hand and foot, and throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’

For many are invited, but few are chosen.

Then the Pharisees went and plotted how to trap him by what he said. So they sent their disciples to him, along with the Herodians.

(Matt 22:1-16)