Matthew 22:4-5

The fact that the king repeated his invitation and urged those who had previously shown no interest in attending demonstrates his grace and compassion. This was customary practice in the ancient Near East. [Note: Goebel, The Parables of Jesus, p. 351.] The Greek word translated "dinner" (ariston) usually refers to the first of two meals that the Jews ate each day, most commonly near mid-morning. This was the first of many meals that the guests at this banquet would enjoy since wedding feasts usually lasted a week or so in the ancient Near East (cf. Matthew 22:13). [Note: Edwin M. Yamauchi, "Cultural Aspects of Marriage in the Ancient World," Bibliotheca Sacra 135:539 (July-September 1978):241-52. See also Paul E. Robertson, "First-Century Jewish Marriage Customs," Biblical Illustrator 13:1 (Fall 1986):33-36.] The king emphasized the imminency of the feast as he sent out his servants again. This is, of course, what John and Jesus had been preaching as they urged the Jews to get ready for the kingdom. Some scholars took this invitation as one that the apostles issued after Jesus’ ascension that resulted in the destruction of Jerusalem in A.D. 70. [Note: E.g., Morgan, p. 263; Walvoord, Matthew: . . ., p. 165; and Toussaint, Behold the . . ., p. 254.]

"A very important fact revealed in the parable is the fact that the offer of the kingdom was a genuine one. The kingdom in all of its reality was as prepared and near as was the feast of the parable." [Note: Ibid., p. 255.]

The wedding feast is not the kingdom, however. It is the celebration at the beginning of the kingdom, the marriage supper of the Lamb (Revelation 19:9).

The people the slaves of the king invited showed more interest in their own possessions and activities than they did in the banquet (John 1:12). They refused the invitation of their king that was both an honor and a command.