The Parable of the Wedding Feast
- And answering, Jesus again spoke to them in parables, saying:
- “The kingdom of the heavens can be compared to a man – a king – who prepared a wedding feast for his son.
- “And he sent his slaves to call the men who have been invited to the wedding feast, and they weren’t willing to come.
- “Again, he sent other slaves, saying: “Tell the men who have been invited: “behold, I have prepared my dinner. My oxen and fattened cattle have been slaughtered and everything is ready. Come to the wedding feast.”
- “But having not cared, they departed: one to his own farm, and another to his business.
- “And having seized his slaves, the rest spitefully injured and killed them.
- “And the king was enraged. And having sent his armies, he destroyed those murderers and burned their city.
- “Then he says to his slaves: “The wedding feast is indeed ready, but the men who have been invited weren’t worthy.
- “Therefore, travel on the highways and roads, and invite as many as you find to the wedding feast.
- “And having gone out to the roads, those slaves gathered all whom they found – both evil and good – and the wedding feast was filled with the men reclining at the table.
- “And having entered to observe the men reclining at the table, the king saw a man there not *dressed in wedding clothes.
- “And he says to him: “Friend, how did you enter here without having wedding clothes?” But he was speechless.
- “Then the king told the servants: “Having bound his hands and feet, throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and grinding of teeth.
- “For many are called, but few are chosen.”
Paying Caesar’s tax
- Then having left, the Pharisees held a council on how they might trap Him in a word.
- And they send their disciples to Him, along with Herod’s supporters, saying: “Teacher, we *know that you are true and you teach the way of God in truth. And you don’t worry about anyone, for you don’t look at the appearance of men.
- “Therefore tell us what you think: Is it lawful to pay the poll tax to Caesar, or not?
- But having known their wickedness, Jesus said: “You hypocrites; Why do you test Me?
- “Show Me the coin used for the poll tax.” And they brought Him a denarius.
- And He says to them: “Whose image is this, and whose inscription?”
- They tell Him: “Caesar’s.” Then He tells them: “Therefore, repay the things of Caesar to Caesar, and the things of God to God.”
- And having heard this, they marveled. And having left Him, they departed.
Marriage in the Resurrection
- On that same day, some Sadducees (the men saying there is no resurrection) approached Him and questioned Him,
- saying: “Teacher, Moses said that If any man dies without having children, his brother shall marry his wife, and he shall raise up seed for his brother.”
- “Now, seven brothers were among us, and the first died after he married. And not having seed, he left his wife to his brother.
- “And the second did the same, and the third, until the seventh.
- “Then last of all, the woman died.
- “Therefore in the resurrection, whose wife will she be of the seven? For all had her.”
- And answering, Jesus told them: “You go astray, not *knowing the scriptures nor the power of God.
- “For in the resurrection, they neither marry nor are their daughters given in marriage: but they are like angels of God in heaven.
- “But concerning the resurrection of the dead, didn’t you read what was spoken to you by God, saying:
- “I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” He isn’t the God of the dead, but of the living.”
- And having heard this, the crowds were stunned at His teaching.
The Greatest Commandment
- And the Pharisees – having heard that He silenced the Sadducees – were gathered together at the same place.
- And testing Him, one lawyer from among them questioned Him, saying:
- “Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest?”
- And He was declaring to him: “You shall ^love the Lord your God in your whole heart, and in your whole soul, and in your whole mind.
- “This is the great and foremost commandment,
- “and the second is similar to it: You shall ^love your neighbor as yourself.
- “The whole law hangs on these two commandments, and the prophets do also.”
Whose Son is The Anointed?
- And while the Pharisees were *gathered together, Jesus questioned them,
- saying: “What do you think about the Anointed? Whose son is He?” They tell Him: “David’s.”
- He says to them: “Then how does David call Him Lord while in the Spirit, saying:
- “The Lord said to my Lord: sit at My right hand until I place your enemies underneath your feet.
- “Therefore, if David calls Him Lord, how is He his son?”
- And no one was able to answer Him a word, nor did anyone dare to question Him any longer from that day on.