Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Matthew 22:3

And sent forth his servants to call them that were bidden to the wedding: and they would not come.

3. sent forth his servants ] This was in accordance with Eastern custom. Cp. Est 5:8; Est 6:14.

servants ] Or slaves. In Mat 22:13 a different Greek word is used for “servants.”

Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

And sent forth his servants – These represent the messengers that God has sent to invite people to his kingdom.

To call them that were bidden – That is, to give notice to those who had before been invited that the feast was ready. It appears that there were two invitations – one considerably previous to the time of the feast, that they might have opportunity to prepare for it, and the other to give notice of the precise time when they were expected.

The wedding – The marriage-feast. The same word in the original as in Mat 22:2.

They would not come – They might have come if they had chosen, but they would not. So all the difficulty that sinners ever labour under in regard to salvation is in the will. It is a fixed determination not to come and be saved. See the notes at Joh 5:45.

Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible

3. and sent forth hisservantsrepresenting all preachers of the Gospel.

to call them that werebiddenhere meaning the Jews, who were “bidden,” fromthe first choice of them onwards through every summons addressed tothem by the prophets to hold themselves in readiness for theappearing of their King.

to the weddingor themarriage festivities, when the preparations were all concluded.

and they would not comeasthe issue of the whole ministry of the Baptist, our Lord Himself, andHis apostles thereafter, too sadly showed.

Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible

And sent forth his servants,…. The ministers of the Gospel, who are the servants of the most high God, of his choosing and ordaining, of his calling and sending, and of his qualifying and employing, and who voluntarily and cheerfully serve him; and may intend John the Baptist, and the twelve apostles of Christ, who were sent

to call them that were bidden to the wedding; , “those that were called”, as in 1Sa 9:13 by whom are meant the Jews, who were the “bidden”, or “called ones”; called of God, and therefore styled “Israel my called” Isa 48:12 and by the Targum interpreted

, “my bidden”. They were called by the name of God, and called the people of God, and the children of God, and were the children of the kingdom; and were called to many valuable and external privileges; and had previous notice of the Gospel dispensation by the prophecies concerning Christ, and the blessings of his grace under the former dispensation; and by the ordinances and sacrifices of it, which in a very significant manner set him forth to that people; and now were called to embrace him, to receive his doctrines, and submit to his ordinances, by the ministry of John the Baptist, and the disciples of Christ. It seems, it was sometimes customary to give two invitations to a feast, or to send a second time to the persons bidden to the feast i; to which the allusion is here;

and they would not come: which shows the insolence and ingratitude of men, their natural aversion to the Gospel, and the ordinances of it; the depravity of the will of man, with respect to things spiritual and evangelical; the insufficiency of outward means, to work with effect, upon the minds of men; and the necessity there is of efficacious and unfrustrable grace to bring men to believe in Christ, cordially to receive his truths, and be subject to his commands. There is a two fold call by the ministry the word; the one is internal, and that is, when the word comes not in word only, but in power; is the power of God unto salvation, and the savour of life unto life; for by the Gospel are the elect of God called to the obtaining of the glory of Christ; 2Th 2:14. This call is of grace; it springs from the free grace and favour of God, and it is effected by the mighty power of his grace; and it is to special blessings of grace; it is a fruit of God’s everlasting love, and an evidence of it; and is according to the eternal purpose of God, which is never frustrated: it is a call to the enjoyment of spiritual blessings, as peace, pardon, righteousness, and everlasting happiness; by it men are called to light and liberty, to the grace of Christ, and communion with him; to all the privileges of God’s house here, and eternal glory hereafter; to which he that calls them, gives them a right and meetness, and infallibly brings them to it: and therefore it is styled an heavenly calling, and the high calling of God in Christ; for this call is ever effectual, and the ends of it are always answered; it is unchangeable, irreversible, and never repented of. But besides this, there is a bare external call to the sons of men, through the preaching of the word; which is not to make their peace with God, a thing impossible to be done by them, and which is contrary to the Gospel, and reflects dishonour on Christ, the peacemaker; nor to get an interest in him, which, wherever possessed, is given, and not gotten; nor to regenerate themselves; this is the work of the Spirit of God, and in which men are as passive, as the infant in its natural generation, conception, and birth; nor to the exercise of evangelical grace, as faith, love, c. which are not in them, and no man can exercise that which he has not, nor should he be called to it nor to any spiritual vital act, since men are dead in trespasses and sins, and cannot put forth any: but this call in the word, is to the natural duties of religion, as to hear, read, and pray; to attend on the word, to wait at Wisdom’s gates, and watch at the posts of her door, and so lie in the way of being effectually called by the grace of God; but this call may be where election does not go before, and where sanctification does not follow, and where there may be no salvation, Mt 20:16 and is often slighted, neglected, and of no effect, which is the case here.

i via. Joseph. apud Grotium in loc.

Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible

To call them that were bidden ( ). “Perhaps an unconscious play on the words, lost in both A.V. and Rev.,

to call the called ” (Vincent). It was a Jewish custom to invite a second time the already invited (Esth 5:8; Esth 6:14). The prophets of old had given God’s invitation to the Jewish people. Now the Baptist and Jesus had given the second invitation that the feast was ready.

And they would not come ( ). This negative imperfect characterizes the stubborn refusal of the Jewish leaders to accept Jesus as God’s Son (Joh 1:11). This is “The Hebrew Tragedy” (Conder).

Fuente: Robertson’s Word Pictures in the New Testament

To call them that were bidden [ ] . Perhaps an unconscious play on the words, lost in both A. V. and Rev., to call the called. This was according to the Oriental custom of sending a messenger, after the invitations have been issued, to notify the invited guests that the entertainment is prepared. Thus Esther invites Haman to a banquet on the morrow, and, at the actual time, the chamberlain comes to bring him to the feast (Est 5:8; Est 6:14).

Fuente: Vincent’s Word Studies in the New Testament

(3) Sent forth his servants.As in the parable of the Vineyard (Mat. 21:33-46), the servants represent the aggregate work of the prophets up to the time of the Baptist. The refusal of guests invited to what seems to us so great an honour may seem, at first sight, so contrary to human nature as to be wanting in the element of dramatic probability. That refusal, however, would be natural enough, we must remember, in subjects who were in heart rebellious and disloyal; and it is precisely that character which the parable was intended to portray. The summons, it may be noted, came in the first instance to those who had long ago been bidden to the wedding. The proclamation of the kingdom was addressed to the Jews, who, as such, had all along been children of the kingdom.

Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)

3. Sent forth his servants This verse describes the preaching of the Gospel before the death of Christ, namely, by the apostles and seventy.

Call them that were bidden In Eastern countries a double call is given to guests at an entertainment: the first to allow them chance to prepare, and the second to inform them that the time has arrived, and all is ready. So these guests now to be called had all been bidden. The very plan of the Gospel bids every man to come; and then the ministry go forth to call those whom the Gospel has bidden.

Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments