The first invitation to the feast, recounted in the parable, represents the first years of our Lord’s ministry, which were specially directed toward interesting the scribes and Pharisees and Doctors of the Law, who, as the leading men of that nation, and as our Lord said, occupying Moses’ seat, really represented that nation as a whole; and the rejection of the invitation by these meant the rejection of it by that nation as a whole.

Thus our Lord was careful to bring before the priestly class of that time the evidences of his Messiahship, so that when, for instance, he healed the ten lepers, he charged them to tell no man, but go and show themselves to the priests. Thus the priestly class was informed respecting the miraculous work of our Lord, perhaps more particularly than others. They therefore had the invitation to the feast more particularly than others. However, the fact that the chief representatives of Israel were unready for the invitation was not permitted to hinder, and our Lord, through his disciples, subsequently extended the invitation to another class.

The trial of the nation as a whole, represented by its leaders, ended at Calvary, or rather five days before Calvary, when our Lord rode on the ass and wept over the city of Jerusalem, saying, “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that kills the prophets and stones them that are sent unto thee: how oft would I have gathered thy children, as a hen gathers her chickens under her wings, and ye would not! Behold, your house is left unto you desolate!”

As a nation, as a people, you have rejected the divine invitation to the great Feast, and as a nation you cannot taste of it. Nevertheless, according to divine intention and promise, through the prophets, God extended mercy to various individuals of THAT nation, after the nation as a whole had proven itself unworthy of the Kingdom privileges.

‘Go out quickly into the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in here the poor and the maimed and the lame and the blind.’

The apostles were sent to gather, not the nation, but such individuals as were of humble mind, to share in the feast, and this calling of individuals, instead of the nation of Israel, was responded to exclusively by those who realized their own unworthiness,–the lame, the halt, the blind, who confessed that they were not perfect, but who desired perfection, and who rejoiced in the call to partake of the Kingdom privileges, and gladly forsook all else for it. Amongst them, we are assured, there are not many wise, not many great, not many learned, but chiefly the poor, for although the poor are not always humble by any means, yet amongst them proportionately more were found who were of acceptable character; amongst the rich and the great humility would appear to have been at all times correspondingly scarce.

This second invitation to the poor, the halt and the blind, in the streets and lanes of the city, as a picture would be very difficult to appreciate in our day of hospitals and almshouses, etc., provided by general taxation; but in the days of our Lord it would be very easy indeed to have collected a large crowd of indigent and infirm in short order.

It will be observed that both of these first calls belong to the city–that is, Israel, the nominal Kingdom of God. But the two calls failed to find the sufficient NUMBER which God had predestinated should constitute the Kingdom class. He could indeed have induced others to come in, but, on the contrary,he purposely put the invitation to the Feast in such a form as would repel those who were not of the right attitude of heart–in such a form as would attract Israelite’s indeed, who felt and acknowledged their own unworthiness, and who would be glad, on entering the feast, to have on the robe provided for the guests (symbolical of the merit of Christ’s righteousness), to cover the filthy rags of their own imperfection.

But now, because a sufficient number was not found in Israel to complete the elect NUMBER, the message must be sent outside the city, outside of Judaism,–to the Gentiles; and thus the third message was, “Go ye into the highways and whosoever you meet, compel them to come in.” The word “compel,” however, gives a wrong thought here: it should properly be rendered, urge, persuade.

And thus it has been that throughout the Gospel age, since the bringing in to the Gospel favor of as many Jews as were ready for it, the message has been turned to the Gentiles, “to take out of them a people for God’s name,” to partake of the great Feast with the remnant of Israel.”

“As the Apostle Paul said to some of the Jews in his preaching: “It was necessary that the word of God should first have been spoken to you; but seeing ye put it from you, and judge yourselves unworthy of everlasting life, lo, we turn to the Gentiles; for so the Lord hath commanded us.” (Acts 13:46, 47) They showed themselves unworthy of this great blessing or gift, in that they were interested more in the things that perish than in the glorious promises of the everlasting future.

The Apostle Paul calls attention to this fact in Rom. 9:27: “Though the number of the children of Israel be as the sand of the sea, a remnant [only] shall be saved (saved to the special or great salvation, the high calling which is in Christ Jesus, in contrast with the “common salvation” Jude 3, which the remainder of Israel as well as world will participate in the next age).”

The Apostle further shows that the call of the Gentiles to be sharers in the Kingdom was merely the continuation of the original call, and that we are called in to take the places of those who neglected so great salvation (Heb 2:3) and privilege. He illustrates this by the olive tree, saying that the natural branches were broken off that we, who by nature were wild, might be grafted in and become partakers of the root and fatness of the olive.–Rom. 11:17.

This third call to the great Feast of the Kingdom blessings and privileges has progressed throughout this Gospel age, and to our understanding is now nearly complete–nearly all the places at the table have been provided with guests; only a few are yet vacant; and so soon as these places are filled, the great feast will begin, and we shall indeed enter into the joys of our Lord, and not only be privileged to feast ourselves, but to carry of its bounties and blessings to all the families of the earth.

The same matters which hindered the Jews, under the first call, from accepting this invitation, have hindered to a large extent also many of the Gentiles who have heard the third call. It is impossible to be thorough-going business men, wealthy, influential, etc., and at the same time follow in the footsteps of Jesus, giving all of our hearts, talents and energies to the Lord in acceptance of his invitation to this Feast. The acceptance of the invitation to this Feast means a deep interest in it, beyond everything else, so that all other matters, whether houses or lands, father or mother, wife or children, shall be secondary to the interests of the Kingdom, and to our responsibilities to the terms and conditions of the invitation.

Consequently, what was true respecting Israel has been true as respects the Gentiles, viz., that the call to the Kingdom has been generally rejected by those who had a considerable measure of this world’s blessings and advantages– those who are rich, either in honor of men or social position or talents or reputation or money, have found it difficult to leave these all to follow Jesus in the narrow way: and, consequently, the Scriptural assurance is, not only that those elected in the end of the Jewish age were chiefly the poor and lowly, but that the same has been true amongst the Gentiles, and is true to-day: “Not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble;” but chiefly the poor of this world, rich in faith.–1 Cor. 1:26; James 2:5.

This does not debar those who have riches of any kind, but really gives them all the greater privilege and opportunity; for they have that much greater talent which, if they will, they may sacrifice, and thus the more fully demonstrate their appreciation of the invitation and of the Feast, and be correspondingly appreciated by the Host. Let us all, like the Apostle Paul, lay aside every weight, every hindrance, every besetment, everything precious to us of an earthly kind, that we may run with patience the race set before us, in response to this invitation to the great Feast of joint-heirship with our Lord in the Kingdom.–Heb. 12:1,2; Rom. 8:16-18; 12:1, 2. (R2701)

In our next post we will take a look at this parable from another perspective.