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      Jesus and the Kingdom of God E-Mail Bible Study
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               Week 10 - Matthew 22:1-14
               THE CALL TO THE KINGDOM
          The Parable of the Great Banquet
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Our final study in this series on Jesus and the Kingdom of
God looks at invitation and calling.

Jesus told a similar, but different parable, in another
context, recorded in Luke 14:16-24. It misses features of
the Matthew parable and includes other unique touches.
Clearly, Jesus sometimes told the story different ways to
make different points.

On this occasion, Jesus began, "The Kingdom of heaven is
like," and then told them a story. A story of a king and a
son, of a banquet, and invited guests, and last-minute
invitations.

MONDAY
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LEVEL 1: OBSERVATION QUESTIONS. WHAT DOES THE TEXT SAY?
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1.1  List (for yourself, do not send to the list) the
various characters in this parable.

1.2  What is the "theme verse" for this parable (vss. 1-14)


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LEVEL 2: INTERPRETATION QUESTIONS. WHAT DOES THE TEXT MEAN?
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COMMENT: This parable is a mix between an analogy (where
there is one-for-one correspondence between various
elements) and a story which generally illustrates a truth.

COMMENT: In ancient days with no watches, long meal
preparation times, and no telephones, guests were invited
initially to a great banquet, and then a number of servants
were sent out into the community to issue the imminent
invitation just before the banquet was ready to begin.

TUESDAY
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2.1  The first group of people were invited -- an apparently
had accepted the invitation -- but refused to come. What
does the text indicate about their attitude?

2.2  What does vs. 4 indicate about the king's attitude?

2.3  Doesn't vs. 7 seem like an over-reaction? Why isn't the
king more tolerant?

WEDNESDAY
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2.4  Who does this group represent in the parable? How does
their history mirror the too-busy-invitees in our parable?

2.5  The second group of invitees don't have as much advance
notice, but they seemed willing enough. Why are they
referred to as "both good and bad"? Who do they represent in
this analogy?

2.6  What great banquet does this parable prefigure? (Hint:
Matthew 26:29; Luke 13:28-30; Rev 19:9)

COMMENT: Vs. 11-13 may be a separate or related parable
included by Matthew here. Or it may be a continuation of the
Parable of the Wedding Banquet which we just looked at. We
can only speculate about its origins, but we need to discern
its meaning in this context.

While there is absolutely no ancient evidence that wedding
garments were supplied to guests, that could be the case. At
least it is clear that guests at this wedding did have a
dress code they were expected to comply with.

THURSDAY
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2.6  Why do you think the man showed up without wedding
clothes? Was he too poor? What answer did he give when
questioned?

2.7  Who does the improperly dressed man represent?

2.8  Why is the king's response so severe, do you think? How
does the king come off overall? As gracious or harsh?

FRIDAY
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LEVEL 3: APPLICATION QUESTIONS. WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO ME?
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3.1  What does the message of this parable have in common
with the message of the Parable of the Sower (Matthew 13) we
studied a few weeks ago?

3.2  This passage shows God as an inviting God. Can you
think of any other parables Jesus told which relate to
seeking and inviting?

3.3  What does this passage say to us servants about the
nature of our task?

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Copyright 1997, Ralph F. Wilson, all rights reserved.
Joyful Heart is a trademark of Joyful Heart Ministries. For
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