Matthew 22

1 Jesus answered and spoke to them again in parables, saying,

2 “The Kingdom of Heaven is like a certain king, who made a wedding feast for his son,

3 and sent out his servants to call those who were invited to the wedding feast, but they would not come.

4 Again he sent out other servants, saying, ‘Tell those who are invited, “Behold, I have prepared my dinner. My cattle and my fatlings are killed, and all things are ready. Come to the wedding feast!”’

5 But they made light of it, and went their ways, one to his own farm, another to his merchandise;

6 and the rest grabbed his servants, treated them shamefully, and killed them.

7 When the king heard that, he was angry, and sent his armies, destroyed those murderers, and burned their city.

8 “Then he said to his servants, ‘The wedding is ready, but those who were invited weren’t worthy.

9 Go therefore to the intersections of the highways, and as many as you may find, invite to the wedding feast.’

10 Those servants went out into the highways and gathered together as many as they found, both bad and good. The wedding was filled with guests.

11 “But when the king came in to see the guests, he saw there a man who didn’t have on wedding clothing,

12 and he said to him, ‘Friend, how did you come in here not wearing wedding clothing?’ He was speechless.

13 Then the king said to the servants, ‘Bind him hand and foot, take him away, and throw him into the outer darkness. That is where the weeping and grinding of teeth will be.’

14 For many are called, but few chosen.”

15 Then the Pharisees went and took counsel how they might entrap him in his talk.

16 They sent their disciples to him, along with the Herodians, saying, “Teacher, we know that you are honest, and teach the way of God in truth, no matter whom you teach; for you aren’t partial to anyone.

17 Tell us therefore, what do you think? Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?”

18 But Jesus perceived their wickedness, and said, “Why do you test me, you hypocrites?

19 Show me the tax money.” They brought to him a denarius.

20 He asked them, “Whose is this image and inscription?”

21 They said to him, “Caesar’s.” Then he said to them, “Give therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.”

22 When they heard it, they marveled, and left him and went away.

23 On that day Sadducees (those who say that there is no resurrection) came to him. They asked him,

24 saying, “Teacher, Moses said, ‘If a man dies, having no children, his brother shall marry his wife and raise up offspring for his brother.’

25 Now there were with us seven brothers. The first married and died, and having no offspring left his wife to his brother.

26 In the same way, the second also, and the third, to the seventh.

27 After them all, the woman died.

28 In the resurrection therefore, whose wife will she be of the seven? For they all had her.”

29 But Jesus answered them, “You are mistaken, not knowing the Scriptures, nor the power of God.

30 For in the resurrection they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like God’s angels in heaven.

31 But concerning the resurrection of the dead, haven’t you read that which was spoken to you by God, saying,

32 ‘I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? God is not the God of the dead, but of the living.”

33 When the multitudes heard it, they were astonished at his teaching.

34 But the Pharisees, when they heard that he had silenced the Sadducees, gathered themselves together.

35 One of them, a lawyer, asked him a question, testing him.

36 “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the law?”

37 Jesus said to him, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’

38 This is the first and great commandment.

39 A second likewise is this, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’

40 The whole law and the prophets depend on these two commandments.”

41 Now while the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them a question,

42 saying, “What do you think of the Christ? Whose son is he?” They said to him, “Of David.”

43 He said to them, “How then does David in the Spirit call him Lord, saying,

44 ‘The Lord said to my Lord, sit on my right hand, until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet’?

45 “If then David calls him Lord, how is he his son?”

46 No one was able to answer him a word, neither did any man dare ask him any more questions from that day forward.

Around Matthew 22

Book context

MatthewEditorial draft

Matthew opens by presenting Jesus as “the son of David, the son of Abraham” (1:1) and keeps connecting his life to the Hebrew Scriptures. Its teaching centres on the Kingdom of Heaven (4:17), gathers long blocks of Jesus’ teaching such as the Sermon on the Mount (chapters 5 to 7), and closes with the commission to make disciples of all nations (28:19). The book does not name its author; early church tradition attributes it to the apostle Matthew. Easton’s Bible Dictionary (1897) dates it around AD 60 to 65 and holds that it was the first Gospel written. Many later scholars think Mark came first, so the order of the Gospels is debated.

Why we say this

HisFullGlory editorial · debated · not yet reviewed by a theological reader

From the text itself

Sources

Notes summarise their sources in our own words. Where Christians or scholars disagree, the note says so. Notes are not original-language evidence and do not replace the text.

AI explanation

Matthew 22 · Written by an AI model · Not reviewed by a theological reader

This explanation was written by an AI model to help you get started. It names no sources and can contain mistakes. Scripture comes first, and context with sources is shown separately on this page.

What this chapter says

A king gives a wedding feast for his son, and nobody invited will come. Some go to their farm or their business. Some seize his servants and kill them. The king sends soldiers, then tells his servants to invite everyone at the crossroads, bad and good. The hall fills. One guest has no wedding clothing and is thrown out. Many are called, Jesus says, but few chosen.

Then the questions come, each meant as a trap. The Pharisees and Herodians ask if it is lawful to pay taxes to Caesar. Jesus asks whose face is on the coin, and says to give Caesar what is Caesar's and God what is God's. The Sadducees, who deny the resurrection, tell of a woman who married seven brothers in turn. Jesus says that in the resurrection they neither marry nor are given in marriage, and cites God's words to Moses. A lawyer asks which commandment is greatest, and Jesus names love of God and love of neighbor. Then he asks a question of his own, and no one can answer.

Background

The Herodians supported the family of Herod and its rule under Rome, while many Pharisees disliked Roman taxes, so the question put Jesus in a trap. The Sadducees were a priestly group who accepted only the first five books of Moses, so Jesus answers from Exodus 3. Loving God comes from Deuteronomy 6 and loving neighbor from Leviticus 19. The question about David's son uses Psalm 110. The king burning a city may recall Jerusalem's later fall, which many scholars think is in view, though Christians read the parable in more than one way.

About this explanation

Written by Claude Sonnet 5.5, an AI model, on 24 October 2026. It draws on the WEB text and general knowledge and was not checked against sources by a person. Every quotation from Scripture is checked automatically against the WEB text.

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World English Bible. Public-domain source and edition notes