A Story About a Wedding Feast

Jesus again used ·stories [parables] to teach them. He said,

“The kingdom of heaven is like a king who prepared a wedding ·feast [banquet] for his son.

When the ·feast [banquet] was ready, the king sent his servants to ·tell [inform; call] the people who had been invited, but they refused to come.

“Then the king sent other servants, saying, ‘Tell those who have been invited that my ·feast [banquet] is ready. I have killed my best ·bulls [or oxen] and [^Lfattened] calves for the dinner, and everything is ready. Come to the wedding ·feast [banquet].’

“After that, the king said to his servants, ‘The wedding ·feast [banquet] is ready. I invited those people, but they ·were not worthy [do not deserve] to come.

So go to the ·street corners [crossroads; or main roads] and invite everyone you find to come to my ·feast [banquet].’

Those Pharisees and teachers of the law love to have the ·most important seats [places of greatest honor] at ·feasts [banquets] and [^Lthe best seats] in the synagogues.

“So while ·the five foolish bridesmaids [^Lthey] went to buy oil, the bridegroom came. The bridesmaids who were ready went in with the bridegroom to the wedding feast. Then the door was ·closed and locked [^Lshut].

“You know that ·the day after tomorrow [^Ltwo days from now] is the day of the Passover Feast [^Cthe festival during which an unblemished lamb was sacrificed]. On that day the Son of Man will be ·given to his enemies [handed over] to be crucified.”

But they said, “We must not do it during the ·feast [Passover festival], because the people might cause a riot.”

Jesus Eats the Passover Meal

On the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the ·followers [disciples] came to Jesus. They said, “Where do you want us to prepare for you to eat the Passover meal?”

Pilate Tries to Free Jesus

Every year at the ·time of Passover [festival/feast] the governor would free [^Lfor the crowd] one prisoner whom the people chose.