Then he said to his servants, “The wedding is ready, but those who were invited were not worthy. Therefore go into the highways, and as many as you find, invite to the wedding.” So those servants went out into the highways and gathered together all whom they found, both bad and good. And the wedding hall was filled with guests. But when the king came in to see the guests, he saw a man there who did not have on a wedding garment. So he said to him, “Friend, how did you come in here without a wedding garment?” And he was speechless. Then the king said to the servants, “Bind him hand and foot, take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” For many are called, but few are chosen. (Matthew 22:8-14)

The Man Without Proper Clothes

During the final weeks of the life of Jesus, the Jewish leadership challenged the teachings and authority of the Lord with greater fervor. Jesus answered their criticisms with parables to expose the hypocrisy of the chief priests and Pharisees. One parable described a king arranging his son’s marriage and sending invitations to all those called to the wedding. Everyone had other things to do. They ignored the invitation and chaffed at it, treating the messengers spitefully and killing some of them. This angered the king, and he sent his army to destroy the murderers, and he burned their cities to the ground.

A second series of invitations was sent out to the common people —the people of the highways, good and bad. The first invitations were sent to those who were unworthy. Now the king opened his doors to all those who had not been invited. Those invited readily accepted the invitation to dine with the king at his son’s wedding feast. As the king looked over the crowd, he was pleased with all those who had come. When the king looked closer, he noticed a man who did not have on a wedding garment. Insulted, the king asked the impertinent man how he came into the feast without a wedding garment. The man was speechless. Immediately, the king demanded that the man be thrown out into the darkness of the streets. He would not allow this man into his son’s wedding feast. The man was cast out into the outer darkness, where there was weeping and gnashing of teeth. Many are called, but few are chosen.

The question of the man without a wedding garment must be understood in the context of the culture. Jesus does not elaborate in the parable about the manner in which the man was to receive the proper clothing, but one thing is certain. The man was brazen in his conduct, attending the wedding feast without proper attire. It was customary for the hosts of the wedding feast to provide garments for the guests to wear. The clothing was most often long, flowing white garments. Each person would be dressed to honor the king and his son. Not putting the garment on showed contempt for the gift and disrespect for the king. It is clear that the man’s actions were not an oversight but a self-willed rejection of the king’s gracious provisions. The man had no reverence for the wedding feast, the son, or the king.

Jesus’ use of parables was to impart spiritual wisdom and lessons for the individual to take to heart. Everyone at the feast of the king came through the grace of his opening the doors to them. They were not invited on the first invitation. Because of the rejection of the first group, now everyone can come and dine with the king. The man without a garment was an ingrate who thought he could attend the wedding feast his way. He came in to serve his own pleasures. His arrogance led him to think he would be accepted. He was very wrong and was proven to have made a very serious misjudgment.

The parable of the wedding feast shows the grace and mercy of God to bring all men into a covenant with His Son. Grace is the overriding power of how men come to God because no one deserves the kindness of God. The invitation to sit at the wedding feast of Jesus Christ is made possible by a benevolent God who wants all men to be saved. What the man without proper garments on shows is that while grace opens the door to allow a person to sit at the wedding feast of the king, keeping the commandments of the king are still necessary. Commandment keeping and grace go hand in hand. The man was in the room where the feast was taking place, but he refused to abide by the commandments of the king – even something as trivial as the right type of garment.

Many people seek to attend the wedding feast on their own terms. They refuse to accept the requirements of the Lord. Many believe they will be saved through their good deeds by being good people. Some think the only thing they have to do is accept Jesus as their personal Savior, and that God will accept them. A man will come to the feast without repentance or remorse over sin. Whatever the reason, the world is filled with reasons and excuses to attend the wedding feast of the king in whatever they want to wear. They believe they have a right to wear what they want. That is only true until they are cast out into the outer darkness, where there is the weeping and gnashing of teeth. Does it matter if one keeps the commandments of the Lord? Ask the man who was removed from the wedding feast. Jesus said, “Why do you call me Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?”