²⁹ At midnight^(A) the Lord^(B) struck down all the firstborn^(C) in Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh, who sat on the throne, to the firstborn of the prisoner, who was in the dungeon, and the firstborn of all the livestock^(D) as well. ³⁰ Pharaoh and all his officials and all the Egyptians got up during the night, and there was loud wailing^(E) in Egypt, for there was not a house without someone dead.

The Exodus

³¹ During the night Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron and said, “Up! Leave my people, you and the Israelites! Go, worship^(F) the Lord as you have requested. ³² Take your flocks and herds,^(G) as you have said, and go. And also bless^(H) me.”

³³ The Egyptians urged the people to hurry^(I) and leave^(J) the country. “For otherwise,” they said, “we will all die!”^{(K) 34} So the people took their dough before the yeast was added, and carried it on their shoulders in kneading troughs^(L) wrapped in clothing. ³⁵ The Israelites did as Moses instructed and asked the Egyptians for articles of silver and gold^(M) and for clothing.^{(N) 36} The Lord had made the Egyptians favorably disposed^(O) toward the people, and they gave them what they asked for; so they plundered^(P) the Egyptians.

³⁷ The Israelites journeyed from Rameses^(Q) to Sukkoth.^(R) There were about six hundred thousand men^(S) on foot, besides women and children. ³⁸ Many other people^(T) went up with them, and also large droves of livestock, both flocks and herds. ³⁹ With the dough the Israelites had brought from Egypt, they baked loaves of unleavened bread. The dough was without yeast because they had been driven out^(U) of Egypt and did not have time to prepare food for themselves.

⁴⁰ Now the length of time the Israelite people lived in Egypt^[a] was 430 years.^{(V) 41} At the end of the 430 years, to the very day, all the Lord’s divisions^(W) left Egypt.^{(X) 42} Because the Lord kept vigil that night to bring them out of Egypt, on this night all the Israelites are to keep vigil to honor the Lord for the generations to come.^(Y)

Passover Restrictions

⁴³ The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “These are the regulations for the Passover meal:^(Z)

“No foreigner^(AA) may eat it. ⁴⁴ Any slave you have bought may eat it after you have circumcised^(AB) him, ⁴⁵ but a temporary resident or a hired worker^(AC) may not eat it.

⁴⁶ “It must be eaten inside the house; take none of the meat outside the house. Do not break any of the bones.^{(AD) 47} The whole community of Israel must celebrate it.

⁴⁸ “A foreigner residing among you who wants to celebrate the Lord’s Passover must have all the males in his household circumcised; then he may take part like one born in the land.^(AE) No uncircumcised^(AF) male may eat it. ⁴⁹ The same law applies both to the native-born and to the foreigner^(AG) residing among you.”

⁵⁰ All the Israelites did just what the Lord had commanded^(AH) Moses and Aaron. ⁵¹ And on that very day the Lord brought the Israelites out of Egypt^(AI) by their divisions.^(AJ)

The Parable of the Wedding Banquet^(A)

22 Jesus spoke to them again in parables, saying: ² “The kingdom of heaven is like^(B) a king who prepared a wedding banquet for his son. ³ He sent his servants^(C) to those who had been invited to the banquet to tell them to come, but they refused to come.

⁴ “Then he sent some more servants^(D) and said, ‘Tell those who have been invited that I have prepared my dinner: My oxen and fattened cattle have been butchered, and everything is ready. Come to the wedding banquet.’

⁵ “But they paid no attention and went off—one to his field, another to his business. ⁶ The rest seized his servants, mistreated them and killed them. ⁷ The king was enraged. He sent his army and destroyed those murderers^(E) and burned their city.

⁸ “Then he said to his servants, ‘The wedding banquet is ready, but those I invited did not deserve to come. ⁹ So go to the street corners^(F) and invite to the banquet anyone you find.’ ¹⁰ So the servants went out into the streets and gathered all the people they could find, the bad as well as the good,^(G) and the wedding hall was filled with guests.

¹¹ “But when the king came in to see the guests, he noticed a man there who was not wearing wedding clothes. ¹² He asked, ‘How did you get in here without wedding clothes, friend^(H)?’ The man was speechless.

¹³ “Then the king told the attendants, ‘Tie him hand and foot, and throw him outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’^(I)

¹⁴ “For many are invited, but few are chosen.”^(J)