The Parable of the Wedding Feast is one of the parables of Jesus and appears in the New Testament in Luke 14:7–14. It directly precedes the Parable of the Great Banquet in Luke 14:15–24.J. Dwight Pentecost, 1998 The parables of Jesus: lessons in life from the Master Teacher pages 85-86Luke by Sharon H. Ringe 1995 page 195 In the Gospel of Matthew, the parallel passage to the Gospel of Luke's Parable of the Great Banquet is also set as a wedding feast (Matthew 22:1–14).Aland, Kurt, ed. Synopsis of the Four Gospels: Completely Revised on the Basis of the Greek Text of the Nestle-Aland, 26th Edition, and Greek New Testament, 3rd Edition, English Edition. 1st ed. United Bible Societies, 1982. Print. pericope 216.
In New Testament times, a wedding was a very sacred and joyous thing. Some even lasted up to or more than a week. When Jesus told this parable, many people were able to understand the picture he was trying to create because he used a Jewish wedding – specifically, a Seudat Nissuin – as the setting of the story.
Luke 14:11 says "Every one that exalteth himself shall be humbled; but he that humbleth himself shall be exalted"; this saying is also found in Luke 18:14 and Matthew 23:12. It is similar to Matthew 18:4.
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Commentary Bede notes that in practice, "not every one who exalts himself before men is abased; nor is he who humbleth himself in their sight, exalted by them". So the parable must be "understood typically".Bede, quoted by Thomas Aquinas in Catena aurea: commentary on the four Gospels, collected out of the works of the Fathers: Volume 5, St. Luke, Part 2, p. 506, Oxford: Parker, 1874, accessed on 31 August 2025
The German theologian Friedrich Justus Knecht ( 1921) gives the typical Catholic interpretation of this parable:
Roger Baxter in his Meditations, reflects on this passage, writing:
See also Life of Jesus in the New Testament Luke 14 Ministry of Jesus Parable of the Faithful Servant Parable of the great banquet Parable of the Ten Virgins
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