"For many are called, but few are chosen" - Matthew 22:14
What on earth could this mean? My interpretation is: many hear the gospel (are called), but only the ones who believe it are chosen.
What on earth could this mean? My interpretation is: many hear the gospel (are called), but only the ones who believe it are chosen.
The Parable of the Wedding Feast
Mat 22:1 Once again, Jesus spoke to them in parables:
Mat 22:2 “The kingdom of heaven is like a king who prepared a wedding banquet for his son.
Mat 22:3 He sent his servants to call those he had invited to the banquet, but they refused to come.
Mat 22:4 Again, he sent other servants and said, ‘Tell those who have been invited that I have prepared my dinner. My oxen and fattened cattle have been killed, and everything is ready. Come to the wedding banquet.’
Mat 22:5 But they paid no attention and went away, one to his field, another to his business.
Mat 22:6 The rest seized his servants, mistreated them, and killed them.
Mat 22:7 The king was enraged, and he sent his troops to destroy those murderers and burn their city.
Mat 22:8 Then he said to his servants, ‘The wedding banquet is ready, but those I invited were not worthy.
Mat 22:9 Go therefore to the crossroads and invite to the banquet as many as you can find.’
Mat 22:10 So the servants went out into the streets and gathered everyone they could find, both evil and good, and the wedding hall was filled with guests.
Mat 22:11 But when the king came in to see the guests, he spotted a man who was not dressed in wedding clothes.
Mat 22:12 ‘Friend,’ he asked, ‘how did you get in here without wedding clothes?’ But the man was speechless.
Mat 22:13 Then the king told the servants, ‘Tie him hand and foot, and throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’
Mat 22:14 For many are called, but few are chosen.”
This parable also is also about preparation and personal response. It’s not just about hearing the call, but about responding appropriately. The man without the wedding garment is an important detail that implies that simply accepting the invitation is not enough; one must come with the right heart and be transformed by the grace of God, symbolized by the wedding clothes.
Blessings