The Wedding Feast (~19.49) - Moriel Ministries

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Feature Article Jacob Prasch PARABLE of “The Wedding Feast” Jesus spoke to them again in parables, saying . . . Jesus spoke to them again in parables, saying, “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who gave a wedding feast for his son. And he sent out his slaves to call those who had been invited to the wedding feast, and they were unwilling to come. Again he sent out other slaves saying, ‘Tell those who have been invited, “Behold, I have prepared my dinner; my oxen and my fattened livestock are all butchered and everything is ready; come to the wedding feast.”’ But they paid no attention and went their way, one to his own farm, another to his business, and the rest seized his slaves and mistreated them and killed them. But the king was enraged, and he sent his armies and destroyed those murderers and set their city on fire. Then he said to his slaves, ‘The wedding is ready, but those who were invited were not worthy. ‘Go therefore to the main highways, and as many as you find there, invite to the wedding feast.’ Those slaves went out into the streets and gathered together all they found, both evil and good… …that is interesting, “both evil and good”… …and the wedding hall was filled with dinner guests. But when the king came in to look over the dinner guests, he saw a man there who was not dressed in wedding clothes, and he said to him, ‘Friend, how did you come in here without wedding clothes?’ And the man was speechless. Then the king said to the servants, ‘Bind him hand and foot, and throw him into the outer darkness; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ For many are called, but few are chosen.” (Matthew 22:1-14) In order to understand this parable of the Kingdom, we have to understand the Jewish wedding tradition at the time of Jesus. In Judaism, the time of Jesus is called “The Second Temple Period.” At a Jewish wedding in Jesus’ time there were three phases. Whenever looking at the historical and cultural setting of a biblical passage, this is something theologians call “Sitz im Leben,” a German term. This means looking at the life setting of the situation. Unless we do that we cannot understand what Jesus is talking about. The wedding had three phases: betrothal nuptial consummation All three were important for the wedding to be valid. For the marriage to be valid, all three needed to be completed. This also directly addresses the consequences of the Roman Catholic doctrine that Mary was perpetually a virgin. To say Joseph and Mary had an unconsummated marriage would have meant that they were not legally married by Jewish law. It would have meant that Jesus, in effect, grew up out Moriel Quarterly • December 2009
of wedlock. How dishonoring to Jesus and His earthly parents, but that is the teaching of the Roman church. It is NOT the teaching, however, of the New Testament. The Betrothal Betrothal was unlike present-day engagement. Unlike what we call an engagement, it was legally binding. The closest this is seen today is that in some states here in the United States – some states – if someone breaks an engagement without a good reason they can be sued in a civil action for breach of contract. But betrothal went well beyond that. Betrothal meant the couple was legally married already. It was not simply an engagement as we would think of it, but it meant someone was legally married. Betrothal was something which was contractual and legal. This kind of contract followed a ritual from the ancient Near East called “suzerainty.” In a “suzerainty” ritual, a covenant was made that was sealed at a fellowship meal, and it was contracted by means of some kind of shedding of blood. Hence, at the Last Supper Jesus says, “This is My blood of the covenant.” (Mt. 26:28; Mk. 14:24; Lk. 22:20) He was following the ancient Near East “suzerainty” ritual; that is how contracts were made. He would literally say “to cut” – a covenant. So the betrothal was the first phase (which was nothing like our engagement) by which they were legally wed for legal purposes. In fact, the contract drawn up is called the “ketubah.” But then the bridegroom would go away for a period of about one year. These weddings were usually betrothed in the springtime around Passover. Not always, but usually; that was the most common time of year. The bridegroom would go away for a period of about a year and he would build an annex onto his father’s house. He would not know the exact day he was coming back, but he knew it would be about a year’s time. It would be his father who would inspect the work and say, “Now go.” The father knew, not the son. The son would not know the exact day, but they knew it would be about a year’s time. Hence, because the bridegroom didn’t know the exact day, neither would the bride. She would simply know two things: it would be about a year, and the second thing she would know is that it would be in the night. The bridegroom always comes in the night. She would go to sleep and she didn’t know if he was coming this very night or tomorrow night. Is it going to be tonight? This is the background of the Song of Solomon. Is it tonight he is going to come? The night is the most common metaphor in the Bible for the Great Tribulation and its approach. Things get dark at the end Jacob Prasch of the world. This is why the Bible says, Watchman, watchman, how far is the night?, (Is 21:11) Is he coming in the second watch of the night or the third?, (Lk. 12:38) He’s coming like a thief in the night, (1 Th. 5:2; Rev. 16:15) Work while you have the light; night will come when no man can work, (Jn. 9:4) In the Song of Solomon, the bridegroom comes for the bride in the night, (SS 5:2) In Matthew 25, the bridegroom comes in the night. (Mt. 25:6) It is very dark at the end of the world before Jesus comes. The world goes through the Great Tribulation and He takes His bride out of here. The Nuptial He goes away for a year, and he returns in a year for the nuptial. The nuptial was a matter of ritual and it was a ceremony where the “ketubah” would be read before witnesses. That would be the nuptial. So first the betrothal, then the nuptial a year later. Their nuptial was not similar to what is familiar to us. It was a banquet that went on for several days. At some point during the course of the nuptial, the bride and bridegroom would consummate their marriage. This would be the third phase, obviously – it would be physical, sexual. All three phases were necessary for the marriage to be valid by Jewish law: the betrothal, the nuptial, the consummation. But these three come into play in terms of a covenant. Betrothal is when the covenant is initiated and nuptial is when there is a convocation – witnesses to the marital union. (These correspond to the witnesses to the romance of Solomon and Shulamite in the Song of Solomon which reflect the “tsaba’ot ha’shamayim,” the “hosts of heaven.”) The Consummation “Consummation” is a difficult word to translate. For want of a better word, I will translate it, “union.” But that is just my best efforts to translate the Hebrew word “achdut” – “a plural oneness.” They asked Jesus what is the greatest commandment and He said, “Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God is oneness” – “Sh’ma Yisra’el Adonai Eloheinu Adonai echad.” (Dt. 6:4) But that term “echad,” from which we get “achdut,” is the same term for Adam and Eve becoming one flesh. (Gen. 2:24) The Hebrew idiom for consummating a marriage again is “and he went into her.” (Gen. 29:30) One person goes inside of another person and a third person is procreated. It is one-in-three; it is three-in-one. “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness.” (Gen. 1:26) Hence the act Feature Article of marital consummation and procreation was to reflect the eternal oneness, or the compound oneness, of the Godhead. (This is also one reason God hates divorce. The permanency of the Christian marriage is to testify to the eternal union of the Godhead itself. We are made in His image and likeness.) This is “achdut.” So the wedding had a betrothal when the covenant was initiated; it was contractual and legal. Then a year later a nuptial took place where there was a convocation; this was ritual and ceremonial where the witnesses would read the “ketubah.” And then the third, consummation – both physical and sexual – was when the image or the likeness of God was replicated or reflected. The Eschatological Meaning These things are all important eschatologically. “Betrothal” is the First Coming of Christ. “Nuptial” – the Marriage Supper of the Lamb, is the “Perusia,” that is, the Second Coming of Christ. The “betrothal” is the First Coming – the “nuptial” is the Second. “Consummation” corresponds to the book of Revelation where the bride comes down, adorned for her husband. (Rev. 21:2) That speaks of the eternal intimacy God will have with His people in Heaven. So “betrothal” has to do with the First Coming of Jesus, “nuptial” the Second Coming of Jesus, and “consummation” is eternity. It corresponds to the intimacy the Lord will have with His bride in eternity in the book of Revelation. All three phases are what constitutes the Jewish wedding in the time of Jesus. Unless we understand this, we will not properly comprehend what He is telling us in the parable. He Sends His “Army” On first reading it is very obvious He is speaking about the first century, those who have been invited who are unwilling to come. He came to His own, and those who were His own did not receive Him. But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name, (Jn.1:11-12) Most Jews rejected their Messiah. Only a faithful remnant accepted Him at His First Coming, and He turned His grace to other people. The apostles and Jewish believers were persecuted by the rabbis so we are told God sends His army. And the forces Jesus and the prophet Daniel predicted, the Romans, destroy the city. (Dan. 9:27; 11:31; Mt. 24:15) They destroy Jerusalem in A.D. 70 just as Jesus and Daniel prophesied. The temple was destroyed. December 2009 • Moriel Quarterly
Page 1 and 2: "MORIEL" GOD IS MY TEACHER December
Page 3: State of Moriel 2009 S T A T E O F
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Page 9 and 10: …they paid no attention and went
Page 11 and 12: dinner guests, he saw a man there w
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Page 21 and 22: FYI PERTINENT “ ” October 4, 20
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