Matthew 22:5 - Printer Friendly

ESV: But they paid no attention and went off, one to his farm, another to his business,

NIV: "But they paid no attention and went off—one to his field, another to his business.

NASB: But they paid no attention and went their separate ways, one to his own farm, another to his business,

CSB: "But they paid no attention and went away, one to his own farm, another to his business,

NLT: But the guests he had invited ignored them and went their own way, one to his farm, another to his business.

KJV: But they made light of it, and went their ways, one to his farm, another to his merchandise:

NKJV: But they made light of it and went their ways, one to his own farm, another to his business.

After the first two parables in this dialogue (Matthew 21:28, 33), Jesus' listeners are beginning to understand what He is suggesting. The general topic is how Israel—most specifically, her religious leaders—have ignored God's call and command. In this story, a king has sent out two rounds of servants asking people to attend his son's wedding. The second group described how great the meal would be and delivered the invitation as an order: come (Revelation 22:17).

Clearly, the king is meant to represent God, and the wedding feast represents the kingdom of heaven. Some listeners may have not understood yet that Jesus was picturing Himself as the son of the king, making Him the Son of God. But who were these guests that refused to attend even at the direct command of the king?

Jesus now shows that some refused directly while others simply ignored the message from the king's servants. They paid no attention to the servants and just continued going about their daily lives. The sense is both that they were not interested in attending the feast and that they were busy with other responsibilities. This parallels the way in which some people dismiss God out of simple disinterest.

Others in the parable will be more aggressive in their refusal (Matthew 22:6), just as some in the world are actively hostile to God and His messengers.

Matthew 22:1–14 contains Jesus' parable of the wedding feast. Jesus compares the kingdom of heaven to a king who threw a banquet for his son. The king's chosen guests refuse to come, to the point of violence against his messengers. So, the king fills the wedding hall with common people he finds out and about; some bad, some good. One guest is thrown out into the darkness, though, for trying to attend the feast without wearing a wedding garment. Jesus summarizes the message with the famous phrase, "Many are called, but few are chosen." This parable touches on Israel's rejection of the Messiah and salvation by grace. This touches on very similar themes to those of the parable of the great banquet (Luke 14:12–24), but with critical differences.

Continuing a dialogue with hostile religious leaders, Jesus tells a parable comparing the kingdom of heaven to a wedding feast which ends up being attended by those not initially invited. He answers trick questions about taxes, marriage, resurrection, and the Law of Moses. These responses are the source of common English idioms such as "render to Caesar…" and "many are called but few are chosen." Finally, Jesus asks how the Messiah can be both the son of David and the Lord of David. None can answer Him, so they stop challenging Him in public.

This chapter extends an exchange between Jesus and several groups of religious leaders in the temple. The previous chapter concluded with two parables about the failures of the religious leaders. This chapter begins with a third parable, about chosen guests who refuse to attend a wedding feast. Jesus then fields questions from several religious groups, who fail in their attempts to trip Him up. His wise and profound answers silence all of them. At this point, Jesus launches into a full-throated condemnation of the Pharisees in chapter 23.

The Gospel of Matthew clearly shows the influence of its writer's background, and his effort to reach a specific audience. Matthew was one of Jesus' twelve disciples, a Jewish man, and a former tax collector. This profession would have required literacy, and Matthew may have transcribed some of Jesus' words as they were spoken. This book is filled with references to the Old Testament, demonstrating to Israel that Jesus is the Promised One. Matthew also includes many references to coins, likely due to his former profession. Matthew records extensive accounts of Jesus' teaching, more than the other three Gospels.