From the great supper

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The theme of the parable told by Jesus of Nazareth of the Great Supper is God's invitation to the people. It is transmitted in the Gospels in the New Testament of the Bible through the gospel according to Luke ( Lk 14.15–24  EU ) as well as through the gospel according to Matthew ( Matt 22.1–14  EU ). A variant of this parable can also be found in the non-canonical Gospel of Thomas in Proverbs 64.

content

A man (a king in the Gospel of Matthew) sends his servant to invite guests to a great supper in his house. However, none of the guests has time. One has to look at a newly bought field, another a newly bought yoke of an ox, and a third has just married. When the man hears this, he becomes angry and sends his servant out to invite all the poor, the crippled, the lame and the blind. So his house will be full. The parable closes with the man's statement that none of the originally invited guests will attend his Lord's Supper.

The guest without a wedding dress

In Matthew, the parable of the guest without a wedding dress is included at the end of the parable. The king sees a guest who is not dressed appropriately for the wedding occasion and asks him why. When he was unable to answer, he had him thrown out, "for many are called, but few are chosen" (v. 14).
This section is to be understood as a warning to the people of God in the New Testament, as they will not be exempt from God's judgment . Good and bad also occur in the Christian community. The parable of the guest without a wedding dress therefore exhorts to behave in accordance with the calling through faith and repentance.

interpretation

In the parable, a man invites many people to a feast. The invitation seems very generous and offers plenty of food, yet all the guests refuse it and find excuses not to come, whereupon the man invites the homeless and poor, who appear in large numbers. What is particularly striking is the contrast between those who were actually invited and who can be assumed to be wealthy and those who actually come. In the biblical context, one would see the banquet as the kingdom of God in which people are invited as guests. Especially those who are financially stronger in life often seem to find “excuses” for not believing in God. But those who actually need help find a place with God in this parable.

Liturgical use

In the classical pericope order of the Western Church (and to this day in the reading order of the EKD ), the parable is read as the Gospel on the 2nd Sunday after Trinity and gives the Sunday its characteristic theme. As a meditation, Johann Sebastian Bach created the cantatas The Heavens Tell the Glory of God and Oh God, from Heaven look into it .

Jan Luyken : The invitation, Bowyer Bible .

Artistic reception

The parable was received in paintings by artists such as Bernardo Cavallino , Jan Luyken and John Everett Millais .

literature

Web links

Commons : From the Great Supper  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Stuttgart Explanatory Bible. ISBN 3-438-01121-2 , 2nd edition 1992, German Bible Society Stuttgart, p. 1206
  2. ↑ Parable of the great supper with interpretation | Jesus parable. Retrieved May 13, 2020 .
  3. ↑ Summary of the artistic reception of the parable in Biblical Art

See also