Luke 14:16Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

This act of providence is referred to as “the great supper.” It is termed a “supper” because the Lord arrived in the latter days, as if at the “supper” of the age, and it is a “great supper” due to the extraordinary magnitude of the mystery of our salvation.

Thus, He, the Creator of all and Father of glory, has prepared a grand feast, symbolizing a banquet for the entire world, in honor of Christ. In the final times of the world, at the dawn of our age, the Son rose for us; it was at that moment He suffered death on our behalf and offered us His body as the bread of heaven, which grants life to the world. In the evening, a lamb was sacrificed by torchlight, aligning with the law of Moses. Therefore, it is entirely fitting that the invitation extended by Christ is referred to as the supper.

Moreover, one who enters into marriage focuses more on worldly matters than on divine things; this doesn't imply that marriage is condemned, but rather that purity is called to the highest honor, as the unmarried and widowed devote themselves to the things of the Lord, seeking to be holy in both body and spirit; conversely, the married individual is concerned with worldly affairs, focused on pleasing their spouse (1 Corinthians 7:34).

To reconcile the married with the former widowed, we acknowledge the perspective held by many that three groups are excluded from that great feast—Gentiles, Jews, and heretics. Thus, the apostle states that we must shun covetousness to enter the kingdom of Christ; if we do not, we will be impeded like the Gentiles by wickedness, deceit, shamelessness, and greed (see Romans 1:29). For every covetous or immoral person, who is an idolater, has no inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God (Ephesians 5:5).

The Jews, by adhering to external observance of the law, burden themselves; hence, to quote the prophet, let us break their chains and free ourselves from their bonds (Psalm 2:3). We have received Christ, who offers us the good yoke of His gentleness (see Matthew 11:30). The five pairs of oxen represent the Ten Commandments or the five books of the Old Testament, and He may have referred to them when saying to the Samaritan woman, You have had five husbands (John 4:18).

As for heresy, it resembles Eve, tempting the faith with its alluring deceptions and corrupting it with seductive falsehoods, dismissing the pure beauty of truth. Guests politely decline the invitation to the feast; although the kingdom remains open to all, our own willfulness hinders us, and while the Lord graciously invites everyone, we often hold ourselves back due to laziness or sin.

Those detached from the kingdom, as well as he who acquires land—remember that those who sold and bought during the days of Noah were engulfed by the flood (see Luke 17:27; Genesis 6:1-7). And the one who chooses the yoke of the law over the gift of grace, or who makes excuses due to marriage—of him it is written, If any man comes to Me and does not hate his father, mother, and wife... he cannot be My disciple (Luke 14:26). If the Lord is willing to set aside His Mother for you and questions, Who is My mother? and Who are My brothers? (Matthew 12:48)—why would you prefer someone over your Lord? Yet, the Lord teaches us not to disregard nature, nor to become enslaved by it, but to honor it and its Creator, ensuring that our love for parents does not lead us to forsake God.

In the parable of the wedding feast of the king's son, He lamented how those invited, due to their attachment to worldly matters, failed to attend. He sorrowfully proclaimed, "If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be My disciple" (Luke 14:26). Here, He teaches that no one can aspire to His kingdom without first renouncing all that entices the heart toward worldly desires. Moreover, to emphasize the need for active faith, the Lord recounted how the king, upon entering to see those gathered, discovered a man without a wedding robe and commanded his removal into the outer darkness (Matthew 22:11-13). They may call themselves Christians, yet they are cast out for lacking the good works indicative of true faith.

The Apostle Paul, recognizing the impossibility of simultaneously desiring the things of God and the world, encouraged Timothy, his spiritual son, stating, "No soldier gets entangled in civilian pursuits, since his aim is to please the one who enlisted him" (2 Tim. 2:4). He cautioned that one must endure suffering to earn the crown, saying that only through lawful means can one achieve the reward (2 Tim. 2:5). He further advised that "the hardworking farmer must be the first to share in the crops" (2 Tim. 2:6), assuring that diligence in labor would be rewarded.

Writing to other believers, he noted, "The unmarried man is concerned about the things of the Lord, how to please the Lord. But the married man is concerned about worldly things, how to please his wife" (1 Cor. 7:32-33). Such a one who prioritizes earthly concerns may face the dreadful proclamation: "cast him into the outer darkness; there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth" (Matthew 22:13).

Spiritual pleasures enhance the soul's desire upon fulfillment, for the more one experiences them, the deeper the understanding of what is truly worthy of love develops. Thus, those not experienced cannot truly be loved, for how can one love that which remains unknown? This is why the Psalmist urges us to "Taste and see how good the Lord is" (Psalm 33:9). He emphasizes that if you remain uninformed about His goodness, it is because you have not yet tasted it. Therefore, open your heart to the sustenance of life that you may savor its sweetness.

Humanity lost these delights through sin in Eden (Gen. 3:6); we withdrew from the Eternal Sweetness, closing ourselves off from its nourishment. In our fallen state, we arrive in this world burdened by a natural aversion, uncertain of what to truly desire, and this aversion only deepens as our souls drift further from the taste of divine sweetness. The longer we turn away from these inner pleasures, the more we weaken, suffering from the affliction of spiritual malnourishment.

Our reluctance to enjoy the sweetness that lies within leads us, in our despair, to chase after external, fleeting satisfaction. However, the Supreme Love does not abandon us, even when we neglect it. This Love reminds us of the joys we disregard and offers them anew; through His promises, He encourages us to let go of our aversion. As it is said, "A certain man shall make a great supper, and call many." Who is this man, if not He of whom the Prophet declared, "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?" (Jer. 17:9)?

He prepares a grand feast, offering us the fulfillment of inner joy. Though many are called, few respond, as even the most devoted among us sometimes contradict His Eternal Supper by leading lives that betray this calling.

It is great because God assumed the form of a servant in human flesh; and great because He elevated and positioned human nature "at the right hand of the throne of majesty in heaven" (Heb. 8:1). Jesus also designated His Humanity as the Supper to signify the sacramental meal wherein we receive His body and drink His blood. This Supper is significant; by partaking in it, we become one with the Incarnate Word, share in His glory, and are granted divine status through grace. The essence of this parable is that when the most compassionate and human God and Father chose to incarnate His only Son, He invited many to partake in this profound sacrament. Yet, why did He use the term "many" instead of "all"? While God desires for everyone to be saved and to attain the knowledge of the truth (1 Tim. 2:4), salvation through Christ is not attainable without faith. The choice of the word "many" serves to illustrate a deeper significance—representing both the image and the spirit, or the literal and the metaphorical. This parable encompasses numerous terms that link the literal text to its deeper meaning rather than reveal the true understanding of the image and spirit. Thus, by stating "many," the text connects the literal illustration to the essence of the parable. Had He declared that He called all, it would have lacked the weight of truth. Consider who, having arranged a feast, would invite every individual to dine with him? He said "many" in the literal sense, yet spiritually, it encompasses all. In explaining this, He clarifies whom He called, stating:

To illustrate this, He shared the parable of those invited to a feast, none of whom were deemed worthy to partake in the lavish banquet, which was instead offered to the poor and marginalized—individuals whom the Pharisees looked down upon and would seldom acknowledge at their tables.

In this story, the servant sent by the banquet host (God) to invite those who are called to “Come, for all things are ready” symbolizes Jesus Christ Himself, thus interpreting the servant as His representative. The banquet signifies the time of His incarnation (Galatians 4:4). Prior to this event, the host called many, beginning with those who were initially invited—the Jews. They declined the invitation to the feast. It is evident as the second group of invited servants are also Jews, found “in the streets and alleys of the city,” indicating they were situated within its confines, while the third category is encountered “in the roads and hedges,” implying they were located outside the city. Therefore, the individuals who refused the call represent the leaders of Judaism, such as the scribes and Pharisees, while those who accepted the first invitation reflect the common people and those in the second group symbolize the Gentiles. The refusal stemmed from their attachment to worldly matters and the overwhelming influence of their desires. A similar parable, albeit distinct, can be found in Matthew 22:1-14.

The host, angered by the disrespect and indifference shown by these guests, instructed his servants to go out immediately into the streets and lanes to gather the needy, the crippled, the blind, and the lame. Once they had done so and there was still space, he commanded them to reach out to the homeless wanderers along the hedges and roads. The moral lesson of the parable was clear to all who listened. A heart devoted to worldly matters—whether engrossed in financial pursuits, the accumulation of possessions, or the mere pleasures of a self-indulgent existence—is at odds with a genuine longing to partake in the banquet of heaven. Those marginalized by society, such as outcasts, sinners, and the destitute, were more likely to be welcomed than the learned scribes and the pious Pharisees. "For I say unto you," the Saviour emphasized, applying this lesson directly to his hearers, "that none of those called shall taste My supper. And so, many are called, but few are chosen." This parable depicted the work of Christ Himself. He invited everyone to experience the joy of His message, yet the majority of those first addressed dismissed Him, ensnared by the vanity that dominated their lives. It became evident that the leading figures among the people, especially the upper classes, were unwilling to embrace the gospel. In contrast, those who were suffering and burdened—the impoverished, the afflicted, the tax collectors, and sinners—who felt estranged in this world, opened their hearts more readily to the new gospel proclaiming a better kingdom to come. When the scribes and Pharisees eventually turned against Christ, He remained alongside these very tax collectors and sinners, who flocked around their divine Redeemer.